• 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

Gosta Green Through Duddeston

nothing to do with the mystery photo but i cant recall if ive posted this one before..apologies if i have...

lyn
 
ok john...i post that many i cant keep track of em...lol..struggling with one of inkerman and francis streets though

lyn
 
Last edited:
Astoness said:
ok john...i post that many i cant keep track of em...lol..struggling with one of inkerman and francis streets though

lyn
Click to expand...

Lyn

They are rare, well hard to find. The thing is there are probably hundreds of family photos out there with these places in the background.

Phil
 
phil not knowing the area can you let me know of the streets off inkerman and off francis please...well i think there is an image out there of just about everywhere and a lot are in folks personel collections..its just a case of hoping they turn up for us...i mean..just look at me with the vine...got it eventually....

lyn
 
Lyn

Francis St ran from Windsor St to Lupin St and cut through Henry St, Willis St and Heneage St.

Inkerman St ran from Duddeston Mill Rd to Erskine St and cut through Cathcart St and Alma Crescent.

Phil
 
i must say to one and all,
what a great thread this is, that last picture showing Francis st / Willis st,
showing st Mathews church in the distance it,s like being home.
as ger22van knows just across grt Lister st,is Cromwell st is where i was born and bread in 1948.
regards to all, hope you,re well Ernie. dereklcg
 
Hello Dereklcg,
I used to run down Willis St. from the Ashted Row cinema, being Roy Rogers or Gene Autry, and sometimes Johnny Mack Brown, happy days,
we used to scarper past St. Mathews because we thought it was haunted.
Nearly got run over once running across Gt, Lister St.
 
After finally sorting my book out from where Phils original photo came from
and studying it under a strong magnifying glass, I can safely say nearly certain it is the corner of Willis St. and Gt. Brook St.
Have re-photographed the picture and enhanced as much as I dare, you can clearly see the letters WILL.. and almost make out the triple name GT, BROOK ST.
This one has been driving me nuts, let's hope it's cracked, but there again....
 
Well done John thats interesting none of us gave a thought to GT Brook St As the houses were far to classy as i remember.which side of the st.are we looking at?Dek
 
John

I know this is probably driving you to distraction the same as it is me. But I still don't think you have cracked it. I eliminated Great Brook St from the start because of the larger type houses.

You can see from these couple of photos. The coloured photo shows the type of house that ran from Vauxhall Rd to Willis St. In fact the shop in the photo would have had to have been this type construction,

Phil

NechellsGreatBrookSt1.jpg
NechellsGreatBrookSt.jpg
 
Having sat and pondered for a bit i tend to still lean towards phil on this one i,m not convinced.The lettering and the spacing would be exactly the same for Gt Brook ST And St James St all though i,m not saying it is either Living down the bottom end i did know all the shops in Willis St but not as well as the other guys I also used the baths most Saturdays(some times if i was going into town i,d pop into Woodcock St) Maybe It was here before it they built the baths.Gt brook st was the posh end of our manor.Dek
 
Crumbs, back to square one then, BUT it is certainly Willis St.
That only leaves St. James St.(funnily enough the name of the street where I now live).
If only we could see the original photo, as when printed on the type of paper used for the book a lot of definition is lost.
Phil, find us another one, think I've reached the end of my tether on this one.
 
Phil,
iIs there anyway that the top storey could have been taken off new roof added and windows bricked in.
Which would be the newer type chimney ?
I'm going round the twist on this one haha.
 
John

Can you honestly see anyone in Nechells going to that sort of trouble or expense. Why make a big slum house into a small slum house. It was far easier and cheaper just to demolish the house and put the occupants on the street.

How many families have you seen in the street with all their furniture and goods.

Phil
 
Here you are John, as requested. This photo comes from Carl Chinns Site Birmingham Lives.

The photo is entitled A Nechells Street yet to be identified in the 1950's. I haven't a clue where it is. to be honest after studying it for a long time I'm not even sure it is Nechells. The fancy key stones and brickwork over the doorways and window arches are putting me off.

What I do like is the little tallyman or rent collector on the doorstep wearing his bowler hat. Just typical of the times. I would guess he is a rent collector because he is not carrying a suitcase.

So come on best guesses please unless anybody knows where it is.

Phil

A-Street-in-Nechells-1950s-1.jpg
 
Ernie

They are obviously (or were) shops at some time. Its just that I remember most of the houses with attic rooms as being places like Great Brook St and Ashted Row and I don't think its either of those.

No I haven't a clue on this one.

Phil
 
morning all....phil what do you think to your pic being in the spring hill area..there was a proberts provisions there..just a thought as we seem no nearer identifying it as a nechells st/rd...

lyn
 
Phil this is a good one,Looking at the photo it appears to go uphill but the roof line goes downhill at the far end there seems to be a yard before the last building could this be a pub. The st. at the bottom seems to go off at an angle, is that the outline of a tree in the distance i,m sure these are questions you,ve already ask yourself not a place i can recall down our end.Dek
 
Astoness said:
morning all....phil what do you think to your pic being in the spring hill area..there was a proberts provisions there..just a thought as we seem no nearer identifying it as a nechells st/rd...

lyn
Click to expand...

Lyn

I think one thing about the grocery shop is that most of us agree that it is Willis St and I think as we can only think of one Willis St and that was in Nechells. Personally I am willing to accept any reasonsable idea to where it is.

Phil
 
Dek

I thought the building at the end of the street could be a pub also. If you look on the other side of the road that it meets you can just make out the beginnings of a shop or factory sign. I think the wording starts with JO but it needs someone with better eyes than mine.

Phil
 
ok phil..on the corner of willis and where...must say i had not even heard of your willis st but then again its not my area....

lyn
 
Lyn the Willis and Were question is our problem It,s doing my head we may never know maybe we should send the photo to Scotland Yard.Dek
 
Lyn

I'm firmly convinced its the corner of Francis St prior to the building of the public baths. If someone can tell me when (what year) the baths were built I will buy a copy of Kelly's of the preceeding year and see where that takes me.

Phil
 
Phil,
This is going to be a tough one I think, the only clue being at the end of the street.
Have separated that section as best I can, any more ideas now.
Looks like JOH to me
 
Phil I did see the factory /shop and i thought of somewhere that would fit but dismissed it.At the other end of Gt Brook St where it met Ashted Row the CO-Op had their funeral parlour on the corner of Holt St.the one problem i have with this is that would put the houses between Lawley St and the end of Gt Brook St i don,t ever remember anything there also the canal flows under the road in the position.Dek
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top