RE: Balsall Heath, Sparkbrook. - 3

Custard Factory, Many Thanks SB and Phil, sorted as they say.
I'll keep my whits about me,
PJ.

Thanks Denise, the drowning I was thinking of was in town, and not as long ago as that.
PJ.

For the bulk of my teenage years I lived in Sparbrook, just off the Highgate rd in Larches St. It was like many of the other streets around there nondescript in its appearance. Even though I have many happy memories of these times, though it saddens me that most of my relations from those days are now gone.

I mention this now because I see we have a new member Toady. that I happen to know lived in the area. As she is new to the site I am sure you will all make her welcome when she says hello.

Phil

June

To continue what I was saying on the other thread. I don't remember your mom & dad that well or even yourself I'm afraid you are just a vague memory I remember the name but thats just about all.

I'm going to see David next week, I'll see if he can remember your Mom & Dad. He's 7 years older than me so he should. The trouble is since he had his last stroke he has good and bad days with his memory.

I remember your next door neighbour well Mr Davis and his old Mayflower car. It was old then but he kept it like a new pin. I remember him talking to my granddad and describing Ben as a little monster and me as a little gentleman (I think I told you Ben and I were the same age). We had just had a fight in the street and granddad had come out to break it up. I suppose we would have been about 8 or 9 because granddad died not long after that.

Phil

Hi Phil
I remember David I think his wife was called Margaret and they moved next to the Warwick further down Larches Street although they were older than me. They lived next door to an elderly lady called Rose.
I remember the Davies had an Austin A30 Black the number was SOE 493 I dont know why I remember that then they had a Morris Minor VAB ???. do you remember their daughter Betty she went out with a policeman from Edward Road Police station I went with Mrs Davies to give him a message they told me they were going to lock me up in a cell, I cried all the way home and mom went mad. I might add the policeman was one of many boyfriends she had!!!

Hi June

Thats right, Margaret died a few months ago from the dreaded big C. I don't think David hardly realised. The old girl next door was Rosie Carpenter, she lived to be a good old age. I don't think she died until about 1980 or thereabouts. Yes I vaguely remember Betty Davis (sounds like a film star).

I have a very vague memory of my father building a wall in a back garden on your side of the road. It must have been about 1955. I don't suppose that was your house was it?

If you were there in 68 you would remember the Jags parked outside the house, well Benny's and Johnny's anyway. I don't think I was there then as that was pretty much the time I was travelling around the country by thumb.

Phil

Phil

Hi Phil

You have just changed my name to Rose, sorry I always seem to be apologising to you, sorry about Margaret, I do remember the Jags parked up, which school did you go to Dennis Road? you obviously studied history with all the knowledge you have on the area.
No one had a lot but everyone spoke to each other and looked out for each other do you remember when the Davies moved cant remember where to then we had Indians move in next door.

Sorry about that June, I must have had old Rose Carpenter on my mind. Yes I went to Dennis Rd. I think Benny and me were the only two lads out of the family that did. Mind you Johnny did for a short while but he was only like adopted family.

Remembering Larches St always used to make me laugh when I saw the programme Bread on television because it reminded me so much of outside no 17. There was never enough room for all the cars and vans and occasional lorry. It was fist home, first one to get a parking place.

Yes Larches Street was like every working class neighbourhood of those days a real community spirit we didn't need any community halls in those days.

I'll see if I can look out some more local photos from the old days.

Phil

Hi June

Managed to find these couple of photos, One is of David and I in our Sunday best at work not long after we had started up business. I look at that photo and look back and think I only looked about thirteen there but I was a married man with two kids by then.

The other photo is of my Aunt Diane and David's wife Margaret some years later when we were on holiday in Jersey.

Terrible photos but I don't seem to have that many from that time in my life, so all are precious no matter how poor they are.

Phil

Hi Phil

Thanks for the photos David and Margaret are just as I remember them, not being rude but Diane looks slimmer than I remember and I am really sorry but I thought you looked more like Benny than on the photo.

The wall that your dad built was not in our garden, it may have been in Davies when he took all his chicken pens down that was the other side of the garden, the side he shared with Carters do you remember he was site forman when they built the flats your Nan moved to and the new houses in Long Street.

When we moved house we left packing boxes in the garage and a mouse took it upon himself to nibble my photos I have salvaged some but they are in the loft and not sure what there is, if I ever get organised I will have a look for them.

June

For anybody else who hails from the Balsall Heath - Sparkbrook area. A little view of the Highgate Rd end of Ladypool Rd. One of the best shopping roads in the area full of the sort of shops you found before supermarkets took over our lives.

You can see Bakers (the butchers) and Woolworths next to woollies are two shops that I am sure was Peacocks at one time.

Bakers was alright as a butchers shop, but we used Jack Morris's further up the Lane as did most people who were brought up in the area. You could trust Jack and the meat was always best quality.

I used to travel from Solihull to buy my meat from Jacks shop right up until he ceased to trade there.

Phil

I think I made an error, when I said the shops next to Woolworths on the Lane was Peacocks. I was reading something today and I now think that Woolworth took over Peacocks building when they moved out. Surprising how the old memory fails you as you get older.

Phil

Looking at some of the old houses and buildings in the area I can imagine it was quite a place in its heyday.

SB

There are some wonderful old houses in Balsall Heath, before your ancestors started letting us peasants in it was quite a posh place. But when we started putting our hovels up you lot moved further out to the fields and pastures of the outskirts of the city. Those far flung places like Moseley and Edgbaston.

Phil

But they couldn't live with your lot could they?.