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Villa Cross

Oh I see. Sorry about that. It's really hard to tell, isn't it? There's been so many changes there that I couldn't say for sure. But, of course, if there are any earlier photos that can be found, it would be tremendous.
 
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Well, well! These clips 10 April 1880. And Mr Graham is already under scrutiny for his night soil dealings and for the red granite scandal. It appears that neither Mr Graham nor the board took it too seriously. Mr Graham seconded the motion for an enquiry into the red granite paving even though it was against himself, and the board laughed. As for the night soil report, I love this sentence: The bargain had been made between Mr Graham and himself and Mr Graham had paid the price asked.

Based on this evidence we can say that the photo can now be dated not later that 1885 (tramway lines) and not before the red granite was laid, which could be as late as 1880, but could be earlier. It's a small change but one which increases the probability of an earlier date for the photo than before. 1879 assumes the cabman's rest appeared the same year that a cab proprietor moved into Aston Villa next to the Villa Cross Inn. W Graham premises mean the photo can't have been taken before 1876.

Current time span still 1879 - 1885
 
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And for those interested in the Wesleyan Chapel connection already mentioned, it’s explained here in this extracted contribution by Whiskeypapa in the Aston Lower Grounds thread :

In 1874 a new sports club had been founded by the Villa Cross Wesleyan Chapel Cricket Club in Birmingham whose members yearned for some sporting activity in the winter. The first sporting event played by the new club was a rugby match against Aston Brook St Mary's Rugby Club, followed the next week by a football match. It was decided that football was the way forward. The team prospered and took on the lease of grounds at Wellington Road, Perry Barr. The club's management instigated the football league and of course the renamed Aston Villa was a founding member. By the end of the century they had won three FA cup finals and 5 league finals. This success enabled the club to buy its own ground and as the site of Mr Quilters enterprise was available it was purchased outright in 1897, the year the club won both the FA Cup and the League.

Extracted from https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/index.php?threads/aston-lower-grounds.15945/page-
 
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