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Street furniture

Vivienne14 said:
While on the subject of street benches, Historic England (formerly English Heritage) has guidance on pieces of street furniture. Re. benches it says :

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Do we have any Birmingham examples which should be brought to their attention? Think it's worth keeping eyes peeled. If you spot any, do mention it here and I'd be happy to contact Historic England. Viv.
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Viv if you are talking about this sort of thing I don't think you will find many on the streets of Birmingham, with a value of about £5,000 if there ever were any they are more than likely now in some rich ex Council officials garden.
 

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Joking aside Phil, you have a point about some of these turning up in gardens. When the various road developments took place around Birmingham, I expect no thought was given to preserving the old seats as anything like this was considered dated and would have been replaced with the 'modern' less fussy designs. So anyone may have picked an old one up for a song. There must be examples around. But pity they won't be in their original positions. Viv.
 
#492, I remember a seat similar to the one shown, up on Frankley Beeches, I climbed on it and sat courting on it , it was in a field beside the "Beeches" wood over looking the reservoir, I believe it was donated from the Cadbury family.Paul
 
#495, From my recollection of nearly 60 years ago Viv, it was a sort of white marble, and a thought of "1905", comes to mind, although anybody from Weoley Castle, Bartley Green, or Frankly and Northfield, would know it, I went back last about 1985/6 it was still there.Paul
 
This photo of Market Hall offers us a couple of nice items of furniture; a water trough and 2 cast iron canopies. The water trough, although meant for cattle/horses etc, seems to be a good place for young people to meet and chat. The canopies are reminiscent of bus shelters but are they canopies giving shelter to businesses/stall that were sometimes located beneath them ? Viv.

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Great photo Viv, very rare sight of a"shoe black", working un-posed out side the market by the steps, I often look at old phot's and think, I wonder who so and so was, and where they lived, Etc.Paul
 
Hadn't noticed the shoe shine man Paul. And I agree, it is a rare sight, don't think I've seen one either. Lots of opportunities for him at the steps too - dirty shoes from discarded market produce etc. Viv
 
Viv

I had never seen that particular photo of the rear of the market hall before, though I have never been sure as to what was the front and what was the rear. The Worcester Street entrance always looked far grander than the Bull Ring one to me. Also it would be the first view that visitors to Birmingham would see after alighting from a train and walking up what was then Great Queen Street (Queens Drive). Once climbing those stairs and entering the market hall the first thing you would have seen would have been the fountain that was later consigned to Highgate Park. Nevertheless all good points in favour of the case of Worcester Street being the front of the market.
 
I agree Phil. The Worcs St entrance with its sweeping balustrade looks much more impressive. Also the balustrade is decorated on both sides. Plus the canopies all points to me that it was intended to attract attention of passers-by. Viv.
 
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I see Birmingham has gone and got itself some classy street furniture. Very reminiscent of Victorian Birmingham.

Photo 1 - Grand Hotel, Colmore Row
Photo 2 - St Phillip's churchyard
Photo 3 - St. Phillip's churchyard
Photo 4 - Cannon Street

viv.
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In 1981 they appeared to have upgraded Canterbury Rd with block paving and some street furniture in the form of eight round concrete bollards, two of which seem to have broken off. They also planted two rows of trees thinking it would look nice and green when the trees matured.
Canterbury1981.JPG

Jump forward 35 years later and the trees have obviously grown but it appears that one row of trees have been removed because from the look of the view, two rows of large trees would have been overpowering. Patches of ashphalt mark their position and the concrete bollards have gone.
Canterbury2016.JPG

As seen in many photos of suburban estates built in the 1930s, saplings were planted and from childhood I remember small trees in our road which later became very large with roots lifting pavements and branches having to be removed. Looking at housing estates built these days, it seems that if trees are wanted in the road they have to be planted in front gardens.
 
As promised, here's a pic of our new traditional lampposts install in one of our village streets in Crete last week - not dissimilar to the Birmingham ones - and forming a nice contrast with the two rows of ruined windmills marching down the mountainside of the left.

Maurice
Maurice_4.jpg
 
Barmy neighbour had an original lamp post like this in his garden which he ripped out. His tenants complained it was too dark so he stuck one on the wall with wire hanging. We would have had one too, I am told it is in the cellar but the cellar was bricked up and it might go under him as well as the houses used to be one.
I spotted a five branched Victorian lamp at a crossroads in Dublin years ago, the area was known as the Five Lamps.
 
Paul,

Most of them don't understand any English, so they've got no chance with Brummie! The only problem with these lamps is that they use these new eco-friendly bulbs and, as we used to say, are as dim as a Toc H lamp. Hence, the tall overhead arc lamps have been left in place, though there's really no need for them. Crime is almost non-existent in this village and loan ladies are quite safe walking about on their own after midnight. Last crimes I can recollect were some tyres slashed about 8 years ago (they parked in the space belonging to the head of the local mafia!) and 5 years ago a house broken into by an Albanian whilst the owners were away for Christmas in the UK.

Maurice
 
Paul,

We always used the phrase as kids and I seem to recollect there was an old house with a Toc H lamp outside going from the junction of College Road/Wake Green Road towards Moseley Village on the left hand side of the road. Of course, at that time I hadn't a clue what Toc H was, but their lamp was certainly dim at night!

We're not ones for beaches, although I sometimes go there to take photographs. The food is effectively organic, as most of it is sourced locally, and as I have mentioned, the island is crime free and traffic free. There are a few minor downsides like anywhere, but nothing serious and you soon learn to adjust. We have our own bunch of friends - English, Greek & Dutch - and are certainly very happy here. Perhaps the biggest drawback is the cost of getting to see friends and relatives in the UK, Belgium, and Bahrain, but we've reached that point in life when the mere thought of long journeys is somewhat off-putting!

Maurice
 
From https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ne...s-now-entrenched-in-the-English-language.html

Toc H lamp is a low light emitter used, presumably, by the patrons to Talbot House as a means of identifying it. Talbot House was a Christian hostel set up in Belgium as a respite for servicemen in the 1st WW to relax in as an alternative to the more usual bars etc. It derives from the letter T which was denoted in signals alphabet as Toc during the period. The light was generally yellow and quite faint hence being described " as dim as a Toc H lamp
 
I went to the Toc.H Club a couple of times but we were a bit young as we were about 12 years old and the big boys wanted nothing to do with us. Feel it cost something like thrupence admission which included a cup of tea and a bun.
It was about in that area of Moseley that I did the old bike wheel in the tram line trick and hit my head on the cobblestones, been a bit silly ever since!
 
The great thing about Toc H was it was ,Rank-less, you left your status at the door, no matter how high that rank was, when a young soldier at "Pirbright", Guards Depot in the early 60's , there was a Church army hut where it was the same, one of the old ladies who worked there, her father actually used to visit Toc H in Poperinge in WW1.Paul.
 
I really thought the tops of tram poles would be more intricate and interesting. But this close-up shows there's very little to them. Viv.
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Vivienne14 said:
I really thought the tops of tram poles would be more intricate and interesting. But this close-up shows there's very little to them. Viv.
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The tops are called finials. They are to be seen on the top of lamp standards, railway signal posts, flag poles and similar structures. The are all similar with small variations in appearance: i.e. size height and son on. Often they had louvres and other minor carvings.

The ornate part of tramway poles were in the arm brackets. Some systems had plain brackets others more ornate.
 
hi viv i took photos of that a couple of years back and i think there is a personal story to it...will confirm the details from the person who told me and get back

lyn
 
got the story now viv...in the early 70s ken stowe (he who saved the postal plaque) was working in ford street with his digger demolishing the old houses and some workmen asked him if he could bring his digger up to the drinking fountain and lift it back into place on the wall which had undergone repairs...the fountain was then cemented back into the wall

lyn
 
Nice story Lyn. It's good they took the trouble to put it back in place. In those days no-one would have blinked an eyelid if it just mysteriously 'disappeared' ! It doesn't look like it's working now and probably hasn't then since the 70s. It's also a surprising place to find a drinking fountain. Viv.
 
no viv its not working now and if i remember there are names engraved on the fountain...next time i am down that way i will take a close up of it..cant find the one i took before
 
Thanks Lyn. Maybe it was a memorial?

For info the fountain's near Bredon Croft.
image.jpeg Looking at the fountain it's set in the wall with a large imposing pillar to its right and a gate to its left. It suggests it might have once been a park behind, but can't see how, as I think there's quite a drop behind the wall and it looks like canal property below it. The pillar looks like it might once have had signage fixed to it and it might have some sort of detail on top, although that could be decoration. Viv.
 
viv looking at my trusty 1940s street map and i think the gates could well have been part of the mental and fever hospital which backed onto dudley road hospital..i was told this some time ago by someone...i have posted the map a few times on the forum and i find it invaluable when researching
 
trying to post the map viv..click to enlarge and save it..use norton st off lodge road as a marker as its still there a bit down from the fountain on the other side of it
 

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