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Aston Cross

It's great reading all your memories of Aston Cross, I used to work in Woolworths on a Saturday. One set of gt grandparents lived in Chester Street, the others lived in The Court, Lichfield Road. Talking of which any update on the photo Astonian ??? Denise
 
Hi Denise we were there together if you remember. Can you remember how much we earned? I think it was round about 17/6 pence. I always remember the Cross with affection as I loved my days out there and staying with the Jennings family in Catherine street. Jean.
 
hi denise ,
i must offer you a thousand apoligizes i had completely forgotten my promise to you and that is sincere denise the best i can say and do for you
is i will dig it out during the week as i am going up to hendly in arden for the week end i truely wished you could have contacted me before now
as i certainly have alot of things going on at the moment
certainly this week end i have alot of organisings
sorry denise i will get back to you i promise
best wishes astonian ;;
 
Hi Jean, sorry I don't remember who worked there or how much we earned, your memory is far better than mine. I know I was on the broken biscuit counter and I can recall the band who played on Lunch Box coming in, remembered what they were called last night but forgotten again - was it Jerry something? I blame the fact my brain was banged back and forth when I had my accident - any excuse. Denise
 
Hi Astonian, no worries, it was just that I was reading through what you were saying about Aston Cross and thought I would put a reminder out. It would be great if you could find it - thanks Denise
 
Denise was it Jerry Levine from the Beachcombers only I worked with him a couple of years later?. I was on the soap powder counter and I sneezed all the way home up Park road. Jean.
 
G G Jean said:
Denise was it Jerry Levine from the Beachcombers only I worked with him a couple of years later?. I was on the soap powder counter and I sneezed all the way home up Park road. Jean.
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Hi Jean and Denise,
It was The Gerry Allen Trio - Gerry on the organ, Lionel on drums and Alan on bass?? Not sure of spelling and what instrument Alan played?
 
Dave and Moss snap you are correct. They played at the studios on a lunchtime show didn't they?. Dave off topic "did you look at my first holiday thread"?. Jean.
 
The Baron said:
Hi patty, great pics the manes you are comming up with ring so many bells & keep the pics comming as I remember them well. Blisses record shop in Park road was the shop I bought my first 78rpm record by DAVID WHITFIELD, a guy who later in my life went out with my wifes cousin for a short time.
You mention the Golden Cross was that when Marg ran the midland jazz club in the rooms upstairs? HAD SO GOOD NIGHTS AT THAT PLACE.
Patty which one are you on that photo I posted of my brother pals & your Malcom in our garden 173 tower road ?
Keep posting.
ASTON
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The Midland Jazz Club run by Madge Whitehouse did play at the Golden Cross at Aston Cross, this would have when they moved from the Ex Captives Club in Hill Street. At one stage it was threatened with closure unles a rug depicting a man with his brown ale stolen from the lounge was returned, within a few days several rugs appeared on the door step.

George Wheeler
 
hi aston
you certainly had taste if you used to listen david whitfield
he was in a class of his own
many years ago i lived next door to a family
in king edwards rd and the son was an arden fan of david ,
this lad was called johny holland
every night you could hear john singing davids music
and if you heard this lad you could not tell the difference between the voices
have a nice day aston , best wishes astonian ;;;
 
Was there a Bham Coop grocery .shop at Aston Cross ? Also what was the name of the Chemist on corner of Victoria Rd. Were the chemist the same as on the corner at Six Ways Aston ?
 
Hi Doug Pete will put on his thinking cap as he said there was a big Chemists there but can't remember the name. The co op was at the top of Park road on the right going from Aston Church. Jean.
 
Don't know if this helps or hinders but I used to have a Saturday job with Boots the Chemists in Erdington. One Saturday I was asked to go and work at a branch at Aston Cross, I think near to the clock. I went there for a few weeks on a sort of attachment. It was due for demolition, this would have been around 1970ish. Viv.
 
There was a George Masons on Aston Cross, my late Wife Doreen worked there in the cashiers office and also served behind the counter when I first met her early 50s, later she worked in George (or was it Eric) Taylors toy shop in Lichfield Rd near Junction with Victoria Road next door to an Antique (junk!!) shop. Incidently after his mother died we bought her house of him in Hillside Road Erdington and lived there from 1962 to 85. Am I right in thinking the present clock is not the orginal. Also was there a Home and Colonial shop on Aston Cross too ??? Eric
 
Hi Jean
That was buckinghams the chemist on the corner by the traffic lights of victoria rd and park rd
up from aston cross there was a colonianal shop as well on the cross
 
HI DENISE
How are you fine i hope as i aint to bad at the moment myself sorry i missed your thread dated in july
i read you worked at woolworths on the cross so did my sister inlaw she was there from leaving school
and later became a supervisor for many years and long after she got married to my younger brotherher name was mary they are still married and they are grand parents of many
also denise i have to seriuosly opologise for not sorting out this picture i said i would dig out for you of your grand father up the court but unfortuneately i just cannot find the book its an ld book and i am racking my mind to bits trying to think of the name of the book or the aurther so i have come to the thinking that we havelost the book throgh some reason or another
the book cost me 13 pounds and i bought it from waterstones about two years ago in bromsgrove and the soul perpose in me buying that book was it had the court
in it and that was the entry next to ours and i remember the little court houses up this court and we used to chase a couple of girls up there as well andin the first batch of houses as you walked up was always an old big fashion mangle and the pictur of your grand father with some one else but i will trtavel the breath of the country to find the book with its picture in as i do mot like making promises to any body if i make one it may take my time but at the end of the day i will keep my promise
to my mind i think the book was the back to back courts of the thirtys it was definatwely some think courts but i will travel to the city of worcestershire tomorrow and chech out in waterstones there to either buy or get them to help me track it down and a soon as i get it i will forewarded to you the excact book for you to keep so please denise forgive me on this
i realize you must be frustrated with me by now but please bear with me okay
on the person whom i think it was dennis about the clock of the cross the one there is not the orinal one from being built it had been changed in my life about three times we do have this suibject on the thread from history a well on the forum records of yester years
we also had wrensons on the cross and timpsons the shoe repairers my young brother left school thereand his job was to ride a old push bike around the area deliving peoples shoes to there housse in those days it had the old indian basket on the front and he had used to wear the old brown cow gown coat
and my grand parents used to own the coffee shops around the cross vitualy corner to coner over the years with two chip shops but in the early fifties he sold theone chip shop to a litle chap by the name of cyril a litle baldman and then a litle later they sold the one tea rooms to lathams i think it was but kept the other two shops the chipie and the coffee shop next to each other and the one on lichfield rd still thats old hat ther usedf be the coop but i do not recall any chemist in my days but as they said in the seventys it may have been possible as buckinghams had long gone by thenso some one may have opened up one also the big broom was along the cross which was classed as aston rdnorth with a great big bass broom shackled the face of the shop above it must have been abour three foot in lengh and with huge bristles it was replace by the big car show rooms of aston marytins i think they was called
best wishes to you all denise hang in there it will come astonian astonian
 
doug1944 said:
Was there a Bham Coop grocery .shop at Aston Cross ? Also what was the name of the Chemist on corner of Victoria Rd. Were the chemist the same as on the corner at Six Ways Aston ?
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Hi Doug.

The shop on corner of Victoria Rd. & Lichfield Rd. was empty for a long time but I think before the war it was ladies or gents outfitters next to it was Taylors the toy shop, next to that was a bit of a grocers.

Next to that was I think a butchers then the junk shop and just up from there was a home made sweet shop they used to do blocks of cocoa chocolate & sugar covered sweet fishes,

Then then there was a house that lay back and a drive lending to the rear of the Wesley Chapel then a wool shop and the other side of the Chapel was a crock shop can,t remember any more.

Across the road was Humpries the cycle shop Betty and her father used run that

With regards to the chemist on Six ways that was Hedges with the loose shirt collar cleaners next door I used take my Grandad's collar there so that he followed the the smart code of dress of the Birminghan Transport Corparation Tramways, they used to have a large mirror in Miller Street Depot which motormen & Conductors had to stand in front to adjust there uniform on the side was aboard stating what was expected of them.

I used to live in 4 Sandy Lane Doctor Goulds was on the corner with The Vine Pub on the other corner.
View attachment 64587View attachment 64588View attachment 64589


1 Lichfield Rd , the Junk shop you spoke of and Six Ways Ason the Chemist's

Ray
 
Ray, my late Wife worked for Eric Taylors toy shop when I first met her in early 50s, his friend next door liked to call his shop an Antique Shop, certainly did notlike the term Junk shop
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but while I was waiting for my Wife (girl friend then) I used to look in an it appeared to be nothing but Junk to me. see my post 75. Eric
 
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HI SHORTIE
Cor blimmey when i used to go into the shop we all thought she was his wife it goes to say you learn some think every day
shortie i must say she was a good looking lady then and i bet she aint changed abit he was a funny sort of guy so it would have been your girl friend then
and please to hear the good lady is now your wonderful wife and she would have seved me to my very first bag of marbles great
my grand fathers cafe was across the rd from the toy shop and it where we celebrated the coronation in there with alot of the familys along from the shop
robinsons the dents and frenchies the other veg old man wetton never came across he closed his sweet shop to us all meaning the kids
i wonder if any body alive today may have a pic of the lichfield rd street party it would be great if i could see a clip of it
thanks shortie best wishes Astonian
 
Alan I am in touch with someone who is going to sort out the old street parties and one may be in Lichfield road?. I put some photo's on for her of St Mary's school. If you take a look you may remember some of them. I am going to give her a bell later. Her dad was born and lived most of his life in the back to back houses by Aston station. Jean.
 
hi

That shop was the last ditch of item before they was taken to the scrap yard, he used to have old Collaro & BSR record turntables, Grundig tape recorders with no out mode, old cameras, old ice skaking boots.

You could spend hours looking but you never bought, never seem to be open most times.

It used to be a way of passing the away waitnig for the no2,78 or 79 tram, where you used to steep out into road to board and hope there was no cyclist coming.

Do you remember the The Big Broom hardware shop up by Matty's and Ansells, past Thompson the butchers, on for some of there tomatoa saugage meat and fried lovely.

Them was the days you appreciated most things because of rationing.

Ray
 
HI Jean
how are you both keeping fine i hope at the moment i am struggling a litle bit with my left eye but a astonian kid were as tough as the old boots from the old mail fund
the christmas one when three parts of aston got kitted out with grey socks boots and vest and pants
that would be really great if you can get some up jean have i missed the st marys one dave put up one a long time ago i remember one year they came and took a pic of our class and i thinkl because i was only a tich of a lad in them days i was in a front or second row when we had the pic done i would like to see how many faces i can recall
 
Hi Alan. Have just been on the blower to my friend Val and she said the street party photo is of Phillip street. Her dads name was Jonah Wright and all the siblings had Biblical names. They are the ones from the back to back by Aston Station. I think she is going to join the forum and her husband Brian will put the photo's on.
 
G G Jean said:
Hi Alan. Have just been on the blower to my friend Val and she said the street party photo is of Phillip street. Her dads name was Jonah Wright and all the siblings had Biblical names. They are the ones from the back to back by Aston Station. I think she is going to join the forum and her husband Brian will put the photo's on.
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hi jean..thats great as it will be good to see some more old pics of aston...

lyn
 
Ray my grandparents and great grandparents had a grocery shop at 2 Lichfield Road - this would be late 1800s/early 1900s.
 
IT WOULD HAVE BEEN WHERE THE LITTLE ORINGIAL LITTLE SHOPS WAS BEFORE ANSELLS BUILT THERE EXTENSION ENTRANCE ALONG THE LICHFIELD RD
ANSELLS ORININALE OFFICES WAS ON THE CORNER BETWEEN PARK RD AND LICHFIELD RD WHICH IS WHERE YOU SEE ITIN TODAYS PICTURES
DIRECTLY FACING THE OLD C#LOCK AS IT WAS IN THEM DAYS ONCE YOU WALKED PAST THE OFFICES DOR OF ANSELLS YOU WOULD HAVE TURNED A CORNER ON TO LICHFIELD RD
AND ONCE STARTING TO WALK PAST A GATE OF ANSELLS ENTRANCE THATS WHERE THESE LITTLE SHOPS AND HOUSES STARTED WITH THE SHOPS THE THERE WAS A COUPLE OF COURTS AND YARDS HOUSE WHICH YOU CAN FIND IN SOME BOOKS AND OF CARL CHINNS ORININALE BOOKS AS TO WHEN HE STARTED HIS BOOK KEEPING ON ASTON
THATS WHERE NO 2 COMMENCD AND THE HOUSE AFTER RIGHT UP UNTIL YOU REACHED THE CORNER OF UPPER PORTLAND ST WHICH WHEN YOU REACHED THAT CORNER AND TURNED THERE AS TO WAKLK UP PORTLAND STRETTHAT WAS ANOTHER EXIT INTO ANSELLS WHERE THEY BROUGHT OUT THE HORSES TO TAKE TO VICTORIA RD STABLES AT THE END
OF THE WORKING DAY THEN OPERSITE ON THAT CORNER TO COMMENCING TO WALK ALONG THE LICHFIELD RD WAS MATTYS RADIO SHOP
THEN THERE WAS ABRIC BACK SHOP ANOTHER BUTCHERS AND MR PARKES ANOPTHER GROCER WHOM USED TO WEIGH YOUR TEA AND DO THE BUTTER IN WHAT THEY CALL BUTTER PATTING TO WEIGHT AS WITH THE CHEESE AND AT THAT SHOPP WAS THE COURT WHERE MANDY PARENTS LIVED I THINK THERE WAS ANOTHER SHOP THEN WE HAVE THE OLD DISPUTED PUB CALLED THE WIDDOWS THEN THERE WAS A MRS OXIL A GROCER THE A MRS BARNES TOOK IT OVER THEN THERE WAS CROMWELL SQUARE OR TERACE IF YOU LIKE AND THATS WHERE I WAS BORN AT 5 BACK OF 92 LICHFIELD RD ASTON BEST WISHES Astonian
 
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Hi Lyn.

Hope you keeping well, I have posted the picture of Lichfield Rd you mentioned, what is the dispute with regards to the Pub The Widdows.

In the picture you can just make out the entry up side of Thompson's I remember seeing pigs of loaded there and run up to slaughter house at back.

The picture clearly shows the Pub.

My barbers used to be across road round the corner and in the triangle section of road was a stone horse trough, across theway later the carpet people opened I think it was Hearnshaws.

I was born just down the road 4 Sandy Lane, we moved after the bombing 1942 to Great Barr.

Ray
 
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