Ribble at Preston (c.1901)

An afternoon's boating in the River Ribble at Edwardian Preston.

Crowds of men, women and children, in their Sunday best, mess about in boats on the River Ribble, with the London and North Western Railway bridge visible in the mid-distance. Many of those not rowing wave for the camera. The embankment is as busy as the water, so presumably this is a Sunday or a holiday. Either way, these Edwardians were enjoying a boom in leisure time.