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Gower Street Boys and Girls Schools

hi banjo further to my post 210 have just looked in my book of streets of brum and it seems i was correct...gower st was named after a landowner but no further info about him is written...would be interesting though to find out a bit more about mr gower

lyn
 
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Have had a quick look, but there does not seem to be any obvious . there are a number of Gower Streets in the UK, and most are named after Lord Gower, but he does not seem to have much of a relationship with Birmingham, As a passing mention, the first mention in the newspaper archives of Gower St (in Brum) is in 1839 (below)

Gower st. Aris. Birm Gazette. 18.6.1838.jpg
 
Astoness said:
hi banjo further to my post 210 have just looked in my book of streets of brum and it seems i was correct...gower st was named after a landowner but no further info about him is written...would be interesting though to find out a bit more about mr gower
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Hi Lyn, thanks for that information. That does suggest that the building on Gower St probably was the first building built. Because it was situated next to the church, I always thought that the building on Lozells Road was built first.
 
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John_Gower_Street_pupil said:
A couple more of my classmates have come to mind:

Eaton O'Connor - He was another who went on to Holte Comp. He was always immaculately dressed. A real lady-killer.
And there was a lad called Mosquito who also went on to Holte. Never knew his first name. There were a few other African lads... My brain is working on them. Oh and a few Indians too.
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Hi John great to hear from you and hope you are well, thanks for the compliments (Eaton)
 
Hi I was at gower st from 54 to 58 the two extensions I remember housed the science class Mr Cross /PE and over lozells rd at the side of the church for woodwork/metalwork,
 
I moved from Lozells Juniors at I suppose 11 ish so that would be 1954/5 and stayed there until school days ended. Photo from banjo is good, thanks. As yet the names rings bells, but my memory might take some time to put names to them. My last teacher was aged perhaps confirmed by him saying due to my mental maths I taught your dad. The block was the one without the railings on the roof where I believe the science lab was. Happier days were using my hands in the buildings by the church.
 
John_Gower_Street_pupil said:
Well...

There are maps and there are maps. They appear to be only as good as the cartographer.
I found a 2015 map that has Gower Street going all the way from Berners Street to William Street. It may have been copied from a much earlier map. And an older Google map has Clifford Walk on it.

I went to Gower Boys in the early 70s and Clifford Walk was there.
Below is a snip of the 1888 map that Lyn kindly directed me to showing all three school buildings.
The workshop building is to the right of the Church on Lozells Road confirming Banjo's graphic.
View attachment 155266
As I mentioned to Janice, the street names are more often than not, equidistant from each end of the road on maps.
So I concede that the Annex building was on the corner of Guildford and Gower streets as shown above.
Now I am interested in finding out when the last section of Gower Street changed it's name to Clifford Walk.
I suspect the change happened well before the 70s Janice because there was nothing new about Clifford Walk when I went to school there.

View attachment 155267

It appears that Gower Street is being eaten from both ends. I am not so interested in Old Postway as that doesn't have anything to do with the school.
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The school building on the corner of Guildford Street and Gower Street housed infants and juniors until the late 1930s
when buildings housing mixed senior boys and girls were demolished. The boys then went to Gower Street Senior boys, the building which still stands with a roof top playground and the senior girls went to Lozells Girls School. My mother and her siblings lived in Wilton Street Lozells and they all went to Gower Street. My Aunty’s claim to fame was she sat next to Dennis Howell as they were seated alphabetically.
 
Banjo said:
Hi John, I was there 1957-61. Teachers I remember there were Headmasters Mr Matts & Mr J.T.D Ball, also Mr Williams, Wally Eyton, Mr Dean, Mr Ward and Mr Cross. I made this map a few months back showing where the school buildings were at that time over a 2020 Google view. Gower St extended through to William St then so, at least part of the school was in Gower St.
View attachment 155240
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Hi Banjo

i was there from 1958 to 1962, so our paths would probably have crossed. i was a member of the Chess team. Can you remember any of the names on the attached photo? A abiding memory is of Mr Eyton throwing the wooded blackboard
cleaner from the back of the classroom across our heads!
 

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John merricks said:
Hi Banjo

i was there from 1958 to 1962, so our paths would probably have crossed. i was a member of the Chess team. Can you remember any of the names on the attached photo? A abiding memory is of Mr Eyton throwing the wooded blackboard
cleaner from the back of the classroom across our heads!
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John, you seem to be using the same post on two different threads. I answered your question yesterday on the Guilford St Lozells thread
 
John merricks said:
Sorry Banjo - just finding my way around this site. Forgot there were different threads!
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dont worry john you have only been a member for a couple of days...the other thread you posted on is solely about guildford street the street and and this one which i pointed you to is about gower st school..enjoy the forum

lyn
 
Astoness said:
dont worry john you have only been a member for a couple of days...the other thread you posted on is solely about guildford street the street and and this one which i pointed you to is about gower st school..enjoy the forum

lyn
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Oops -messed up again. Just posted on the Guildford Street thread a post about my house in Wilton Street! I’ll get it right eventually! I now live not far from Guildford and until i came across this site had forgotten about Guildford Street. A million miles from my early life in Brum!
 
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