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Heather Rd. Small Heath

Hi Thomas Cooper, Yes Dario & Rillio were in our gang I remember them well. The handicapped lad as you say was deaf and dumb not blind as I remembered in my post. Brian Bridge's lived at 230 and the owner of the Era Picture House lived at No 226 and next at 228 lived a family with one daughter but their names escape me. Next to my family(going down the road) were the Mathews then the Tichen's Gordon and Sylvia. Gordon saved me from drowning at Green Lane baths when somebody pushed me in at the deep end. Another family has come to mind were Doreen Morgan and her brother who lived in the Municipal Houses opposite our house I always thought they were posh as they had a Morrison Shelter in their Living Room which doubled as a table when we only had an Anderson Shelter in the back garden which was damp and smelly. Another lad I used to knock about with live in the Municipal Houses opposite your Mothers house I think his name was Jones and his Father was killed in the war. The other names you mention( I would have known them by sight) but their names escape me. Have you any photo's of Heather Road during this period? All I remember about the was being taken to the air raid shelter under the Monica Pub and VJ day with a bonfire in the street. Thanks for jogging my memory. All the best aggie
 
Hi Thomas,
I remember the Roberts & vaguely remember the Capaldy's. When I was growing up I think only Mrs Horsborough was alive. She had a son living at home. What I remember was, he first of all, had a Mechesmit cabin scooter & then a Berkley 3 wheeled sports car. (powered by a motorcycle engine) The Spicers lived 2 doors up from us & had 2 daughters, Carol & Jennifer. I also remember Brian Bridges.
 
Hi,
Thanks for the electoral Roll. How did you get hold of it? I'm interested as, according to the 1911 census, my father lived at 147. Also, I'd like to find out Whether my granddad bought 240 & then passed it on to my dad, & when he purchased the chippie on St. Bens.
 
Hiya, Just go to Midlands Historical Data (Google it) register with them and buy some credits and bob's your uncle. You will have access to loads of info on who lived where during a particular period. I will be passing St Benedict's Road next Friday so I will take a picture of the chip shop and post it for you. aggie
 
Hi,
Thanks for the info. I've actually been on Google Earth & got a picture on street level, but thanks anyway.
 
I read in the Sunday Mercury that John Purvin who was born in Small Heath, has wrote his autobiography about his time in Small Heath titled "Look Dad I am Still Here" does anyone know where to get this book? aggie
 
Thanks mate it looks as though I have got to buy a Kindle. John Purvin lived in Garrison Lane for 30 years, contracted TB and worked as a bookie, was arrested in the Malt Shovel taking illegal bets and eventually settled down to raise a family, sounds like a good read pity it's only on E Book. aggie
 
mikejee said:
I gather that you can get a free download to enable you to read kindle on a laptop ( https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/feature.html/ref=kcp_pc_mkt_lnd?docId=1000423913 ). As it is from amazon, who ARE kindle, I assume it is a genuine non- dubious download
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Thanks for that Mike I downloaded it to my tablet (not a Kindle device) and am well into it.

As you say you can get a free Kindle app to enable you to read Kindle eBooks a number of which are available free. You can also use Calibre software which enables you to real most, if not all, eBooks. It is available for free and Linda has been using it for over 12 months with no problems.
 
I was born in 1966 in Small Heath and spent almost every day in Digby Park from 1974 till 1978. Small Heath was then, as it is now, an inner city working class suburb suffering from high economic deprivation. It consists of rows of tightly packed Edwardian terrace houses.
My elder brother and sister used Digby Park before me and always reminded me how it was when they used it in the 1960s.
Here is a satellite photo of what Digby Park looks like now - s
Here is a modified photo showing a plan of Digby Park in 1977 -
When I used Digby Park it was already in free fall decline, but I was lucky enough to see the last few years of an era when parks were for all the community and not just teenagers.
Comparing the park between now and 1977 it is immediately obvious how empty it now appears. Gone is the on-site park keeper and the bowling green, which the pensioners used.
Gone is the Sons of Rest building, which contained two snooker tables and was used by World War One veterans. Gone are the trees that were climbable - which was most of them.
Digby Park has been stripped bare and is now nothing more than an open grass area. Indeed, they may as well put a sign on the entrance saying "Teenagers Only, there's nothing of interest here for grown ups"
In financial terms the park is cheaper than ever to run, but at what cost? Stripping bare Digby Park has been repeated across Birmingham. Parks that were once for the whole community have now become teenager only zones, where the only adults seen are those walking the dogs.
The decline for Digby Park started in the mid-1960s when Council got rid of the resident gardeners. Digby Park used to have formal flowerbeds in the mid-1960s, but these had long been trampled out of existence by the time I started using the park.
In 1974, the last bowl was bowled on the bowling green.
By 1978, the park keeper was gone and the thugs took over the park. I then stopped using it.
The Sons of Rest building lasted a few more years, but with the park keeper gone, the vandals took over. First the park keepers hut was burnt down, followed by the Sons of Rest building.
The park keepers hut was a wonderful Arts and Crafts octagonal brick and pebbledash hut - many a day we played tag around this hut.
The Sons of Rest building was built, like so many others in Birmingham's parks, in the 1920's as social clubs for veterans of World War I. The only one I know that still exists is in Cannon Hill Park.
So what did having all these adults around mean - as young children we still played and hung out together? What it did mean is that we knew our boundaries of behaviour.
If I climbed a tree with the park keeper around he would come storming over and threaten to book us - three bookings and the police visited your parents. No physical handling was needed. The park keeper used an assertive voice, and we obeyed him.
When we kicked balls against the Sons of Rest building, one the pensioners would come out shouting and we stopped.
For every anti-social action, we soon realized there was a reaction. We learnt our boundaries.
If we are to reverse the declining behavior of British teenagers then we need to look at what activities we provide them and ensure these activities show them the boundaries of acceptable behavior.
The easiest place to start would our parks. It will cost money in employing park keepers and gardeners. It will also cost money to re-introduce adult sporting activities back into these parks eg a jogging and fitness circuit.
But in return we will save money on repairing vandalism and live in a more crime free city.

This piece was written by a Birmingham Councillor responsible for Small Heath and just shows how far the park has gone down the nick since our days in the 40's and 60's when it was a marvellous place to play and hang out. I spent many happy hours there, its just a feature less patch of grass when I saw it last week. aggie
 
bhatti

Not before 1974 at least, and it was probably demolished not long after that, but I would check on that if I were you.
 
Phil said:
bhatti

Not before 1974 at least, and it was probably demolished not long after that, but I would check on that if I were you.
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thanks for youre reply i remember buying chips from one of these shops in the 60s one was paper an sweet shop and ice cream cant remember which was which though.a few doors away towards coventry road was an outdoor
 
Hi everyone my mom and dad my self and brother all lived on heather road small heath we lived at 190 it was one of the houses partly got hit by a bomb there was a old woman that lived next door called daisy lived there all her life there was some strange things that would happen in the house strange noises walking up stairs when no one was up there and myself when I was about 8 seen a ghostly man in the back garden standing there it was night time I remember running down stairs to my mom and dad telling them about the man my dad went straight out no one was there mom asked me what he looked like could not see his face but he was wearing a flat cap and the strangest thing was there was a dog sitting next to him allways stuck in my head still can see it now doors would open lights would flicker
 
hi beedham and welcome to the forum...i too had experiences like this when i lived in villa st...would have been about 13 at the time...like you have never forgotton it...enjoy the forum

all the best

lyn
 
i think there was a sweet shop on the corner near 190 corner of somerville rd and heather road im not sure.on opposite side there was the chemist shop owned by a nice young girl blond hair.and next to that was the co-op and across the road opposite corner was a shop
 
aggie2347 said:
Hiya Oldboy Yes its coming back to me now(it was 70 years ago) the river Cole, we used to wonder what the "balloons" were floating down the river, but the number of the bus down St Benedict's Road escapes me? My wife Maureen lived at 137 Carlton Road and her Grandparents lived in Green Lane and Grange Road. With regard to aggie I took it from my Father who was in the Fire Service where most of the men pre-war had served in the navy and used aggie Weston's café so they called my Father aggie.
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Number of the bus route was 28. I used to catch it to go home for my dinner. Mom would not let me have school dinners. I was at st bens in the early to mid 1950s.
 
aggie2347 said:
View attachment 89177View attachment 89178View attachment 89179 Heather Road 1964, St Benedicts School, and yours truly Ken Weston
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Hi Ken great photo of the school, it could have been taken from the window of the bedroom I was born in at no 53. I was at St Ben's 1954 to 1960 and not being much good at football spent a lot of playtimes in those bike sheds. Miss Quinn was the infant headmistress and Mr Beaumont the junior one having taken over from Mr Smith. Class teachers were 1a Mr Price 2a Mrs Williams 3a Miss Cleasby and 4a Mr Overed. Happy Days.
Correction don't know where I got Mrs Williams from it was of course Mrs Howell sorry for the confusion.





The
 
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Hi, l am a new member now living in Lancashire. This site has taken me back years. I was born at 53 Heather Road Small Heath in 1948 and attended St Benedict's Road school, the gates of which was opposite the house. We left Small Heath in 1962 when we moved to Shirley. Went to a party and met a girl from Preston married in 1975 and moved to Lancashire in the early 80's This site brings back lots of memories. Looking on the web I would not recognise the city centre
and would be lost as soon as I got off the train. Having said that it was my generation that stared pulling the old city down.
Once again a great site thank you all Michael Thomas
 
I went to St Benedict's from about 1957 or 58 until 1964. My father was a policeman and there were two cul-de-sac's off Heybarnes Road that were all police houses. As a result, most of us kids went to St Benedict's which meant, as we were the 'largest group' in the school, there was never any bullying of us over our fathers' occupation ! I deffinately remember Miss Quinn being headmistress of the Infants School, she was firm and sometimes scary (particularly when I was found playing in the cloakroom instead of in class ! However, I also remember she had a jar of lolliepops on her desk so she wasn't all bad !
Miss Cleasby had a reputation for being firm, but I also remember her playing nonsensical tunes on the recorder when we played pass the parcel at Christmas time, so she wasn't all bad ! Mr Overed - yes remember him in particularly because I once got the ruler from him for talking too much (never stopped me, I had a full working career in communications !), but also, I remember he was the Teacher who blew the whistle at the end of breaks for us to line up ready to return to class - until the day the pea in the whistle got stuck and we girls were rolling on the floor with laughter as he went red in the face trying to blow it ! He was a good sort really and a good teacher. I particularly remember the the games we played, Chinese skipping, balls against the wall, and the big delight was when someone brought in their mum's washing line and we had group skipping - loads of us in a line all trying to jump at the same time ! I don't remember any injuries though ! I really appreciate the foundation the teaching at the school gave me, then I went on to Saltley Grammar School for a few years before we suddenly moved to Portsmouth and away from Birmingham. It is good to know the school is still going.
 
Mervyn Wylie here ---- i lived at 192 heather road small heath from 1955 to 1962 with my 2 sisters margaret and elizabeth we were at st bens infants and junior school then to oldknow sec mod --and we all went to the Cristadelphian church at the top end of heather road sunday school-- its a mosque now i think ----we first came from north ireland as my father found work there we left in 1962 to return to northern Ireland me being 75 now my sisters being younger all this has brought so many memories back ----up to a couple of years back i went to see nabours of ours the HUNTS at 208 heather road but since both have passed away ---im still in touch with their son who lives up north now --------------- may be in the back of somebodys mind they remember us
 
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