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).
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