Social History — 1929
Gate
One of two bronze gates at the entrance of the Firestone tyre factory in west London, opened in 1928. Wallis Gilberts & Partners designed the factory, one of several built along Great West Avenue in the late 1920s. The road was London's main arterial route to the west and had been planned for many years. The first section opened in 1925.
Firestone tyres closed the factory in November 1979 with the loss of 1,500 jobs. The 51-year-old factory was out of date, its production line designed for cross-ply tyres rather than the more modern radials.
Six months after closure, the flamboyant and jazzily decorated building, was controversially demolished by property developers Trafalgar House. The loss caused the government to rush through legal protection for London's other between-the-wars industrial landmarks: Battersea Power Station and the Hoover factory in Perivale.
- Category:
- Social History
- Object ID:
- 95.292/1a
- Object name:
- gate
- Object type:
- Artist/Maker:
- Wallis, Gilberts & Partners
- Related people:
- Related events:
- Related places:
- Production date:
- 1929
- Material:
iron, paint
- Measurements/duration:
- H 2660 mm, W 920 mm, D 160 mm, WT 750000g (overall)
- Part of:
- —
- On display:
- —
- Record quality:
- 100%
- Part of this object:
- —
- Owner Status & Credit:
Permanent collection
- Copyright holder:
digital image © London Museum
- Image credit:
- —
- Creative commons usage:
- —
- License this image:
To license this image for commercial use, please contact the London Museum Picture Library.