Old Wharf

[Vivienne14]

Have tried to sharpen it a bit
mike

Thanks Mike that's better. Don't know what's going on with the focussing. Viv.

 

[Rupert]

Yeah, when the industry arrived, the well to do moved further west to be up-wind of the smoke. The older maps show gardens everywhere...most of the houses had them and I opined that they were mostly kitchen gardens rather than floral. There is a streetscape of Bingley Hall and a whole streetscape of Pinfold Street of the older period on here somewhere. Finding it is the problem. Pinfold was nothing to write home about. I wonder what the people thought about Cadbury's moving out to Bournville...well they had a steam engine and smoke stack no doubt...'there goes the neighbourhood' do you think.

 

[mikejee]

Viv
It wouldn't have been called Broad st then anyway. the 1795 map calls the part by the old wharf Easy Hill, with the other end near fiveways Islington. Later the Easy Hill end was called Broad St, but only for part of the present Broad st . tehn finallt the whole became Broad St

 

[Vivienne14]

Thanks Mike. Rupert - I'll bet Cadbury's promise of a model village at Bournville would've outweighed the industrial aspects it would bring with it! A cheeky method still used today. Viv.

 

[mikejee]

Although the immediate area of the Bournville factory was farmland (see plan on original sale below), the area was not far from industry. Allbright & Sturge had built a factory in Selly oak in the 1840s, and later one at Lifford . Breedon had a number of factories So it was not dumping large chimneys into completely virgin countryside, though certainly expanding into a greenfield site.

 

[davidfowler]

What a great map there Mike.

 

[Rupert]

Have to agree with David. Actually if you GE it today you can pick out some features of the 18th century map. The old house has gone but gardens remain and a decorative pond is about where the ponds were on the old map. North of there is a cricket pitch and the Brook runs through the factory and although the fish pond with bird sanctuary is gone...there is another constructed pond next to the factory. A lovely area. Not country but still beautiful in a different way. Well worth a look. Type 'Stirchley after the railway bridge' in GE.

 

[Vivienne14]

The Wharf was bought by the City Council in the 1920s and was filled in. This pic in 1931 shows it as a car park. Viv.

 

[chinnychin]

i would like to say thankyou to all of you who took so much trouble to help with my querie.. it has bought to life a boring adress and given me a history lesson at the same time.. thanks to all of you..

 

[Vivienne14]

This advert caught my eye; an attractive little drawing of William Burgum, coal merchants based at Old Wharf. It specifically advertises Staffordshire coal and interestingly covers all forms of transport in such a small ad. The whole thing looks quite picturesque, but in reality it must have been pretty filthy. A way of life now long gone ...... Viv.

 

[Di.Poppitt]

Bournville is still lovely, we did a nostalgia trip and were bowled over by how it has stayed as beautiful as we remembered it. I posted photo's but I guess they were lost when the Forum was hacked.

 

[Vivienne14]

Spotted this 1772 conjectural view of Old Wharf for sale on eBay. Afraid it's not a great image but thought I'd put it on here for the record as I've not seen it before. (If anyone has a better copy would love to see it on here). Interesting how small the town looks at this time. Viv.

 

[Vivienne14]

A 1913 view of Old Wharf. (From Birmingham Mail Archives). Looks like coal being transported. Viv.

 

[rosie]

Thanks Viv, one of my ancestors was a coal dealer on Old Wharf but several years before this photo.
rosie.