RE: Nechells - 10

pudding

The older I get the worse I get, I've even spelt, Scholefield St wrong. I wouldn't mind but I filed and tagged the photo correctly. You are I think bang on with the location and position of the photo and I hadn't noticed that Rocky Lane had been demolished. The photo is dated 1966, had they started demolishing Rocky Lane by then?

I just came across this picture and thought it may be of interest regarding the recent discussions in the Barrack Street area.
Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)

Lifted from this very informative website
http://www.midlandspubs.co.uk/birmingham/index.html

Volty

St James the Less in Barrack St, it used to be a house at one time owned by Dr John Ash who was a big noise at the Birmingham General Hospital when it opened. He donated it to the new district of Ashted to be used as a church.

I used to attend the Sunday School in Henry Street a few hundred yards away. The main reason being that they gave a free dinner after Sunday School. So we sung a few hymns and said a few prayers and we got fed a fair exchange.

The main church got bombed out during the war trapping quite a few people in the air raid shelter that the crypt was converted to during the war. I think they got them all out safely.

We used to play in the ruins as children and it must have been about 1960 before the ground was cleaned up and it was made into a park, they still have the tombstones that survived laid flat on the ground on the parkland and as far as I know the burials still remain underground.

I thought it was a funny looking church but I hadn't guessed it had been a house. Now I know it looks so obvious. It was quite some house.
I've driven past two sides of that area quite regularly for the last 36 years and have never given any thought to what was there.

Presumably the house/church was on the opposite side of street from the strange housing, which I suppose was the site of the barracks, and just up from the school.
It looks like a lot of the wall has survived and there are what could be gravestones amongst the trees. I will go and have a look next time I am up that way, assuming I won't get mugged.
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&ll=5...,20.44,,0,-3.41

Volty

If you want to view the gravestones without leaving your chair try this link,

http://brummages.blogspot.co.uk/2007_09_14_archive.html

I put Snygyst on to the fact that they were still there some years back and he went out and made a photographic record of them. I didn't realise it was so long ago. It's quite an interesting site in its own right.

Phil, You never cease to amaze me.

Two things strike me, the stones are older than I was expecting and some of them people were living to very ripe old ages.
As one of them was an MBE I wonder if they were all gentry and lived in better conditions than the peasants of the area, who probably couldn't afford stones anyway.

Volty
John Wain was a tailor with a fairly large shop (m 2 plot frontage) in Ashted Row.
The two John Swinfins were both tailors at Heneage St & Alum Park Road
Joshua Stubbs was a metal dealer in Saltley Road
Frederick William Burr was a furniture broker in Loveday St
That's taking some of the less common names for the period when they are likely to have been active.
But you should remember that probably "ordinary people " might not have been able to afford a gravestone at all, and these are quite elaborate ones , which are likely to have cost more

Volty

Ashted was a very posh area back in Georgian Times and before that, it was in the countryside. It was only when it started to go downhill in the Victorian Times that they started building slums and back to backs. Ashted Row & Great Brook St had some very posh houses.

I think Mikejee has been time travelling again.

Phil, I'm not sure if its in Nechells but I'm looking for a pic of Freeman Road, if you have one could you post it please. Thanks.
Lynne.

Lynne

Freeman Rd ran from Nechells Place to Fowler St see the map its just beloe the centre. I have sorted out what photos I have, I hope they are what you are looking for.

Thanks Phil, I had rellies that lived there up till at least 1955,according to the E.Polls and just wondered what it was like. Is it OK for me to save the pics to keep with my notes. Thanks again.
Lynne.

Lynne

You are welcome to do whatever you want with them, as long as it is not commercial use. I do not have the authority to give you that consent. Your rellies didn't leave there because of demolition because I would have thought that that didn't happen to Freeman Street for at least a good ten years after the date you give.

Phil, I dont know when they left Freeman Road, I've only got the Electoral rolls up till 1955, so they could have been there longer. Thanks for your help.
Lynne.

Lynne
The Midland historical data lists go up to 1960 now