Eastertime exploration is the order of the day as the Hub Marketing Board continue their roadmap-easing endeavours by brushing up on their Birmingham repertoire...
- Key Hill -
After resuming Board proceedings with two trips in March, Chairman D9 and Secretary WME now join forces for an early April adventure that starts off at Jewellery Quarter railway station. We're pleased to see the glorious Chamberlain Clock has been restored to its spectacular Edwardian splendour following a recent repaint, and D9's favourite 'Temple of Relief' ranks as another gem fabricated out of cast iron - luckily he manages not to prang into the urinal when road-testing one of the new fleet of street scooters. Hylton Street has a ghost sign for R.M. Pugh & Co's window display business before an archway alley craftily connects us to Key Hill.
- Conquering the Key Hill Closet -
Inspiration for our outings comes from various sources and in this case the seed was planted by a post we'd spotted on a Facebook local memories group. Key Hill Cemetery is the older of the two burial grounds serving the Jewellery Quarter, having been established in 1836 (the Warstone Lane equivalent was founded in 1847); several notable figures from Birmingham's great and good are interred here, including the politician Joseph Chamberlain, the poet Constance Naden and Alfred Bird of custard powder fame. Of particular interest to Mr D9 however are the remains of a gents conveniences, quietly tucked away in a corner just down from the Gem Building.
- Lodge Road Shops -
Closet duly collected, we cross over into Lodge Road where a parade of old shops make for a relatively rare Hockley survivor, so much of the area having been overhauled from the 1960s onwards. Not all of the stores seem to be in current use but among the frontages we find references to Rotagrip, H V Smith's Bakery and Mills' Wines & Spirits. Checking the time, we realise its nearly Ken O'Clock which can only mean one thing... Popmaster! Compared to last week's Coseley efforts we make a much better fist of our answers this time around, boosted by impressive knowledge about the Emotions, Alvin Stardust and Neil Sedaka.
- The Pig & Tail -
Doubling back to Icknield Street, a brief blast of Brookfields brings us on a loop past a primary school with views over New Spring Street open space. Keen to nibble a little more on the Jewellery Quarter, we pick out Pope Street which takes us from the Kettleworks up to the Pig & Tail, a rather refined establishment that used to be known as the George & Dragon in its M&B days. Legge Lane then supplies tantalising reminders of the quarter's renowned trade by revealing the location of Manton's (a former silversmiths works) and Alabaster & Wilson (which wound down in 2017 after 130 years of skilled craftsmanship).
- Spring Hill Library -
Via a combination of Albion Street and Powell Street, we emerge onto Summer Hill Road which is one of the important western radial routes into Birmingham City Centre. The Chairman is convinced there was a closet around here somewhere but we couldn't see any evidence, despite being impressed by the looming presence of the Greek Orthodox Cathedral. Another fine landmark in the vicinity has to be Spring Hill Library, a red brick and terracotta masterpiece of Victorian construction which officially opened in January 1893. The library continues to serve the Ladywood community and nowadays shares a glazed atrium with the neighbouring Tesco superstore.
- 'Spotted' outside the Confucian Society HQ -
Speaking of Ladywood, we're keen to see what else the area can tempt us with. King Edwards Road has Mr D9 sorrowfully lamenting the demise of the Twin Towers, an Ansells precinct pub that's been partially taken over by a pharmacy (the other half appears to be a family outreach centre). A further bygone boozer is detected on Ledsam Street, the Pied Piper premises now being home to the Birmingham branch of the Confucian Society. The bald spot may or may not approve of that but it definitely likes the factory fascination conjured up by the Ledsam Works, where Belliss & Morcom were based for many years.
- Roaming around at Rotton Park -
Our Good Friday gallivanting will be brought to a canal-themed conclusion as we join the Birmingham Main Line at St Vincent Street Bridge. The towpaths on either side of the cut are proving popular in the sunshine with joggers, cyclists and fitness fanatics very much out in force. Keeping an eye out for subversive street art, we pass beneath Monument Road and beside Biddle & Webb's auction house to reach Rotton Park Junction, an unusual canal crossroads where the Main Line is intersected by both the Soho and Icknield Port loops. The latter of those is subject to ongoing regeneration with modern apartments springing up rapidly.
- Winson Green Junction -
Sticking with the Main Line on this occasion, we note the presence of Northbrook Street and Lee Bridge before proceeding to Winson Green Junction - this is where the other end of the Soho Loop comes out, next to the train maintenance depot. Pink Panther and blue unicorn graffiti is entertaining as we then close in on Rabone Lane, calling it quits at Handsworth Booth Street for the tram ride home. Somehow or other we've contrived our earliest ever finish but we certainly packed a lot into those four Good Friday hours. Fingers crossed we might even have some pubs to sample next time - cheers!
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