Top Ten pics from the JR James Archive

The University of Sheffield has put one of the most wonderful archives of photos online: pristine postwar modernism photographed and collected by J. R. 'Jimmy' James, former Professor of Town and Regional Planning and Chief Planner at the Ministry of Housing and Local Government. View the archive here.

It's a treasure trove of photos, maps and plans, for which we have to thank the tireless digitising by Philip Brown and Joseph Carr – MPlan graduates of the Department of Town and Regional Planning at the University of Sheffield. From the incredible archive I've chosen ten pics I particularly love, all of them (c) the University of Sheffield.

1. South East expansion sites, 1960s

2. Crawley industrial estate, 1971

3. Model of Runcorn town centre

4. Stevenage town centre, 1960s

5. Cumbernauld road bridge and block

6. Plans for the rebuilding of the North bank of the Thames, 1960s

7. Newcastle Haymarket plans, 1960s

8. University of East Anglia under construction

9. Hyde Park in Sheffield

10. The Hill, Coventry

J. R. 'Jimmy' James is not be confused with Jimmy James and the Vagabonds. But still, now is the time, eh?