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Poole Farm Cottages, Rodwell Grove, Kingstanding

Astoness

Astoness

TRUE BRUMMIE MODERATOR
Staff member
hi all.. thought i would post a pic of pool farm cottages which is only a 30 sec walk from my front door and i can see them from my back window....they were originally farm labourers cottages used when this area was all open land....now divided into 3 seperate accomodations....an old lady who lived opposite in the newer houses told me that there use to be a little stream running around it and that is where the name pool came from...there are records going back to 1840 but it is thought they are quite a bit older than that....

astoness:)
 
Would anyone be able to post an older map of Rodwell Grove, off Tansley Rd, Kingstanding, please?
We are told the cottages were built 1840 or earlier, but I cannot find a listing & any maps on the web are too fuzzy to read for someone unfamilar with the area.
 
Re: Poole Farm Cottages, Rodwell Grove,

Here are Pool Farm Cottages. Moderators feel free to resize the photo as I do not have the software.
 
Below is an 1884 OS map showing the area, with the position of Rodwell drive in red, and part of Cranbourne road in blue (sorry for my not very steady hand).
mike

site of rodwell grove in red . 1884.jpg
 
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Do you think these are 1840s (or earlier) buildings? I'd say they look later, but I could be completely wrong! It's just that I went to Cranbourne Rd (later re-named Kingsthorne Junior) school nearby and most of this area is 1930s development. Just a thought. Viv.
 
Thank you so very much, Mike. That is the only solid evidence found today, & I have probably spent hours searching! The map certainly does not seem to support the "1841 or earlier" story.
Yes, Vivienne I have been discussing off thread just the very issue you raise. It was extremely common in Birmingham for Georgian houses to have dormer windows as Poole Farm Cottages do. There was not much difference, if any, between Georgian & early Victorian & I doubt it is possible to date houses like these without carrying out paper & map searches. If however local folklore is correct & the cottages are 1841 or earlier then it may be they are not listed because of the pebbledash & modern windows installed. What is certain is that the properties are completely different to interwar houses close by.
 
thanks for the map mike...hi viv i had some info on these cottages some time ago..i do know for sure that the cottages have been there since 1840 and it was thought even before that...when i went to the birminghm lives history fair a couple of years back there was a stand dedicated to them but there was so much going on i did not take as much time as i could in the info given..if its there this year i will take notes....
 
Thanks for the input, Lyn. Curiouser & curiouser. Yes, we shall send you back to the 'fair to find out more.
I did search on FMP under the 1841, 1881 & 1911 census, but Kingstanding & Rodwell were not recognised by the 'engine.
 
hi shirl...i think most of the houses round here were built just before the ww2 in the 30s...oh i am hoping to get to the fair this year...
 
BordesleyExile said:
Thanks for the input, Lyn. Curiouser & curiouser. Yes, we shall send you back to the 'fair to find out more.
I did search on FMP under the 1841, 1881 & 1911 census, but Kingstanding & Rodwell were not recognised by the 'engine.
Click to expand...

I'm intrigued now. It'll be interesting to find out more. Do you think Rodwell Grove sounds like a more modern name? Possibly the road was given that name in the 1930s development phase? So maybe the cottages were just known as Poole Farm or similar. But you've probably already been round this already! Regards Viv.
 
How dull if all history was easy, Vivienne. I am hoping someone might think of a tack I have not tried. An 1840s tithes search would be conclusive that the buildings existed at that time, but thats not an option for me to research.
 
something has just sprung to mind...before the new houses were built there was a stream running through rodwell grove which ran all the way into cranborne road...im sure more info will come to light eventually...

lyn
 
BordesleyExile said:
How dull if all history was easy, Vivienne. I am hoping someone might think of a tack I have not tried. An 1840s tithes search would be conclusive that the buildings existed at that time, but thats not an option for me to research.
Click to expand...

The house to the left of the "Poole Farm Cottages" sign was for rent on FindaProperty.com. It's #9 Rodwell Grove and is a 2 bedroom house. That sounds like a cottage to me. So there must be at least 4 cottages in that row. Don't know if this is any help. Viv.
 
yes viv you are right...i live quite close to them so i could take a look..cant be sure how many seperate dwellings there are....will report back when i find out...

lyn
 
Lovely Lyn. Ooh I do love a mystery! It's great to discover a bit more history about a place right on your doorstep. I always regarded this part of Kingstanding as largely 1930s development. (Perhaps I should have opened my eyes a bit more when I lived there - but I was quite young). So look forward to hearing more, especially as I'm fascinated by the period of history when these cottages would have been built. Viv.
 
dont think as kids we took much notice of buildings etc viv..too busy playing out lol..will try and find out more about the cottages..

lyn
 
they are very very small inside i i know someone who went to veiw one when it came up for sale. i think there are four lyn
 
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Yes Maur and Lyn the chimney stacks look they support 4 homes; double chimney stacks for the middle 2 cottages and single stacks for the outer two. I expect these cottages were the type that you walked from the front door straight into one room and through the back door straight into the back room: a 2 up 2 down arrangement. Also I think the "Poole" name might be spelt "Pool". There was a Pool Farm, at one time the owner of Warren Farm was also the owner of Pool Farm. I assume these cottages would have originally been built for farm workers. Viv
 
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Thank you, reg. What a fascinating site. It kept me out of mischief for some time. I did struggle with the map, so I'll wait for Lyn or Vivienne to isolate the exact area as I am unfamilar with Kingstanding.
 
I'm afraid, for that particular area, on the site there is nothing earlier than the the 1884 map , which is on post 5.
 
mikejee said:
Below is an 1884 OS map showing the area, with the position of Rodwell drive in red, and part of Cranbourne road in blue (sorry for my not very steady hand).
mike
Click to expand...

To the right of area #330 on Mike's 1884 map is a lake called Lodge Pool. So that was probably where the name for the cottages originally came from and would confirm Lyn's memory of a stream around Cranbrook Rd. So far so good but I'm not sure what else this tells us at the moment! I also think the link with Warren Farm is important, just a gut feeling. All
good stuff though.... Enjoying this thread. Viv.
 
hi viv..there was a warren farm at one time....i had a pic of it but cant find it at the min but i will try and find it.

lyn
 
Lyn
Below is the 1884 map showing a slightly larger area, including Warren farm and the lodge pool mentioned.
map around pool farm c 1884.JPG
 
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