THIS was the site of the Clarendon Centre in December 1954.

Before it was a shopping centre, the plot off Cornmarket Street had been home to Oxford's famous Clarendon Hotel.

Before that the building had been a coaching inn, The Star for at least 400 years until 1863, when it changed its name.

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Then, in 1939, the Clarendon was bought by Woolworth & Co, and the famous hotel was finally knocked down in 1954, as can be seen here, to make way for – a Woolworths.

After all that effort, the store only stayed for 30 years, before it, too, was demolished to make way for the shopping centre.

History does not record how many injuries were sustained during the hotel demolition as a result of the contemporary health and safety standards...

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