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Aston Hall

G G Jean

G G Jean

Brummy Wench.
:) I bet I'm the only person on the forum to be kicked out of Aston Hall?. I went with friends to the candelight evening. One of them said "let's see how many we can blow out" Guess who got caught and sharply evicted?. :rolleyes: TTFN. Jean.
 
They would have threw my son out too for blowing out the candles but as he was only 2 at the time and did sing "Happy Birthday To You" whilst blowing(that was quite a feat too), they let him get on with it.:)
 
My parents took me to a candlelit evening when I about 11 as a treat because I had been ill. The flickering candles made me feel very queasy and I promptly threw up on the polished floorboards. I was swiftly ushered out through the main front door and pointed in the direction of the nearest drain!!:rolleyes:
 
Pat you naughty person. Y:D:D:Des I think you were also Carol Dawn and Wendy. Do you remember we followed Teddy Smart and his wife Jean around playing them up and he did his nut. Speek to you later. Jean.
 
What a lovely view of the old Hall, Jean. If you look at the first tree at the top left of the PC, the square box to the left of it was a shrub clipped into shape. I think it was Laurel, there were a few of them near the Hall and bowling green, anyway we used to hide in them. Kids weren't encouraged to play in that part of the park, and the parkies used to hoik us back down the steps, and if we got wind of them we hid. So I guess the date would be around 1950, there's no sign of them now.
 
Thanks Di. I remember those sculpured trees well. They looked so large when we were young. I have some actual photo's of the park and hall taken from the parrapit Jean.of Aston Church. I remember the day like it was yesterday. We were taken up those winding stairs and I was frightened to death. I remember how worn the steps were. My son has them at the moment but will have them back and put them on. I used to roler skate down the hill from the hall and one day could not stop and went straight through the gates. I grabbed a lampost to stop me going in the road. bye. Jean.
 
I remember going to the park with my frieind Carol and we had to take my younger sister Sandra with us and her friend Jayne. We were into the boys then and the girls were getting on our nerves so we tied them to a tree up the big hill at the entrance to the park. When we got back home mom said "Where is our Sandra and Jayne" we had forgotten them and had to dash back and get them needless to say we were told off but it worked we never had to take them with us again.
 
Pat do you mean Jayne Reading?. You told me you were never naughty?. Maybe just a bit forgetful.:D:D:D Jean.
 
Getting there. Can't wait till Monday to have the old needle treatment. Shall I sue Peter for whiplash?. Talking about whiplash what happened to Miss Whiplash?. Never hear from her now. Jean,.
 
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Hello again,

Here is another photo of the rear of the Hall around the same time during a cold winter. I am not sure if the shot has been scanned the right way round; the Church in the distance may be the one near Six Ways Island?

Can anyone verify this?

https://www.panoramio.com/photo/29970924

Thanks Pedro
 
Thanks jennyann

Seeing a picture of the Church you can now make out the slight gap at the base of the spire. I will put the Church name in the title.

Thanks again, Pedro
 
Here are some photo's of Aston Hall in the snow taken today.:)
 
I spoke to a lady today who told me in the 1930's she lived near here as a child and used to play around the area. She mentioned that there used to be a 2 foot fence with barbed wire around where it was dense and they often tore their clothing on it retieving balls etc.

She also asked if I knew of a ' Rat Pan' pub, ( Higher Grounds Hotel?)
 
My Dad was born in Bevington Road in 1911. He often spoke of the fun he had as a boy in the grounds of Aston Hall.
 
It was my playground, always there and taken for granted. Now of course I just love it.

The Rat Pan was/is, not sure if it is open now, on the corner of Bevington Road and Trinity Road.
 
It was my father and his brother's playground too and later on I used to go with my friend Margaret, whose relatives ran the E.M.Oliver newsagents on Witton Road, to play in the park. My father, who lived in Wyreley Road, Witton attended Albert Road School for all of his schooling and so the hours and hours playing in Aston Park on the way home from school made many happy memories for him. My brother and I drove up and down all the streets when I visited, that they may have taken on their way home from school via the Park.

I had to visit the area when I came to Brum late last year. When walking under the stanchions of the Doug Ellis stand on Trinity Road there now so near to the edge of the Park I felt very nostalgic because that is where we played for hours on the swings, the roundabout and the big slide. It was a great afternoon for me. I took the train from Four Oaks to Aston Station on a Friday afternoon. I was surprised to find a lift at Aston Station.
I saw the Brittania pub on my way to Church Road. It was raining lightly and quite gloomy. I wanted to go into Aston Church but it was locked. Next time I will make an arrangement with the staff to have a tour. John Houghton's Aston site https://astonhistory.net/ has some wonderful photos of the interior of the church.

I made my way to Witton Lane and wanted to visit the shop on the Villa grounds to buy some souvenirs for my son. There was a game the next day and the gates where open for deliveries so I got to see the pitch. It looked wonderful since it had rained.
I finally found my way into the area where the shop was and had a great time shopping in there. I came out and walked back to
Witton Lane and Trinity Road and up the driveway to The Holte. There was no one in there except the staff and I told them I wanted to have a look around, It is very nice and I am so glad that it has survived because it was a very sorry sight for so long and not much hope was held out for it to be saved. I then walked up the hill to Aston Hall, a route I have taken many times. The Hall was closed by then and the rain was steadly coming down. It looked wonderful even in the rain. The cafe in the Stable Block was closed. I made a mental note to go back on a better day and I will. There was absolutely no one around which didn't bother me. I returned to Aston Station rode up to the platform in the lift and caught the train back to Four Oaks.
 
Hi Wendy and jennyann,

My mother was born in Manor Road in 1918 and she often talked of the happy times in Aston Park. You could see a section of the pitch of Villa Park from the hill, and she used to go in towards the end of the matches and collect the cigarette cards.

She would watch the auction programmes on the TV and always say that she wished she had kept the hundreds of cards, she would have made the price of a few pints!

But oh dear! I must say that even at the age of 91 she had no time at all for Doug Ellis!

Best wishes Peter.
 
Hi Pedrocut: I know a lot of us wished we have saved our cigarette cards that we played with. I remember seeing that man
on the British Antiques Road Show who had a huge collection. Lovely to know that yourMom had some great times in Aston Park
too.
 
Aston Hall.
There are five squirrels to be found in the long hall,the same as the Ansells motif.
It was, I think,the emblem of the Holte family.worth a look,and it keeps the children happy,finding them.:)
 
Its also a nostalgic area for myself......
My late father and grandparents lived at 130 Wyreley rd......Dad would have gone to Deykin Ave school.....
Naturally we were all Villa fans over the generations with Dad first taking me around 1960 to my first match.
I have vivid memories of Aston Hall by candlelight.......a night that ignited my passion for the English civil war.....
Grandad (Sam) had allotments and i remember them having a few pints at the Barn on Witton Rd while i had pop and crisps in the car.
I too will visit Aston Church on my next visit back to the U K.
 
great pics kel...so pleased that you and the children enjoyed the trip....

lyn
 
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