Whitehead street, Aston

[cornwall col]

anyone know when it was demolished. I know it was there in 1920 but in the 1969 A-Z it has gone

 

[sylviasayers]

In my old Wakelin's Street Guide, it shows WhiteHEAD Street, running from No.73 High Street to Alma Street. I remember it very well the No.8 bus travelled along it, there were traffic lights on the junction of Whitehead/Alma Street. On the left hand side of Whitehead Street at the corner of High Street was a pawnbrokers cum fancy goods shops - was the name Pawsons??? It probably did disappear around 1969 when the redevelopment took place and the dual carriageway from town to Perry Barr was built along Newtown Row/High Street etc.

 

[Big Gee]

Whitehead Street was a very short thoroughfare running from High Street to Alma Street, according to my Bartholomew's Pocket Atlas and Guide for 1954 - just as Sylvia Sayers says. I think it disappeared when the swimming baths and that awful shopping-precinct were built.

It was Pawson's, Sylvia, you're absolutely correct. A branch of the West Bromwich Pawson's firm. In the 1960's I knew Danny Pawson, jazz-trumpeter extraordinaire.

The Globe Cinema, the flea-pit to end all flea-pits, was just round the corner on High Street.

Regards,

Big Gee

 

[sylviasayers]

BigGee, small world isn't it. If I remember right opposite Pawsons was The Scotch House pub. Can anyone confirm?

 

[cornwall col]

Thanks

Thanks I was getting frustrated that I couldn't locate the street, but perhaps its short length contributed to that

 

[Rupert]

Just in case you have not seen this...1890 approx. but probably still the same many years later.

https://www.british-history.ac.uk/m...=10074&ox=1618&oy=3116&zm=1&czm=1&x=458&y=424

 

[cornwall col]

Dad's name is Bert and came from Norfolk to marry Mom in 1948 -he worked at Aston Park before moving on to Enots

 

[Alf]

In my Birmingham Street by Street Guide this is how they are listed

Whitehead Street B'ham 19 Ref; W17 88

Whitehead Road 6 W 17 88

Enots (Benton & Stone) was here https://www.oldcopper.org/marks%20e.htm

Bracebridge Street Aston B'ham 6

 

[RobertH]

My grandparents William and Nelly Green lived at 2d Whitehead Street in the early 1930's. I understand it was rented from John Levick, who owned the engineering firm where my grandfather worked in Alma Street. They moved from there to buy a shop at 103 Wills Street.

 

[cornwall col]

Dad was a park keeper in the early 1950's before going to work at Enot's Mom worked as a cleaner at Ansells and I went to Alfred Street School tthen up to big school at Vicarage Road before moving away in 1970

col

 

[Aston34]

My Grandad was born in Whitehead Street Charles Green in 1909. I did have a list of people occuping the houses in 1920 somewhere ill have to look for it though.

 

[kaz]

My Reeves rellies were at 20 Whitehead st from 1881(perhaps before - who knows??) to at least 1925.Though in 1925 it was actually the Clarke name as one of my Reeves women had married and stayed in the family home.

That reminds me, I must see if i can find a will for her father....

Kaz

 

[Banjo]

Whitehead Street was a short Street which lay between High St & Alma St Aston. I've seen pictures of the Scotch House Pub on one corner and Herbert's Shop on the other corner but, I've not come across any other photos of it anywhere. It had a Regent petrol station opposite where my wife lived, a factory next to her house, a shop just along from her house and...that's about it really. I have this photo of my Brother-in-Law standing next to my first car (Anglia 100E) taken in 1967. It's looking towards High St/Whitehead Road and you may notice that the street has already been closed because of impending demolition. I am hoping someone else will have any photos and/or stories of Whitehead Street.

 

[Astoness]

smashing photo banjo...do hope someone can come up with some pics for you...i will keep my eyes open as well..bet you were proud of that first car of yours..

lyn

 

[Phil]

I'm afraid this is the closest I can get. It looks to be the end of Whitehead Street looking across the High Street at Whitehead Rd & Park Lane.

 

[Banjo]

Thanks Phil, I'm happy to see any photos sent. I haven't seen this one before. With that island there I would say it was taken around 1968-9.

 

[Astonian]

HI banjo
nice picture going back abit but never or less good one i recall that factory and the petrol pumps you asre on about
as you come down towards the old six ways directly oppersite there
directley facing yourself was a number eight bus stop that i mean directly opersite the factory
it was the last stop befor it went over the round about and down park lane towards the Aston cross
and just stopperd short of Potters hill
but also getting back to the factory i always there building let down the partade of shops that was there
and directly facing a you walked foreward was old dave rebuens betting shop the one time boxer
And my lot had all the coffee shops around alma street and most of aston aston included
i was born on lichfield rd aston and went to upper thomas street and workedAt Tubes rocky lane
best wishes Astonian,,,,,,,,

 

[Banjo]

Just came across this pic which was taken at the same time as my other photo. This time looking to the corner of Whitehead Street & Alma Street. The open ground on the right was part of the petrol station.

 

[Banjo]

A photo from the Alton Douglas book, Birmingham in the 60s. It shows the corner shop run by a Mrs Herbert which was on the corner of Whitehead St & Alma St. It was taken in 1967 when the Street was closed due to the coming re-development.

 

[Banjo]

This is an incident that happened in Whitehead Street during October 1963. I wonder if anyone living in the area at the time remembers it. My girlfriend of 3 months lived next door to the house in the photo and the Mr Albert Rogers mentioned in the article was my future Father-in-Law.

 

[Astoness]

banjo i have that photo its one of my favourites thanks for posting it on this thread...think i may have posted it on the alma st thread..

thanks also for the newspaper article...that was a bad accident that could have turned out far worse than it did...for anyone not sure if you click on the article 3 times you should be able to read it ok...

lyn

 

[Banjo]

Corner of Whitehead Street & High Street.

 

[Banjo]

I started a thread on Whitehead Street a couple of years ago looking for any photos of it and now I've just come across this thread which finished 8yrs ago!!!!
When my wife & me got married in February 1967, we lived with my in-laws (Mr & Mrs Rogers) who lived at No 9 Whitehead St. I can tell you that they were moved out at the beginning of September 1967 because of the impending demolition of the area. The dual carriageway had already been laid and was being used at this time. I witnessed that house being demolished in October so, presume that the whole street would have gone by the end of the year.

 

[mikejee]

Have now merged the two threads

 

[Astoness]

here is another snippet with a map...

 

[Banjo]

here is another snippet with a map...

View attachment 120289

Remember that well Lyn. As the bus was lifted, some girls who were watching started screaming which made the rest of us think the worst. I see that even this item says junction of Whitehead "Road" & Alma Street. I have noticed from other postings that Whitehead Street is not that well known and true, you could walk the entire length of it in around 90 seconds but, as the map shows, it was actually there.

 

[Astoness]

yes banjo ive seen it called road few times...

lyn

 

[Banjo]

I've been trawling through some old 35mm slides and found one of me on my bike circa 1965. I wondered if I could marry that photo with a photo of my first car (which I've posted before). The reason for this is because it gives a wider view of Whitehead Street and I thought that perhaps someone would find that part of it interesting. The ground at the back was the forecourt of a Regent petrol station. The coloured slide is when the road was open and the other when it was closed. The time gap between the two photos is probably about 12months and I can't explain why the Guinness advert wasn't changed in that time.

 

[adap2it]

If that open area which you say was a Regent Station and is on the north side of Whitehead St, about halfway between Alma St and High St, then it was where we had a cycle speedway track in the very early 50's.
Dave A

 

[Banjo]

If that open area which you say was a Regent Station and is on the north side of Whitehead St, about halfway between Alma St and High St, then it was where we had a cycle speedway track in the very early 50's.
Dave A

Thanks for that info Dave, I never knew that.