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St Pauls Church St Pauls Square

When Birmingham had a traction rally every year in Newhall St outside the old Science & Industry Museum, there always used to be Model Railways in the Church.
Haven't visited it often since than, although when I worked in Gt Charles St, used to visit the Xmas Carol Concert & the weekly Organ recitals.
The box pews are very nice, and remind me of The People's Chapel, Gt King St, which had similar - uncomfortable, but helped keep you awake during some of the longer sermons!
 
Surprised the box pews remain in such a number at St. Paul's (and largely with their unique numbers still on them). The allocation of pews in force when the chapel/church was built worked in favour of those who paid rent for their box, and they could be made more comfortable with cushions, special locks etc. But with increasing churchgoers and the need for more seats for less fortunate churchgoers many of these disappeared. Modernisation of seating would also have removed box pews. So it's excellent news that these still exist in such numbers. Having said that, wouldn't want to be the person responsible for polishing them Viv.
 
This photo of St Paul's shows the church had a church hall along its east wing. This hall burnt down in 1965 and the second photo shows the result. Viv.

image.jpeg image.jpeg
 
Hi All,

It should be known that St Pauls has perfect acoustics. I was a member of a male voice choir and we made 3 LPs there. I believe other people also made recordings there. My wife and I also attended a recording of the BBC's ' Songs of Praise' there many years ago.

Old Boy
 
Hi Old Boy. Looking at the interior I can imagine it has a very good atmosphere too. Nicely surprised it has good acoustics. I think I read somewhere Matthew Boulton used the church too. If so, very good to see it retains much of its original character which would be recognisable from that period.

This advowson from around the 1850s shows the income and spending by the church. Surprisingly the church could accommodate over 1,000 parishioners. A pew cost 9s 6d with 800 pews. Income generated by pews at nearly £400 in total looks pretty reasonable to me for the 1850s. Viv.


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Here is a not very good photo taken around 1970
 

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Thanks both. Many of the headstones must have been removed since 1970 then if you compare Mike and Ell's photos. The cleaner 2009 building shows up more features too. Older images make it look like a relatively plain building but there's a lot more detail around the windows and doors than I thought. Viv.
 
Maybe they moved a lot of the graves to another cemetery?

Some black & white photos I took in 2015, while sitting on a bench next to the church



 
Ellbrown, only the gravestones were removed, the actual graves were not disturbed, the same as at St Philips and many more.

In some genealogy books they recommend looking in a local Churchyard for gravestones of ancestors. In Birmingham and may other places they have been removed so that's difficult! (But that's another topic!)
rosie.
 
I often refer to my little book "In The Midst of Life" by Joseph McKenna as it's a brief history of the burial grounds ans churchyards of Birmingham.
For St.Paul's it says that it was laid out as a garden in 1894 by the Parks Department after closure to burials in 1894.
(St. Thomas Bath Row remains were removed to Warstone.)

Ref ISBN 0/7093/0188/X Published by Library Services Birmingham City Council. There are so many places listed and lots of snippets about plague pits, resurrectionists etc.!!

rosie.
 
I would have got an interior photo of St Paul's in the Jewellery Quarter on the day I went up the bell tower (during Birmingham Heritage Week), but was given some heritage stickers then went straight up the tower to hear the bells being rung!

Some photos from 10/09/2016 from the bell tower



Spiral staircase - still gives you butterflies walking up one of these!



Not so bad going down.

 
nice photos ell..would like to get a look inside st pauls...gt grandparents married there

lyn
 
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The Making of Birmingham (Robert Dent, 1894) mostly ties in with the info given in post 18., but adds…

“The churchyard has fallen into a desolate state, but efforts are now being made to induce the Corporation to undertake the care of it, and to lay it out as a public garden. If this were done it would form a valuable breathing space for this crowded district.”
 
Thanks Lyn.

Was two weddings on that day. I arrived an hour early, so headed off to the Pen Museum, before I came back after 2pm. Did want a photo of the main church interior before I left, but another wedding was starting (I think).
 
not to worry ell...next time i am over that way will see if i can get in to take interior shots..

lyn
 
image.jpeg St Paul's churchyard - looks about 1950s (?). The memorial where the person is resting can still be seen. Is this the reverend? Somewhere to the right is the turning for Ludgate Hill. Viv.

image.jpeg
 
Vivienne14 said:
View attachment 113611 St Paul's churchyard - looks about 1950s (?). The memorial where the person is resting can still be seen. Is this the reverend? Somewhere to the right is the turning for Ludgate Hill. Viv.

View attachment 113612
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Good pics but not sure if from same place? Old pic appears to be looking towards Gt Charles St & Town, Newer pic is looking parallel to Gt Charles St towards Livery St? Surely old pic is off to the left of New pic looking left to right? Happy to be corrected, but many similar monumnets - though not so many left nowadays
 
Key Hill Brian said:
Good pics but not sure if from same place? Old pic appears to be looking towards Gt Charles St & Town, Newer pic is looking parallel to Gt Charles St towards Livery St? Surely old pic is off to the left of New pic looking left to right? Happy to be corrected, but many similar monumnets - though not so many left nowadays
Click to expand...

There is a definite slope from one end of St Paul's Square, the original picture seems to me to be looking down to Charlotte Street.
 
Pedrocut said:
There is a definite slope from one end of St Paul's Square, the original picture seems to me to be looking down to Charlotte Street.
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The slope runs towards Town - I'm sure Charlotte St is off to the right at the far end of the old picture - looks like possibly Gt Charles St Office blocks in the background above the buildings?
 
i would say its deffo charlotte st on the right...the building on the corner of st pauls square shown in old photo is still there... note the last window on the right is lower than the rest in both old photo and street view...building with the taxi outside on street view link is also still there..click on link for todays view

lyn

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@52.4...4!1sibiLvv0_7CGchH_C_vk8Jg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
 
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Viv is this the memorial you were looking for in St Paul's Square?



I also made this "black and white" photo a couple of years ago while sitting on a bench in the square.

 
Thanks all. Think view to Charlotte Street is correct. Yes Ell looks very like the memorial. Viv.
 
Please note this thread has been merged with an earlier one. Therefore it may now contain previously unseen posts. Viv.
 
There are two beautiful stained glass in the church. One to the Hollins family, the other to the Rev Burges. Does anyone know where they were made and who by?
 
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