RE: Pubs and Inns of the Bull Ring and Market area from 1940s - 3

Winkle

This little snippet from Bill Dargue's site explains it,

"In 1897 the Smithfield pig market moved to Montague Street in nearby Bordesley ,conveniently close to Curzon Street station, and the cattle market followed in 1898. Smithfield was closed in the 1960s when the City Council began clearing the site for the construction for the Inner Ring Road, the Bull Ring indoor shopping centre and the new wholesale markets. The new wholesale market retains the name of Smithfield".

It is the same Montague Street that later contained the City of Birmingham Salvage plant.

Thanks Bro, good stuff. I knew the Council Salvage Depot was there, as I looked on Google and it still is....

Now, another query for you and the lads...

This great pic of the 1920s Bull Ring must show the rear of the Spread Eagle/Criterion pub we talked about, seven plots up if my 1901 map is accurate. Anyone think they can identify it? And anything else of interest. Lots of lovely buildings we know and love. An apposite Map might also be a good idea..?

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CAPTION ALERT! The shot is from John Marks' Old Postcards book, and he clearly can't tell his New Street Station from his Smithfield Market!!

Winkle

I see the Royal George with the the Bull Ring Cinema next door on Park Street, and I'm trying to work out the need for the large chimney stack at the rear of the old cold storage premises, mind you I don't know a lot about old refrigeration processes

Here is a c1889 map . Phil, I think at the time that ice store was built refridgeration depended on compression of ammonia (or some such liquid) in large amounts, and powerful compressors would have to be used for large stores. At the time probably you would have needed a steam engine to power these compressors. Certainly in the 1880s the Birmingham Compressed Air Company needed them to produce its compressed air. This would be the reason for the chimney.

Good map mike, I think you are spot on with the front chimney stack and it's use. There is a stand alone interesting building in Meriden Street at the top iof the picture (to the left of the other big stack.... ? a School?

Winkle

This map from the same time as Mike's does indeed show a school, but there is no mention of it in the 1903 edition of Kelly's perhaps it was used for another purpose by then?

A few of the pubs off Edgbaston Street & Worcester Street, We have The Sydenham hotel, The City Crown & the Waggon & Horses next door to each other, the Rose Inn & the Board Vaults Worcester St.

Quote: phil wrote in post #36

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Winkle

This map from the same time as Mike's does indeed show a school, but there is no mention of it in the 1903 edition of Kelly's perhaps it was used for another purpose by then?

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Dennis

Strangely enough the pub at the bottom of White Lion Yard was the British Lion as the 1889 map shows, I followed the map along Digbeth & Deritend and although there was a lot of Lions of different colours the only White Lion I could find must have been a predecessor of the one in the photo just before the junction of Coventry Rd.

Dunno, but sounds good Phil. Or...the British Lion was once the White Lion and they never changed the name of the back yard? The White Lion in Digbeth that I posted the dreawings of, was NOT the White Lion in Bordesley, I do know that.


Never heard mention of the Rose Inn or the New Market Inn? lovely new stuff for me. Where were they? The Rose looks like one of those beer houses you got springing up everywhere round there, not sure whether they were always licenced? Must work harder...

Here's two of my favourite old boozers like the Rose...The Woodman Stores in Jamaica Row and and the Farmers Arms in Moat Row...

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Dennis

Sorry I'm getting my pubs mixed up, that would be the Board Vaults on the corner of Bell St & Worcester St, the Rose was in Edgbaston Street. A slightly better photo of the Board Vaults.

Dennis
The White lion changed to the British Lion between the 1879 & 1880 directories. An employee, Mary Thompson, of the British lion is reported in the march 26th Birm Post as having been in court on 24th for stolen money from her master, so the change must have been before then. In 1877-78 a new song seems to have been publicised called The British Lion. Don't know if there is any connection

You know I said the White Lion was not the one in Bordesley High Street lads? Well look what I wrote on the Moor Street thread some time ago...

"Consider this piece from my old school hero Vivian Bird, from his very readable “Portrait of Birmingham (1970)”

"When Leland visited Birmingham in 1538 he approached from the south, and would have been traversing the parish of Aston in the hamlet of Bordesley and until he crossed the Rea, for Aston circled eastward of Birmingham, and even in the 19th Century it had a goal in Bordesley behind the Brown Lion Inn. The goal, consisting of only two cellars, was known as ‘Brownell's Hole’ after W.D.Brownell, the goaler, whose wife Jemima kept the Inn.”

Turned out that a bloke from the Police Museum confirmed it (Brownell's Hole) was once under the White Lion Bordesley, and he had uncovered 'evidence' of it's existence after a recent dig there when the site was excavated for some reason....he promised it would be featured in the mail, but I never saw it...

Dennis

Here one that you haven't got on your list, the Three Tuns at 33 Digbeth that ran through to 7 Smithfield Street and must have been opposite Digbeth Police Station where Reddingtons Rare records were once located.

bit embarrassing - but - The Bull Ring Tavern I think it was - the one just down from St. Martins, but over the little road on the bend..
17th b'day drinks for me and the crowd I was in (happy days - hot summer of '76) - if it was anyone's b'day they all bought you a drink - well - they just guessed and bought me a right mixture, including Southern Comfort and other stuff.

The landlord then had this saying.. "Come on all you lovely people see your drinks off."

Well, I was slozzled, and have a silly sense of humour.. so started shooing my drink away with my hand.. ''shoo shoo shoo.''

they had to carry me to the car just over the road (parked outside the closed outdoor market).
My friend's boyfriend, whose car it was, next time we all met said he was thinking of charging me for the carwash.. as I spewed it up out of his window as he speeded up along the Aston Expressway..
..the rest of them went to see Fritz The Cat at the late night cinema (which we used to go to sometimes.. ABC Bristol Rd/Saturday night??) - now I know what it is..no loss there really