Camp Hopson Department Store.

One of the oldest buildings in Newbury.

One of the irritating things in towns today is trees planted in front of buildings, making them difficult to photograph! These trees outside the Camp Hopson store are no exception.

This Newbury based department store was formed as a result of a merger. Alfred Camp’s Drapery Bazaar, which already occupied these buildings and J Hopson and Sons, which was on the corner of Northbrook Street and West Street joined forces around the time Paul Hopson married Norah Camp.

The twin-gabled building just on the left behind the tree has the date of 1663 engraved in the stonework. This replaced the former George Inn, after the site was purchased by a George Cowslade in 1658. The rainwater head just visible in this photograph bears the date 1790.

Camp Hopson remained independent until it was taken over as recently as 2014 by the Morleys Store Group. The store still retains a degree of independence. Further reading, see their website: www.camphopson.co.uk/about-camp-hopson.

Photograph Details:

• Taken: 3 June 2017
• Camera: Olympus OM-D E-M10 MkII
• Lens: Olympus 14-42 1:3.5-5.6
• Focal Length 14mm
• F/4
• 1/50 Sec
• ISO 200