Carfax
Carfax, looking west from the High Street towards Carfax Tower and Queen Street.
St Aldate’s Street is on the left and Cornmarket on the right
For more information on the medieval church tower that survives at Carfax,
its quarter boys, and the gateway to the right with the statue of St Martin,
see this detailed page about St Martin's Church
Carfax is the ancient heart of Oxford: its name is derived from Quadrifurcus, where the four roads leading from the four city gates all meet. It is dominated by the thirteenth-century church tower of the former St Martin’s Church, the main part of which was rebuilt in 1820 and then demolished in 1896 in order to widen the street.
Above: Frith & Co postcard 71997, showing a photograph of Carfax taken in 1922.
On the left is Boffin's the baker
(described as new in the Oxford Chronicle for 11 October 1884 and now replaced by Marygold House).
The bus about to come out of Queen Street advertises J. Sainsbury's, then at 4 High Street
Left: Carfax, looking east, c.1920
