Amidst the dust and grime of a Beckenham loft, relics of an unknown family’s past have been uncovered. DAVID MILLS investigates.

WEDDING photos believed to date back to the start of the last century have been found by a family.

Philip Canty and his two daughters were sorting through their loft at their home in Ravenscroft Road, Beckenham, when they came across two black and white photos.

They show two different weddings, possibly involving members of the same family, thought to have happened in the early 1900s.

Mr Canty, aged 52, believes one of them took place across the road at St Michael and All Angels Church.

He is now trying to trace relatives of the families, who he thinks may still live in the area.

The father-of-two said: “Those people in that picture, even children, are going to be dead, but they must have family out there somewhere.

“I would not be surprised if some of them are local.

“Somewhere out there there’s a family to be reunited with that picture, that’s all I would like to happen to it.

“I’m sure that they must have a lot of sentimental value to their families.”

Mr Canty, an educational consultant, says it must have been a very grand occasion.

He said: “The kids have page boy collars and even the young children look like old women.

“Some of the men have brylcreemed hair with a parting you could drive down.

“This was not a cheap wedding, they were dressed up to the nines.”

Despite the age of the photos, they are still in good condition.

Mr Canty said: “One of the pictures is in almost perfect condition, and the other has faded and started to peel slightly.

“There is a faded name on the back of one of the pictures, and an address which we can’t quite make out.

“The other photo is slightly different where you can see the backs of houses and see people hanging out of their windows looking down on the wedding.”

There are about 40 people in both pictures with the bride and groom in the centre.

On the border around both of the photos, Mr Canty’s eldest daughter Sophie, noticed typing that read “Photographed by the USA Studios London”.

After doing some research on the internet, she discovered that the company which was based in Camberwell and Peckham, had shut down many years ago.

On the back of the photos, which are mounted on card, there is some ambiguous handwriting that reads: “Mr Tallis/Falls, 10/60/18 Kenton/Fenton/Penton Place”.

Mr Canty, who has lived in Ravenscroft Road for 22 years, added: “I would not be surprised if the photos have been up in our loft for nearly 100 years.”

Can you unlock some of the secrets and help reunite the photos with the families’ relatives? Call the News Shopper on 01689 885711.