handsworth school photographs

[gingerjon]

Note. The photos on this thread are missing. Please let the Mods team know if you have copies and we shall replace them. Thanks.



two old Handsworth school photographs St Mary's circa 1922 and Rookery road 1923 my Mom was at Rookery road in 1923 but alas it's only boys, look at the attendance list on the blackboard
I wonder if Beryl can help with St Mary's :redface: I know you would be to young to attend this class

 

[Catkin]

Thank you

Thank you for those, i see they all have striped ties on must have been part of their iniform.......Cat..

 

[Wendy]

Lovely photos once again John! Thanks for posting them.

 

[dottieau]

What lovely photos John, thats what I love about this forum is all the lovely old pictures.

 

[Charlie]

St Marys

I went to St. Mary's School in Churchill Road - but that photo was a little before my time even!
I was there 1946 - 1952 and it was a wonderful school. I remember Mr. Stanley in my last class, his accuracy with throwing the blackboard rubber must have been honed through years of practice. My mom worked in Handsworth Park restaurant and the teachers often went there for their lunch, so I had no chance of getting away with anything. Every Wednesday we had to go to St. Mary's Church, this being a Church of England School. I was baptised there as well. The school didn't do school dinners, so I had to walk to Westiminster Road School for my dinner every day after my mom left home in 1949. Last time I was down that way, St Mary's School was a Muslim Centre, but the building looked exactly the same. After I left, St. Mary's left Churchill Road to a building in Hutton Road, near the Paragon Laundry.

 

[Oisin]

It seems to have moved around quite a bit as it is now on Hamstead Road, up a bit and on the opposite side to the church and just down a bit from the Endwood. My grandson went to the nursery there.

 

[Catkin]

Training

Charlie,
Do you think that they were trained with regard to Blackboard rubber and chalk throwing, one of our teachers was a dab hand too...Cat...

 

[Charlie]

I'd heard that the school had moved to Hamstead Road, Oisin. Presumably it's a much bigger site now - is the Endwood still there? It's (was) sitting on valuable real estate land I should think.
I reckon that blackboard rubber and chalk throwing was in the teacher training manual at that time, Cat! Couldn't do it now...oh no!!!:shocked:

 

[Oisin]

Yup, the Endwood's still there. There have been some rumours that it will be redeveloped into social housing but I think they've been reversed. There was recently a bit of a gun battle there between two rival drug gangs, the ones involved in the murders of the two girls in Aston on New Year's Eve a couple of years ago.
Things certainly ain't what they used to be.

 

[edhu]

Family Names

Hughan
Edmunds

 

[edhu]

Re: St Marys

I went to St. Mary's to look for a relatives grave last week.All the graves were covered in brambles and ivy; it was impossable to get near them. A lot of the headstones had fallen over...the whole place was sinister and depressing.

 

[Astonian]

HI John;
just lokrd at the school pics very nice ; i was wondering whether or not to asked you a silly question ;
would there been many private schools in and aroud handsworth in the thirtys or be fore that
where they wore a special uniform like the straw hat ;if so is it possible you or any body else could track a couple of names for them i think in the area of the top end of the soho rd b the church
where the traffic lights are today i beleive my mothers grand parents lived in a big house possible around the hamstead rd part i can only presume that area
please forgive me if its a silly question best wishes astonion ;;

 

[SarahHolmes]

The picture of St Mary's is very interesting, my Granddad's older brother would have been there then.

We have this picture from a few years later (not sure of the date but granddad was born in 1920 and you'll see he's pointed out in the picture (it's marked Gal, short for Garnet)).

 

[Oisin]

"Preserve your memories, they're all that's left you..." - Paul Simon.

I think we all know what you mean by your nostalgia but, to be blatantly candid, I think you're better with your memories rather than seeing the reality of the changes as I'm willing to guess they'd make you cry.

 

[Jayell]

Hi Walsallie - I also used to go to Treggie's when I was little. Would have been in the early 1940s. You reminded me of the uniform colours which I had forgotten, green and yellow My sister seems to remember more about the school than I do. We both went from there to Soho College, which was another private school on Soho Hill. (See Handsworth Kindergarten & Prep school thread here https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/for...h-kindergarten-prep-school.48014/#post-597348)

Astonian - At Soho College, we also used to wear a straw boater in the summer! Only when necessary though. I always took mine off out of the school vicinity. The uniform was a brown gymslip with a sash of either blue or red (depending on your house - Cavell or Joan of Arc) Ties were always worn with our uniform - I think the tie was maroon and gold stripes. And always a maroon blazer with gold piping, and in the winter a brown felt hat with the school badge on.
(See Soho College thread here https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/index.php?threads/soho-college.47864/#post-595120)

Judy