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359 Moseley Road

A

Adam Twycross

proper brummie kid
Hello all
I hope everone on this wonderful forum is staying safe and well at a pretty horrid time.

I am currently trying to find some more about a specific address- 359 Moseley Road, as it was around the 1930s. I know from Ancestry that it was home to a Miss Winifred Griffin, a draper, in 1933 and that by 1938 it was a booksellers, with one Howard Moore the proprietor.

I haven't been able to find any information on when it changed hands from the Griffins to the Moores, though.

Sadly the building itself is now gone, but I wonder whether anyone might be able to furnish me with a map of it's original location? I suspect it was roughly opposite what is now the abandoned G.S Smart Factory, but I may be wrong.

Might anyone even have a photograph of that section of Moseley Road that would show the shop?

Thanks so much for reading- I appreciate any thoughts on the above!

All the best

Adam
 
Had to go back to 1950s to find 359 (marked in blue) on a map. So it must have gone end of 50s or early 60s. This map dates from 1952 - best for scale but I will also post a 1955 map to show overall site.
1601212401812.png

1601212476239.png
 
Fantastic- that's perfect! How great to able to locate it so well... and so close to Moseley Cinema. I wonder whether that will mean there is a better chance of being able to find a photo? I'd best start hunting!

Very much appreciate your help! :)
 
1936 trade directory lists 359 Moseley Road as:
I J & Co. House furnishers so she had gone by then. Usually relates to info collected the year before so - 1936 directory relates to info collected in 1935.
 
That certainly narrows things down... and another resident to track down. That's wonderful, thank you! Useful info regarding the dates and how they relate to actual occupancy, also.

I'm not very well versed in 'reading' maps, but it's very interesting that on your map images there is a square area to the back of 359. I know that back in the 1890s the photographer H. Roland White was there, advertising a "well-lit studio" on the premises.
I wonder whether the sqaure block could be the remnants of the studio, still extant a half century later?
 
I have one like that as well Lyn. Found one online but it only showed the shop next door. :)
 
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I think this is the block of buildings referred to in the above maps. Picture dated as 1968.
For context .... the building behind the right-most tree is the bank on the corner of Moseley Road and Belgrave Road.

Balsall Heath Moseley Road 1968.jpg
 
pjmburns said:
Oliver Tallett was in phone book 1968 at 361 so is the garage on the second map.
Click to expand...

bit confused jan as the 2nd map shows a space saying garage with no houses there but the 68 photo clearly shows houses behind the frontage of the garage if the signage that juts out in the 68 photo is the cinema then no 359 would be in the line of shops we see to the right of talletts....just a guess
 
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I think the properties along there contained accomodation (359 on 1930 eroll lists at least 8 people living there) so I think those are "flats" showing above the showroom. I suspect the ground floor of the premises formed the garage with accomodation above not actually behind.
 
Since the 1968 photo, Tallett's has moved a little further down Moseley Road to the corner of Sherbourne Road East .... presumably including the old #367 site.
 
pjmburns said:
Where did you see that ? I think it actually occupied what had been numbers 361 to 365 and 367 was the next property
View attachment 148549
Click to expand...

in that case jan was i correct in thinking 359 is showing to the right of the garage on the 68 photo although slightly obscured by the talletts signage..having said i think we can see the upper window of 359

lyn
 
Wow, thanks everyone- what a fantastic response! So if I'm understanding everything correctly, number 359 is indeed in the image that BrummieGeoff kindly provided, and as Lyn suggests it is partially obscured by the awning of the garage, with the upper sections clearly visible.

An amazing thing to see- what a wonderful place this forum is, I'm so grateful for everybody's help
 
z
Astoness said:
always happy to help adam...we dont hang about on here if there is a mystery to be solved :D

lyn
Click to expand...
So I see! :)

This has been really wonderful; I'll see if I can find any other images of this part of Moseley Road to get a peek at the ground floor of 359. Now I know exactly what I'm looking for- fantastic!
 
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