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photos

Continuing the artists impressions, it's a 39 route open balcony car heading to the City seen passing through Moseley Village.
 
Another one for you Frothy. Seen here in 1939, folks are out in the road to board an 87 tram on the Dudley Road at Icknield Port Road junction. on the left the little girl in the pram looks like she is keeping a wary eye on the tram!
 
Another one for you Frothy. Seen here in 1939, folks are out in the road to board an 87 tram on the Dudley Road at Icknield Park Road junction. on the left the little girl in the pram looks like she is keeping a wary eye on the tram!

The clarity of that photo is unreal, fantastic
 
Very clear indeed - you can make out the Mitchells and Butler's lorry behind the tram, with its trademark "Beer is Best" on the radiator!

Tiny little point - it's Icknield Port Road.
 
That really is a good photo, Mike. Brings back memories all right.

My most vivid 'tram-memory' is my old man and me on a tram in the early 1950's, coming home from my uncle's and trying to get up Gravelly Hill in a freeze. The conductor got out to spread sand on the track in front of the tram, and with each forward movement there was a loud cheer from the passengers. We made it to Six Ways Erdington, and then the No 11 bus home! Having fun was a simple thing in those days....

Big Gee
 
Very clear indeed - you can make out the Mitchells and Butler's lorry behind the tram, with its trademark "Beer is Best" on the radiator!

Tiny little point - it's Icknield Port Road.

Thanks, Lloyd, have put that right now, and it's also thanks to you along with Terry for info in later postings that I can safely say the tram seen below, sadly, is on it's final journey via Digbeth to Kyotts Lake Works to await scrapping.
Mike
 
Couldn't resist another one for Frothy, here the folks are getting on an outbound No.8 in Alum Rock just up from the Saltley Gate.

I remember going with mates for some chips in the shop there one hot summer evening back in the early 1960's (no trams by then) and as we waited to be served a row of bottles of pop placed on top of the frying range suddenly started exploding all along the line (silly to put 'em there in the first place). The pop and broken glass cascaded into the fryer, with steam and spitting fat going up like a volcano til the poor bloke serving shut all the lids down. Needless to say we didn't get any chips there that evening.
 
hi mike,
great pictures, thanks a lot, pic 40 is of the bull ring going down
to digbeth, just behind the tram is park st the royal georgeis on the corner. terry
 
hi mike,
great pictures, thanks a lot, pic 40 is of the bull ring going down
to digbeth, just behind the tram is park st the royal georgeis on the corner. terry

Many thanks for that, I went by the caption to the photo but on looking closer see that it is dropping down from the Bull Ring into Digbeth. As the view is from before I moved to Birmingham it had me fooled. I have now edited the posting.
Mike
 
pic 40 is of the bull ring going down
to digbeth, just behind the tram is park st the royal georgeis on the corner. terry
I've just studied that view, and can date it by the fact that over the tram, in the overhead wire is a double hanger for the Coventry road trolleybuses, but the negative wire (always closest to the pavement) has been cut down, so it's after July 1951. The destination number blind is showing 'Depot only', and as the tracks to Arthur Street (Coventry Road) and Highgate Road depots had gone by then, the only place this car was going was Kyotts Lake Road works.
The dust thrown up shows that the lines are out of general use, so I'd guess this is after one of the last tramway closures and the tram is a Selly Oak or Cotteridge car after the July 1952 conversion, or a Miller street one after the July 1953 abandonment on it's last journey to be scrapped.
 
Just found this on youtube, sure it'll be of interest.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmWDt8V1g5c&feature=related"]YouTube - Birmingham Old Photographs - Keith Berry produced.[/ame]
 
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