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Gosta Green Through Duddeston

I think you are right there, Brumgum! That had crossed my mind, but I've been out of Brum since 1961 and Aston Uni seems to have smothered that area now.
 
So remembering that I have not been in this part of Birmingham since Noah docked the Ark. Are we saying that Perry Pens stood where Aston University's original main building stands?

Sorry if I am being a bit thick about this but I can't seem to get my head around it.

Phil
 
At least you're closer than me, Phil! (A darned side colder at the moment too, I believe!)

I can't speak for Aston Uni, even though I was in the buildings a couple of times a few years ago. I was in a car, knew where I wanted to get to, but ended up going against the flow of the traffic and cutting up a bus (much to the driver's annoyance) to get into the Uni. I remember the old Gosta Green, which was fairly open, and the trams came down Corporation Street, swung around a wide curve and into Lancaster Street. Perry Pens was, at that time, I think, the second major building on the right as you came into Lancaster Street. I still can't place where Halfords was! And is the Fire Station still there?

When I knew it, the original red bricks of the Perry factory had become black.

Regards,

Maurice
 
nice pic here of some georgian houses in ashted row..appartently known by the locals as doctors houses....

astoness
 

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Lyn

I never heard them referred to as doctor houses, its just at the lower end of Ashted Row towards Vauxhall rd. There happened to be a few Doctors & Dentists and the like who had houses and practice rooms in the locality.

Phil
 
thanks phil...anyway they look as though they were pretty grand at one time...such a shame....

lyn
 
Those houses were the same as the ones built on Great Brook Street at Vauxhall and backed on to each other as PMC said earlier.
 
sospiri said:
I think you are right there, Brumgum! That had crossed my mind, but I've been out of Brum since 1961 and Aston Uni seems to have smothered that area now.
Click to expand...

I was told by a chap at the pen museum that the pen factory building facade had been saved and the building now housed students.
There is a picture of it as it is now in the museum. Members of my family worked at the factory and my Gran was born in Moland Street.
 
Ah! I'm a little bit away from the Pen Museum, Brumgum. A modern picture would be interesting, but an old one much better. But thanks for the info.

Regards,

Maurice
 
sospiri said:
Ah! I'm a little bit away from the Pen Museum, Brumgum. A modern picture would be interesting, but an old one much better. But thanks for the info.

Regards,

Maurice
Click to expand...

https://www.birminghamheritage.org.uk/pentrade.html
maybe you could e-mail the pen factory (above) they are very helpful.
The fire station is still there but no longer in use but has been purchased for multi use etc.
I've passed by where you live in Crete, it's lovely!,

Brumgum.
 
Thanks, Brumgum - I'll give it shot - can't do any harm.

Next time you're passing, drop in and have a raki! Olive picking season at the moment so everything in the village is going full tilt. A bit too much like hard work for my old bones! :-)

Regards,

Maurice
 
Hi marmalade,
thank you for your comments, i have more pic,s of the area
most are pic,s i have had from birmingham history forum,
whom i like to thank very much terry ward
 
Terry:

Wonderful pictures, but they've suddenly disappeared and I can't them back! From the third pic (Lancaster Place 10), it would appear that Lancaster Street runs up the left hand end of the pic and the Fire Station clock can clearly be seen on the right hand edge.

Brumgum:

You're getting William Mitchell in Moland Street confused with Perry Pens of Lancaster Street. True, they all joined together in 1961, but until then they were separate companies on separate sites. Renold Chain took over the Perry Group of companies in 1958 and sold the pen side of the business to British Pens which had been formed from Michells and Hinks Wells. In other words, we are talking about the period prior to 1961.

Regards,

Maurice
 
OK, here's the definitive location! On the map below Perry Pens occupied the area covered by the "ST" of "LAWSON ST". Brick Kiln Street got completely wiped out and would have formed the southern boundary of Perrys, i.e. the right hand side of the factory as viewed from Lancaster Street.

Maurice
 
It looks to me as it Perrys occupied all or part of the site labelled as "New Halfords site" in the picture "Lancaster Place 9" and that the two buses are actually using what was left of Brick Kiln Street ???

Maurice
 
sospiri

Is this the place, upper middle of the photo. A pretty poor picture, but if its the right place I will tell you where it came from.

Phil
 

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That certainly looks like it, Phil. Looks like it's scanned from a book with all the patterning on it.

Regards,

Maurice
 
Maurice

I comes from a very good book entitled More Birmingham Memories Published by True North Books Ltd in 2004 ISBN No 1 903204 80 1 and is part of a much larger photo on page 58.

If you are thinking about trying to get hold of a copy, It may be out of print so I would suggest Abesbooks or Amazon Books on the web.

Phil
 
Thanks very much for that, Phil. I've got a birthday coming up so I will add it to my wish-list. Looks like it could be one of the very few in existence. Much obliged.

Maurice
 
Hi phil,
nice picture, i am not too sure where it is ?
It looks like the old sq leading down to lower priory- dale end.
I think i can see steelhouse lane at the bottom of the picture
& corperation st a little higher, could you let us know please
terry ward
 
Hi again phil,
the pic i have just posted, where you can see the billiard rooms, is in the same area as the offices you can see in the
left bottom of your picture, if it is thats steelhouse lane
& upper priory in 1959 terry ward
 
TCWARDPLUMBERS said:
Hi again phil,
the pic i have just posted, where you can see the billiard rooms, is in the same area as the offices you can see in the
left bottom of your picture, if it is thats steelhouse lane
& upper priory in 1959 terry ward
Click to expand...

If it were the 1960's you would be standing in Colmore Circus with the Gaumont Cinema on the left where it actually is in this immediate post-war photograph. In either decade The Priory will be to the right, but in this photograph Weaman Street actually joins Steelhouse Lane (ahead) but you can't quite see it because of the cinema.
 
TCWARDPLUMBERS said:
Hi phil,
nice picture, i am not too sure where it is ?
It looks like the old sq leading down to lower priory- dale end.
I think i can see steelhouse lane at the bottom of the picture
& corperation st a little higher, could you let us know please
terry ward
Click to expand...

If you look at the building that is the focus of the picture Parker & Co Pens, just to the right is the back end of Central Fire Station. with frontage on Lancaster Circus. The road in between the station and Parkers is I believe Lawson St.

Phil
 
Hi again phil,
thanks for your reply, but the picture i was refering to
is section 1098, & i still cant see where perry pens is.
Can you put me right please terry ward
 
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