Grand Central Hotel left a shell after huge aid raid on Portsmouth

Before the Second World War there were several large hotels in Portsmouth, but many fell victim to the German blitz.
By The Newsroom
Published 11th Mar 2016, 06:01 BST
The grand facade of the Central Hotel, Commercial Road, PortsmouthThe grand facade of the Central Hotel, Commercial Road, Portsmouth
The grand facade of the Central Hotel, Commercial Road, Portsmouth

One of them was the Central Hotel on the corner of Commercial Road and Edinburgh Road. It was destroyed on the night of January 10/11, 1941.

Here we see the hotel in its prime.

It was no doubt used by travelling salesmen who came to sell their wares to the many businesses along Commercial Road. The stone and brick building was a short walk from the Town Station.

The Central Hotel just after the end of the war completely wrecked during the blitz of January 10/11, 1941. The Halifax Building Society building to the left survived.The Central Hotel just after the end of the war completely wrecked during the blitz of January 10/11, 1941. The Halifax Building Society building to the left survived.
The Central Hotel just after the end of the war completely wrecked during the blitz of January 10/11, 1941. The Halifax Building Society building to the left survived.
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On the right is the hotel in the 1920s or ’30s with a horse-drawn draper’s van outside. From the room above the main entrance to the left a woman looks out of the window.

The bottom picture shows the remains of the hotel after that devastating raid. There is no record of anyone being killed at the hotel during the war. The Halifax Building Society, just out of shot on the left, appeared to have survived undamaged.

Immediately below is the same location today. Four shops have replaced the hotel. Does anyone remember when one of these was the Golden Egg cafe?

Related topics:Portsmouth