Great St Mary’s Passage Cambridge c.1890
Great St Mary's Passage and Great St Mary's Church, Cambridge, from an elevated viewpoint c.1890.
These photographs are of a previously unpublished Victorian photograph album acquired at auction in Ely in 2026. It is one of a series documenting Cambridge and locations throughout Cambridgeshire.
You can the full album by clicking HERE.
Great St Mary's Passage and Great St Mary's Church, Cambridge, from an elevated viewpoint. MBHPC-026
Photograph 026
Reference: MBHPC-026
Title: Great St Mary's Passage and Great St Mary's Church, Cambridge, from an elevated viewpoint.
Identification: Great St Mary's Passage, Great St Mary's Church and the Senate House, Cambridge.
Confidence: Confirmed (99%)
Location: Great St Mary's Passage, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire.
Date: c.1880–1910 (subject to refinement).
Photographer: Unknown.
Photographic Process: Gelatin silver print (probable).
Description: An elevated view looking south-east along Great St Mary's Passage. The south side of Great St Mary's Church dominates the right-hand side of the image, with its arcaded elevation and tower clearly visible. Beyond the passage, the east elevation of the Senate House can be seen in the distance. The churchyard itself contains young trees and grave stones/monuments, while the façade of the building from which the photograph was taken frames the left-hand side of the composition.
Notes: This photograph forms part of a sequence of elevated views of Cambridge city centre, including MBHPC-024 and MBHPC-025. The viewpoint appears to have been from an upper floor of a building on the eastern side of Market Hill. Current evidence suggests that 30 Market Hill is the most likely location, although this has not yet been conclusively confirmed.
Together, these photographs provide an unusual series of elevated documentary views of Cambridge's historic commercial and civic centre, capturing both the marketplace and the surrounding streetscape during the late Victorian or Edwardian period.
Great St Mary's Passage c.1890. MBHPC-044
Photograph 044
Reference: MBHPC-044
Title: View across Great St Mary's churchyard towards King’s Parade, Cambridge.
Identification: Confirmed view across the churchyard of Great St Mary's Church towards King’s Parade, photographed from an upper-storey window overlooking St Mary's Passage.
Confidence: Confirmed (100%)
Location: St Mary's Passage, Great St Mary's Church, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire.
Date: c.1880–1910 (subject to refinement).
Photographer: Unknown.
Photographic Process: Gelatin silver print (probable).
Description: View taken from an elevated position, probably an upper-storey window overlooking St Mary's Passage, looking across the churchyard of Great St Mary's Church towards the buildings of Gonville and Caius College. The south porch of Great St Mary's appears at the right-hand edge of the photograph, while the churchyard is enclosed by iron railings and planted with young trees. Several bicycles are visible leaning against the railings, illustrating the everyday use of the churchyard during the late Victorian or Edwardian period.
Notes: This photograph forms a companion view to MBHPC-026, depicting the same scene from a very similar elevated viewpoint. The two photographs were almost certainly taken from the same building overlooking St Mary's Passage, recording the appearance of Great St Mary's churchyard and the surrounding university buildings during the late nineteenth or early twentieth century.
The photographs within the album
Part of the Michelle Bullivant Victorian Photograph Collection (MBHPC), comprising previously unpublished photographs from a Victorian album purchased at auction in Ely in 2026.
© Michelle Bullivant. Image from the Victorian Photograph Album Collection. Please contact the author before reproducing.
While I have identified many of the locations, some remain uncertain. If you recognise a place, can help identify a building, date a photograph, or have any other information to add, I would be delighted to hear from you.
Simply scroll to the bottom of this page and leave a comment in the box provided. Your knowledge could help solve some of these little historical mysteries and add to our understanding of Cambridgeshire's rich past.
If you have enjoyed exploring this collection and would like to support the work that I do to rescue, preserve and share local history collections such as this, you can do so by clicking your preferred donation button at the bottom of this page.
Every contribution, however small, helps me continue saving, researching and making these remarkable pieces of Cambridgeshire's history freely available for everyone to enjoy.