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Snow Hill Station

Access to carpark was from Livery St. very useful for dropping off passengers with luggage. There was a similar arrangement at New St. in the 1970's version of that station. Advert, next to the clock, for the Engineering and Building centre which was next to the Municipal Bank in Broad St.
 
Stitcher said:
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I do not have a date for this but the time is about 7 minutes past three.
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I have a little difficulty in dating this photo as the minivan makes it after 1959 but before the closure of the Booking Hall which I think happened sometime before the final closure in 1972, The Engineering and Building Centre in Broad Street could not have happened before 1972 as the building next to the municipal bank was still being used by the Freemasons until then. Perhaps they were somewhere else in Broad Street.
 
ellbrown said:
The Snow Hill mosaics that used to be in the subway area of St Chad's Circus, have been recreated and miniaturised, and recently installed either side of the steps between the square in front of the modern station, and the square in front of 1 Snowhill!

By Oliver Budd, based on the original by his father Kenneth Budd.





Budd Mosaics
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Just read on a FB post about the Kenneth Budd Snow Hill mosaics being destroyed. And of course searched and found more about it on BHF. The mosaics took 3 years to create! They were beautiful and goodness knows what they cost. The Egyptians shifted a whole ancient temple when they built the Aswan dam, surely a 30 foot length of wall could have been saved and a site found.
p.s. oops! that should have been 300ft!
 
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Ah, Devonjim but the Egyptian's obviously cared. I think the power-that-be have a motto 'out with the old (and be damned to it) and in with the new for a few years at least till we knock that down'. I just wonder how much history, not to mention money, has been wasted in this city
 
The last local services up the 1972 closure were to Wolverhampton and Langley Green. When Snow Hill closed the track was lifted to Handsworth where scrap and cement traffic kept the branch to Smethwick West open. The diesel unit called at Stations to Wolverhampton Low Level, but Tipton was not on that route, Wednesbury was, though.
 
There was a Pay and Display car park about there many years ago. I paid for a short term stay and left my car there, for various reasons at the time, from Thursday till Sunday afternoon. Got back expecting parking tickets but no, my car was still there in the middle of an empty car park perfectly safe.
 
Does anyone remember when they played Semi-Finals of theFa Cup at Villa Park in the 50s-60s.
Southampton played one year and we had a load of Southern region trains appear
 
Edifi said:
Does anyone remember when they played Semi-Finals of theFa Cup at Villa Park in the 50s-60s.
Southampton played one year and we had a load of Southern region trains appear
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1963 against Man U who won 1- 0, goal scored by Denis Law

Bob
 
Pimpernel said:
My last clear memories of steam trains in service were at Snowshill. My mum used to tell me that as a toddler I was so terrified of the engine once I ran off the platform and hid under a bench in the waiting room.
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Yes, it could be a bit scary.
I didn't like the noise made when the engine let off steam!
 
Some views from Snow Hill Car Park. First time back up there since about December 2017.

Footbridge to Colmore Row. The green canopy at the end is the only thing left from the 1987 station. If you walk through the Snow Hill Square now, you wont see it. Also Snow Hill Tram Stop is still to the left.



Only change from this end is the lampposts painted West Midlands Railway orange.



St Chad's Tram Stop - didn't want to wait around to see a tram.



St Paul's Tram Stop and the end of the severed line from the ex Snow Hill Tram Stop.



The viaduct without a bridge over Great Charles Street Queensway.

 
Back in the 1950s I saw a sight which people still tell me was an impossibility, The Up Cambrian Coast Express doubled headed with two Kings. But if you had to re-position a loco from Wolverhampton to Old Oak Common, what would you do with it? You certainly wouldn't send it light engine all the way.

Have been to Snow Hill 4 times in the past 5 days, twice to Birmingham and twice to London. Never thought as a kid I would be using that station so much.
 
DavidGrain said:
Back in the 1950s I saw a sight which people still tell me was an impossibility, The Up Cambrian Coast Express doubled headed with two Kings. But if you had to re-position a loco from Wolverhampton to Old Oak Common, what would you do with it? You certainly wouldn't send it light engine all the way.

Have been to Snow Hill 4 times in the past 5 days, twice to Birmingham and twice to London. Never thought as a kid I would be using that station so much.
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Saw plenty of double headers at Snow Hill, but not Kings! That's a LOT of power...……..
 
I was thinking while i was walking the dog this morning.of the days me and my dad, went fishing every sat morning to wooten wawen. we would wait for the train to arrive.then get aboard. the doors would bang, and the Guard would blow his whistle.
the driver open`d the reg,the wheels slipped.on the tracks,the chimney blew out steam and smoke.and off we went. the lights come on in the carrage,and we enter`d the tunnel.... happy times...
 
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