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Street furniture

The phone box looks very like the No 1 box shown at https://www.the-telephone-box.co.uk/kiosks/

Yes Mike. Definitely a Birmingham K1 box. Can't imagine what they were like inside but they certainly looked good on the street. A nice design. Re. Roly 's earlier comment about the street lamp light fitting with its own road name on it, if this junction had some importance, it does make you wonder why the phone box was located so close to the lamp. What was going on at this road junction? Viv.
 
Post 225. If one looks at this RIBA picture OF the Odeon Perry Barr (and is able to enlarge if by further clicking) the 'thing' is a portable display unit for publicity items too numerous to fit in the standard wall-mounted boxes

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You're right there Nico. Less packaging and less street food containers etc. But I suspect the RIBA Odeon photo was a promotional photo. I also think airbrushing was possible even then, but could be wrong. Viv.
 
Two photos of Erdington Six ways possibly 10 plus years between them ....
In this 1st photo c1914 not a lot of street furniture although nice double gas lamps on the tram wire pole and the Queen's Head is guarding it's forecourt with bollards and A.F.Butler is the licencee.
1914c-SixWaysErdington-600-50.jpg


This 2nd photo (looks 1920s/1930s) shows more street furniture. A telephone fire point on the island, unusual frames around the lamps of the street lights, one in front of the Archers shop and the other in front of the church. The double lamps on the tram pole have been replaced with different designs, maybe electric, the one on the island looks electric. The Queen's Head still has the bollards and Sam Cole has taken over.
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As previously mentioned, Perry Barr had it's share of telephone fire points see one on the left. My friend 'Google' has told me the film 'Kate Plus Ten' is a 1938 thriller ....
OdeonPB.jpg

Superb! It would be 1938. The Lovely lamp-post (of Handsworth UDC origin) has very recently lost its arc lamp and has been replaced by a GEC "box" lantern burning a then state of the art 400w MA discharge lamp. Interestingly Birmingham did not possess any electric street lighting until it took control of Handsworth UDC!
Kinematic buffs may prove me wrong here but wasn't this Oscar Deutch's very first cinema? and wasn't the name ODEON a corruption of the greek name ODEION meaning theatre? (contrary to the urban myth that odeon stood for Oscar Deutch Entertains Our Nation)
 
You're right there Nico. Less packaging and less street food containers etc. But I suspect the RIBA Odeon photo was a promotional photo. I also think airbrushing was possible even then, but could be wrong. Viv.

I agree. I have a picture of Denbigh on a market day and the road surface is pristine. Completely unreal !
The picture comes from the huge Francis Frith collection and airbrushing is very common on their pictures.
 
Turning our attention from pavements to looking up at what's above! These suspended street lamps seem to have illuminated the whole of Corporation Street. Surprisingly it doesn't look like they were installed along New Street. Wonder why that was. Don't know how they worked, but they seem to be wired into the buildings on either side. Probably a good use of space and saves on pavement space. But they didn't survive of course. Viv.

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Seems like a few cities could take a leaf out of Worcester's book.

Thanks Oldmohawk. Couldn't quite work out where the New St photos are on the linked thread. Thought it might be a Phyllis Nicklin photo but every time I tried to download the link it crashed. So I've dug out a couple of photos and you're absolutely right about the New Street suspended lights. Thanks.

On the second photo there looks to be a few lamps missing.

Viv.

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Viv. They were catenary wired to save space as you rightly said. If you looked carefully at the buildings where the wall mounted "roses"were there was a little control box which housed the fuses and solar clock. During the war alternate lanterns were removed (rather than remove the bulbs!). In the Fifties these were replaced with newer fittings burning a wapping 750w tungsten lamp! Around 1980 they were converted to 400w mercury lamps but didn't last much longer as they were taken down, I think, mid 80's. Can't imagine why New Street wasn't fiited so?
 
Thanks Roly. Had no idea these were still around in the 80s. Walked up and down both New St and Corporation St every day in the 70s and 80s and never once noticed them. But I suppose I always had my mind on what was in the shops, not what was up above. Viv.
 
I've always been fascinated by these type of street lamps as well as what I used to call "swan neck" types and am aware that they are all being replaced. I was over at Brandwood Cemetery last week and was amazed to see some had survived within there. By the way, can I ask, Roly, how you came across your information regarding the "Hatfield"? Do you have any further information on Birmingham street lights/ furniture?
 
I've pulled out a few photos for you of Hatfields Guyarab. These were found amongst the Keith Berry photographic collection. Viv.

Aston Road and Alum Rock.
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Heathfield Road and Ninevah Road.
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Handsworth and the Jewellery Quarter.
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Holte Road/Station Road and Village Road.
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What a big street lamp that is. Must have given off plenty of light. Certainly gives a sense of a place to meet, a focus - but soon to be replaced. Just to the left of the lamp top is a telegraph pole. Mostly disappeared these days, but occasionally you can find an old row of houses that still have these. Viv.
 
Absoluteley right, I again used to like the old telegraph poles; they had so much character. They bury the lines underground now don't they?
 
I'm pretty sure wicker/cane handcarts, similar to those in the picture, were in use in New St station in my childhood.
 
They were certainly still used for Laundry from hotels and such.
 
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