A hundred years ago Watford was one main street and hardly anything else, apart from the palatial homes of the Earls of Essex and Clarendon. It is now one of the most important industrial and commercial centres of Hertfordshire, though it fell victim to a wholesale developmentin its historic centre. The grandest building was Cassiobury House with its extensive park, from the 17th century until the First World War the home of the Earls of Essex. The house is now gone, but much of the park is still enjoyed by the public.
Watford's transition from quiet market town in the shadow of St Albans to a bustling conurbation and commuter town is told with the aid of many illustrations, many of which have not been published before.
245 x 185mm (hardback with 144 illustrations) 144 pages
Published 2005
