Dunstable's Changing History

Dunstable, once a stagecoach centre, then a hat making town, and lately a major base for printing and vehicle manufacture, is once again reinventing itself to adapt to a changing world. Dunstable Through Time, based on the popular ''Yesteryear'' series published each week in the Dunstable Gazette, contains a wide selection of historic photographs alongside pictures of the corresponding scenes today. The continuing transformation is astonishing.

Chickens once roamed where a roundabout stands today. The Gary Cooper pub is on a park where the film star played ''cowboys and indians''. A school''s nature pond marks the spot where parents dug an open-air swimming pool. Vast factories and three civic halls have vanished and houses now cover the site of the California ballroom. This book enables newer Dunstablians to explore the town''s history through a fascinating selection of photographs.