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Great Western Arcade

Re: Arcade and Shops special!

Here you are ladies and gents-what you've been waiting for. I hope!

The website is that of the Royal Institute of British Architects. Sounds pretty boring but is it heck! What until you see the photo galleries!!

Website address is www.ribapix.com In the search box in the left put in Birmingham(case sensisitive-needs a capital "B") and there you go. Page 3 is what we want and photos numbered 7115 and 7116 are the bizzniss!

Other Birmingham shops stuff too! Just means going through the 11 pages of items thats all.

Will be of interest to people in other forums such as hospitals and things, if anyone wants to pass the message on. Tell everyone they heard it here first!
 
Michael - Thanks for the Kelly's directory 1946 entry for the Great Western Arcade. From that I see that there is a Wyllie Restaurant (owned by the Mikado) and I wonder if that is the cafe/restaurant I went to. My sister seemed certain that the cafe was Pattisons, but then it may have changed hands over the next few years. Interesting to look at the different shops in the Arcade.

Judy
 
Judy, I remember the Mikado, I sure its been discussed on the Forum before.
Richie, what a fantastic sight. As an aside, I never knew that the Rondhouse in Camden had a Birmingham connection. I went to lots of concerts there in the 60s and 70s
 
Judy, I remember the Mikado, I sure its been discussed on the Forum before.
Richie, what a fantastic sight. As an aside, I never knew that the Rondhouse in Camden had a Birmingham connection. I went to lots of concerts there in the 60s and 70s

The Roundhouse connection with Birmingham is because it wasoriginally an identical GINORMOUS round shunting turntable shunting shed for steam locomotives-just like the one in Tyseley.

Uh-uh! I think a can tell another sleepless search night going on for this forum! Laugh!
 
I have just found this from Houghton's Guide to Birmingham published in the Birmingham Street List and Postal Delivery Guide, Oct 1888.
I am puzzled about where the Gothic Arcade was precisely.
 
img122.jpg
I do not know which one it is but this is 'A Birmingham Shoping Arcade'. 1905
 
Think that's the Great Western Arcade off Colmore Row, opposite Snow Hill Station entrance, Stitch.
 
Gothic arcade is shown on the map c 1910. It seems to first appear as a listed arcade between 1884 and 1888, though there may well have been an alleyway before. I can't find mention of it being called snow hill arcade. If it was it would have been before 1888.
Mike


Came across a mention of "Snow Hill Arcade" in Showell's 1885 Dictionary. It places it as being opposite the railway station and leading to Slaney Street.

There's a "Hen and Chickens Arcade" mentioned too. It was connected to the H&C hotel in New Street and exited onto Worcester Street. Would this later become the Burlington ? Viv.
 
My main memories of the Arcade include Preedys (sp?) Toyshop on the front corner, it occupied two or three current shop units and had an upstairs, but the best thing was the window display which for some time consisted of a massive Meccano contraption that transported a ball around, a marvel of construction!

Fortunately the lovely Druckers which was a rare treat is still there, but what I think was a cheap and cheerful Birmingham Dairies Cafe is not.

An interesting point is that one shop alone currently has curved glass windows (now I believe its Time Square). This is because it was originally wasnt a shop, but the back entrance to the department store that occupied the adjacent space (for me, Debenhams, then Hamleys).

I now work in the office building that was built on to of the department store site...
 
I know there a are a few arcades missing from this map,but i thought it may be of interest.moss
 

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My Gt Grandfather William Thomas Coleman who was born in 1864 in Sutton Coldfield was a managing director (retired) of the Great Western Arcade in Birmingham when he died in 1941 and I am trying to find out where I could obtain copies of documents which mentions him working for the company. In 1911 he was a law clerk so I don't know in which year he became a director. I have looked at the sites online of the Arcade but they only show photos and give a brief history. Any information would be apprieciated.

mary-anne
 
Hi Jennyann

Thank you for your reply and I have been on the site and asked for a search of the documents they have so I am keeping my fingers crossed.

Mary-anne
 
Well not long before this bloke turns up again. Think this must be the Snow Hill end of the Great Western Arcade Viv.


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