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Gosta Green Through Duddeston

Lloyd. Another great photograph, but where is my copper ?
As I have said I loved looking at them old photographs.
I studied one that was Victoria Square and noticed that the drinking fountain by the pidgeon park was originally sited in Victoria Square.
 
pmc1947. phil I look at it that it all gives us an insite as to how things used to be, something we lost out on when younger because we never asked.
Now it comes alive to us in Photographs.
Must be one of the best things ever invented to us historians.
 
Duddeston had its wastelands back in the 1950's, even though the grass now grows there and it looks better in some respects it must be admitted that it has lost a great deal simple because it was all part of our childhood.
I can say about very bad points which I will not go into, but I always try to stay ahead with all its good points of years ago. They are the things we miss if we really admit it to ourselves.
 
As you say Ernie, things have much changed it just fills me with wonder how things can change so much in so few short years.

I admit that it is much better now and perhaps the change was all for the best, its hard to be nostalgic about living as one of a family of eight in a 2 up and one down back to back with no bathroom, hot water or inside loo, or even your own family loo.

Even having said that, there must have been some attraction, because most of us look back to those times with fond memories and the bad ones we keep pushed to the back of our memory only to surface occasionly.

I see that some of the maisonettes and flats they erected when they moved us out, have now gone the same way and they have been demolished. I suppose the planners will eventually get things right,

Phil
 
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pmc1947. Hello Phil, reading your post brings to mind my thoughts of the area years ago ( Why dont they level them to the ground more quickly, but felt a little sad when it did happen ) Its nice to see there are remnants of the old place left. Your mention of the maisonettes and flats I said to my wife as I drove through the area as they were being demolished, " Those houses before them had stood since late 1830's, now how long have these being demolished been there "?
 
Anyone remember Lawrence Street?
 

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Ernie,

Good photo's, hope you don't mind I have taken copies.

Getting back to the maisonettes. I played on the building site for those in Lupin St, before it became Duddeston Mill Rd that would be about 1955. I later had a mate who lived in the maisonettes there and another who lived in the flats in what used to be Great Francis St and is now Little Hall Rd when they were brand new. I even used to have a drink in the Tom Thumb when I wanted a quiet night.

Now they have been replaced, I don't know when, but I think it was some time ago. So they had a life span of about 40 years. I don't think the Council could have made much profit on them.

Phil
 
Phil. 1955 would be just before I left Birmingham (1956 I left)
Mum ( I used to say Mom ) lived along Lupin Street. There was waste ground half way along towards St Matthews School and a piece of waste ground the corner of Willis Street ( A true Bomb Peck ) not sure of the first one.
The maisonettes seemed to suddenly appear from nowhere along one side of Henry Street in 1957 and they had different coloured boards on the balconies which I thought spoilt the looks of them. I was not around to see the demolition of Great Lister Street and don't think I would have wanted to.
Phil, just realized that you meant you played on the ground where the maisonettes were being built.
The Photographs are there for everyone so help yourself.
 
Ernie

I always used to play marbles on the bomb peck on the corner of Willis St and Lupin St opposite the school.

I used to fetch coal for half of our street from the coal yard in Willis St by that bomb peck. I remember how hard it was to push the coalyards barrows, remember the ones with the little cast iron wheels.

When it became a regular Saturday morning job. I soon made my own barrow out of a Pedigree Pram chassis it made the job a lot easier.

Phil
 
pmc1947. Phil I used to fetch coke from Windsor Street Gas Works for one or two, I think it may have been a cart made out of an old fish box and pram wheel axle and wheels ( they were like gold dust to find ) I know the coal yard in Willis Street, do you remember the Baker's next door. My Gran "God Bless Her " used to go there after the van returned from deliveries and bought penny cakes ( she was in her early 80's then ) for me, I can tell you I never had it so good. Although they may have been broken to some degree, there were all sorts puff pastry with cream and eclares, egg custards the lot and no bread pudding amongst them. My Gran was wonderful to put it mildly.
Phil, Would not fancy a barrow with little caste iron wheels.
 
This is taken from the Carl Chinn Book " Homes For People " of House back of 22 Blews Street about 1905 showing a warning notice about Diarrhoea - A terrible killer of poor children before 1914. I might also add that malnutrition was a killer of poor children in early 1900's.

house door back 22 blews st c 1905.jpg
 
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hi Phil great post mate,
i swear when i read about the coalbarrows i could here the
noise they made, when they hit a crack in the pavement,
it almost sounded like a train over the points, over the points.
it,s amazing when you think and to be fair we would,nt have
thought so much about it living as we did if it was,nt for this
fantastic site we all know and love?
happy days regards derek.
have you seen the first photo before the fire station?
there was no copper there either.
 
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hi ya,that photo has been posted before,there,s a couple of variations before the firestation after the fire station and the like,
whats going to happen next will they knock it down now it to be
no longer to be a fire station?
thank goodness for the web.
regards dereklcg.
 
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Here you are all

heres one I don't think has been on site before, its taken from the fire station roof and is one of where Halfords stood on Lancaster St.

Phil

CityLancasterSt1957.jpg
 
Roy

I dont much fancy the film on at the Rock and I've seen the Tarzan film at the Gaiety. I went to the Ashted the other night and so have seen the fim there. So I think I will just stay in tonight and watch Emergency Ward 10 on the telly, with that delightful nurse Jill Browne.

Phil
 
pmc1947. Quite right phil. I do remember that the " Ashted " never put their programs in the newspaper but they did bring out a program once a month with a Sunday listing,then one for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, then there was a different one for Thurs, Friday and Saturday. I don't think they retained films for second or third weeks because they showed the older films that had already done the circuit, but I will add that there was a queue around the corner into Willis Street for the 10d seats and the other side along Ashted Row for the shilling seats. They also had a kiosk in Willis Street were I think they sold the Saturday Matinee tickets.
 
Somehow love this old Photograph ( Before my time.)
Cannot remember trolley buses along Great Lister Street, although I do remember Tram lines in the street.

Nechells Great Lister St - Bloomsbury St - Turks Head.jpg
 
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Ernie, thanks for the photo of the Hercules advert. It answers a query on another thread where a new member mentions her sister dying from burns caused by a fire/bombing while working at Hercules during the war. I knew it wasn't Hercules on Aston Cross but the ad mentions Britannia Works, Handsworth.

You also mention Britannia being an occupation, I wonder if this was anything to do with Britannia metal?
 
Sylviasayers. I shall have to check out that Britannia Metal theory, Thank you for that Sylvia.
Lloyd. Thats great, now everything fits as it should, these maps I have can be so off putting at times.
 
Lacaster Street is the main road to left, and although no expert on the Gosta Green area I would say the public house on that road is the Brunswick.

Phil
 
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Thank you so much... It has all become a bit clearer to me now...(this is going back to my school days in 1959!!) The 2 buses are probably heading towards the Corporation Terminus..which would be at the side of the General Hospital.. am I right? They would turn left and the beginning of the Bus journey would start... and they would head off towards the Fire Station. So I would have actually passed over Lancaster Street every day and didn't know it.

In the photo...the top of the column in the right hand bottom corner is part of the Fire Station? so the big Red doors housing the Fire Engines would come out from somewhere on that side?

Georgie
 
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Derek i m just looking at the photo of Cromwell St with Wimbushes in the middle. Where, in reference to that, would number 3 be ? My gt gt grandad Joseph Wallace was born there then later on they would move to number 65 where my gt grandad Frederick Wallace was born. I noticed on one of your posts that you mention the Wallaces- which ones do you remember ?
 
Laraine, my g. grandfather Wiiliam Wallace had a brother Joseph born 1880, parents Jane and John, do you think we might have a connection?
 
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