Office of Old King Coal |
Strawbery Banke Presents
HISTORIC PORTSMOUTH #88
With energy costs rising coal is making a comeback, In Portsmouth in 1900 it was the fuel of choice. This rare photo offers a murky look inside the office of Gray & Prime. The half-hull ship models on the wall show the firm’s connection to the sea. Originally EF Sise & Co, importers of crockery and glass, the company began importing "sea coal" in 1831. The picture also shows a letterpress, two gas-lit rolltop desks and coal samples.
HISTORIC PHOTOS of the Greater Portsmouth Area appear here weekly
From HISTORIC PORTSMOUTH
Early Photographs from the Collections of Strawbery Banke
by James L. Garvin & Susan Grigg, Peter Randall Publisher
(c) Strawbery Banke Museum . All rights reserved
SEE ALSO: Coal Pocket Workers