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Alcester Street, Digbeth

I think there is more on Rowton House elsewhere on the forum.

When it was built, and for a considerable time afterwards it was very respecatable.

The Rowton House network was built to provide cheap quality accomodation for single and travelling workmen. It had a good restaurant, laundry, library, gym and games rooms. The one in Birmingham was openned by a princess, one of Queen Victoria's children.

As far as I can understand it went downhill in the late 1930's. Its decline seems to parrallel the decline in workhouse operation in that the 'casual wards' (The spikes) began to disappear and the single tramps and travellers had to be housed somewhere.
 
I actually think the building looks depressive, i love to see grand
architecture and appreciate the work and skill that went in to such buildings, that building was built for the vagrants by some lord rowton in 1903 so it was not intended to look grand for the wealthy but the poor souls to accommodate it, i would say it looks cold, bleak and dirty, but i guess i would say that due to the fact i just lived down the road from it and saw the daily goings on there.
Who would bulid a palace that is surrounded by the grime and filth of manufacturing
 
Hello there Jacko

Birmingham built many 'palaces' surrounded by the grime and filth of manufacturing. Indeed that was the essence of Birminghams public buildings.

After years of neglect Rowton House was certainly 'down and out' but it didnt start that way. I quote from George Orwell

"The best [lodging houses] are the Rowton Houses, where the charge is a shilling, for which you get a cubicle to yourself, and the use of excellent bathrooms. You can also pay half a crown for a 'special', which is practically hotel accommodation. The Rowton Houses are splendid buildings, and the only objection to them is the strict discipline, with rules against cooking, card-playing, etc. Perhaps the best advertisement for the Rowton Houses is the fact that they are always full to overflowing."
 
You can quote all you like bill but you have not had the experience of staying there i guess, my old lady worked there in the 60s cleaning as well as emptying the pee pots + against our wishes we had a drunken bum of a step father who hung around with the vagrants and even bought them home stenching of .... and even stayed there himself, i have smelt the place when walking past it and some of the vagrants stunk to high heavens in the park while drinking their cheap wine or scrumpy, also the social security was more or less just on the back of it on the moseley which was of great ease for them to collect there booze money.
So i have first hand knowledge of the place, i lived just down the road from it, so george orwell has wrote a load of bull, i wonder if he gave great praise for the work houses?
 
Hi Jacko my Aunty also worked their many years ago cleaning she then went back to Ireland to live with her mother . She came to Birmingham on a visit 5 years ago and my sister took her on a visit to the area, and they went inside the Paragon where my sister told the staff that my Aunty had worked their many years ago, and they gave her afternoon tea on the house for a short while she felt like royalty
 
I bet she certainly noticed the change in the place LOL i wonder if she knew my old lady? her name is elsie williams or mooney.
it's nice to hear that she was appreciated for keeping the place clean eh
 
Hello again Jacko, sadly my aunty died earlier in the year her name was Ellen Conway (Nellie ). My mom told us that when my dad and herself first came to Birmingham (1949) my dad stopped their as she was working at the Childrens hospital and he was working on the demolition , she got lodgings at the hospital and he stayed at the Rowton House till they got their own place ,which was lodging in a house on Cheapside. They both said it was very difficult as most people would have a card saying (NO IRISH and NO BLACKS ) could you imagine the uproar that would cause today haha .
 
HI LIZY
My dad was from wexford southern ireland and he came here on the 11/02/1943 and obviously he would have met the same reception as others did, i never knew my dad but i have obtained his irish travel permit card and it has all the stamps in it where he would have to go to the police station to have it stamped, due to war times i guess, like many other irish folk he came here for the work and somewhere along the line he had such bad luck in meeting my old gal LOL so what part of ireland does your family come from?
 
Hi Jacko ,
My Dad was from Mayo (Charlestown ) and Mom was from County Dublin . They have both passed away my mom only a few weeks ago. I think they came across in 1947. and he did most of his work on the demolition or building work, and mom went on to have ten children, but as far as i gather the first few years were very difficult housing ways and my mom always talked fondly about the lady who gave them rooms on Cheapside( Phoebe Baker ) who they stayed with for along time.:)
 
I think most of the irish folk that came over the water worked on the building industry at some time, but i cannot understand why they got such a bad reception when they came to this country?
My wifes uncle comes from mayo where i find they are very quiet and reserved folk and her mom comes from the next county of roscommon and being the mother in law she has got a gob and half when she has had a drink LOL
Your mom having ten kids is certainly an handfull for sure in those days but i did live next door to the family called the mc'naughts in william edward street who had 22 and they certainly did have hard times, you must have heard of them?
 
Hi My first post and i wonder if anyone can help me with regards to the Rowton House Digbeth.
I have recently seen my grandfathers death cert and it says he died there in 1929 and was buried in the parish of St Martins.
My questions are is there a list of names of the people who stayed there ( I would lkike to know how long he was there) and i would like to find out where he was buried.
He came from Derry in Northern Ireland His name was James Mc Bride.
I have lived in Birmingham now 30 years and never knew he had been to Birmingham never mind buried here.
I am 50 now and thinking back no one ever talked about him in the family, it was only when an elderly aunt died that his death cert was discovered,, any help would be appricated.
 
Sorry i cannot help you freelancer and i cannot imagine you would find a list of folk that stayed there, thousands up on thousands must have passed through the doors of the rowton house from the day it was built.
I wish you luck in your search

JACKO
 
Hi there,He may have only been passing through when he died.There is a list of people on the Electoral Roll for 1925 and I have looked through that for you and he isn't on there.The next date is 1930 and as he died in 1929 he wouldn't be on there!
Sometimes these old "hotel" registers are kept and preserved.In the 1911 census the staff had hotel titles such as "hotel porter" etc.
Have you been in touch with the Archives section at Birmingham Library? You never know.
Just had a look on line and it appears they only have 1965-89 duty officer report book and staff records.
You may be able to track his movements some other way,though.
Sorry I couldn't be of more help.
 
Re: Thanks

kevccfc said:
ooops, I of course meant George Orwell.:)
Click to expand...


Hi Kev,

George Orwell (born Eric Blair) was from my home town of Southwold in Suffolk, and coincidentally also shared my birthday. On a more local note
I believe my mother in law Ivy Watson (now deceased) worked at the
Highgate Hotel in the 1940s/1950s.

Kind regards

Dave
 
Thank you Jacko for your reply i will continue my search.
I see from your previous postings that you (by maybe living close by) have had bad experiences of this Rowton House, i am sure it had deteriated by the 60's as time changes everything, but i can only say thank God that it was there in the 1920's, and the words of George Orwell gives me comfort to know that my grandfather had a place to stay and die in and which was not, at that time classed as a "Doss House" but indeed semed a brilliant idea by Rowton and i honestly cant find anything said bad about it until after the second world war. Again thanks for your interest.
 
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Lady Linda
Apt name, thank you for your advice many interesting leads you provided.
I am now following a lead through the Rowton Institutes, it seems they were required to list names of all "Guests" and hopefully the records are still kept at the Rowton Archives which i am tracking through the London Libraries. Also going through the Library archives and church registers of Birmingham. will post my findings.
My main interests is to know why he came to England, Birmingham in particular, how long he stayed and of course where he is buried.
Again many thanks to all.
 
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The main reason i would have thought your grandfather came to birmingham was for the work, as you probably know birmingham was a very big industrialised city + we had the black country just down the road and from my own knowledge in terms of having irish relatives they say the same thing, it was all for the work
 
Hi everyone, especially Freelancer. I wondered if you had found any records for Rowton House?
The reason I ask is, we are searching for my hubbie's Sister who we believe worked at Rowton House in 1963. From then on we have no trace of her.
If there are records held, it would be interesting to know if she is mentioned, and maybe learn when she left there.
Can anyone help with this please?

Many thanks Rosy
 
Here's an interesting short video on the "Highgate Hotel" dating from 1968 https://www.macearchive.org.uk/Media.html?Title=34464

One of my favourite authors is George Orwell, does anyone know which chapter this place was referenced in or whether George actually stayed there?

Here is a Streetview of the Paragon Hotel https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=q&...=_KD3l4ocdE0sWrwO9F3KvQ&cbp=12,47.04,,0,-4.91 and the website of the Hotel https://www.theparagonhotel.co.uk/ - the bedrooms look a little better than they did and are en-suite
 
The Paragon Hotel is a Grade II listed building - listed as Parkview House.

1903-4 built as a massive Rowton House hostel on a scale and with a social
purpose as characteristic of the city at this date as is the quality of the
materials and the decorative finish. A vast quadriangular block of bright
red quality brick with 5 storeys basement and attics. One long narrow windowed
elevation articulated by shallow breaks with broad gables and triangular
ribs rising from second floor sill course. The massiveness of the block is
enlivened by good buff terracota dressings and finials, with the feature of
octagonal corner towers slightly stepped at each stage and crowned by copper
sheathed conical roofs. There is decorative terracota work in the gables
and terracota dragons with shields as gargoyles to the top stage of the towers.
The gabled porch is entirely terracota faced with flanking to cupola capped
octagonal turrets. The central finial is surmounted by a finely modelled
figure of a boy bearing what was probably a light fitting on his back whilst
in the spandrels of the door arch are delicately wrought relief panels with
boys of similar type representing industry and rural poverty or farming life.
Tall cast iron railings to area. Commanding hillside site.
Click to expand...
From Pevsner Architectural Guides: Birmingham by Andy Foster

Along Alcester Street, the Paragon Hotel, built as a Rowton House (lodging house for working men) of 1903-5 by their regular architect Harry B. Measures. Bright red Ruabon brick. Picturesque skyline, with big shaped gables. Octagonal corner towers turning circular, with conical copper roofs and buff terracotta dragons holding shields by Edwards or Ruabon. Below, plain elevations with ranges of sashes, originally lighting 819 cubicles. Converted to a hotel c. 1990 and interiors lost.
Click to expand...
 
No problem BordesleyExile. I did see it that time I went to Highgate Park, but decided to not take photos of it until now. I did miss that church that is nearby (close to Bradford Street) as I headed in the direction of Sherlock Street via Alcester Street and Macdonald Street. More old pubs that way.
 
That's one hell of a hotel! Has a continental (French or German) look to it. Pretty intimidating though. Would be nice to know if any original features have been preserved inside the hotel. Viv.
 
Vivienne,

I doubt many of the original features would have been saved, I suppose they would have had to knock half a dozen of the original rooms into one to make a decent sized room. I suppose they would also have to divide some of the dormitory rooms up to make them smaller.

To be quite honest I went there to a function not long after it reopened supposedly as a superior class hotel ,and the food was that bad that I complained about it and I left early and went for a curry up the road at the Gullistan. I understand that it changed hands again later and underwent another refit.

Phil
 
Pevsner said the interiors was lost when it became a hotel in 1990. (see post #53)

You can see it from the bus on Barford Street (if you look to the right).
 
Hi,

It is a truly remarkable building, Lord Rowton really put thought into these buildings. He personally over saw the build, chose linens, equipment and supplies, he priced and tried to look out for the common man. This is a fully functioning 108 year old building. It's bound to have flaws, but won't we all at that age.

I have just returned from a sentimental visit, and yes lots not all of the original features have been preserved, restored or mimicked ... I say mimicked...where the glazed brickwork has been removed from view (it's a listed 2 building, they are not allowed to remove any interior unless pre-approved, so it was plastered over or paneled...all improvements have too be temporary/removable)...the hotel owners commissioned carpet with brick pattern...giving the bricks new life subliminally.

Behind the scenes, most of the hallways, preparation and storage areas still have the glazed brick walls, lots of circular and feature windows. As a listed building the sash windows have to be repaired or maintained.

The rooms are small but as expected, food is good. You can find very good rates online.

My Grandparents ran the Highgate Hotel 1975-79, I spent many a happy time there. I helped (played) in the kitchens, service bar in the food hall...handing out cutlery.

The men staying would be quite genuine, most understood the rules.

My Grandparents told me you can only help someone if they want to be helped. What could be provided was...i.e. shelter, bed, food and washing facilities at a minimal charge...the pool, games rooms, events were organized by the lodgers. The borders earned privileges, most were rarely turned away (drunkenness was not acceptable) . If anyone wanted jobs, they were given the respect of proving their worth (that's all most wanted and some had just re-entered the community from prison, hospitals or been displaced without credentials to support themselves)...there was always something that needed to be done.

Thievery was not acceptable, everything was counted, logged and there were resident books. Waste was not tolerated, and my Grandmother made sure it was clean.

When boarders passed, my grandparents often tried very hard to locate family and pass along the borders effects. Sometimes, they'd find savings, stuffed behind the panels in the rooms or in mattresses, pillows...this was too given to the family.

The residents always said good morning, please and thank you to my Grandparents, many greeted my sister and I. They would remember us when we visited. Or on their return would often bring trinkets, honey and cards for us. My sister and I would make blue peter style decorations to decorate the day rooms for holidays etc.

It was rare I came across an aggressive border, I always felt safe and would see most of the building daily, while collecting laundry..rubbish or just left to my own devices...most of the day the building was fairly empty. The kitchen was my favorite, lots of baking and 4 sacks of potatoes became the biggest pile of steaming mash you'd ever seen. I helped make green jelly (in charge of the spoon...chief stirrer), with a piped dollop of cream. Buckets of soup and drums of raisins for rock cakes.

The management company my Grandparents worked for folded in the mid eighties, by that time they were managing a place in East Anglia.

When I returned to the UK after much traveling, I looked the place up. I am glad it is still there and in good hands. Now I have my Grandfather's slides, pictures and memorabilia...I will be putting together a fairly comprehensive history of the place.

I will be going back.

View attachment 67469View attachment 67470View attachment 67471

Pictures taken from roof top of Highgate Hotel/Rowton House 1976-79
 
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Hi all, new to this forum. Hope this is in the right place.

I worked at the Chamberlain Hotel when it opened. It was still being converted from the old Rowton House when we started. They kept some original tiles and also named one of the main function rooms the Rowton Room. The Chamberlain was opened by two businessmen - Jefferson/Fitzpatrick - it was not part of a chain. The bedrooms were sparse, and I`m more than sure a couple of bedrooms were kept empty as to show what they were like when the Rowton House was in use. As said above, it has now changed hands and has been re-named.
 
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