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Harborne

pyewacket947 said:
I think this shop used to sell cigarettes in ones or twos , as well as a variety of exotic brands.
Extra long fags called 'Joysticks' and coloured Sobrani Cocktail cigs
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Terrific picture. This was another legendary Harborne shop, Morgans. That shop must have been a gold mine.
 
anthony pollard said:
I dought our paths crossed as i was only 5 when you left though my Eldest brother Brian Pollard would be of a similar age onlong with the Cockcrofts of serpentine road and Peter Green who lived up the terrace next to Woolworths on the High street you may remember those names or Joey Taylor who lived by Grove Park.
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I think I was at Harborne Junior with Pete Green's sister Sheila?
 
Hurricaneplanes said:
I used to take my fathers radio accumulator to Dingleys the cycle shop for recgarging until Durrants the radio shop provided the same service. There was a cycle shop adjacent on the right of the Vine pub. Clearly seen in the Vine photo.
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Mr Dingley was the best wheel builder in the city. I think he lived on Moorpool. I Lived at 70 and 74 High Street (Millers and Byrds). Very sad when that row of houses were demolished in 1968.
 
anthony pollard said:
Down Albert Walk [ THE STUMPS there was a toy shop called Sids he also did Mens haircutting there was also a pet shop a ladies hairdresser. Albert walk was opposite the kings arms the stumps to start albert walk is shown in the picture above. That picture also shows a road opposite which is Serpentine road which is where the Harborne picture house and the Bus station were.If you walked up harborne park road [towards selly oak ] about 100 yds you will come to Summerview terrace with about 8 houses in I was born in house number two 65 years ago
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Have only just come across this message, so sorry for the delay.

I'm interested in where you were born and lived. This is because for many years I have been searching for a picture and information of the house that stood on the right of what used to be Clent House. I believe Clent House was demolished in the early 50's it stood on the corner of Harborne Park Road and St Peters Road opposite Vivian Road. The property I am interested in before it was also demolished is 55 Harborne Park Road, which would have been on the opposite side of the road to where you were born in Summerview terrace. The occupants of this property from circa mid 50's to 1967 were Albert and Florence Freer, not sure if husband and wife or brother and sister, both I believe were elderly and Dennis Wright who I believe worked at the school for the blind in Quinton, he would have been younger. My interest is because Dennis Wright is my birth father and I have very little information of him.

Any info you may have relating to the above property and the occupants would be fantastic.
 
Why would a child go to Harborne Industrial School? Would their parents just send them there or would there be family or criminal reasons?

The child was only 9 and he had siblings (older and younger) living with their father?
 
MWS said:
Why would a child go to Harborne Industrial School? Would their parents just send them there or would there be family or criminal reasons?

The child was only 9 and he had siblings (older and younger) living with their father?
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Usually it was for poor children
 
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Reactions: MWS
It started off at Gem Street as a free school for poor children they moved it to Harborne but later on changed Free from its title but that was its original purpose
 
Thanks, just wondered who it was for or how you got in.

As one of about 12 from a combined family from Erdington (youngest step son of my 2 x great grandmother, who was on her 3rd marriage) I'd guess he would probably qualify as poor.
 
Elizabeth Redmond said:
SALVATION ARMY
264842416859538.jpg
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Great shot Elizabeth, Highlight of my week was standing at the horse trough in front of the Junction pub with my big sister listening to the Salvation band. Must have been about four years old, which would make it 1950. Been a big music lover since. Frankie Turner
 
I went to Harborne yesterday, the Post Office is in W. H. Smith now so all the books are upstairs. I couldn't manage all those stairs.
The pavements are quite bad in places too, it's not very good if you are not too steady!
rosie.
 
Just seen this photo of my parents newsagents shop next to the garage name of Thurlows in the mid 60s also they had a band b in Serpentine Road lots of happy times. Also just like to say that shop had hidden aspects of the old Police Station which a lot of people did not know.
 
Lorraine Jones said:
Just seen this photo of my parents newsagents shop next to the garage name of Thurlows in the mid 60s also they had a band b in Serpentine Road lots of happy times. Also just like to say that shop had hidden aspects of the old Police Station which a lot of people did not know.
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Lorraine, I used to deliver papers for the shop which then was owned by Mr. O'connor. Delivered all along Serpentine Rd. in 1952. The shop had police cells at the back. Was probably the old police station way back.
 
Bob Davis said:
In the late 1800s, my great grandfather lived at 22 Serpentine Road and the family occupied that address for many years.
Bob
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Hi BOB thanks for the info on serpentine road .Was the cinema where the sports and social club is. When I lived there I remember the building but is was not used as we used to play along side the aly. My parents also had the newsagents shop next to the mews garage on the hight st just around the corner and at the back of the shop was the holding cells and stables of the old police station our bathroom walls were about a foot thick and the bars were still intact on the back window.
 
handlebar said:
Lorraine, I used to deliver papers for the shop which then was owned by Mr. O'connor. Delivered all along Serpentine Rd. in 1952. The shop had police cells at the back. Was probably the old police station way back.
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Hi Handle bar thanks for your reply, my parents had the shop in the mid 60s next to the mews garage,which recently I found out that the garage was once a farm building . I got in touch with Harbourne Library to see what they had on the old police cells,but they have not got anything. But did send me pictures of the shop with D & B Thurlow on the front. I ve looked at google earth and don't recognize the places, same where I live now in Barry South Wales the council have destroyed loads of iconic buildings to be replaced with flats.
 
Lorraine Jones said:
Hi BOB thanks for the info on serpentine road .Was the cinema where the sports and social club is. When I lived there I remember the building but is was not used as we used to play along side the aly. My parents also had the newsagents shop next to the mews garage on the hight st just around the corner and at the back of the shop was the holding cells and stables of the old police station our bathroom walls were about a foot thick and the bars were still intact on the back window.
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Only my grandparents lived in Harborne and although I remember the cinema, I cannot give you any up to date info as I have only just driven through on a nostalgia trip. Yes I am a qualified anorak and perhaps should get a life.

Bob
 
Does anyone remember Eddie Matthews who used to play at the Junction every week. He played the trumpet and his band was called the Jump Band. This would have been in the late 1960's probably.
 
Lloyd said:
In a quote from https://mikeinmono.blogspot.co.uk/ , there is mention of the Pinsent family: "In November 1911, Ellen Pinsent became the first woman to be elected to Birmingham City Council, standing in the Edgbaston ward. She stood down from the post two years later when Hume retired, prompting the Pinsents to move to Oxfordshire. During her time on Birmingham Council Ellen Pinsent led the Committee on Special Schools. Amongst her reforms was to appoint an officer to oversee Public Health in these schools. The officer appointed was George Auden, father of poet W.H. Auden."
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There are two mentions of Ellen Pinsent on the forum, both in this this Harbourne thread. She is often mentioned as Mrs Hume Pinsent.

The first is in Post 90 by Aidan is in connection with W.H. Auden, and says that she lived next door to him. He continues...”Ellen Pinsent became the first woman to be elected to Birmingham City Council and famous for her work on conditions for the mentally impaired (fighting off Winston Churchill and Neville Chamberlain who both supported the views of the Eugenics lobby - a fact I find surprising.”

Lloyd also mention her in this post 402. In 1913 she was appointed Honorary Commissioner on the new Board of Control in connection with the Mental Deficiency Act, and therefore Birmingham would loose her services.

Aidan is right to be surprised, Ellen Pinsent was a notable eugenist...

“The Cambridge Association for the Care of the Feeble-minded, formed nationally by Mary Dendy and Mrs Hume Pinsent in 1896, wrote to the Eugenics Education Society Council in London in 1910 suggesting that the two societies co-operate to pressurize the government to pass a Bill for compulsory segregation of the feeble-minded.”
 
Sorry Brenda, can't say I ever heard of the Venetian Flooring Company. Lorraine, the 'OldHarborne' cinema in Serpentine Road is still there but belongs to the Village Social club. If you type into the search bar 'The Picture House Harborne' it will bring up the Cinema Treasures site. Click on comments, and my description will appear. If only I could find a picture of the insid.
 
KINS said:
Hi everyone; Has anyone any memories of the caretakers ( the Hughes family) at St Peter's School, Harborne in the late 1940's and 1950's. My brother remembers playing with Betty Hughes and her brother and I remember practising my tennis against the wall of a building in the playground when the school was closed in the evening. We also went to the shelters in the school at the beginning of WW2 when there were air raids !! At that time we lived very near to the school. Regards - KINS
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