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Suffolk St
- Thread starter BordesleyExile
- Start date
Dennis Williams
Gone but not forgotten
One more for the pot. The Argyle in Suffolk street.
BordesleyExile
master brummie
Thank you Dennis & Phil. It feels like Christmas s have come at once with all this terrific information & pictures. Dennis I'll get involved with the Navigation St thread but I need to meet another deadline in the intertim. I will get to your thread.
Phil
Gone, but not forgotten.
A few more images of Suffolk St, The first one is taken at the bottom of the Hill just adjacent to its junction with John Bright St.
Next is the junction of Navigation St, followed by a photo of The Technical College that looks as if it was taken from Allport St.
Then an image of the Christadelphian Hall on the corner of Gough St, that despite all the odds against it is still standing today.
The last one I think is near the to its junction with Paradise St and therefore must be opposite The West End Cinema
Phil
Next is the junction of Navigation St, followed by a photo of The Technical College that looks as if it was taken from Allport St.
Then an image of the Christadelphian Hall on the corner of Gough St, that despite all the odds against it is still standing today.
The last one I think is near the to its junction with Paradise St and therefore must be opposite The West End Cinema
Phil
Phil
Gone, but not forgotten.
Ernie
There used to be a Fordrough St that ran parallel with Suffolk St from Severn St to Wharf st before the rail goods sidings were built. Could that be the one you are thinking of?
Phil
leslam
Brummie by marriage
Back to Curzon Hall - I knew I had seen it somewhere.
The caption to the attached photo, taken from "Victorian and Edwardian Birmingham from old photographs" by Dorothy McCulla, says:
An audience at the New Century picture theatre 1906, at Curzon Hall, which later became the Wesr End Ccinema. The conductor of the orchestra is thought to be Joseph Engelmann, father of the late Franklin Engelmann
The caption to the attached photo, taken from "Victorian and Edwardian Birmingham from old photographs" by Dorothy McCulla, says:
An audience at the New Century picture theatre 1906, at Curzon Hall, which later became the Wesr End Ccinema. The conductor of the orchestra is thought to be Joseph Engelmann, father of the late Franklin Engelmann
Dennis Williams
Gone but not forgotten
Have close look on Bordesley Exile's map in post 1 (? date). It is marked Foredrove St I think... It is gone by 1901 on my map though.
leslam
Brummie by marriage
Bit more on Curzon Hall - I knew that there was more! All facts paraphrased from Chris Upton's History Of Birmingham. Apologies if this repeats other entries.
Curzon Hall stood roughly where the Crowne Plaza is now. It was the first building in Birmingham to be lit by electricity. An entrpreneur called Fred Naccabe installed it at the hall entrance to advertise his show in 1878.
Curzon Hall (1865) was an all purpose venue. Used in its early days for the Birmingham Dog Show (the oldest of its kind). It offered a mixture of circuses, minstrel shows, boxing and concerts. Hamilton's Excursions, which used animated canvases to take the audience to far-off places, was a popuar alternative to the Christmas Pantomime
From 1899, Walter Jeffs, the pioneer of Birmingham cinema, showed Edison's animated pictures at Curzon Hall.
During WWI, it was a recruitment office.
As the West End cinema, it closed in 1967
Curzon Hall stood roughly where the Crowne Plaza is now. It was the first building in Birmingham to be lit by electricity. An entrpreneur called Fred Naccabe installed it at the hall entrance to advertise his show in 1878.
Curzon Hall (1865) was an all purpose venue. Used in its early days for the Birmingham Dog Show (the oldest of its kind). It offered a mixture of circuses, minstrel shows, boxing and concerts. Hamilton's Excursions, which used animated canvases to take the audience to far-off places, was a popuar alternative to the Christmas Pantomime
From 1899, Walter Jeffs, the pioneer of Birmingham cinema, showed Edison's animated pictures at Curzon Hall.
During WWI, it was a recruitment office.
As the West End cinema, it closed in 1967
Dennis Williams
Gone but not forgotten
And another earlier Kings Arms shot, plus an enlarged version of one posted earlier (just showing the men hanging around the door). Note the ladder for quick egress without paying in 1897(?) and the cobbled street and tram tracks, plus the change of the design of the hanging Lamps (swoon x2). The old place had a bit of a rebuild on the side judging from the 1924 shot. God, it looks inviting...
Aidan
master brummie
Another lovely pic Dennis - fancy a Burton Ale but not sure about the Home-Brew!! I see they (sensibly) move to Holder's https://forum.birminghamhistory.co.uk/showthread.php?t=32361 at some point.
BordesleyExile
master brummie
Terrific pics Phil, Lyn, Denis & Leslam. Thank you for sharing. And I thought that this was a thread that would wither almost immediately!
Dennis Williams
Gone but not forgotten
The Christadelphian Hall in Phil's photo ( Post No 36) has not changed much in appearance, and neither has (but for how long?) the magical Craven Arms, which is just in Gough Street, off Suffolk St, and therefore marginally on topic (?). Wonderful pub, in a markedly different setting from the 1965 shot.
Dennis Williams
Gone but not forgotten
OK, it's not a pub, but it look like it could have been one if it fancied it. Besides my Granddad and Missus both worked for Dunlop, so I feel vaguely entitled, if only by proxy...
Dennis Williams
Gone but not forgotten
This is an odd one. Billed as being in Suffolk St, but I can't fathom where it might have been, or when? And I spotted GWR stuff till I was sick...
Phil
i agree that, if the picture was from Suffolk St , then it must be the Central goods station, previously the worecester Wharf Goods station. However, this was always (till BR) a Midland goods station. GWR was at hockley , and later moor St. It could be that there were facilities available at the Suffolk St site for GWR. but I can find no mention of them (though I'm not an expert on the subject). If there were no facilities, then this would mean that the picture was misslabelled. Certainly the shed doesn't look like any suffolk St shed I've seen pictures of, though it could have been off-camera. don't think it was like any I've seen of moor st or Hockley either, though, with Hockley it might have been an earlier shed that had been rebuilt. I take it dennis that it definitley was birmingham, and there is not another suffolk st somewhere in the country ?
mike
i agree that, if the picture was from Suffolk St , then it must be the Central goods station, previously the worecester Wharf Goods station. However, this was always (till BR) a Midland goods station. GWR was at hockley , and later moor St. It could be that there were facilities available at the Suffolk St site for GWR. but I can find no mention of them (though I'm not an expert on the subject). If there were no facilities, then this would mean that the picture was misslabelled. Certainly the shed doesn't look like any suffolk St shed I've seen pictures of, though it could have been off-camera. don't think it was like any I've seen of moor st or Hockley either, though, with Hockley it might have been an earlier shed that had been rebuilt. I take it dennis that it definitley was birmingham, and there is not another suffolk st somewhere in the country ?
mike
Dennis Williams
Gone but not forgotten
It's the GWR motif I couldn't fathom either Mike. Thanks be to Phil for filling me in on the Railway connection, obviously before my time. The Central goods Depot is an absolute stunner, and who would build a big shed on the side of a gantry, like in picture Three???. What's that when its at home?
But the GWR picture (page 44) is from "Central Birmingham 1870 - 1920" by Keith Turner. He of the Pub book. I'm sure it got slipped in by mistake too Mike..
But the GWR picture (page 44) is from "Central Birmingham 1870 - 1920" by Keith Turner. He of the Pub book. I'm sure it got slipped in by mistake too Mike..
Dennis Williams
Gone but not forgotten
A couple more old shots of Streets that crossed or joined Suffolk St.
Shortie
master brummie
Still in Suffolk Street - or to be exact, off Suffolk Street, was Norfolk Street. I have no idea when this street went, but my 4 x gt grandmother died there in 1869 - does anyone have a drawing or photo of it please? My 4 x gt grandfather was a boat builder, so it seems reasonable that he lived near to the Wharf, but I would love to see what the street was like.
Shortie
Shortie
Dennis Williams
Gone but not forgotten
Can'y help just now Shorts, but I'll give it some welly tomorrow. Meanwhile a map and some before and after shots. Have you seen enough yet???