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Vine Inn Villa Street

hello maggie and welcome...so nice to hear from someone else who lived in villa st...i remember your family surname but my brother would recall more as he used to be friends with what must have been your brother...the factory you mentioned was southall and smiths...i lived at 118 family name is harrington....just wondering if you have any old photos of the street...and what year did you leave there..i moved there in 1958 and left in 1972..think i have a photo of the alley that led to your house..

lyn
 
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Hi yes my brothers were friends with yours I don't have any pics mark is the only one I remember he was my brother Stevens mate I terrible with dates but remember when I was 11 im 51 now I was taken to Devon with Ann who was the daughter of Cora and Cyril who had the vine pub .on villa street
 
villa_st_2_1970_copy.jpgyes thats it maggie i remember the name steven...also the names cora and cyril springs to mind...if you lived opposite southalls down an alley then i think you can see the alley on the left of this pic to the right of the white building of copes pearl buttons...if you click on the pic it will enlarge for you

lyn
 
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thats great maggie i thought i must be right as you can just see the car park and southalls on the right of that pic...would your dad have been in the vine on the day it closed in 1978??

lyn
 
Dad passed away at 87 years old 2010 so a high possibility they lived in the pub lol we were always outside in prams lol but remember as you went in there was a door on the right which was the bar then up a bit there was a door which was a little serving hatch then just next to that was the smoke room where my mom Irene seymour and dad george seymour used to sing
 
sorry to hear about your dad maggie my dad passed away in may this year aged 84....you have discribed the inside of the vine to a tee..we were always a the little serving hatch buying pop and crisps and taking them into the back garden...i do have two photos taken on the last day the pub pulled pints like i say this was in 1978 and in one of them you can see the serving hatch...the landlord at the time was walter kavangh and his wife...our mark has looked at it and thinks it could be your dad standing behind the bar with the landlord if not your dad could be one of the other customers....did your dad wear glasses...

lyn
 
ive a gut feeling then that it could be your dad in one of the pics...cant see all of his face but im sure you will know if it is him...can you give a few mins to scan and post them maybe your mom is there as well...
 
I can't see attachments on this site on ipad will have a look on laptop tomorrow very interesting forum brings back such good memories
 
here you go maggie hope you get these on the ipad...the first pic shows what could be your dad standing behind the bar with the gaffer and in the second pic you can see the serving hatch..also were you able to see the pic on post 81 showing the alley way to your house??
lyn




 
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oh thats a shame maggie but at least we have pics of the inside of the pub...shame our dad isnt there but by 78 we were living somewhere else...dads best friend frank brady is in the middle of pic 1 standing behind the man wearing the jumper..frank lived next door to us at no 120...forgot to say that im not on facebook but if you would like to keep in touch send me a private message and i will send you my email address...been good talking to you must tell our mark..

lyn
 
Yes I know frank Brady and the sons also in the pic is another guy named mick Brady not related and also another guy so will defo keep in touch through here I have pinned to my ipad it's been great thanks linda what age are you now then sent you a friend request through here so keep in touch xxxx
 
sadly frank passed away just 3 weeks after our dad...im 59 now ...will go and pick up your friends request

lyn
 
Astoness said:
as you all know i thought i had tracked down a pic of this pub but it was not to be...:(i have however found out something that may explain partly why i have had such a problem finding a pic...up until at least 1930 it was according to kellys a beer retailer..so it only became the vine inn somewhere between then and when i moved to villa st in 58..unfortunately i did not have enough time to go through any more kellys at the library so i do not have the exact year but will try to find out...

astoness
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Hi Lyn
Just to clear up this - and possibly of help to other people digging around pubs. The Vine Inn was known by its name in the mid-19th century. Beer houses bore names just like other pubs - indeed, they were proper public houses, they just couldn't sell spirits and, in many cases, wine. Beer, cider and fags was the order of the day, though I am sure many a publican had a secret stash of the hard stuff for his/her regular customers. Beer houses came into existence following legislation in 1830 and continued to open, though with increasing difficulty until 1869 when it became virtually impossible to obtain the cheap licence following amendments to the law. Many became victims of later reforms - in Birmingham the Chamberlain administration tried their best to get rid of the lot. Plenty were sacrificed in order to obtain full licences for new pubs in the suburbs. However, a good number survived and eventually got their full licences. In some cases this was not achieved until after the Second World War - but Birmingham still has pubs that started life as beer houses. The Black Country has plenty.
Cheers, Kieron
 
www.midlandspubs.co.uk said:
Hi Lyn
Just to clear up this - and possibly of help to other people digging around pubs. The Vine Inn was known by its name in the mid-19th century. Beer houses bore names just like other pubs - indeed, they were proper public houses, they just couldn't sell spirits and, in many cases, wine. Beer, cider and fags was the order of the day, though I am sure many a publican had a secret stash of the hard stuff for his/her regular customers. Beer houses came into existence following legislation in 1830 and continued to open, though with increasing difficulty until 1869 when it became virtually impossible to obtain the cheap licence following amendments to the law. Many became victims of later reforms - in Birmingham the Chamberlain administration tried their best to get rid of the lot. Plenty were sacrificed in order to obtain full licences for new pubs in the suburbs. However, a good number survived and eventually got their full licences. In some cases this was not achieved until after the Second World War - but Birmingham still has pubs that started life as beer houses. The Black Country has plenty.
Cheers, Kieron
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I have expanded a little on this subject at https://www.midlandspubs.co.uk/glossary.htm#Beer-Houses
 
wow that info is amazing kieron really chuffed to see the vine on your site..thank you so much

hi bill did you live in or near villa st...what years were you using the vine would love to hear of any memories you have

lyn
 
Hi Lyn - I recently found this site when uploading a few photos - thought you would appreciate this, I colourised the Vine Inn photo with my dad in it (Frank Brady) it really makes it stand out afresh - Dad wasn't smiling as his pint was delayed while the photo was taken...

p.s. I used the free colouring service at www.myheritage.com - I did do the DNA test and the results were...surprisingly mixed (Irish mostly of course, with 10 per cent east European, 2.9 per cent African( of the great/great/great/great grandparent kind, not prehistory) and 1 per cent Italian.
 

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oh wow how lovely to hear from you dave...you have done a fine job adding colour to that photo...have to say it is one of my pride and joys from the old end just in case you dont have the date of that photo it was november 1978...your dad was a fine man and as you may know he and my dad george harrington from 118 villa st were very good friends for many years... you lived next door at 120...hope you are keeping well dave...do you remember my brother mark..im not sure about the age differences between us all but i am the eldest of 6

lyn
 
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Astoness said:
hi janeey there are no pics of the vine inn villa st on this thread so just wondering if you have seen it on the other thread i started???

i was living in villa street until 72 so your parents would have served our dad many times...do you have any photos of the vine or of the street as i am always on the lookout for new ones...

lyn
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Hi Lyn, I just came across this thread and think that it must now be obsolete. I feel certain that you would have eventually got that photo of The Vine pub you wanted. I have an interest because some time ago I posted that my Aunt Betty Middleham ran a pub in Villa St around 1960s but. wasn't sure which one of two pubs it was. Having just read that the Villa Tavern ceased trading in 1960 I feel sure now it was The Vine.
 
hi bango yes i did find a photo of the vine...the only one to date but i posted it on another thread...if you are certain that the villa tavern ceased trading in 1960 then yes it could well have been the vine your aunty ran but it could also have been the crown on the corner of villa st and nursery road...there was also the white swan on the corner of farm st and villa st...if kieron our pub expert sees this post i am sure he will check out your aunts name and maybe pin point the pub she ran...

lyn
 
Richard Dye said:
And so business as usual for the council. The usual types standing tall all the time knowing it’s inevitable!
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very sad day for my family richard...living almost opposite the vine it played a massive part in our 15 or so years of living in villa st...happy hours spent in the back garden of the pub with a packet of crisps and glass of pop..dad played darts for them...photos on post 102 show customers on last orders day in 1978...we had left the street by then and dad missed his last pint in there but his best mate frank brady is in the photo

lyn
 
Astoness said:
very sad day for my family richard...living almost opposite the vine it played a massive part in our 15 or so years of living in villa st...happy hours spent in the back garden of the pub with a packet of crisps and glass of pop..dad played darts for them...photos on post 102 show customers on last orders day in 1978...we had left the street by then and dad missed his last pint in there but his best mate frank brady is in the photo

lyn
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Those old pubs were an institution, never to be seen again. They were for the most part a place everyone could go with modest income, many were nothing fancy just a wonderful part of the fabric of our life and growing up. It is a sad day when they are pulled down with nothing to replace them with in kind!
 
totally agree richard..the vine like many pubs of the day was nothing fancy but what it was was a meeting place for the community..a place to play darts/dominos and put the world to rights (not a tv..juke box or one armed bandit in sight...very sad that we have now lost the community spirit as far as pubs are concerned...i am just happy that i experienced those days

lyn
 
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