In the early 60s I used to cross the 'little park' from Roshven Road where I lived to Dennis Road School. I remember the big football matches in the park - you just asked which side you were on and went for it! Sometimes I think there must of been 30 a side playing on the dirt surface. I also went to the Cubs at Dennis Road School.
-
Welcome to this forum . We are a worldwide group with a common interest in Birmingham and its history. While here, please follow a few simple rules. We ask that you respect other members, thank those who have helped you and please keep your contributions on-topic with the thread.
We do hope you enjoy your visit. BHF Admin Team
Balsall Heath Park - The 'little Park'
- Thread starter ged9
- Start date
Funny I was only saying to someone this week about the 'Little' park, I told someone that it was the only park I knew which had no grass on it because it never got chance to grow. Does anyone remember the 'parkie' & the Sons of rest building in the middle of the Park, I used to look into the Sons of Rest with some fear & trepidation as these people were 'Old & scary', they smoked pipes & played Snooker in there but I suppose they were just guys who had somewhere to go for an hour or two to escape the family & probably old soldiers from the 1st war.
As it was our nearest park it got used a lot & the drinking fountain used to have a cast iron cup on a chain to drink out of, health & safety wouldn't allow that now, it would probably serve as a weapon now as well, we used to to throw it round on the chain to hear it rattle against the basin but that was a brave thing to do as the Parkie was a frightening figure then to us kids.
Anybody else out there with memories from the 50s & the park, I am sure Graham webb & chris Sullivan must remember other things
Cheers
Dave Rock
As it was our nearest park it got used a lot & the drinking fountain used to have a cast iron cup on a chain to drink out of, health & safety wouldn't allow that now, it would probably serve as a weapon now as well, we used to to throw it round on the chain to hear it rattle against the basin but that was a brave thing to do as the Parkie was a frightening figure then to us kids.
Anybody else out there with memories from the 50s & the park, I am sure Graham webb & chris Sullivan must remember other things
Cheers
Dave Rock
Oh yes, I remember Parkie very well. We used to climb over the railings at night and get chased by him. The Sons of Rest building was a place of fascination to us 'kids'. Does anybody remember the new climbing dome that was installed sometime around 1964? The bravest of the brave would ignore the slide and use the sheet metal sides of the dome to slide down. There was also the 'spider's web' roundabout that the big kids would push as fast as they could, and woe betide any smaller kid who happened to be enjoying a nice slow ride on it. I remember once hanging on for grim death and having to let go - I ended up in the bushes down the side of the swing area!
E
Elizabeth Redmond
Guest
What was the name of the little park,i grew up in Balsall Heath but i'm not sure which park you mean
bobsummers
Gone but not forgotten. R.I.P.
You lot have reactivated my memory bank, 90 a side football matches played on mud every day, the metal cup the old folks by the swing and the frightening Parkie, he used to look like the inspector of "On the Buses", Great memories. I drove past the other day and it now looks even smaller. I think it was named Balsall Heath Park?
E
Elizabeth Redmond
Guest
Oh was it near Ladypool Rd,i only went to Calthorpe,Cannon Hill,Highgate park
https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&q=balsall+heath+park&fb
yes i found it never went there
https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&q=balsall+heath+park&fb
yes i found it never went there
Last edited by a moderator:
E
Elizabeth Redmond
Guest
Thanks i found it i never went to that park that's probably why i didn't remember it,
Darby
master brummie
I remember The Little Park very well, does anyone remember what we called the clay hills it was a mound of clay that was dug out to make a reservoir for fire fighting during the war.
Another memory is the day they fitted the swings and roundabouts in the park, when it was time to close the parkie couldn't clear all the kids out, in those days they used to close at night, anyway the police had to be called in, even then the kids were climbing back over the chestnut fencing, the metal railings having been removed during the war.
I liked the memory about no grass, that's just how I remember it, happy day's.
Another memory is the day they fitted the swings and roundabouts in the park, when it was time to close the parkie couldn't clear all the kids out, in those days they used to close at night, anyway the police had to be called in, even then the kids were climbing back over the chestnut fencing, the metal railings having been removed during the war.
I liked the memory about no grass, that's just how I remember it, happy day's.
Hi
The Carlton Cinema was unusual in that it had a lift to take you upstairs, I used to go with my mate the late Mick Beasley & he used to pay the extra for me to go upstairs with him & we always used the lift complete with operater for it.
As for the Little park, I also remember there were some large trees in it which was very unusual in Balsall Heath/Sparkbrook, in my time in Sparkbrook it was the best for having fun & the swings & rides, only a couple if memory serves were always in use very hard to get on a swing & you dodged on & off the spider at speed & at your own peril but we never saw danger at that age.Still it was fun & about the only playthings we had.
Look forward to more memories
Cheers
Dave
The Carlton Cinema was unusual in that it had a lift to take you upstairs, I used to go with my mate the late Mick Beasley & he used to pay the extra for me to go upstairs with him & we always used the lift complete with operater for it.
As for the Little park, I also remember there were some large trees in it which was very unusual in Balsall Heath/Sparkbrook, in my time in Sparkbrook it was the best for having fun & the swings & rides, only a couple if memory serves were always in use very hard to get on a swing & you dodged on & off the spider at speed & at your own peril but we never saw danger at that age.Still it was fun & about the only playthings we had.
Look forward to more memories
Cheers
Dave
Phil
Gone, but not forgotten.
The Little Park is a little different today, it is very green now as can be seen from this photo taken from Birchwood Crescent I took a couple of years back when I was down there taking some snaps of the old School.
I though that some of you might like to see a snap of the Carlton Cinema entrance and the little sweet shop that was next door.
Phil
I though that some of you might like to see a snap of the Carlton Cinema entrance and the little sweet shop that was next door.
Phil
bobsummers
Gone but not forgotten. R.I.P.
As usual Phil, you haver come up with the goods. I used to buy my "sherbet and liquorish sticks from that shop. I used to go to the Carlton cinema every Saturday afternoon and then over to the park swings after. We must all have been in that area at the same time. Its now hard to believe that they actually built that cinema on that bit of triangle ground. Had my first "Snog" at the back of the cinema next to the shop. If I remember right you had to go to the shop on the other side for the amazing bigger "Frozen Jublee's"
Phil
Gone, but not forgotten.
Yes it was always a bit complicated understanding the boundaries between Balsall Heath & Sparkbrook. But I know Dennis Rd Schools address was in Balsall Heath because I wrote down enough on the front of every exercise book. Why did we have to put the full address on every book?
Here is a 1950's map showing the boundary of B12 at that time. I see then that it even took in Highgate.
Bob I only ever used that shop occasionally, mostly buying my sweets from the shop on the corner of Birchwood Crescent & Dennis Rd. I wonder why it closed down, it did a good trade in our day.
Phil
Here is a 1950's map showing the boundary of B12 at that time. I see then that it even took in Highgate.
Bob I only ever used that shop occasionally, mostly buying my sweets from the shop on the corner of Birchwood Crescent & Dennis Rd. I wonder why it closed down, it did a good trade in our day.
Phil
Found this topic really interesting.
I am new to the area, but have been looking at Roshven Rd, due to the 'ghost sign' I have seen there, advertising a coal dealer.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/carrie132/5153698389/
The problem i am having is that in the street directories, Roshven Rd doesn't seem to list the actual houses. So, I am having trouble researching this old sign.
Any help greatly appreciated.
I am new to the area, but have been looking at Roshven Rd, due to the 'ghost sign' I have seen there, advertising a coal dealer.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/carrie132/5153698389/
The problem i am having is that in the street directories, Roshven Rd doesn't seem to list the actual houses. So, I am having trouble researching this old sign.
Any help greatly appreciated.
Graham
GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN
Don't know how I missed this thread as I'm even mentioned at its beginning!
I was thrown many a time from that round-a-bout often sick as a pig from the speed the slide had witches steps that we never dared to stand on. The iron cup tasted terrible and many a time was used to wash our blood off, not always from falls but in my case from mad dog bites that made me faint, that terrible parky then carried me into his shed to revive me.
Thanks Phil for the 1950 B 12 map as it does show that Leamington Road was in Balsall Heath and we always wrote our address as Sparkbrook; snobs! Phil do you know the name of that sweet shop? They had some fantastic sweets, ones that I think would be banned today, what a kick they were dynamite! Do you remember the lollypops with money inside them? I always got one with money inside I'm sure the shop owner did it on purpose because she could see how poor we were.
Graham.
bobbyb
Brummie
In the 70's I used to be a Relief Park Patrol, complete with uniform, worked out of Billesley Depot, hardly went there though, and one of the Parks I did was Balsall Heath Park, got on famousley with the kids, they had a play centre and on School Holidays the place swarmed with kids, part of the duties were picking up litter and ensuring the kids were safe, during the summer the park was open 7 til 7 and in winter 9 til 5.30 and the park had to be locked up, for some reason the regular guy always had his holiday during the school holidays, other Parks I did were Tritteford, Kings Heath this sometimes during the filming of the ATV Gardening Program, the Little Park at Bordesley Green and both Batchelors Farm and the one across the road, at Tritteford it became part of the job to stop People washing their cars in the Ford during the water shortage, they used to queue up along the road and the fish used to be found floating all along the river and in the lake and at Lifford we had to take the boat out to stir up the water to put oxygen back in, all so Walkers Heath which was then just football fields, funny place that one side of road in brum the other in Worcestershire, the park was divided like that, luckily we had our own park police, All this traveling from C/V by bike or if it was too far, it was Buses. Then the Council got rid of us all, now its pandemonium.
bobsummers
Gone but not forgotten. R.I.P.
Graham I also drank from the iron cup on the chain, that explain's it then why it had a rose tinge. I used to get my sherbet's from that shop. Blew your head off and the liquorish sticks remember? And I had my 1st frozen jubbley from that shop and then played 50 a side football in the Little Park. Ahhhh happy days! Still had holes in my wellis then too!!
Hello I was born in my Grandparents house 11 Roshven Avenue in 1955. Their names were Ada and Robert Busby. She had a brother Jack Judge who was a cabinet maker in the centre of Sparkbrook .My mother was Olive Busby. Would love to hear from anyone who knew them when they lived there.
Hi Annie1955,
I was born in 3 Roshven Avenue in 1955. My name is Gerald Nelson, I had two sisters Rita and Carol and two brothers Alan and Graham. My parents names were Tom and Marge Nelson.:anonymous:
Hi Gerald thanks for your reply. I wonder if your parents Tom and Marge knew my grandmother Ada at number 11 as would have been just a few doors away. She died in 1960 so was alive when you were born. She worked ( i think ) in a local factory. Or if you have any family photos that she might be on ? Thanks Wendy
Hi Wendy, my Father died in 1997 and my Mother is in a care home, her memory isn't very good now. I lived in Roshven Avenue until 1967 when we were all moved out for demolition. We moved to Chelmsley Wood.
Hi Gerald I'm sorry to hear about your parents. You might be interested to know that just before they demolished Roshven Avenue I wrote to the council to ask for the street sign and they kindly sent it to me. It's made of wood and I guess they used the metal signs for the war effort. I have the sign on my kitchen wall so there's no forgetting Roshven Avenue.
