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Larches Street Sparkbrook

mikejee said:
there was a Warwick Arms at 93 Long St and a Deveraux Arms in Lodge road
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The warwi
Phil said:
Lyn

What was your relatives name, and what number Larches Street did they live at, my fathers family came out of Larches St and I was living there myself until I got married. I've been looking for photos myself for a few years now they are not that easy to come by. I have two that belong to Mikejee that I helped him identify they show numbers 2 to 15 would you believe only 2 houses short of our old house. If Mike agrees I'll put them up for you.
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My grandmother and grandfather and my mom and uncle lived in larches street about 55 to early 60's
 
Philgard7 said:
Bill and Dot Jones (nee Gardner) were my aunt and uncle. Their children were Brian (sadly killed in a car crash) Linda, David and Clive. Harry and Florrie Underwood lived next door in to us in Kyrwicks Lane, nearly opposite the Hereford Arms. Mom and Dad (Sid and Joyce) would walk past The Stratford Arms and Cottage Of Content to get to the Warwick, they loved the place. Dad worked behind the bar for a while.
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Yes that was the Jones family that lived a couple of doors away from us. I didn't know that Brian had been killed, I think the last time I saw him was when he managed a car tuning garage at the bottom end of Garrison Lane in the 70's and I took my car into him to be tuned.
 
Phil said:
Yes that was the Jones family that lived a couple of doors away from us. I didn't know that Brian had been killed, I think the last time I saw him was when he managed a car tuning garage at the bottom end of Garrison Lane in the 70's and I took my car into him to be tuned.
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Ooops I forgot Karen also. Saw Linda the odd time and see Clive when we go to his local in Redditch for a night out. We came from a very big family on Dad's side I think he had something like 12 siblings and lived in Braithwaite Road. We lived with my moms parents in Priestly Road for the first four or five years after I was born. Sid and Betty Higgs, aunt Bet, aunt June and my mom Joyce (real name Barbara) before we moved around the corner to Kyrwicks Lane. In those days you never ventured far from the same five or six streets.
 
savory said:
Hello just noticed you remember the Underwood's and Haddleton and Savory. Well I am Pauline Savory and I sent in this photo
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Hi Pauline, I remember you well. My mom and dad were Sid and Joyce Gardner (sadly passed away in 2013 but at a ripe old age) my sister Kay and I were fixtures at the Warwick, the other three Craig, Neil and Mandy came along 10 years after us two. I remember your dad,Les, well.
 
Philgard7 said:
Hi Pauline, I remember you well. My mom and dad were Sid and Joyce Gardner (sadly passed away in 2013 but at a ripe old age) my sister Kay and I were fixtures at the Warwick, the other three Craig, Neil and Mandy came along 10 years after us two. I remember your dad,Les, well.
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Hello yes I remember your family too. My dad Les died age 58 and mom was 93. Dad loved the Warwick and our trips with Cappa Haddleton to cricket matches and fishing trips. Loved my childhood playing in the yard at the Warwick.
 
savory said:
My Grandparents lived in Larches Street from 1915 to 1937 . My Grandfather, William Hinks, was the Licencee at The Beehive Alehouse where he lived with his wife Minnie and children. Their son Jack and daughter Connie came with them and two more daughters were born there - Norah and Marjorie. Marjorie was the youngest and was just 3 weeks off her 101st birthday when she died in April 2020 but my Mother Connie, who married and had her wedding reception in the Club Room at the Beehive , was a frequent visitor with her family and I remember the place very well and have a lot of memories which I treasure. My Uncle and Aunties had a lot of friends in Larches Street and all went to school on the Stratford Road in Sparkbrook and believe it is still teaching pupils to this day. I have photographs of The Beehive which I will look out and send to you.
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quine46 said:
my grandparents name was ward lived at 107A ,walter and Florence I lived with them until about 1950/
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I lived at 105 Larches Street a couple of doors away from the Wards. I am sure our next door neighbour was related to the wards
 
savory said:
I lived at 105 Larches Street a couple of doors away from the Wards. I am sure our next door neighbour was related to the wards
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Dorothy Carter (nee Ward) of 106 appears to have been the daughter of Walter & Florence Ward of 107a
 
quine46 said:
my grandparents name was ward lived at 107A ,walter and Florence I lived with them until about 1950/
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I remember the wards who lived in long street related to begleys lovley Irish family . This area was lovley as a kid I grew up there beautiful memories lovley people all gone . Don’t even think about driving or visiting there today !! all my uncles and local mainley Irish family’s would hover from pub to pub Warwick black horse shakes spear golden days everyone every thing was happy and much different.
 
I just got a newspaper photo from my Brother. He knows I'm doing Ancestry stuff & sent me this from a cousin, It's the Larches Street coronation celebrations 1936. I have tried to attach it. but the file is too big. if you can tell me how to send it, I will post it. I will try & find out what paper it was put into & when so people can look it up.
 
Got a photo of Larches Street, not sure if it's the same street. This is of the coronation in 1936. My Grandad is at the back row.
 
I lived at 4 back of 52 for the first 3 years of my life, from 1956 to 1959, and have vague memories of the courtyard house, one up, one down, with an attic at the top. Does anyone have an idea of the size of the rooms? I remember we had no bathroom of toilet. Was this also the case for the houses that fronted the street? Or were they superior? I saw the photos of Larches St., but I'd love to see a picture of the courtyard.
John
 
hi john your back to back sounds the same as the one i was born in..tiny living room..i 1 bedroom 1 attic...our cooker was in the living room at the bottom of the stairs...houses at the front were more or less the same with front house and back house joined by just one wall...so no back doors in either..shared toilets would have been in the yard at the back...also a shared brewus to do the washing... and no running hot water inside so big pans had to be heated up to fill up the tin bath in front of the fire in the living room...cleanest person having a bath first going down to the dirtiest so all very often sharing the same water...maybe one of our members could kindly post you a map showing 4/52 to give you an idea of the layout...hope this helps

lyn
 
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A few photos I took of Larches St just before demolition are on post 18 on this thread
 
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Astoness said:
great map mike...hope that our last 3 posts will be of help to john

lyn
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Mike, Lyn. Many thanks. Trying to situate my memories on the map. Yea, the old tin bath... Did many people use Sparkhill public baths for a weekly clean-up? I was in North Korea and saw a long quere near the swimming pool we had been taken to see synchronised swimming. I asked the guide, and he told me they were queueing up to get a shower or a bath... and that reminded me of Sparkbrook...

And I didn't realise Larches St was such a long road. Now most of it has been cut off.
 
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