WE'VE jumped a few years from our nostalgia image on Wednesday, which showed the junction of Ainsworth Street and Salford in Blackburn and the Wilpshire bus terminus, 50 years and more ago.

In this new image from 1963, Holme Street has disappeared and so has the Bay Horse Hotel, the building with the circular frontage, which had long played a part in the life of the town centre.

As the re-development of the town began, one of the first jobs was to culvert the Blakewater, whose waters had run openly through the streets.

Here, on the left is the new river bed, next to the old cobbled course on the right and the construction work which had closed Salford - the town's busiest traffic spot - was a constant source of interest for the hundreds of people who passed by daily.

The new bed was built not just as part of a flood prevention scheme, but also to allow for the building of new markets for the town when completed.

Then the 'bridgehead' would be driven further into Railway Road, while new subways would also be built to aid pedestrians wanting to cross the newly expanded roadways.

The White Bull Hotel, stands tall on the corner of Railway Road and Church Street.