Aerial pictures of Watford town centre 35 years ago

Landmarks such as the YMCA and Watford Junction are clearly visible, but if you look closely you’ll see some businesses of the past including Clements and Sun Printers, while the Harlequin Centre was still in the relatively early stages of construction.

These pictures from our archive were taken by a Watford Observer photographer on September 6, 1988 during a hot air balloon trip over our area.

A view across the town centre (Image: Watford Observer)

Take a look through the 18 pictures on this page and see how many differences you can spot.

St Albans Road from above (Image: Watford Observer)

We’ll bring you some more great aerial images from our snapper’s journey later this week.

A view of Charter Place with Watford FC in the distance (Image: Watford Observer)

Looking towards the heart of Watford from the eastern part of town (Image: Watford Observer)

Looking down on the Town Hall (Image: Watford Observer)

Avenue car park from the sky 35 years ago (Image: Watford Observer)

Looking towards Watford Junction (Image: Watford Observer)

The Town Hall is in the bottom left of this picture (Image: Watford Observer)

The Ring Road winds its way into the distance (Image: Watford Observer)

Another view of the Ring Road (Image: Watford Observer)

Looking down on Watford Junction (Image: Watford Observer)

A train pulls into the station (Image: Watford Observer)

A view across town from the Cassiobury Estate (Image: Watford Observer)

Cassio Road and West Herts Sports Club in the foreground (Image: Watford Observer)

The playing fields behind Watford Grammar School for Boys (Image: Watford Observer)

Looking down on the canal (Image: Watford Observer)

The old Watford Fire Station and behind that is Sun Printers (Image: Watford Observer)