8 photographs from The Press archives

The occasion was the Ebor meeting of 1908 - and judging by our photograph, the transport of choice for those going to the races in those days was the horse-drawn cab.

At least we assume they are cabs, unless a reader who knows better can put us right? It is nice to imagine these clip-clopping their way through town towards Knavesmire: though no doubt they left their own form of pollution in the form of horse droppings in their wake...

From horse-drawn cabs to cars - and a photograph illustrating that York's city centre parking problems aren't new. 'Car Park full' says the notice draped across the rear number plate of one of the cars parked in Exhibition Square in 1957.

The statue of William Etty - looking oddly pristine - watches over all, but we particularly like the chauffeur leaning at ease against the flank of a car in the centre of our picture.

There is an especially poignant feel to the photograph below of dispirited-looking men in flat caps gathered outside York's Ministry of Labour Employment Exchange in Parliament Street.

There was no date on the caption to this photograph, but look closely at the poster tacked to the employment exchange's window, and you can see that it says 'Unemployment Insurance, Easter 1932'.

This was the Great Depression, then. Given that we are just coming out of the worst recession since then, many readers today will no doubt sympathise with the dejected body language of those in the picture.

The photograph of the children's ward at the old Yearsley Bridge Hospital is equally revealing.

Taken in the 1950s, it shows children in bed, the floor scattered with toys - among them what appears to be a giant snail with a saddle on its back - and, behind the bed the little girl is sitting up in, an 'iron lung'. This would have been used for children suffering from polio - a horrible disease almost wiped out today in much of the world thanks to vaccination, but all too common then.

Other photographs show the old Electric Cinema in Fossgate in 1949; the York Co-op in George Hudson Street in 1972; and George Street Bar in July 1961. "Traffic is being diverted until restoration work ... is completed," says the caption.

"Stonemasons are replacing weathered stonework with re-cut old stones and the structure is being cement-grouted."

And finally, perhaps the most startling image of this week's selection, we have... the Dalek Invasion of York.

It was taken in April 1988 when a Dalek was, apparently, bringing traffic to a standstill in Tower Street. But what on earth was it doing there? Do any readers remember?

* We welcome contributions from readers to Yesterday Once More. However, we would ask you not to send in original old photographs, as we cannot guarantee that these will be returned. If you have old photographs or documents you would like to share with us, either send copies, or contact Stephen Lewis on 01904 567263 (email stephen.lewis@nqyne.co.uk).