Building    To 2008

Faraday Building North

Categories: Other

Faraday Building North (FBN) was built in the late 1800s as an extension to what was at the time the Post Office Savings Bank HQ. That was on the other side of Knightrider Street, facing onto Queen Victoria Street, the site now occupied by the 1950s 'Faraday Building'.

On an 1890s map FBN is labelled 'Controller’s Offices (London Telephone Service, GPO)'. A 1950s map shows that both the buildings, either side of Knightrider Street, had been enlarged eastwards to Godliman Street, engulfing their respective blocks. 

This rapid expansion is explained by telephones.  As this new technology was introduced and its use expanded, the GPO needed space to house the exchanges. FBN housed the City, Central, Long Distance and International Telephone Exchanges, 1902-82. As the technology developed and exchanges became automated the space was no longer neeeded. FBN was vacated in 1982 and (based on the July 2008 Google Street View) its demolition and replacement was not completed until 2008. 

The imposing Carter Lane entrance to the building (shown in this photo) was retained and re-erected on the 2008 replacement, in Addle Hill. Also in this photo you can see the railings which were also retained and re-erected on the Addle Hill frontage.

We'd just had the idea that surely there was a tunnel connecting these buildings (even if only for cables) when we spotted on the 1950s map 2 gray connections across Knightrider Street, both labelled 'FB', footbridge.  We still hope there was a tunnel!  For more (possible) tunnels see William Lyttle, the Mole man.

Sources: A London Inheritance (where you will find the maps), Light Straw (whom we thank for the photo).

Comments are provided by Facebook, please ensure you are signed in here to see them

This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Faraday Building North

Commemorated ati

Faraday Building North

An unusual amount of punctuation for a plaque.

Read More

Other Subjects

Roman warehouse

Roman warehouse

The picture source says "Near the Courage Brewery Site archaeologists found the complete wooden floor of a riverside warehouse. Nothing like this has been found anywhere else. The basement would ha...

Building, Commerce, Romans

1 memorial
Opening of the Audley Square Garage / car park

Opening of the Audley Square Garage / car park

This garage was erected by the Westminster City Council, architect Frank Risdon. In Summer 2009 an application for development was turned down.

Building, Transport

1 memorial
Crawdaddy Club

Crawdaddy Club

Music venue. Founded by Giorgio Gomelsky in the back room of the former Station Hotel in Richmond. The Rolling Stones, followed by the Yardbirds were the early house bands. The club's name came fro...

Building, Music / songs

1 memorial
Medieval bastion

Medieval bastion

First conserved in 1959 by the Ministry of Works when it was in the basement of the then new General Post Office.  The picture source is a report by the developers of the current building. 

Building, London Wall

1 memorial
St Nicholas Deptford

St Nicholas Deptford

A church has existed on the site since at least Saxon times. Work on the present building began in 1697 and was completed in 1714. It was virtually destroyed in an air-raid in World War II. The sku...

Building, Religion

1 memorial

Previously viewed

J. Howes

J. Howes

Resident of Willesden who volunteered and died in the Anglo Boer War, 1899-1900.

Person, Armed Forces, South Africa

War dead, Other war
1 memorial
David William Gobbett

David William Gobbett

Cinematographer. Younger brother of Thomas James Gobbett (1882-1915). David William Gobbett was born on 12 August 1884, the second of the seven children of David William Gobbert (1855-1929) and An...

Person, Cinema

1 memorial
Samuel Lewis

Samuel Lewis

Moneylender and philanthropist. A jew, born in a slum in Birmingham, who worked his way into being an established travelling jeweller by 1867, when he married and came with his wife, Ada, to London...

Person, Philanthropy

2 memorials
Richard Healy

Richard Healy

Sculptor active c. 1989 - 2001 at least.

Person, Sculpture

2 memorials