• Welcome to this forum . We are a worldwide group with a common interest in Birmingham and its history. While here, please follow a few simple rules. We ask that you respect other members, thank those who have helped you and please keep your contributions on-topic with the thread.

    We do hope you enjoy your visit. BHF Admin Team

Clifton Road Aston

morning ray...yes its your pics on page 4 and 5 that need replacing i think....will see if i have any to post...

lyn
 
Here are some more of Clifton Rd.to show your mom Viv....Can't upload them shall try later.
 
Last edited:
1967
cliftonrd1967.jpg
 
My grandfather was born at 140 Clifton Road, Aston Manor in 1895. Does anyone have an idea of the type of house this was, how many bedrooms etc., I have seen a photo someone posted on this thread but not sure what numbers I am looking at. I have googled the road on maps but see it is too modern for anything to have survived.
 
brum baby ,they usuually consisted of (1st floor) a front bedroom, a middle bedroom and a small back bedroom, which you accessed via the middle bedroom, and down stairs a front room (usually called a parlour and only used on special occassions) a middle room, which was the dining/living area and a back kitchen, which (in our case anyway) had a gas stove and a huge vat with a fire place underneath for the family washing, usually on a Monday in our house outside there was a brick built toilet and outhouse, there may be a garden if you were lucky but could just be a blue bricked yard, there was access to the rear via an entry, they also contained a damp cellar with a removeable grill, which was for tipping the coal down (my job was to count the sacks when the coalman arrived) I was born in one of these houses in 1930 in Queens Rd, not too far from Clifton Rd. Ininially, certainly during your Grandads time, the were all Gas, but they were partially electrified round about WW2, we had electric down stairs, but not upstairs, I suppose it would depend on your landlord. Eric
 
Brum baby,I lived in Clifton Rd for about 12 years,the houses were similar up the other end to the ones on Topsy turvys photo.the number of your grandads house was just about by Baglins coal yard,my cousins, and they were there when your grandad was born.Oh,we lived in a back house 5/106 and didn't have electricity until 1950.
 
Last edited:
Thank you so much cookie273uk for your evocative description of the type of house my grandfather and his family would have lived in. I suppose compared to the back to backs this type of house would be considered quite luxurious. When my father was demobbed fromt he Fleet Air Arm in 1950, when I was three, we moved to a back to back in Ladypool Road and stayed there for a couple of years. I can just about remember the house. One room downstairs with sink and cooker which we lived in. One room upstairs and a small attic. We certainly don't know how lucky we are these days.
 
Do not have a picture, but can show you where it is.On the map below it is the red house near the junction with upper sutton St. The picture in post 121 of the two shops shows the buildings in yellow.

map_c_1889_clifton_road_aston_showing_no_140.jpg
 
Great to have a plan of where 140 was and thank you for posting it for me. I have decided, after many many years of researching my ancestors, to pad out their lives and write up as much as I can about them, Where they lived, their jobs etc., etc., I expect this will take me quite a few years to complete. What fun genealogy can be.
 
Mike you are a star! Many thanks for the map showing Court 25 (Gothic Terrace) where my family lived for many years and where my Mom was born. It looks quite a good sized court from the map and it was lovely to be able to see where its position in the road was. By the time I found out about my connection with Clifton Road and went to visit, there was hardly any of the road left as Aston Expressway had been built. I shall print it off and keep it with my family history. Thank you so much.

Judy
 
My Dad (born 1904) lived at 254 Clifton Rd with his parents,later his 2 maiden aunts lived there until the 50's. The family name is Lewis.The house had a 'parlour' and a back room with a cooking range,no piped water or sink in the house, supply was in a washhouse outside. Don't remember upstairs,the WC outside was shared with the next house,as was the undivided garden space It was probably a palace compared to where their previous generations were, in New John St and various back to backs aroung Hockley !
 
My grandparents (Sam/Ellen Broadbent were from Clfton Rd. They had 5 kids. Irene,June (My Mom) Brian, known as Pete, Linda and Susan. Henry Broadbent was the Great Grandfather.
 
Hi Jayell,gothic terrace here .As you can guess from my name ,I lived at 4 gothic terrace between 1947-1957. I know the lay out of all the houses on the street plan and can remember just a few names.I myself have found memories of my childhood spent playing in the street
 
Lovely to hear from you Gothic Terrace! And what a coincidence! My family lived in the house next door to yours.

One 2 x gt.grandmother was living at No. 2 Gothic Terrace in 1881 and I guess was at that address till she died.

My grandparents (Hanson) were living at No.2 from about 1912 (maybe before) to at least 1920. They had moved out to Billesley by 1924. By the time I knew where my mother was born and grew up and went to visit, the street had mostly gone.

My other set of gt.grandparents (Martin) lived in the Terrace from at least 1881 at No.10 and later moving to No.7.

By 1940 my grandmother's sister, Minnie, was still living at No. 7 with her husband Ralph (Jones).

If you could give me a description of what the houses were like inside I would love it. And, do you by any chance have a photo of Gothic Terrace?

Judy
 
My Gt. Grandad and then my Grandad and Dad lived in the house adjacent to the houses in Gothic Terrace at No 159 Clifton Road so the right hand side of their house and garden wall would have formed the back of the houses on the right hand side of Gothic Terrace. My Aunt, Dad's Sister lived in one of the houses 'Back of 161' so her back wall would also have backed onto the far end of the same run of houses in Gothic Terrace.
I am guessing that when my Gt. Grandad moved in the houses would have been new, that would have been around 1840/50. Amazingly my current house is built exactly the same as 159 Clifton Road with the exception that it doesn't have a cellar, mine was built around 1900 so the design lasted well, good solid houses which should have been renovated instead of destroying a community.
 
Spot the deliberate mistake!!
My Gt. Grandad and then my Grandad and Dad lived in the house adjacent to the houses in Gothic Terrace at No 159 Clifton Road so the right hand side of their house and garden wall would have formed the back of the houses on the left hand side of Gothic Terrace. My Aunt, Dad's Sister lived in one of the houses 'Back of 161' so her back wall would also have backed onto the far end of the same run of houses in Gothic Terrace.
I am guessing that when my Gt. Grandad moved in the houses would have been new, that would have been around 1840/50. Amazingly my current house, in Bearwood, is built exactly the same as 159 Clifton Road with the exception that it doesn't have a cellar, mine was built around 1900 so the design lasted well, good solid houses which should have been renovated around Aston instead of destroying a community.​
 
Hi Bilboc - my other set of gt.grandparents lived at back 163 Clifton Road - at least this is where my gt.granddad, Samuel Hanson, died in 1895. Do you this this might have been Court 27?

Judy
 
Judy,
It was Court 27, left hand side back of 163 and right hand side back of 161 my Dad, Henry John Chinn, was born in 1914 at '3 back of 161' from memory, certainly one of the 'back' houses. I'll have to check his birth certificate again, he was a twin and sadly his brother William Percy died before reaching his 1st birthday. Bill.
 
Hi Judy,I will try my best to describe gothic terrace.it was known as a blind back to back ,meaning it had no court yard.Imagine a wide path running down the centre and 7 houses each side with small front gardens.The houses were known has two up ,two down.You walk straight into the kitchen area you had a door in the corner leading to the cellar .You turn right into the living room where there's a door leading to the two bedrooms.No bathroom ,you shared a toilet with two other family's ,which was located at the top of the yard.There was some houses with electric and some only had gas,the toilets had nothing ( only the candle you took with you ) I know that my mom was born at no 13 and my uncles at no 16 .Our neighbours were Restalls,Stuart,Lewis,Bullocks and many more.My grandfather rented lived in gothic terrace for many years his surname was Watton and my moms maiden name was Bayliss .Sorry that I've got no photos only happy memories I spent there growing up Doris
 
Thanks Doris for that lovely description of the houses in Gothic Terrace. It gives me something to focus on when I think of my family living there. And just two bedrooms - must have been a squash for them. My gt.grandparents (James and Ellen Martin) had 9 children. My grandparents had 6 children. I always thought the houses had a courtyard in the middle as my cousin told me that our grandmother used to sit there peeling her potatoes, Maybe she just meant outside the front door! Have you seen the photo that was put on the forum that might have been all the ladies of Gothic Terrace? It is worth looking at.

Judy
 
Hi Judy ,the map Mike gave you is the also the same as the one I put in the forum a few moths back .You are looking at 25 court and each little square represents a house and front garden .So you can count the squares to find the house you're family lived.There were also two houses at the top next to the toilets.i will try and find my copy and down load it again ,that if I can remember how to do it. You mentioned a photo .were can I view it ? Doris
 
Hi Doris. I did save the map that Mike put on. I noticed that one side the little blue boxes (houses) were smaller than the other side. Does that mean that some houses were larger than others? I don't remember your map but I guess I must have seen it. The photo of the ladies of (probably) Gothic Terrace was put on the "Gothic Terrace, Clifton Road" thread by Aston Lad - post#5

Judy
 
Although I have no connection to Gothic Terrace or Clifton road I have found this whole thread compelling reading. Looking forward to further posts. Jean.
 
Back
Top