Newspaper House

This is where I will be going later today, to pay my newspaper subscription. It is called Newspaper House, and is home to the Eastern Province Herald which was Established in 1845. It is right in the heart of old Port Elizabeth, next to the Market square where the City Hall overlooks Main Street (now called Govan Mbeki Ave, after the late father of our current president, Thabo Mbeki.)

This is the view of the back of the building, showing the newer sections that were added on as the Newpaper business expanded. On the right is part of the old Post Office Building, which is the same one you see Max standing in front of in yesterday's post. Click if you need to see it bigger.

I used to dread having to go to this part of town, it was practically a no-go area unless you were some sort of masochist who enjoyed being mugged, while your car was being broken into.

Thankfully that situation is changing fast, and it is a treat to be able to go back there and feel safe while wandering around amongst these lovely old buildings.

A huge urban renewal project is underway, the streets are being patrolled, and the citzens of PE are taking our city centre back from the criminals who used to treat it as their own personal turf!

These pictures show how the market square looked at the beginning of last Century, and as it looks today. A real mess at the moment, but the construction is a good sign that our Town Council is committed to maintaining this area and not letting it continue to decay.
To the left is the City Hall, Newspaper House is the furthest one, in the centre of the picture, to the left of the streetlight. And to the right of it is the Feathermarket Hall, which Max wrote about recently in his Ostrich post. The golden coloured building on the far right is the beautiful Main Library Building .