COMMUNITY
THEN & NOW - St Dunstan’s College From The Air, 1886 This extraordinary aerial photograph shows St Dunstan’s College under construction, circa 1886, and is almost certainly the earliest photograph of the College in existence. It is one of 76 photographs (mostly of south east London) taken from a hot air balloon by Cecil Victor Shadbolt between 1882 and 1892. They are the earliest known aerial photographs to be taken in the UK. The ‘Catford Bridge’ train line can be seen running across the top of the photo (the ‘Catford’ line was not built until the 1890s). The Shadbolt Collection of 76 glass lantern slides
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was found at a car boot sale and subsequently purchased at auction by Historic England in 2015. They can all be viewed on their website, which is well worth a visit. On 29 June 1892, Shadbolt took a flight in a gas balloon owned by his friend ‘Captain’ William D. Dale, at Crystal Palace. The balloon ripped during the initial ascent, at around 600 feet, and though those aboard dropped ballast, the basket crashed to the ground, immediately killing Dale. Shadbolt and the other passengers were taken to Norwood Cottage Hospital, but Shadbolt died on 8 July, aged 33. He is buried at West Norwood Cemetery.
