In the first picture in Dennis's series, the second building on the left was Smallwood's wine and spirit merchants. In the early 1950s, my dad would take me there with him before Christmas to buy a bottle of sherry - the only alcoholic drink ever kept in our house!
Smallwood's also features in the third picture (taken from my own 'Images of Birmingham' collection - see www.jlb2011.co.uk/iob/).
John Ball
Thanks Dennis for posting those lovely old photo's of the City Center.
The Post & Mail always did have a bit of a fantasy streak. But you do have to remember , Dennis, that , now that they are controlled by a big external conglomerate, there is probably no person in the building on the editorial side who actually has ever seen birmingham before about 2000, and probably no senior person in the organisation who has ever been to Birmingham
In the first picture in Dennis's series, the second building on the left was Smallwood's wine and spirit merchants. In the early 1950s, my dad would take me there with him before Christmas to buy a bottle of sherry - the only alcoholic drink ever kept in our house!
Smallwood's also features in the third picture (taken from my own 'Images of Birmingham' collection - see www.jlb2011.co.uk/iob/).
John Ball
The question by Dennis about Peck Lane...Yes Peck Lane vanished to all intents and purposes when the railway station was built and the opening seems to have become part of King Edwards latterly then, with a gate. However the curbs of the lane entrance remained for a while I seem to think from old pictures and photo's but it would have been a culdesac only. Remarkably the opening is still there for all to see and the King Edwards plaque is up on the corner store (should be Peck Lane also don't you think). Reduced to a service alley now and not carrying prisoners down to the slammer or stray animals down to the Penfold...but still open to the sky for anyone to see. GE street view does not go along there anymore. I corrected previous post about the Arcades. I miss-typed and had two Midland Arcades...I think one was the City Arcade but they intersected anyway. There was/is a great section on these features at one time.