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Birmingham Battery & Metal Co Selly Oak

Astonian

gone but not forgotten
Hi everybody
i was wondering wether or not did any member on the forum ever work at the birmingham battery selly oak
when back in time they used the horses i was speaking to a couple older gentlman about it and they was telling me of the days when they worked there with the horse and cart
and how one horse bolted and ran off so i thought i would asked for any more stories of the b,ham battery ,
best wishes astonian ;
 
I well remember the Birmingham Battery & Metal Co Ltd. About 20 years ago I used to sell them asbestos cloth, of all things, for wrapping castings to prevent them from cooling too quickly. They manufactured mostly copper castings, I think mainly for electrodes in emergency storage-batteries. The place was out of the age of Dickens. The shop-floor was awful, you really had to watch where you stepped, as molten copper was running all over the place. The offices were something else - real genuine Victoriana (so was most of the staff...). Panelled walls, old-fashioned phones, roll-top desks, CardeX system....the 20th century had yet to penetrate.

I believe the company operated in Selly Oak from the late 18th century until a few years ago. I don't know when it closed, but the last time I drove past, maybe 3 years back, the frontage was still there.

I just viewed Otherhalf's photos, and shudders went down my spine...

Big Gee
 
As I posted on that earlier link I worked there for a while used to drive overhead crane moving the copper sheets still hot before and after they were rolled in the mill enjoyed the job trouble is in those days I was a bit of a hothead! in more ways than one somebody said something to me and then smacked me with a copper bar apart from a little bump on the head I was OK he wasnt and I got the sack
icon7.gif
OH well
 
As I posted on that earlier link I worked there for a while used to drive overhead crane moving the copper sheets still hot before and after they were rolled in the mill enjoyed the job trouble is in those days I was a bit of a hothead! in more ways than one somebody said something to me and then smacked me with a copper bar apart from a little bump on the head I was OK he wasnt and I got the sack
icon7.gif
OH well

Way to go!

When did that place finally close?

Big Gee
 
I worked as a security officer at The Battery for about 8 years from 1980 to 1988, it was dirty, dangerous and like a scene from a Dickens novel but I have fond memories of my time there. On night shift once I looked through the old accident books and there were reports of horrific injuries, the most common were "kicked by a horse" and "fell on hot slag" now there is a thought.
 
Hi guys, there are MUCH better photo's than mine on the net, but here are some of mine.......

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Paperwork from 1903. Some of this should be saved!!!!

The place used to be utterly shocking. It was a real old school metal working shop. Terrible conditions, and you can see where the old factory joined the admin building at the back here.....

DSCF7436.jpg
 
It certainly looks that way but why the scaffolding round it if its being knocked down ? and it is not because of the traffic it could be pulled down from the other side ? with little trouble surely? the building is unsafe and I will be sorry to see it go ..but like lots of other buildings too little too late
 
Can't believe they are gonna pull this building down..why can't we do the same as Amsterdam as use the frontages of these lovely old buildings
 
Less and less are listings actually doing anything to prevent this happening. I can't get over how many building's I've been in are listed, then suddenly get pulled down, or burn down.
The scaffolding is to prevent a forward collapse onto the road. If they pull it down from the rear of the building, it will have a tendancie to fall forward onto the road if not supported. These places are vanishing at an alarming rate, I'd better get my skates on and explore some more around here!!!!
 
G'day Astonian,
Had a very short spell at the battery,c1961,it was known locally as "the blood tub"from the number of accidents they had.
I worked in the extruding mill,did some work on a centre lathe,that required shims and jacks just to get the belt driven old heap level,one week after the last time I used it,it was taken to the Birmingham science museum...it was a 110 years old.
 
Yes Ray, there are rumours flying around that the accident report book was still in there, and FULL of awful and dis-figuring incidents!!
 
tis true the building is being knocked down. looks like ANOTHER fine old building bites the demolition dust. the place must have been listed or protected initially......why wasn't it knocked down with the rest of the factory ? virusman you have my upmost respect, what you and people like you are doing is so very important, these are fine old buildings that can and never will be replaced, memories will always fade but pictures never will. maybe i should dig out my camera and get snapping !!
cheers
 
There only seemed to be a small sectoin of the frontage left. Some of the rooms I was in on new years day were exposed, but the majority is now rubble. Bloody Sainsbury's!
 
another classic situation of a big company overiding everything with money. it seems that when a part of a complex is listed they demolish everything else and leave the listed bit for a few years. they leave it so it can be accessed by anyone who will naturally vandalise it. the company then use the old "health and saftey " bit to justfy knocking it down. therefore NO building is safe. Remember the old womens hospital down showell green lane ? that was listed, they knocked the rear part down and saved the frontage, that was there for a few years but like everything else it has now gone.
 
captblack, I can name a LOAD of "listed" buildings that I've been in that are either now burned down, demolished or still rotting away.!!! The worst is probably Corngreaves hall not far from Lye. That has history back to the 1700's but is still left rotting away despite being a rather important building in its own right!!!
There seems to be a distinct lack of involvment with this listing process these days. It's just an annoyance to builders more than anything else.
West Heath hospital was listed, it closed down, a week later I was in there shooting what was left, then the following week it was pulled down. It was a gorgeous place, and very re-useable. The land has been empty for 2 years now!!!!! What a waste.
 
i remember west heath hospital very well. and yes what a fantastic old building it was to, when will the people in power realise that every single brick that falls is another part of our history gone that can never ever be replaced. i understand that not all buildings can be saved but it seems that there is wholesale destruction of our very important past. what do they replace it with ? faceless glass and concrete that in 50 or 60 years will be "out of fashion" how many times do we hear about "the old buildings " that once stood and how they had so much going for them and how they are missed, the people who make these decisions are only interested in money ......nothing else, how many square foot of offices they can put on the site of a once beautiful brick built building, and how many "units" of housing can be built.what would the reaction be if they were to develop warwick castle perhaps? no it would never happen, but the places like battery park, west heath hospital, and so many more are our warwick castles,
so a message to the planners and developers
YOU MAY OWN THE LAND BUT WE OWN THE HISTORY THATS ON THAT LAND. STOP DESTROYING IT !!!!!
 
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Just a quick update, the final bricwork has been pulled down. There is nothing left there. I'll get some shots of what is left there on Sunday when I return to see some derelict stuff in the area.
 
captblack, I can name a LOAD of "listed" buildings that I've been in that are either now burned down, demolished or still rotting away.!!! The worst is probably Corngreaves hall not far from Lye. That has history back to the 1700's but is still left rotting away despite being a rather important building in its own right!!!
I went past Corngreaves the otherday and had a quick look and you are right ... it is getting worse ! ....how sad is that .I know that the Battery park will be here for a few years but how many will be glad to see all these parks go ..as and when they do ..and will people remember what was there first I think Not .. some buildings should be saved !! and its about time some planners realised that ..
 
yep its all gone, but they have left the ornate cast iron and brick outer fence, how long that will last is anyones guess.
 
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