Author Topic: photos of Vincent street balsall Heath  (Read 5059 times)

Empson

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photos of Vincent street balsall Heath
« on: October 24, 2018, 02:05:17 PM »
does anyone know where I can find any pictures of the Schoolthst stood in Vincent Street Balsall Heath before it was bombed in 1939/40 . It was almost opposite Hampden Street.
Apparently my dad used to take me to see the rabbits that were there.

Phil

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Re: photos of Vincent street balsall Heath
« Reply #1 on: October 24, 2018, 02:12:46 PM »
Hi Empson


Best of luck in your search, I used to live a few doors away from where this school stood and being a collector of old photos & images of Birmingham I am yet to come across an image of St Paul's School . In fact if you come across any images of Vincent Street other than those you might find on here, please let me know as they are a rarity. Where did your dad live?
Phil died in 2020. RIP.

Empson

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Re: photos of Vincent street balsall Heath
« Reply #2 on: October 25, 2018, 06:09:52 PM »
Opposite Vincent parade and I think he used to drink at the pub on the corner. I think it was The Swan.


Story is that my Gran, his ma, fetched him out of the place because my ma, who was pregnant with me wasn’t feeling too good and Gran had come up to check.grandparents lived in Wenman Street until they were bombed out in ‘39/40.

Phil

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Re: photos of Vincent street balsall Heath
« Reply #3 on: October 25, 2018, 10:34:49 PM »
Yes the White Swan was on the corner of Vincent Parade, it later became the boys scouts hut, if you type Vincent St Scouts into the search box you might even see a photo of the house opposite the scouts place when they are outside on parade.
Phil died in 2020. RIP.

Empson

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Re: photos of Vincent street balsall Heath
« Reply #4 on: October 26, 2018, 11:54:17 AM »
Photo of the scout hut. Aka the white swan in Vincent Street Balsall Heath Heath.
That is certainly Vincent Street and to the left one leg of Vincent parade. The two shops above the scouts I remember well
. The first one was a little cooked meat shop and I think groceries too. The other side of the entry was a shop that sold paraffin. I only got paraffin there but it probably sold other things too in the ironmongery field.the nearest true ironmonger would have been on the corner of Moseley Road and Runcorn road.
The photo of the scout parade could have taken from the front door of the Chapel or the house where we lived before 40/41.


I could not make head nor tail of the Vincent Parade photo.one leg exited into Vincent Street and one leg into Balsall Heath Road. The third leg went down the hill to Wenman Street, passing Vincent crescent on the left.
On the corner of V.P. Between B.H.Road and Wenman Street was a newsagent owned by Wiseman. I was a paper boy there for three years. On the corner of V.P. aand vincent crescent was an ‘ off licence’ run by Barton’s. in my childhood days there was a green grocer just below wisemans. That was Cowells.
Earlier than I can remember the shop on the corner of V.P. And Wenman street( Edward Street side) was a bakers. I only knew it as a boot mender.
According to family now long gone my Gran who lived in Wenman Street got the baker to roast the Christmas Turkeyfor her as it was too big forward her oven and there were nine grown up children and their wives and kids to feed.




Phil

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Re: photos of Vincent street balsall Heath
« Reply #5 on: October 26, 2018, 02:13:32 PM »
Empson


When our EU friends visited Balsall Heath during the war particularly Vincent Street their bombing run started near Moseley Road and ran across Vincent Street, Vincent Parade, Wenman Street, Balsall Heath Road, Conybere Street, and so on into the city centre. Making quite a mess of Vincent Street. After the war they built maisonettes in two groves on Vincent Street on the footprint of the bomb run. Lapworth Grove & Tanworth Grove. The only part of the Vincent Street that I remember that exists today, see the before and after maps attached.
Phil died in 2020. RIP.

Phil

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Re: photos of Vincent street balsall Heath
« Reply #6 on: October 26, 2018, 04:19:15 PM »
Empson


Another couple of images for you, the first one was taken at St Paul's School. Sadly it doesn't show a lot of the school. The second one shows the old church hall that you mention looking across from where the scout hut would have been. The old church hall must have been about the last building at that end of the street to be demolished. I can remember spending many a rainy evening sitting on those steps with my mates.
Phil died in 2020. RIP.

Empson

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Re: photos of Vincent street balsall Heath
« Reply #7 on: October 26, 2018, 05:26:38 PM »
Phil, thanks for the photos. You must have quite a collection. Considering the shortage of film during ww2 and of cameras in that neighbourhood it’s not surprising that there are so few of the school.
I too used to sit on the hall steps as a lad. By then we had moved to Balsall Heath Road.
We used to live next door to the hall at  114. It belonged unto my Dads sister who bought a house in Maypole. When my Grandparents we’re bombed out in Wenman Street she wanted the house for my grandparents who were already traipsing up to maypole each day to escape the blitz. My folks then moved us on a handcart to Balsall Heath Road to a house that was ok but had suffered a bomb blast and needed new window glass and had a huge oil stain across the ceiling.
The last time I saw the Church Hall it was being used by packing case makers. A couple of chaps that came out of Alfred Davis who were on the Moseley road somewhere between a model shop (?) Reeves and a one time record and electrical shop 
Thanks again for the pictures and memories. Hopefully I shall be able to share them with a lady who I think said she lived as a child at 103.

Phil

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Re: photos of Vincent street balsall Heath
« Reply #8 on: October 28, 2018, 09:42:48 AM »
The only people I remember from that end of the street, were the people that owned the greengrocers which would have been close to number 103  just past there were a mixed race couple with two very pretty teenage daughters, this would be when I was about 5 years old. A little further up were two families that lived next door to each other who I believe were related to each other called Harris & Collins. Then up past the church was a family called Hayes who's son was in my class at school and across te road by the shops you mention was a family called Dolphin who's son was also in my class.


I knew lots more people down my end of the street and also a lot of people in the new maisonettes and I also knew a few people who lived in Hampden Street, but of course I lost touch when I moved out of the area and later when they demolished the street.
Phil died in 2020. RIP.

John Bardell

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Re: photos of Vincent street balsall Heath
« Reply #9 on: January 30, 2019, 08:09:57 PM »
Thanks empson and Phil I have been trying to get in touch with old pupils of St Paul’s School unsuccessfully for quite a few years, perhaps most of them are not on line. I am nearly 92 now and attended the School between 1933-1938, and then Clifton Road School.  I remember most of the Places you mentioned,but I have no recollection of the pub that you said was on the corner of Vincent Parade. The Church hall used to be A Brethren Gospel hall for many years. St. Paul’s Scool Vincent street was a lovely old school with gas lighting and cosy open fires in winter I was sorry to have to go to senior school.     I lived in Balsall Heath Rd just opposite Arter St up a yard called Littleton Place. There was. Building that had once been a pub at the bottom of th entry and next to that a little shop run by Mrs Tombs. Love to have more information from you and thanks for the pictures. John                             

Phil

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Re: photos of Vincent street balsall Heath
« Reply #10 on: January 30, 2019, 09:44:42 PM »
Hi John


Glad to see that you are still keeping an open eye on the site. I'm sorry I have not been able to come up with any further snaps of the street,  but keep looking in as I am always on the lookout for more.
Phil died in 2020. RIP.


 

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