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Gas Street basin

The gasworks of Gas Street is an interesting building. It was accidently rediscovered by a developer who bought the site a few years ago. He noticed it had unusual iron roof trusses, so asked the conservation department to have a look.

An excavation of the site revealed the extent of the gasworks, the retort house, and other bits.
 
Only the one image - problem with the scanner cable !
There were four black and white prints but one is the Paradise Branch photo above but fortunately noticed before I spent time scanning it .
Not sure of the source, rescued from bin after some one was clearing out a filing cabinet, location is Gas Street but year is anyones guess, a posed image judging by all the people on the fronts of the boats. Other two are a more recent Gas Street and a turn of the century Lifford Lane photo.

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Last canal photo again a Geoff Thompson slide - not Gas Street so feel free to move it to somewhere more appropriate or to my thread please.
Love the picture from a different time while todays canals have benefitted from the restoration I feel some of the soul has been lost
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The track or street at Gas Street existed before the Gas Works was built, part at least passed by the Islington Basin Wharves used by the Birmingham Timber Co and G R Birds boat dock also needed access.

The boat dock was removed when the Bar Lock was made.
 
SteveBhx said:
Only the one image - problem with the scanner cable !
There were four black and white prints but one is the Paradise Branch photo above but fortunately noticed before I spent time scanning it .
Not sure of the source, rescued from bin after some one was clearing out a filing cabinet, location is Gas Street but year is anyones guess, a posed image judging by all the people on the fronts of the boats. Other two are a more recent Gas Street and a turn of the century Lifford Lane photo.

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Fabulous pic, thanks Steve. I like the telegraph pole on the island.
The towpath on the left looks rather narrow.
 
The Geoff Thompson slides are a useful source. Is there a list of them?

As to this image.
Farmers B 60.jpg



The view is the roving bridge over the bottom of Farmers Bridge Top Lock looking down the flight to Saturday Bridge.

In the haze above the bridge are buildings that fronted Summer Row and backed onto the Newhall Branch Canal. Amongst these structures was the former papier mache works of McCallum & Hodgson, which may have survived to this time.
 
Heartland said:
The Geoff Thompson slides are a useful source. Is there a list of them?

As to this image.
View attachment 159878



The view is the roving bridge over the bottom of Farmers Bridge Top Lock looking down the flight to Saturday Bridge.

In the haze above the bridge are buildings that fronted Summer Row and backed onto the Newhall Branch Canal. Amongst these structures was the former papier mache works of McCallum & Hodgson, which may have survived to this time.
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I am afraid not, as said previously all colour pictures are slides copied and put on a CD, I have no information. I post the images and the forum comes up with the detail. All colour pictures are mainly Geoffs, and I have around 150 to add. Is there anything specific you are after?
 
Nothing specific, but can probably identify them. There may be some views that has not been seen before and of use.

An email conversation in this regards may be useful.
 
Always wondered why it was called Gas Street...so...Graham Knight solved it for me this morning.....!! See pics.....
 

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The Gas Street Map is not the most accurate as no mention is made of the canal basin or the early tramway. But yes these works were the reason for the name of the street, yet as stated it did have a previous purpose before it gained the name.

But why is Berkley Street so named?
 
Pedrocut said:
For the record.

The first mention of Gas Street that I can find is in 1834, and of the Birmingham Gas-light and Coke Company is 1822.

In January 1819 John Gostling put forward his proposal to light the city by gas. (January 1819, Norfolk Chronicle.)

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I'd always thought that it was called Gas Street because it was the first Birmingham street to be lit with gas lamps. Don't know where I heard that from (probably in a book a long time ago). It would make sense that the first lamps would be there if it was adjacent to Gas works.
 
SteveBhx said:
Only the one image - problem with the scanner cable !
There were four black and white prints but one is the Paradise Branch photo above but fortunately noticed before I spent time scanning it .
Not sure of the source, rescued from bin after some one was clearing out a filing cabinet, location is Gas Street but year is anyones guess, a posed image judging by all the people on the fronts of the boats. Other two are a more recent Gas Street and a turn of the century Lifford Lane photo.
Click to expand...
Fabulous picture. Love that it's still recognisibly the same place.
 
From "The Worcester & Birmingham Canal" by Rev Alan White (p54)
To meet the requirements of increasing traffic on the canal, various developments were put in hand at the Worcester wharf in Birmingham, including the making of a public Street, later to be known as Gas St, in 1798 on the west side of the basin between the Aqueduct and Broad St, giving access to the two sluices and the wharves alongside.
 
The map posted by Dennis shows the Gas Works but no name yet given to Gas Street.
Would therefore be dated some time between 1817-1834?

F016D167-FD6E-42A8-865C-2E41E5520F62.jpeg
 
Pedro
The map you refer to is from the map published in 1839 by the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge, though it is not known when the survey for it was carried out.
 
mikejee said:
Pedro
The map you refer to is from the map published in 1839 by the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge, though it is not known when the survey for it was carried out.
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Mike, I looked up the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge (Wikipedia) and found that it was disbanded in 1846. Would you know of a similar publication that might have taken its place? The idea of such a publication at least to me is a wonderful idea.

Thanks,
 
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