Dear Alan,
I have checked the Ordnance Survey maps of 1901, 1913, 1921, 1938, 1949 and 1958 none of which show any property in Grove Lane Harborne apart from The Grove (Thomas Attwood's house), and Harborne Hall itself.
It wasn't until the 1986 edition which shows properties constructed along the west side of Grove Lane facing Grove Park.
Google Street view shows them numbering from 61 to 97, however "walking" Street View's little man northwards up Grove Lane toward the junction with Old Church Road it lists everything on the west side as number 63.
Number 61 is an early 70's built detached house by the way
At the junction with Old Church Road is the entrance to Harborne Hall which has, until recent years, been used by
Sisters of La Retraite since 1925, more recently as a training centre for Voluntary Services Overseas and most recently as an annex to Station Road School.
The visible building near the entrance has in the past had entrances in the wall along the northern part of Grove Lane which could have had the address number 61.
Many years ago (circa 1975) there were "cells" with iron gratings in the walls along this section facing out onto Grove Lane and the Nuns allowed young Irish students from nearby Newman College to stay there. They were then very simple rooms with a fixed bed, a chair and not a lot else.
This culled from Street View which reminds me the gap between the buildings shown fenced used to be an entrance to the retreat during the mid 70's
Grove Lane is a short walk away from here so if you need a bit of "leg work" just ask.
A minor breakthrough since writing the above is that there appears to have been property on the west side of Grove Lane facing the entrance to The Grove House which was demolished in 1962.
The parcel of land appears to be part of the Wiggin estate and may have later passed into the Kenrick estate in the early part of the 20th century as it is briefly referred to in the deeds of our house.
Therefore the location of the land parcel and its position is broadly in alignment with where the present 61 is situated. If so then the houses on the present development would have deeds and records at the Land Registry which might also lead to the identity of original property.
I called in to the new Library of Birmingham to look at the map collection for the period 1882-1916 and the following is comparison of editions.
Ringed is a building which occupied much the same position as the present number 61 does today. This would coincide with the period when Harborne Hall was loaned by Walter Chamberlain to house refugees from Belgium between 1914-16. Between 1916-1918 it was used as a military hospital for soldiers sent back from France and during the period financed by W T Avery, the scale makers, would had long associations with Chamberlain.
From 1919-1924 it was leased to Montagu Lawson who ran the house as Harborne Hall Preparatory School with a small staff of graduate teachers and housekeepers before the business was wound up in 1926 before which the Sisters of Letraite had set up their Retreat in 1925.
The maps generally cover this period.
Regards,
