During the latter half of the 19th century, horse buses were the most popular way to get around London. These oversized carriages pulled by two horses, with basic seating on top of the carriage, ran to strict timetables and could be hailed anywhere along their route. They were eventually replaced by motorised buses in 1899, but when this photo was taken in the 1890s London had over 2,000 horse buses and a small army of grooms, blacksmiths and saddlers to keep them going.

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