Parliament Street before it had trees - 140 years of photos

Letter writers to The Press have commented about the uneven flagstones in Parliament Street, labelling them unsightly and a trip hazard, and blaming roots from the trees that currently line the thoroughfare.

One correspondent suggested removing the trees as a solution.

This promoted many readers to write to The Press in defence of the trees.

However, other readers have commented that trees were not always part of the Parliament Street street scene.

A bustling market in Parliament Street, York in 1934, when British Home Stores and Marks and Spencer stood next to each other. No trees in the street at this point.

One suggestion was to have potted plants and trees.

We decided to dip into our archives to see what Parliament Street has looked like through the ages.

The photos come from the excellent council archive, Explore York (images.exploreyork.org.uk), or from The Press's own photo files. The earliest dates from the 1880s.

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Read more:

* York's Parliament Street: 'Only remedy is to remove trees'

* Parliament Street trees: 'Don't fell them' - letters

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As you can see from our gallery of images - for most of the last 100 or so years, Parliament Street did not have rows of planted trees.

For the majority of that time, it was filled with cars, market stalls and shoppers.

The cars have gone, the market stalls are less frequent, and the shoppers are still a daily occurrence.

You can see from our photo that for a spell - in the 1970s - trees and shrubs were in place, but in pots and containers rather than planted in the ground.

Parliament Street in York in 1975 - with trees and shrubs in pots

Parliament Street underwent a major refurbishment in the early 1990s when £1.3m was spent turning it into a pedestrianised zone. During this time the 'splash palace' pubic toilets were built and the central fountain. Both have since been demolished.

It was during this time that the trees - London planes - were planted too.

If you have been to Parliament Street recently, you will have noticed that the trees have been pollarded - their high branches drastically cut back.

This is a procedure that is carried out every five years to encourage healthy growth and stop the branches getting too heavy.

So the trees have been part of the York street scene for almost 30 years.

What is your view on the trees of Parliament Street? Join the conversation in our Facebook group, Why We Love York - Memories, or write us a letter. Email: letters@thepress.co.uk.