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Digbeth

At the beginning of thread the Minerva Café that was adjacent to Smithfield Garage gets a couple of mentions. The photo attached here shows Smithfield Garage and part of the café. My only recollections of the café are whilst working on Morgan's Sausage Manufactory next to Digbeth Police station when we were converting it to the Manzil Restaurant. Every working day for about three months I would walk down to café with the breakfast order for the lads working on the site. To be honest my recollections of the place were that of any greasy spoon café of the period, although I have to say that I thought the sos & tom sandwiches were outstanding
The Minerva Cafe was run by my grandfather ,Joseph Fletcher with my Uncle Ernie ,Uncle John was the man producing teas,coffees and sausage/tomato sandwiches,My Aunt Lily assisted and produced apple pies etc. She is the last of that generation but is still living in Hall Green with my cousin,Tony. I spent time there in the late 50s and often late morning headed to Edgbaston to watch Warwickshire play in summer. The clientale were market traders ,and other workers.
 
My father Harry Kitchener Stacey, transferred from the Oxford City Police to Birmingham City Police in 1938, he lived in single mans accommodation in Digbeth for some 8 months, before he found digs at my Moms home in Handsworth, where would he have lived whilst there??
 
Digbeth poklice station was quite big. could there have been accommodation there?
 
How very kind of you all, I am most grateful for your comments, the brain grows weak at 75 nearly, so I made a slip up in the years, he served in the RA during the war, and came back to the Police in 45, he was always proud of his middle name and always used it. Paul
 
Another earlier pic of Digbeth Police Station. The builders board T. Elvins & Sons still on the front.
index.php

from
https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/for...ught-in-our-old-street-pics.41947/post-572852
 
I remember Dad taking me there to report my bike being stolen. Date hazy, but old enough to ride one, and before early 60s when we moved to Shard End. Quite intimidating at the time, and probably would be now. Andrew
 
Morgan's The butchers in Digbeth (near the corner of Meriden Street) must have been a sight to behold at night. Look at all those (neon ?) lights around the building.

Viv.

7B54FB5E-BC3A-4384-9EE6-B91A9289DCD9.jpegE8AF10DF-F0FF-4A03-8766-E843D484A145.jpeg
 
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