https://peertube.dngr.us/videos/watch/0d2784fd-28ec-4624-af7d-a157805a4600 “Strange Places and Strange Faces” is an amateur travelogue and early film history treasure by San Francisco based Edison mimeograph dealer; Ward Harris. It is one of two films captured by Ward featuring a pre-WW2 UK. Ward was a collector of all things related to Edison. He managed several traveling exhibits and maintained an inventory of over 50,000 items including phonographs, batteries, light bulbs, Edison toasters and other electrical equipment. His collection was dispersed following his death in the 1950’s. This film and it’s companion are the only two by Harris that survived. It features ‘Ediphone Voice Writing;’ early Edison technology. Parts of the film were likely narrated by Harris though this is a silent copy. It begins with iconic images of England’s past including Stonehenge, Old Sarum, Bath and the Tower of London. Low angle views within the city, country and along the coast capture a real feel of the English culture. Double decker buses drive down Cockspur Street, Harris feeds pigeons in Trafalgar Square, farmers tend fields, a funeral procession parades for a fellow deceased and locals help a boat land ashore. It shows businesses of the country’s past namely Meadow Dairy Co. LTD., F.W. Woolworth and Judges LTD. Other sights include Chester’s East Gate Clock, Torpoint Ferry, Gower Monument, Albert Memorial, Palace of Westminster, Warwick Castle, Buckingham Palace and Fountains Abbey. (Note: this film would have been narrated by Harris himself, probably on an Edison recording; but this version of the film is silent and we do not have the recording to accompany it sad to say). 00:00 Narration was recorded using Ediphone Voice Writing (:13). The Ediphone ultimately enabled faster business communication and revolutionized office productivity by allowing executives to record memo’s anytime and typists to work on the transcripts later. A microphone connected to a cutting head etched grooves onto a rotating wax cylinder. The title screen (:23) and a credit to Harris follow (1:10). The Palace of Westminster (1:22) precedes Stonehenge (1:30) in Wiltshire. The Old Sarum (2:39-2:58); one of Salisbury’s earliest settlements, includes an Iron Age hill fort, a medieval royal castle and the foundation of the original Salisbury Cathedral. The historic Austin Seven produced between 1922 and 1939 (3:10) appears. Scenes tour the Roman baths of Bath Somerset, England (3:22) including statues (3:28) depicting Roman figures along the Minerva head from the original temple. A royal guardsmen (4:02) patrols the Tower of London. The Royal Coat of Arms (4:21), Bloody Tower (4:33) and Tower Green (4:49); the site of Queen Anne Boleyn,’s execution follow. Caernarfon Castle (6:04-8:09) a medieval fortress built by King Edward I stands in North Whales. Double decker buses on Cockspur Street, the Grand Trunk Railway Building (8:52), Carlton Hotel (9:16), a Spillers delivery truck (9:24), Londoners posing and Harris feeding pigeons in Trafalgar Square (9:56) follow. Nelson’s column (10:26) and lion sculptures (10:36) precede a horse and buggy near town shops in St. Leonards-on-Sea in East Sussex (10:46). A Class V train of the Great Northern Railway (11:24) runs through rural lands (11:35). Torpoint Ferry (11:48) joins Cornwall’s Torpoint with Devon’s Devonport over the Hamoaze. Shots flick between a flute man (12:05) and cats chewing on corn (12:07) . A Chinese man makes an Ediphone Mimeograph (13:09). An Ashington Co. LTD delivery driver precedes (13:21) farmers harvesting hay (13:28). Stratford-upon-Avon’s Tudor half-timbered buildings (13:45), Chester’s East Gate Clock (13:52), F.W. Woolworth’s popular retail outlet (14:24), St. Werburgh Cathedral (14:33) and a traffic cop follow (14:45). A funeral procession (15:50) precedes locals assisting a boat ashore (16:05-17:38). Boaters and fishermen take to stone harbors (18:16-19:39). A skilled artisan trims a traditional thatched roof house (20:58) common of areas such as Devon. Harris tours the Gower Monument of Bancroft Gardens (21:52), Albert Memorial of Kensington Gardens (22:19), Palace of Westminster (22:31), Warwick Castle (24:44) and Windsor Castle (26:24). The Changing of the Guard Ceremony at Buckingham Palace (27:39-30:43) and ruins of Fountains Abbey in North Yorkshire (32:25-33:12) conclude the film. Motion picture films don't last forever; many have already been lost or destroyed. We collect, scan and preserve 35mm, 16mm and 8mm movies -- including home movies, industrial films, and other non-fiction. If you have films you'd like to have scanned or donate to Periscope Film, we'd love to hear from you. Contact us via the link below. This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD and 2k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1m3zJY3McCU Mirrored from Periscope Film (https://www.youtube.com/@PeriscopeFilm) Fri, 12 Jun 2026 03:28:21 GMT https://validator.w3.org/feed/docs/rss2.html PeerTube - https://peertube.dngr.us https://peertube.dngr.us/lazy-static/avatars/41a6fee9-7f57-42d0-a5fc-5db4f1af2e31.png https://peertube.dngr.us/videos/watch/0d2784fd-28ec-4624-af7d-a157805a4600 All rights reserved, unless otherwise specified in the terms specified at https://peertube.dngr.us/about and potential licenses granted by each content's rightholder.