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Sutton Road Erdington: large houses and their residents

  • Thread starter Thread starter Nick Avery
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Nick Avery

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Does anyone have any old photos of the houses that were on Sutton Road before they got demolished in the 50's? I am more specifically looking for any information/photos of a Melrose House and Rustic Cottage located on Sutton Road. I believe both of these houses do not exisit today and have been replaced with the Lyndhurst Estate.

Does anyone remember any Avery's or Starkey's that lived down Sutton Road pre 1950? I believe my Great Granfather had a builders business 'Joseph Avery & Son' on Sutton Road.
 
Additional Information

In follow up to my first post.

I have managed to find out Melrose House was no. 66A Sutton Road and Rustic Cottage was no. 63 Sutton Road. No. 63 was where my grandfather had the building business. I also believe he had a riding school that backed onto the railway line from Sutton Road. If any one has any photos or remembers these houses it would be great to hear from them.
 
Found - Picture of Melrose House

I have managed to source a picture of Melrose House c1950 for those who are interested. I believe this is looking at the rear of the property. I am hoping this may prompt some more photo's/memories of the two houses?:)
 
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Hello Nick, sorry I've only just seen this posting.
Is this the sort of picture your after. ?
 
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Thanks postied, this is great, I only have the picture I posted on the internet. Very interesting indeed!
 
It is so sad that so many lovely houses were demolished. I grew up in Sutton and remember so many beautiful houses demolished to build housing estates.

I found this in a book about Water Orton it was my grandfathers sisiters house. I think it was built about 1890.
 
Moma P...I agree that many heritage houses in different areas of Birmingham have been demolished over the years. In Sutton, where my brother lives, you can walk along the streets especially Lichfield Road and see where the houses have gone. I did notice last time I was there a couple of years ago that some of the larger residences are being renovated and turned into luxury flats with a hefty price tag. At least this way the houses keep an attractive street scape instead of changing it too much.

I remember those old houses along Sutton Road. It was very sad to see them all being stripped of their finery at the time they were demolished.
 
I am also interested in finding information of the Houses on Sutton Road prior to their demolition around 1956 to make way for The Lyndhurst Estate,
Erdington Public Library has a few but even more are to be found in The Local History Dept of Birmingham Central Library,
I have information + photos of the following

Number and name Last occupied by (info date 1954)
44,Wilmot House Johnsons Garage
46,Robinson + Webb Contractors No Photo
48,Stanley House Hilda Williams
52,Wharncliffe No Photo Gordon Brazell
54,St Bedes No Photo Harry Skidmore
58,Roseville No Photo Lewis Huddy
60,Rockville No Photo Split,2 flats Ernest Sleigh/Roland Ralph
66,Melrose House Florence Manders
70,2 flats No Photo Alfred Bliss
78,The Norlands (Lyndhurst Guest House) Anton Dorcinic
80 Park Villa Kate Booth
82 Park View Elsie Willett
84,Parkfield House Desmond McCourt
88,York Lodge Thomas Price
90,Yenton Riding School No Photo J.Mueller + Sons
94,Sandfields ,Split 2 flats Elizabeth Bearn.Owen Stafford
96,Normanhurst,No Photo Maternity Home
100,Chesterfield (Beechmount Hotel) Walter Edwards
102,Thorney Croft Harry Butler
104,Chestnuts. Joseph Hayden
108,Montague House ,No Photo Alice Homer

In the register listing for 1956 only house numbers 48,82 and 88 were still
occupied,all other properties had been vacated after their leases expired and awaited demolition.I would really pleased to receive any missing photographs or hear from anybody who was living there up to the final days.

Kind Regards

Tim O'Sullivan
 
Forgive me but I get lost out Erdington and Sutton way, but is this what you are looking for. This photo is of 37 Sutton Rd, but I beleive that is Erdington.

Phil

Erdington37SuttonRd.jpg
 
Hi Tim, forgive me l am very new to this and only came across this forum the other day, but you may be interested to know that l am Walter & Nellie Edwards grandaughter. The Beechmount Hotel on Sutton Road was leased by our family from about the 1930's until it was demolished. My mum who is now 91, loved Beechmount and has lots to tell and old photo's somewhere if you would like me to try and find them? She moved to Harman Rd in the 50's and moved to Weymouth Dorset in 1975. Wendy
 
Hi Tim, forgive me l am very new to this and only came across this forum the other day, but you may be interested to know that l am Walter & Nellie Edwards grandaughter. The Beechmount Hotel on Sutton Road was leased by our family from about the 1930's until it was demolished. My mum who is now 91, loved Beechmount and has lots to tell and old photo's somewhere if you would like me to try and find them? She moved to Harman Rd in the 50's and moved to Weymouth Dorset in 1975. Wendy
 
Hi there Wendolene.How amazing you are related to Mr/Mrs Edwards, I would certainly be interested to obtain anymore information about Beechmount and would of course love to see any more photos.
So your mother must be Marjorie Edwards? I have 1 photograph of Beechmount that is stored at the Central Library in Birmingham.
Kind regards

Tim
 
Hi Tim

Thanks for your reply, sorry its taken me so long to get back to you but had real problems attaching the photos l have of Beechmount so far. My Mum is Marjorie, her late brother was Donald but don't know if you have him in your info. Nan and Grandad, Mum and my Uncle Donald rented Beechmount in the 1930's on a short lease, but this was forgotten about during World War 2 and they where allowed to stay until the area was earmarked for demolition in the 1950's. The family ran it as the Beechmount Hotel. Grandad died a couple of months before l was born in 1962 and Nan in 1973. Mum is still going through her photos although there doesn't seem to be any of the interior which is a real shame. Will post again when l have more info. Oh Mum says Beechmount was not no.100 Sutton Rd it was no.98 she is very definate about this.
Hope the photos come out ok.. excuse the scribble on them..apparently that was me when l was little!

ps Mum is dying to know what photo of Beechmount you have in the library?
 
Hi Again Wendolene

Thank you for posting the photographs and the information,
looking forward to seeing more if you have them.
I will post the picture I found in the Central Library in Birmingham as soon as I can ,It must be one of the last photographs as it was taken in the winter and the house is empty.
 
Hi Tim
No probs, hope to have some more photos to go on here soon and look forward to seeing your photo. Oh Mum seems to think that Normanhurst wasn't a maternity home even though a lot of people believe it was.
Hope you don't mind me asking but where abouts are you from in Erdington?
 
Re: Additional Information

There is a Beechmount Drive in that area now would that have been where the house was. What a beautiful property so many of these large houses were demolished in the 60's and 70's.
 
Re: Additional Information

Hiya
Yes it was given the name Beechmount Drive when the houses was demolished, really nice touch that.
 
Re: Additional Information

The Lyndhurst Estate was completed in May 1960 any a few roads and tower blocks were named after some of the houses that once stood on the 38 acres owned by the Walter Stanley Trust,
Beechmount Drive.Willmot Drive.Stanley Tower,Rowden Drive ( named after Rowden Hill) and of course the estate itself was possibly named after The Lyndhurst Guest House that was situated in a large villa called The Norlands .
As promised i have attached possibly the last photograph of 98 Sutton Road,The Beechmount Private Hotel .
There are more photographs of the Villas before their demolition in the Central Library in Birmingham,
View attachment 61069
 
hi folks..wonder if anyone has any pics of the big houses that were on sutton new road before the lyndhurst estate was built..

thanks for any help

lyn
 
Thank you for posting these, I moved onto the Lyndhurst Estate in about 1959, Fairbourne Tower; It was brand new.

I always wondered what had been demolished, the garden walls were still on the Sutton New Road with the remains of the cobbled drop kerbs. I thought that there must have been some very big properties, judging by the distance between them.

So now I also know how Wilmot Drive and Stanley Tower got there names.
 
brillient froth just what i am looking for..i had no idea that such fine buildings were demolished to make way for the lyndhurst estate...georgian by the look of them although im no expert

thanks froth...

lyn
 
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I'm old enough to have watched most of those grand housesa being demolished. We used to walk up there on Sunday's and it was awful to see those houses being
"disappeared". I have those photos as well Froth. Thanks for posting them. Those houses and some on Gravelly Hill were the mansions of Erdington and sadly they are gone
except for Benjamin Stone's house in Grange Road, now the John Taylor Hospice.
 
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Hi Tim, although you posted in October 2008 i have only just come across this site and the information regarding the grand houses of Sutton Road
My Great Grandfather Charles Britton and his family, my grandfather William Stanley Britton being one of them, lived at "Melrose House"
Charles Britton was a Cycle Pump manufacturer, his son william stanley took over the business in 1932. Charles Britton is the greast grandfather of Fern Britton[tv fame etc] William Stanley married Vera Eastwood, her grandparents Messrs Eastwood & Moore owned the Midland Vinegar Company..HP Sauce etc. The Eastwoods,Brittons and Moores all lived on the Sutton Road more or less side by side, The Brittons at Melrose, The Moores at York Lodge. If you can help with any photographs etc for a book i am in the process of writing it would be most appreciated. Yours Nigel Britton.
 
Hi, does anyone remember the Mansion houses along Sutton Road where the Lyndhurst Estate is now? I used to live at No.66 and I would love to have a photo of the house and especially a site of the plans of the house if they exist. I'm afraid that although I was only 7 when I left there, I will never forgive B'ham City Council for demolishing these beautiful houses. Yes, I know suitable housing stock was badly needed but I have only wonderful memories of living there. :livid:

My grandmother lived in Rustic Cottage, just opposite - now the site of a square box with a green roof! I remember that cottage being demolished, men where pushing on the single skin brick and timber walls as I walked past one day. Again I was about 7 and all on my own. How things have changed!!

We moved to Yenton Grove just off Chester Road and I note from Google Earth that all the blocks of flats on the Pitts Farm Estate have been demolished. Why was this and has anything been put in their place?
maryjanetape
 
I have just found this site and note that there is some reference to Sutton Road and the people who lived and worked there which was posted in 2008! I'm a bit late to reply to those. One of them lists the occupants in 1956, one of which, Roland Ralph at 60 Sutton Road, was my father. We were the last people to live in that house which was enormous. Although I left there aged 8, I can describe, in detail, that house - it made such an impression on me.

Also someone referred to Avery's at Rustic Cottage- another place I can describe and another one that fell under the demolition fever of the mid-1950s.
maryjanetape
 
Thanks jennyann - see my reply to the thread. 60 Sutton Road was a beautiful house if not quite as grand as the ones in mike's photos,, for a start it was semi-detached, probably the only semi in the road!! There were gracious houses and didn't deserve their fate, but that's what they call progress.
maryjanetape
 
Hi Maryjanetape: Nice to read the memories of this area and see Mike's photos. You probably have read on this thread that I remember the houses being pulled down.
Such a sad time when many places were being so-called modernized. It's a shame that some of the houses couldn't be saved. Housing for many more people was
needed in Erdington at that time. Some other really great houses were demolished along Gravelly Hill also. Perhaps you can tell us some more about your
memories of the house you lived in and where you went to school also about your family from the time you lived there. Where did you move to after the
expropriation order was issued? Thanks.
 
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