• 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

Drop Stamp - Birch Rd - Witton

Hello Baz@Jean sorry taking so long replying to your mails it has been a tough six months i have been diagnosed with diabetes 2 i am not on any medication just a diet and to get my weight down myself and my wife now walk about 3 to 4 miles a day and about 7 weeks ago my son who is disabled developed cellulitis we thought it was jut a rash when we took him to A@E on sunday morning they told us it was a good job we brought him as it can become life threatening he as been on double antibiotcs nearly seven weeks now .As for asking around for more old photos no luck yet i will keep trying though
 
There is an excellent image (EPW061749) of Birch Road dated 1939 HERE on the Britainfromabove.org.uk website. I can clearly see a building where I remember Drop Stamp was, and can definitely see the following factories and other buildings etc I knew.
Forgings & Presswork - where I did my apprenticeship.
Salisbury Transmissions - attached to F&P.
Hardy Spicer - corner of Birch Rd/Brookvale Rd.
Witton Allotments.
Witton Methodist Church.
 
Thats most interesting Mohawk ........1939 Eh ! The Luftwaffe would have been glad of that methinks.
 
John. Sorry for taking so long to reply, but I hadn't checked this thread for a while. I'm sorry to hear about your health problems, and that of your son too. I hope you both improve shortly. And please don't worry about those photo's. Whenever you feel able and fit enough to locate them will be fine. The health of your family is paramount, after all, it's been a good 50+ years of waiting for more photo's to show up, so no rush now. Take care, and best wishes. Barry.
 
Thats most interesting Mohawk ........1939 Eh ! The Luftwaffe would have been glad of that methinks.
Hi Mooch - Regarding your mention of the Luftwaffe, I notice a sloping ramp in the top left hand corner of the pic which looks a bit like a V1 launch site.
I seem to vaguely remember it being a council waste site and the dustcarts went up the ramp, but it must have been demolished because the M6 is there now.
oldmohawk
 
sorry I have not in touch have a few problems Ihave been informed I have diabetes 2 not on any medication just a diet and to change my eating habits also i have had my son very poorly he somehow contracted cellulitus we thought it was just a rash but took him to hospital on a sunday morning and was told it was life threatening he was on 12 antibiotics a day for 8weeks before he was given a clean bill of health still asking and phoning round for old photos no luck so far hope you are keeping well
 
As I've said before John. Your family concerns come first. Photo's can wait till another day. Take care all of you.
 
Yes John your family does come first. I do hope they sort your diabetes out and I know what cellulitus is like as I had it after a cat bite. Ended up in Kidderminster hospital a few years ago. Don't worry about the photo's just get yourselves right first. Jean.
 
Worked at Forgings and Presswork in the toolroom for 9 months.I used to sneak out and go down to the stamping shopm what a wonderful place that was to an impressionable lad.The whole lot became Birfield Industries
I was not cut out for the toolroom,eventually I joined the army REME and the rest is history
all the best
Graham
 
Jennyann and Jean. I may have said this before, but my Dad worked at Halladays all his working life. He was a buyer for the last few years, and never worked anywhere else from when he left school, till he retired. I too would love to see any photos of this place. Barry.
Hi my Father worked at Halliday also for many years his name was Bill Quaid. I do have a photo and will sort it out.
 
Hi, Pedrocut.
I worked at another forge up Birch Rd, and often wondered what local householders thought of the noise. We later moved to a factory in Hamstead and ran a nightshift. One night a man from one of the large houses up Hamstead Hill came and demanded that the night manager immediately visit his house to listen to the 'racket'. The night manager went with him, had to follow him upstairs to his bedroom, and then noticed that the man's wife was fast asleep in bed while a discussion about factory noise took place !
We did agree to keep the factory doors shut at night.
Happy New Year to You
oldmohawk:)
Hi Mohawk , this is Mooch . I' m sure we've spoken together on here . Just noticed your comment about moving to Hamstead . So that would be the Cold Extrusion I believe , and you must have known the electrician I worked under ,down at Witton , Les Sankey ?
 
Hi Mooch,
Yes, looking back through the thread we have commented in several posts and certainly mentioned Les Sankey. Shortly after the move to Hamstead we became part of the very large GKN group and now they have been taken over by Melrose Industries.
oldmohawk
 
I wonder if anyone will see this. The thread is very old. I searched this drop stamp place because my Grandfather mentioned it to me. He is Roy Hickman. I’m not sure if he was one of the owners or if he was the son of them. He also mentioned Ida Hickman, Albert Hickman and Kathleen Hickman. But I’m not sure if they could have been the owners. Roy, my grandad moved to Australia during the war as a spitfire engineer. He still lives there in Sydney. He’s 96 now. As far as I know they sold the business. I’ve never met any of his family from Birmingham. I wonder if there’s any Hickman’s still there?!
 
I wonder if anyone will see this. The thread is very old. I searched this drop stamp place because my Grandfather mentioned it to me. He is Roy Hickman. I’m not sure if he was one of the owners or if he was the son of them. He also mentioned Ida Hickman, Albert Hickman and Kathleen Hickman. But I’m not sure if they could have been the owners. Roy, my grandad moved to Australia during the war as a spitfire engineer. He still lives there in Sydney. He’s 96 now. As far as I know they sold the business. I’ve never met any of his family from Birmingham. I wonder if there’s any Hickman’s still there?!

May be a start from January 1941...

B27034C1-4D06-4451-BE22-AB46F3D362CB.jpeg
 
I wonder if we are related in some way to your family Kristy?. My dad used to work for a Drop Stamping firm too.
 

Attachments

  • m14.jpg
    m14.jpg
    269 KB · Views: 12
I wonder if we are related in some way to your family Kristy?. My dad used to work for a Drop Stamping firm too.

Are you also a Hickman? Who was the Loving Memory clip of? I’m sure I can get a copy of my family tree if I tried. I think my grandad made on, so I wonder if my dad has it somewhere. That would be so fun to find out I have like 3rd/4th generation relatives!
 
I will look it up on my family tree tomorrow Kristy and let you know. My Paternal side of the family. Lyndon.
 
Back
Top