Thames Street Directories: 1903 example A & G Price Ltd

Yes, I admit it. I am obsessed by Street Directories. They tell you so much about a town and the people who lived within it. With Thames we see people moving regularly around the town, from one rented house to another. Streets are some years thriving shopping centres eg. Owen and Mary Streets; subsequent years find them almost deserted or turned into entirely residential areas.

There is am index of some of these at the Thames Resource web pages, The Treasury at Thames has an ever growing collection of the directories and they are able to be browsed in their entirety at Ancestry.

Many years have a house by house location, so you can pinpoint approximately where people lived, whereas others are arranged alphabetically.  The delightful part is the advertisements that are included for many of the businesses of the time. Below are some examples and a full page advertisement placed by A & G PRICE.