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Longbridge Pumping Station (plus Others)

Pedrocut

Pedrocut

Master Barmmie
BE51B6A5-D5B6-49CA-8DF2-72D61E7E9B8C.jpeg D2B1550F-F200-41AD-8223-5EC8E686D51E.jpeg DF56BC8D-F535-4CE6-8D9C-81891218BE3D.jpeg

Thanks for the picture of Longbridge Pumping Station to OldM in the Thread “Then and Now.”
https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/index.php?threads/then-now.44065/page-22#post-623098

The first question to ask is just when was it built? If you look at the ePapers Repository for Birmingham University it says 1879, and this date appears on other sites. But is it right?

The Selly Oak Pumping Station was opened on the 29th July 1879 and can be seen here...
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selly_Oak_Pumping_Station

In 1870 Birmingham Water Works Co were intending to sink a well at Northfield but nothing seem to come of it. In Mar 4th 1890 there was a proposal to sink well at Longbridge but it was 4 miles from nearest pumping station. Described as close to Halesowen Railway with the river Rea separating the land from the line, and 1m from Rubery Hill Asylum.

In July 1892. “The Longbridge Well, Engine and buildings, and also the main from Longbridge to Selly Oak, are now completed. The yield of water at present is much less than expected.”

(Maps from 1883 and 1903)
 
F5598F78-9AAE-45E3-B8F4-437435EFCFFB.jpeg F32501CA-2CCA-4F8F-8347-82546C56D6AA.jpeg 31E0898A-D42C-49B5-92C9-ED47805E206F.jpeg 8DCF991F-5276-4E5B-BAAB-A74966441323.jpeg DD493DB4-3B5C-4FE3-8F8B-BD7DBDAF8E64.jpeg

Birmingham Gazette on the 8th of July 1932 reports of an Alarming B'ham Subsidence.

"It sounded like waves breaking on a pebbly beach."

" .... into the all-absorbing pit went hundreds of tomato plants."
 
It seems that the station was still supplying Longbridge around 1931, as in 1939 a Laundry has difficulties with the Corporation because the water supply was changed frequently without warning from Welsh Water, which has 4 degrees hardness, to Longbridge water that had 16 degrees. In 1931 it had changed to its own supply.
 
I did previously post photos of the pumping station took around 1970, but they seem to have disappeared, or at least I can't find the post to refer to, so will repost below

20A.water pumping station longbridge.jpg 21A.water pumping station longbridge.jpg 22B.water pumping station longbridge.jpg
 
There is a glimpse of the pumping station behind a shop in a Jan 1956 photo from the D.J.Norton collection. The pumping staion was designed by Chamberlain and Martin, a firm of architects who also designed the library at Spring Hill.
1563BristolRoadSouth.jpg
 
27C58AA8-3B16-4894-A420-58139C27FDCA.jpeg 3EF57D9A-1968-49CB-8AF2-3DDF1BF68F15.jpeg Notice that in the Phyllis Nicklin photograph the tower exists but has disappeared in the others.

In the first clip from July 1961 there is a report that the tower, a “fine example of atrocious Victorian Gothic” of the Pumping station was due for demolition, the steam pumps had been replaced 2 years previously with electric pumps. However it seems that it was not until July 1973 that demolition began.

The second clip tells “Bricks crash on club as tower demolished.” Almost slicing a 7 year old building in two.
 
oldMohawk said:
There is a glimpse of the pumping station behind a shop in a Jan 1956 photo from the D.J.Norton collection. The pumping staion was designed by Chamberlain and Martin, a firm of architects who also designed the library at Spring Hill.
View attachment 127208
Click to expand...

Have you any idea where the information that Chamberlain and Martin designed the Longbridge Station came from? They designed the Selly Oak station of 1879.

Maybe I should change the title of the Thread to include the other stations?
 
I found it on https://www.photobydjnorton.com/GTC/Longbridge.html
What is most fascinating is the building behind 1563 Bristol Road. The right hand side looks like a church but how can the equally impressive chimney be explained!? Well, it was a pumping station constructed for Birmingham Waterworks and designed by Chamberlain and Martin. That firm of architects designed many of the city's fine municipal buildings including the superb library at Spring Hill.
Click to expand...
 
I wonder if the 1870 date refers to the start of the design process rather than completion and opening?
 
pjmburns said:
I wonder if the 1870 date refers to the start of the design process rather than completion and opening?
Click to expand...

I believe a significant date would be 1876 when the Corporation took over the water supply from the Birmingham Waterworks Company. The Corporation would be more likely to build grand structures?
 
D32F9F65-1A38-40CC-B8C7-0363F051D16E.jpeg 640DD7B0-0E85-4236-A227-B842967FCDC9.jpeg 25AB8689-53E2-42D9-BF8A-6C0E23A28338.jpeg

The opening of the Selly Oak Pumping Station in July 1879..

“The gift of the land was more than equivalent to any economy that could have been obtained by putting up nothing but an ordinary column, instead of the elegant character of the station they were now opening. They might have saved a small sum by having everything very plain and very ugly. The land was given by the generosity of Lord Calthorpe, and it was hardly to have been expected that his Lordship would have given it if anything in the form of an ugly tube had been put up.”
 
Pedrocut said:
View attachment 127211 View attachment 127209 Notice that in the Phyllis Nicklin photograph the tower exists but has disappeared in the others.

In the first clip from July 1961 there is a report that the tower, a “fine example of atrocious Victorian Gothic” of the Pumping station was due for demolition, the steam pumps had been replaced 2 years previously with electric pumps. However it seems that it was not until July 1973 that demolition began.

The second clip tells “Bricks crash on club as tower demolished.” Almost slicing a 7 year old building in two.
Click to expand...
It appears that the water folk, who were having to do the demolition due to it being in a poor state, were not enthusiastic about the demolition and realized that it has many who had kind sentiments about it.
There seem to have been many who had some 'victoriana' phobia, in the past, who were quite vocal with their views. Maybe it was a childhood repression coming to the fore in their later years. :eek:
 
Seen from a different angle prior to 1971 from Birmingham buildings; the architectural story of a Midland city
by Little, Bryan D. G

27EB7ED0-A7BF-4EC8-8415-4FEB55A36ACE.jpeg
 
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