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The Crown The General Elliott Station street.

Walking up Hill Street towards New Street Station saw Christmas lights on The Crown. Got this shot from the raised area at New Street Station after going up the ramp, Station Street view. Would assume that the Southside BID put them up as it also lines down the rest of Station Street. No idea of the fate of this building though.

 
Certainly brings back memories - of my regular visits to The Broadside Folk Club there in the late 1960s (Al Stewart among many other bluesy/contemporay folk performers)
 
Very sad it's been empty so long - I have fond memories of music gigs there in the late 60's / early 70's

Surely something positive could be done with it?!
 
Just looking at the crown brings back so many memories from 60s my friends and i spent every saturday and sunday nights in there upstairs listening to bands irecall seeing a gtoup called evoluton and black sabboth and many other bands. That later became famous best pub in town in those days
 
Not really my 'thing', but I can (just) remember going to The Crown when it hosted the Jug Of Punch folk-club, residents being The Ian Campbell Group. Later, the club moved to Digbeth Civic Hall. Went much later when it was Henry's Blues House - much more to my liking! I'm surprised The Crown is still standing, to be honest.

G
 
Not really my 'thing', but I can (just) remember going to The Crown when it hosted the Jug Of Punch folk-club, residents being The Ian Campbell Group. Later, the club moved to Digbeth Civic Hall. Went much later when it was Henry's Blues House - much more to my liking! I'm surprised The Crown is still standing, to be honest.

G

so am i G nearly everything else has gone :mad:

lyn
 
Not really my 'thing', but I can (just) remember going to The Crown when it hosted the Jug Of Punch folk-club, residents being The Ian Campbell Group. Later, the club moved to Digbeth Civic Hall. Went much later when it was Henry's Blues House - much more to my liking! I'm surprised The Crown is still standing, to be honest.

G

Big Gee Ian Campbell there's a name from the past nearly every poster on the wall I looked at in the 60's had his name on . Now his two sons regularly appear in the press and on stage Robin and Ali in the two versions of UB40 so the Campbell name goes on
 
Not really my 'thing', but I can (just) remember going to The Crown when it hosted the Jug Of Punch folk-club, residents being The Ian Campbell Group. Later, the club moved to Digbeth Civic Hall. Went much later when it was Henry's Blues House - much more to my liking! I'm surprised The Crown is still standing, to be honest.

G

Yes, I went when it was Henry's - still got my membership card somewhere around!
 
WStreeter, yes, Ian Campbell was big back in the Sixties, probably the first British 'folk group' that made the big time in this country. I used to go to the Jug Of Punch at Digbeth Civic Hall when he was the resident band - the place would usually be packed out. The band was talented and entertaining, but I didn't much care for it when they did 'political' stuff. Lorna Campbell apparently still sings on occasion.

G
 
My friend and I went to the Jug of Punch in Digbeth a few times, not really my sort of music but we knew Dave Pegg who played bass with Ian Campbell for a while before joining Fairport. We used to chat in the bar for most of the time!
 
I saw Dave Pegg playing bass with another band a couple of years ago. And Dave Swarbrick was (briefly) married to a friend of ours some time ago - sorry about the name-dropping! For my money he was the outstanding member of Ian Campbell's band.

Yes, the crack at the 'Jug' was to get in the bar early on and stay there! I remember only too well the 'draught cider hangovers'.....happy days.

G
 
I used to go to Henrys Blues House in early 70's. If I remember correctly the tables were made of large wooden barrels. Or am I getting confused with somewhere else maybe?
 
I used to go to Henrys Blues House in early 70's. If I remember correctly the tables were made of large wooden barrels. Or am I getting confused with somewhere else maybe?

Did you mean tables in the bar downstairs? I don't think I ever went in there!
I can't specifically remember any tables in the two upstairs rooms where the bands played - were there any?
 
Did you mean tables in the bar downstairs? I don't think I ever went in there!
I can't specifically remember any tables in the two upstairs rooms where the bands played - were there any?
Thanks for your response, I do think I have the wrong place and agree that there probably wouldn't have been tables upstairs at Henry's. But I now think the pub I'm looking for was actually on one of the corners on Bristol Street. Either the building on the corner of Horse Fair and Essex Street or maybe even on another corner further along Bristol Street. All I know is we used to go there upstairs on a Thursday or Friday night in 1974 before going on to Bogarts. Frustrating not recalling the name of the pub! :)
 
Hi everyone, this is great information, thanks for everyone's input on this thread. Really interesting to hear about all the folk clubs going on in the Crown!

I am researching The Crown for a project and am really interested in the history of the building. It's origins and drawings - I attended Birmingham Archive today but the plans were too delicate to handle. Wondered if anyone had any ideas about any other information repositories for the building and where there might be more on the history.

Best wishes,
J
 
As mentioned earlier in thread it appears to have been the General Elliott Hotel (if not rebuilt). First mention I can see in newspapers is 1876, address given as Tonk St at this time. This map from 1889...

0 - Station St.jpg
 
Hi MWS thanks very much for a speedy reply! That's interesting information, and the GEH does match the rough layout of the Crown. Thanks again for the map.

J
 
There's a bit in the Bham Daily Gazette 4 Aug 1949 where someone asks what the original name was. The answer given is it was built about 1878 and from 1880 was known as General Elliott Hotel and renamed Crown hotel in 1896.

Though going by previous reply it was built a few years earlier.
 
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