• Welcome to this forum . We are a worldwide group with a common interest in Birmingham and its history. While here, please follow a few simple rules. We ask that you respect other members, thank those who have helped you and please keep your contributions on-topic with the thread.

    We do hope you enjoy your visit. BHF Admin Team

Villa Street Lozells

hi mary. i dont think you realise it yet but you are so lucky. not only can you now look at the map i posted to see where num 107 was (its the top end the same as num 132 was. ) but you also have a pic of number 107. look at the old pic i posted on the left you will see a shop window well that was num 103 so just go 2 houses past that to 107 by my reckoning its just by the big car. i know both your gt grandad and grandad lived at the back of 107 but this pic for sure was taken if not when they lived back of 107 but certainly when they moved to 132. they may even be on that photo. what a thought. by the way the name of the of places there are howard place and carter place. lyn:):):)
 
our pleasure mary. yes such a lot died young in those days. my dads mom and dad and my moms dad all died of tb aged about 40. dont forget about the old pic of villa st thats shows num 107. ttfn lyn:)
 
hi all. just thought i would put out another request. i am still searching for pictures of villa street hockley. would be so happy with anything you can help me with. many thanks

wales.
 
hi linda my wife lived in nursery rd, her name was christine devlin her dad was jack devlin and drank with your dad george in the vine
 
hi kizzy. gosh how lovely to hear from you. how is christine??? i wonder does she remember me. we both went to farm st school and if memory serves me correct she lived on the right hand side of nursery road just past well st i think. dad still talks of the old end with great fondness and remembers jack amongst many others. if christine is interested i have posted quite a lot of pictures of nursery road and farm st school on this site. if she would like to get in touch please ask her to do so. hope to hear from you soon. lyn
 
Last edited:
I remember Gary Devlin,Colin Beech and Jack Devlin.Gary is a long time friend of our family and now lives not far from my brother in Erdington.Jack,his Dad,used to play darts at the Lord Byron by Lucas's.Colin was a friend of my friends from Brougham Street,Andy,Brian and Andys' brother Timmy.I have another little story regarding Jack and my ex.She was,and still is.very good at darts and one night while we were in the Lord Byron her name came up on the board to play Jack and everybody said this will be a quick game and who will play Jack next.OOPS.She beat him hands down and it went to best of three and she won.After that Jack picked her to be his doubles partner and they went on to win quite a lot of times.They actually won one match and the prize was a padded toilet seat???? with which Jack crowned my ex.Good old times!!
 
View attachment 25337

Came across this photograph. It shows only a smidgen of Villa Street but thought it may be of interest. Am unsure when it was taken but I would hazzard a guess at the mid 80's as Wills Street has been closed off.
 
hi jules...thanks for putting that pic on...member dave inston can confirm this but i think the house on the left is number 1 brougham st...we were down there a few weeks ago hoping to get a picture of it before it was demolished as it was the only house left in that street but unfortunately we were too late....

cheers

lyn









 
glad you agree mabz...dave will be pleased...at least hes got a shot of it now....ive e mailed it to him..

lyn

ps nice to see a pic of the angel when it was a pub....
 
Hi! Linda,

This is Mary

Please get in touch.

I am a friend of Carols'-we found each other again a couple of years ago after a gap of over 20 years.
 
omg...looking at your locations it must be mary moore..and you are in touch with carol miller..i dont beleive this....how are you....


lyn
 
Hi! Lyn,

You're right tis me.

Is there a way to send a personal message on this forum ?

If there is I'll send contact details.

I'll be leaving home in about half an hour-meeting a friend in Leeds then going down to Brum to spend the day in the library.

Back home tomorrow night
 
mary...i am still sitting down..i cant get over this...it must be well over 30 years......ive just read your posts about spring hill rollar rink...we used to go 4 or 5 times a week...i still miss it now....remember the short skirts we wore...do you remember frankie the dj??? i am in touch with him...hes in australia...still a dj and in the middle of writing a book about his life...i am also in touch with (DILLON) robert close......who is still in touch with his mate colin who went out with sue..can you recall them....with you being in touch with carol thats quite a lot of us rollar rink gang.....

this pic should bring back memories for you.....

you prob know this but click on to enlarge....was orginally an ice rink but exactly how i remember it...

lyn
 
hi mary...click on instant messages at the top of the page.....i will also send you an im giving you my email. address...

hope you like the rollar rink pic...

lyn
 
Hi! Lyn,

I'm stunned too.

Think we have some serious catching up to do.

Sorry about brief messages but I'm trying to feed cats,pack a bag and mail you all at the same time
 
lol mary...ive got 4 cats so i know what its like...yes you are right big catching up to do....such happy days at the rink....did the pic bring the memories flooding back....i had better let you get on now.....ive sent you an instant message giving you my email address...i really cant get over this at all..i must calm down...lol....

take care

lyn
 
Dear Astoness

Sorry I can't relate to any recent Villa Street folks, but in the 1870s and 1880s my grandfather's family, the Drinkwaters, lived at Nos. 45, 73, and 117. When I visited there a few years ago I took this photo in Villa Street to show a typical residence which I assumed to be Victorian:

https://www.upamerica.org/Family/Drinkwater/villastreet.htm

Hope this helps.

Incidentally, if anyone can tell me what exists at the northeast corner of Villa and Farm Streets today I would be grateful. In 1871-1896 No. 43 or No. 45 was there and it was the location of the manufactury of the English Watch Company. The satellite view on Google Maps does not make it clear.

Gordon
 
hi gordon...could you let me know when you took the pic of villa street as apart from the masionettes next to hockley brook and a block of about 8 older houses at the very top the whole of villa st was flattened by the early 80s...i am afraid i just cant recognise the houses in your pic..they look more like the type still there in church st....unless of course my memory is failing...lol

lyn
 
Last edited:
I have to agree with Lyn, the picture could be either Church Street, Wills Street or George Street? Mabz
 
hi gordon...heres a map of villa street...top and bottom end....i wonder looking at it can you pin point where about you took your pict of the street......

cheers

lyn
 
Just been reading this thread, that photo jules65 posted, has Wills street been demolished now, my aunt and her family lived at number 12, that was in the sixties, she would be dead now but i had a cousin still living at home. Jackie
 
hi jackie..what you see on jules pic is still there and also the rest of wills st which cuts accross villa street....

lyn
 
Thanks for your reply Astoness, i'm not sure if my cousin would still be living there now, he was in his thirties the last time i saw him. I believe the family lived there from the thirties until at least 1967. jackie.
 
Ooops! I think you're right. I may have thought I was on Villa Street when I took that shot, but another one taken there at the same time shows the plaque above the entrance to "Florance Place, 1879," which I understand is in Church Street. I will take down the web page.

Gordon
 
hi gordon...dont worry about it...now thats sorted i am posting you this this pic of villa st...its taken round about the early 1900s so would have looked very much like this when your ancestors were living there....i lived at no 118 so they would have been more or less opposite my house...its taken from nursery road looking up villa street....at a guess 117 would a bit further up from the vehicle on the left.

lyn
 
Many thanks, lyn. That's probably as close as I'll ever get to the place.

Gordon
 
hi gordon...to date that photo is my prized possession and was given to me by a very kind member of this forum.....if you type in NURSERY ROAD NEWSAGENTS in the search box at the top left of the page i have posted many pics of villa st and nursery road that you may find of interest...if you have any problems please get back to me....any pics where the numbers are lower than 100 villa st means they are of the lower end of the street...

hope this helps...

lyn
 
you are welcome gordon...if there is anything more i can help you with just give me a shout..

lyn
 
Back
Top