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Passages, Alleyways Gulletts and Snickets of Old Brum

Dennis
Can't find any mention of Evergreen walk, but the court behind no 5 Devon St is presumably it, and is marked in red on the 1889 map
Mike

Thanks Mike. Never knew it. Taking a chance of being upbraided for off topicity here, but this shot of Devon Street itself is also fantastic. If nothing else it shows that maybe things were a bit squiffy after the War, and maybe we lived in narrow Roads and Alleyways that smelt of Gas, but it didn't stop us from looking after each other. Witness the hand holding and fun these kids are exhibiting. Anyone recognise themselves?

Sorry Mods but I just had to post this...


Devon Street School 1966.jpg
 
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Chapel terrace is in red on the1902 map
Thanks for that mikejee, it looks like it's where I was hoping it would be, my mother had cousins who lived there, in fact we were talking about it a couple of days ago. Now, I can tell my mom the name of the place.
 
Hi Dennis,
Re the ginnel/snicket near Summer Lane

My grandfather used to say that when he was young the coppers used to go two by two down Summer Lane because of the razor gangs. Granddad was born in 1883.

batmadviv
 
Bath Passage is now somewhere in China Town - but does anyone have an early photo of the place please?
 
Mike isn't this Kingston Row that runs across the top of what is now called James Brindley Place but used to be the entrance to Falks Warehouses on the canal where the pub is now.

Phil


Picture of Falk's Warehouse. One of yours Phil. I believe its the site of the Flapper & Firkin Pub now?


s Warehouses off Cambridge St 1958 (Flapper & Firkin).jpg
 
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Another, now almost derilect BEDFORD ROAD, by the side of Bordesley Green Station, bottom of Camp Hill, runs into Trinity Terrace pictured in Post 294. My uncle lived in 'Newport Terrace', Bedford Road in 1920s.


BEDFORD RD .jpg Bedford Road Camp hill.jpg
 
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Found this eerie shot that neatly sums up my fascination with snickets and back alleys, posted by lyn in her Evening Mail series. No one responded to it's whereabouts. Not even a map Mike...sigh.
 
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Good shot, Dennis, of Bedford Road and Bordesley Bridge, an area I remember well. As a young girl I lived in Bordesley Park Road, a little further up, off Coventry Road. Sadly, all the old terraced houses with their bricked alleys and passages have long since disappeared when they were demolished to make way for a ring road.
 
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Here's another odd one. BATH STREET. Now the home of the Sally Army by the looks of things if this is the same Bath Street. But iooks totally different to me, even allowing for the passage of time. Any ideas map boys? The plainly visible A38 sign is puzzling. Help...! Added later - picture of the demise of the Crown Inn


Bath Street 1959.jpgBath Street.jpgBath Street Crown Inn Demolition 1961.jpgBath St 2010.jpg
 
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A short Road with lots of history. MOUNT PLEASANT, Coventry Road, almost opposite the old Kingston Cinema. Then and now. Bit of a difference...feel free to comment.



Mount Pleasant 1971.jpgMount Pleasant.jpgMount Pleasant view down Cov.jpg
 
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Two old additions to the area around the Bull Ring Markets, BELL STREET and MILL LANE. What was that imposing ecclesiastical looking building in the Mill Lane shot? Anybody know?



Bell St 1910.jpgBell St  Market Hall 1901.jpgMill Lane Meat Market.jpg
 
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Dennis

Mikejee and I discussed this some time back as he has a photo in his collection, we came to the conclusion it was a water tower.

Phil
 
Dennis

Mikejee and I discussed this some time back as he has a photo in his collection, we came to the conclusion it was a water tower.

Phil

If this is Upper Mill Street, looking up the Road, from my maps of that period it would seem to be in Smithfield Market somewhere. A water tower would do it. I will look further....cheers Phil. Bath Street? Help!!!
 
Found this eerie shot that neatly sums up my fascination with snickets and back alleys, posted by lyn in her Evening Mail series. No one responded to it's whereabouts. Not even a map Mike...sigh.

Answering my own question, hopefully, does the team think, in the light of the enclosed map, that this passage may be CHEQUER WALK? He said nervously...

Granville Street Chequer  Walk.jpg
 
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Hello Dennis,
Re your Bath Street photos, the first one is looking towards the Lichfield Road, hence the A38 sign, the second one is taken from the other end, hence the post office tower in the distance.
 
Meerkat seemple eh John? Doh! Many thanks.

OK then, another bit of a mystery concerning names - two old maps, one photo of DALTON PLACE (entrance to), off Dale End. The first map (circa 1901) shows Dalton Place clearly marked, but second map (1930) shows this as Lower Priory? Any one confirm this, or am I going barmy as per... I have been looking for a photo of the Ropewalk (marked on 30s map) or anything about it too for some time. Anyone help? Cheers


Dalton Place.jpg Bham 1930s Map.jpg Dalton Place.jpg
 
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Uh-oh! Answering my own queries again. It looks like Joseph Mckenna thinks they are one and the same...


Ropewalk Text.jpg
 
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Here's a little gem, it's little bow street just off Bristol St, The Horsefair, it was demolished around 1961 just after I first started work round the corner in Bow street at the top end.
 
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Dennis
The second map doesn't show Dalton place at all. There is a splurge marked casino where it is. The first map shows lower priory carrying on across old square from upper priory (though upper priory is off the map you posted).
Regarding the tower in post 372, this is actually my photo that i posted "somewhere2 on the forum. The tower is part of the City meat market and slaughterhouse, which was demolished in the early 70s.
mike
 
Running parallel to Bath Street, as the old 1792 map shows, is the fascinating and historic ST MARYS ROW. This has been beautifully highlighted by Wendy and others in the link below, but I think deserves a mention here too. Runs now by the side of the little multi-story General Hospital Car Park I used so often when I worked at the Hospital's Ward 19 (STD) Clinic in the 60s. Still listed on Google and even today's Street Maps, but not used as a thoroughfare nowadays (unless you go through a traffic barrier). A picture of how the Street used to look would be fabulous, but I include Wendy's shots of the Church itself and surrounds for interest.

https://forum.birminghamhistory.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2882&highlight=St+Marys+Whittle+street


St Marys Row Whittall St .jpg St Mary Row 2010.jpg St Marys Row Bing Map.jpg St Marys 1.jpg St Marys 2.jpg
 
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And not forgetting the most famous Row in Brum, AB ROW. The old boundary betwixt Aston and Birmingham.


AB Row Srtreet Names Cover.jpg AB Row Howe Street.jpg
 
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Dennis a few more views of Lee Crescent as it used to be, you are right I remember some very posh houses down there at one time.

Phil


Lee Bank Lee Crescent .jpg Lee Bank Lee Crescent.JPG Lee Banlk Lee Crescent.jpg
 
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Hi Dennis I too have that pic' of Chandos Rd, I walked down that part of the street with my brother and sister many times going to school, we went to the visually impaired (The blind) school main entrance Mosley Rd.
However because we came up from Dymoke st we used the back gate of Chandos Rd (normal) school walked past the big green metal fire escape (that is visible in the pic' if you enlarge the pic' and look close, striaght ahead along the end of the road ) and through the main school building to our part, there was also a deaf school attached too. The official name for our school was George Auden school for the partially sighted.
 
I am sure there are some photo's of St Mary's Row on here somewhere...at least a couple anyway. One may have caught the corner of the church. Small gunsmiths frontages it seems to me. I think that the row was the location of the last vestages of Scott Motorcycles for a while...Airco Jig and Tool...not sure though. It was a little seedy by the mid fifties but not derelict. I think Scott went on a little further to become the Silk motorcycle.
 
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