McGrath William Digbeth 1970s-1980s

[ree mcgrath]

my uncle moved from Scotland to digbeth late 1970s..lived in Coventry street (dolphin café)

 

[John Young]

Re: information on some1 who lived/died in digbeth 1970s-1980s

Hello Ree from bonnie Scotland & Welcome,

Could you supply a little more information about your uncle ?
His name & age in late 1970,s might jog some folks memories of living/working around Coventry Street
and the usually very busy & mixed industrial + commercial Digbeth area of Central Birmingham

 

[ree mcgrath]

Re: information on some1 who lived/died in digbeth 1970s-1980s

hello, and thank u 4 your reply. we didn't have much 2 go on through trying 2 find him. his name is William McGrath. he was born in Scotland in 1923. he had irish parents. with the little piece of info we had on him, we reckon he moved 2 Birmingham around 1974. in my childhood memory there was always something about a dolphin café. but we had never bn able 2 trace. if we did we were told it was knockt down. one of my brothers went down 2 Birmingham registry office recently and they hv supplied us with a death certificate 4 him. he was in the army in his youth and then called out 2 b a miner in the local coal pits.he died in feb 1986. address at time of death was 101 Coventry st , digbeth. I am not a computer buff.. but a wee bit of search I hv done on this address is now albuferia/formerly eastside café/formerly dolphin café..at his age of moving, we have assumed that he never married/ or had any children. bit sad really that he has been in this room renting place all these yrs. I am just trying 2 search now, his wee life and well being. wldnt have any idea why he chose 2 go and live in digbeth as all his brothers(4) and sister and family all lived in our little village at the time.. then I read there is a good irish community spirit there, maybe that's what drew him there.. thanks again 4 your reply...Ree.

 

[John Young]

Re: information on some1 who lived/died in digbeth 1970s-1980s

Hi again Ree & Family, thanks for the update,

The Dolphin Cafe was at 99-101 Coventry Street , Digbeth B,ham B5, the area is near St Martins(Bullring) close
to City centre end of Digbeth which has always been a busy cosmopolitan area of Birmingham which has a
population second only to London and the largest City Council in Europe & Digbeth holds the 2nd biggest
St Patricks Day parade in the World (New York is 1st/Biggest).
So your knowledge of "Irish Community" is spot on,,The Dublinner Pub is a little walk or a "totter", hic,, from
where your Willie McGrath lived & worked.

I suggest you may find more out about his early Army life by enquiring at the
Army Historical Disclosures,,Brown Street, Glasgow,,costs about £50 & about 6 months to wait for info
but at least you can build up your family History of him as you intend to do.
Others on this B,ham Forum may know or have more on Willie McGrath so keep in touch,

There are 5 William McGrath marriages in B,ham between 1941-1963 on FreeBMD, may be worth a look?
Good luck, John Y

 

[ree mcgrath]

Re: information on some1 who lived/died in digbeth 1970s-1980s

thanks john...one of my brothers has traced in2 his army days, as he was in commandos at same time as his brother(my dad) I am more of a face 2 face chap door searcher than computer. if I had had the finances I wld hv went down yrs ago. but now finding out the yr of his death I was a struggling working single parent. so there wouldn't hv bn a chance of that...he died of industrial disease which makes me think he was maybe struggling health wise and didn't work all the time he was there..and if he did he would hv struggled.. it was just a bit sad 2 find it was the coroner that registered his death..so there4 am reckoning he had no partner/wife..as my fond memories of him, he did like a wee dram...so maybe the dublinner wld have bn a local pub 4 him... many thanks Ree