Author Topic: The Flat, Lodge Road, Hockley  (Read 13986 times)

Peg Monkey

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Re: The Flat, Lodge Road, Hockley
« Reply #55 on: December 12, 2018, 03:30:47 PM »
I lived in Heaton St, 10 mins from The Flat for the first 10 years of my life (1949-59) the shops were great for your everyday needs including Christmas (only an occasional visit to Lewis's, or the like, was needed for luxuaries). Most of the shops have changed but one that has survived and flourished is the Bakers H V Smith - I must have had my very first custard tart from there, but I can't actually remember the occasion, it's a year or two ago.
Peg.
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Peg Monkey

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Re: The Flat, Lodge Road, Hockley
« Reply #56 on: February 10, 2019, 12:20:44 AM »
Merchandising - 1950s style. After seeing the 1955 movie Davy Crockett King of the Wild Frontier my mom treated me to the must haves of the day: a Davy Crockett hat and gun - from Woolies on The Flat, of course. A great store, spent a large proportion of my life in the 50s around the toy counter - remember pick and mi[/size]x?[/i] Does anyone do that now?
Peg
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Peg Monkey

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Re: The Flat, Lodge Road, Hockley
« Reply #57 on: February 20, 2019, 05:30:18 PM »
The Flat and The 3rd Sutton Coldfield Company The Boys' Brigadewhat's the connection? :-\
Link Methodist Church Map:
https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=18&lat=52.4838&lon=-1.9220&layers=168&b=6
Link Boys' Brigade - Birmingham Companies Thread:
http://www.birminghamforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=15028.msg668444#msg668444
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It's far better to look back on a rejection rather than a lost opportunity.

Peg Monkey

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Re: The Flat, Lodge Road, Hockley
« Reply #58 on: February 23, 2019, 10:47:06 PM »
The Flat - 1950s. There wasn't many everyday needs you couldn't obtain on The Flat but there was one notable absentee - a bookshop.
If you only wanted to borrow one Spring Hill Library was about 10 mins or so walk but to purchase one I think you had to head for the city.
I believe larger branches of Boots in the early days had a lending library/book sales department but I personally never availed myself of the service.
Peg.
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Peg Monkey

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Re: The Flat, Lodge Road, Hockley
« Reply #59 on: November 15, 2019, 03:12:52 PM »
The Bull's Head - anyone know what's happened to it? Last time I checked I was sorry to learn it was derelict. The first 10 years of my life (1949-59) I lived in Heaton St (15 mins walk from The Bull) and it was very much at the centre of my family's social world, both my grandfather and father were members of the fishing club there and I remember many a Saturday evening enjoying a bag of crisps and a Vimto whilst sitting on the steps to the staff quarters in the entrance hallway.
Peg.
P.S. Woolworth's - sadly now long gone.
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Peg Monkey

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Re: The Flat, Lodge Road, Hockley
« Reply #60 on: December 06, 2019, 02:06:06 PM »
Norton's -1950s, Hockley's only Dept. Store. A great store all year but particularly around Christmas, great toy dept in the basement. The store's slogan, By-way Value does not, for me, convey an instant message, perhaps the meaning of the phrase has changed over 60 years, I looked up byway in the Concise Oxford Dictionary, two definitions: 
1. A minor road or path.
2. A little known area of knowledge.
Any the wiser? :-\
Peg.
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Peg Monkey

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Re: The Flat, Lodge Road, Hockley
« Reply #61 on: January 02, 2020, 09:35:43 PM »
Originally Lodge Rd was a continuous road that started at The Flat and rose steeply, as you travelled west, terminating near Winson Green Prison, I don't know where Lodge came from (dictionary: A small house at the gates of a park, but there are other meanings too numerous to list), in the old days of horse and cart deliveries a horse bolted from the top end of Lodge Rd and ploughed into Douro Wines' window causing considerable damage, thankfully no-one was injured except the horse which died, after that incident locals called the off-license The Hole in the Wall. (Long before cash-points!).
Douro Wines was not the nearest off-license to my parents' house in Heaton St (in the 50s), about 15mins walk, but we did use it occasionally as it was en-route to my uncle's house in Park Rd, the off-license for me was notable as it was one of the few outlets in the area, at the time, for Blue Ribbon Biscuits.
Our nearest outdoor (off-license), as we called it, was a converted terraced house a few doors along from ours, from a very early age (5 or maybe even younger) I was pressed into service to get my folks' beer bottle re-filled, recycling was part of life then, you purchased a large brown bottle (at least 1 ltr) and then you just got it refilled, a flimsy paper seal was applied to the cork (which I guess was a licensing requirement) to evidence any tampering.
Happy New (Brexit) Year. :-\
Peg.
It's far better to look back on a rejection rather than a lost opportunity.

Peg Monkey

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Re: The Flat, Lodge Road, Hockley
« Reply #62 on: February 01, 2020, 10:58:52 PM »
The Flat - Plan. I produced The Plan shown with the aid of the 1955 Edition Of Kelly's Directory, I chose that particular time because I was 6, living in Heaton St and The Flat was very much the centre of my universe. The plan is very detailed and it's very much a trial to see how much can be read, even so if I have to post another split version I still think seeing the full version is still worthwhile.....here goes.....
Peg.
1950s - Pretty much of all your everyday needs were catered for on The Flat in the 1950s, I can only think of a few instances where you had to look further afield - Bridalwear (a trip to the city was needed, but mother of the bride could get her outfit from a number of stores on The Flat including Nortons), Travel Agent, (not much demand - most people barely had enough cash for a  week in a caravan at Weston) and a Post Office (not sure where the nearest one was, prhttp://www.birminghamforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=14936.msg659933#msg659933obably Hockley Brook) .....I've just rembered, there were no banks they were all in the Jewellery Quarter, which is understandable I suppose, mind you, it was all cash then (my dad never had a bank account). :-\
Peg.
Link The Flat Plan: http://www.birminghamforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=14936.msg659933#msg659933
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Peg Monkey

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Re: The Flat, Lodge Road, Hockley
« Reply #63 on: August 04, 2020, 04:07:37 PM »
Strange as it seems one of the few shops missing from The Flat in the 50s was a fishmongers, unless, of course, you know different.
Peg
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Peg Monkey

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Re: The Flat, Lodge Road, Hockley
« Reply #64 on: August 19, 2020, 03:14:48 PM »
During the first 10 years of my life, 1949-1959, until me and my mom and dad were re-homed from Hockley to Erdington, Woolworth's, on The Flat, was the centre of my universe and even years on I mourn it's demise, the virus, together with on-line shopping, has done untold damage to our High Streets and I wonder what the future holds as we face a new normal.
Peg.   
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Peg Monkey

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Re: The Flat, Lodge Road, Hockley
« Reply #65 on: April 05, 2021, 04:13:46 PM »
Regularly on Sunday afternoons in the early 1950s a Boys' Brigade Band could be heard marching along The Flat, I lived in Heaton St which adjoins The Flat and when I heard the band in the distance I would dash to listen to them as they marched from the direction of Icknield St, the quality of their playing was second to none and their sound was enhanced even further by the natural acoustics created by the shops on either side of Lodge Rd.
I'm not sure which church that particular BB Company was based but there nearest would have been near Spring Hill Library.
I was aged 7 at the time and resolved to become a member of the BB as soon as I could, I could not join until I was 11 but spent some of the intervening years as a member of Th Life Boys, The Junior Reserve of The BB. I eventually joined when as part of the council's slum clearance program me and my family were re-home to a flat on The Lyndhurst Estate, Erdington, when I joined The 3rd Sutton Coldfield Company  and rose to the rank of Colour Sergeant.
Peg.
Link: Boys Brigade Birmingham Companies: https://www.birminghamforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=15028.msg669039#msg669039   
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