In the Footsteps of Phyllis...(Part 2)

The Grid Project featuring the photos of Phyllis Nicklin will run until the end of 2017 and if I can contribute half-a-dozen photos each month 'til then, I'll be happy.

This month I decided to venture into Handsworth as, at that stage, no-one else had selected any of the locations. I'm not sure why this was, perhaps none of the volunteers live in that part of town or maybe not many fancy going to a part of town with a 'dodgy' reputation. Nonetheless, I set off and this is what I found.

Although I'm showing this picture first, it was actually the last one I shot.

Phyllis Nicklin (1968) © The University of Birmingham

 This photo was taken on 8th March 1968 just a few weeks before Enoch Powell gave his infamous "Rivers of Blood" speech at the Midland Hotel in Birmingham. Since then, there have been several Handsworth riots at least two of which have centred on the Villa Cross pub at the centre of the picture.

On my first visit to Handsworth to take photos I was unable to park nearby so I decided not to risk having to walk a significant distance with a fairly expensive camera in my hand! Someone taking part in this project has already been robbed of their camera equipment, so security is always of concern. I returned the next day and got a parking spot just a few yards from where I took this photo.

© Peter Allen (2017) for The Birmingham Photographic Grid Project 2017

The scene in 2017 is remarkably little changed, at first glance, from 1968 - more cars, more street lights and fewer shops as the far right hand side buildings are now residential. Along the left hand side a part of the row has obviously been demolished and replaced by a less tall construction. The Villa Cross is no longer a pub!

Cities like Birmingham are also full of amazing juxtapositions - if you bear left by the Villa Cross, then take the next left and then a right you will find yourself here...just a five minute walk away.

Phyllis Nicklin (1968) © The University of Birmingham

© Peter Allen (2017) for The Birmingham Photographic Grid Project 2017

Suddenly, you're in a beautiful, leafy suburb which is a world away from the hustle and bustle of Villa Road. The scene is pretty much unchanged from 1968, just a little more overgrown. The original road sign remains, just somewhat obscured, sadly.

Then it was on to Soho Road for the next three photos.

Phyllis Nicklin (1968) © The University of Birmingham

© Peter Allen (2017) for The Birmingham Photographic Grid Project 2017

Back in 1968 this was the Handsworth School Clinic on Soho Hill, but now it seems to be owned by a furnishers. The building seems to be reasonably intact apart from the loss of the feature in the centre of the roof!

Next I headed further out of town along Soho Road, first to the junction with Grove Lane.

Phyllis Nicklin (1968) © The University of Birmingham

© Peter Allen (2017) for The Birmingham Photographic Grid Project 2017

Nearly 40 years later and the scene is remarkably similar; albeit with fewer people crossing the road. The bank is still a bank, but no longer Birmingham Municipal Bank and the buses are a different colour!

When I selected by final Handsworth shot I was convinced, sitting at home, that I knew exactly where to find Handsworth Market. Further research showed up my error - it had closed down in 2003 and burned down around 2008!

As I was taking the picture above, I saw an older woman crossing the road and asked her where the market used to be. She told me that she'd been a regular visitor to it and pointed me in the right direction. It was closer than I'd originally thought.

Phyllis Nicklin (1968) © The University of Birmingham

© Peter Allen (2017) for The Birmingham Photographic Grid Project 2017

Now it has been replaced by a bright, shiny, new health centre but, amazingly, (and I didn't notice this till I was looking at the photos back at home) the black wooden gates to the right are unchanged!

The eagle-eyed amongst you will have spotted only five photos so far. My sixth was a little nearer to home. I chose this one as it is the closest of all Phyllis Nicklin's photos to where I live.

Phyllis Nicklin (1968) © The University of Birmingham

© Peter Allen (2017) for The Birmingham Photographic Grid Project 2017

Back in 1968 the photo must have been taken from what was then Cadbury's wharf which is now a housing estate. I was expecting this to be an easier photo to capture, but I hadn't realised/noticed how many changes there have been to the buildings in Cadbury's factory.

In the Footsteps of Phyllis...(Part 1)

This entry doesn't exactly fall within the usual remit of this blog, but it's near enough for me. I first discovered the photos by Phyllis Nicklin a few years ago, initially, via the BrumPic website and was immediately fascinated by these pictures of a Birmingham in the 50's and 60's from a time before I came to the city. 

A brief biography of Phyllis Nicklin can be found here on the BrumPic website.

The initial photos had been digitised and stored at Birmingham University, but a couple of years ago Dave Oram of BrumPic discovered another set of photos at the university leading to the exhibition 'Nicklin Unseen'.

I had thought about seeking out some of the locations and taking contemporary photos, but decided that it was far too big an undertaking. I did however use a picture of The Great Stone pub in Northfield for this blog entry - #158.

However, that's as far as it went until I recently became aware that The Grid Project had decided to take on the job and invite participation from Birmingham's photographers. I jumped at the chance and I've now submitted my first six pictures.

Dave Allen (no relation) is curating the project and has limited everyone to six pictures initially so that everyone gets a fair crack of the whip. My six included five canal locations...and The Great Stone!

So, I set off for deepest, darkest Northfield to take a picture of The Great Stone - this is the scene that greeted me.

One of the banes of my photographic life - the big white van! I've lost count of the number of times that a delivery van or lorry has spoiled a potentially great photo. It also wasn't the best time of day for the light and so I decided to return another day (the next day as it turned out!).

© Peter Allen (2017) for The Birmingham Photographic Grid Project 2017

Amazingly, roadworks had appeared overnight, but at least the white vans were much less conspicuous. 

Phyllis Nicklin (1953) © The University of Birmingham

This was Phyllis' photo - not too much has changed in 64 years.

As I returned to my car someone asked me if I knew where The Great Stone was. "The pub is just over the road" I replied, but he was actually looking for The Great Stone. It is to be found in the village pound behind the gate to the right of the pub. His reaction was one of underwhelmment; it isn't a massive boulder and he was concerned that his brother and wife would not be impressed when they visit from Leicestershire. I made sympathetic noises and departed.

My next location was way over the other side of town in the shadow of Spaghetti Junction. This was the one picture that I had really wanted to attempt.

Phyllis Nicklin (1968) © The University of Birmingham

The title of this one is Hockley Brook, Salford, Birmingham and I couldn't immediately place it. The map location given was also incorrect, so I was intrigued to track down the actual location. I realised that it was on the Birmingham & Fazeley Canal just before it meets the Tame Valley Canal and the Grand Union Canal at Salford Junction. We've sailed over this aqueduct many times, but I had never seen it from this perspective.

© Peter Allen (2017) for The Birmingham Photographic Grid Project 2017

This is how it looks now - almost everything around the waterways has changed, but the canal, River Tame (flowing from right to left under the canal) and Hockley Brook (running parallel to the canal) follow the same course.

My next location was only a few yards away on the Tame Valley Canal. I knew exactly where this one was because we'd traversed this section of canal last June.

Phyllis Nicklin (1968) © The University of Birmingham

© Peter Allen (2017) for The Birmingham Photographic Grid Project 2017

All that remains is the canal and the toll island, everything else has been consumed by Spaghetti Junction. I was quite surprised to see a boat approaching, as the Tame Valley Canal isn't one of the busiest waterways (although it is well worth a visit!). The people on the boat had just bought it from Walsall and were taking it to Market Harborough - perfect boating weather!

Onwards! My next destination was Farmer's Bridge. This time I knew exactly where I was going.

Phyllis Nicklin (1953) © The University of Birmingham

© Peter Allen (2017) for The Birmingham Photographic Grid Project 2017

This is the start of the descent of the Birmingham & Fazeley Canal through the thirteen Farmer's Bridge Locks. Back in 1953 the canal arm to the right extended much further than it does today; now it is known as Cambrian Wharf which is overlooked by the Flapper pub (unseen to the right).

As I was strolling by the locks after taking this picture I met a chap who'd known the pub as Noah's Ark back when he was a student in the 80's and he was marvelling at how it had all changed since those days.

This is one of my favourite views of the canals in Birmingham and here's one of my Photo Digital Art pictures that I took last summer.

© Photo Digital Art 2017

 My final destination was Gas Street Basin. At first glance, I thought that I'd been given the same two pictures, but on closer inspection, the photos were taken seven years apart, from the same location.

Phyllis Nicklin (1961) © The University of Birmingham

© Peter Allen (2017) for The Birmingham Photographic Grid Project 2017

Phyllis Nicklin (1968) © The University of Birmingham

© Peter Allen (2017) for The Birmingham Photographic Grid Project 2017

It is interesting to note the subtle differences between 1961 and 1968 and the not-so-subtle changes since. I do remember the days before the footbridge was built and back to a time when just about the only access to the canals in Birmingham was at Gas Street Basin.

I had a long chat with a couple of Canal & River Trust fund raisers who were valiantly (but in vain, whilst I was there) trying to sign up new 'Friends' of the CRT. One is a fellow boater and her boat is moored at Calf Heath on the Staffs & Worcs Canal and the other is an archaeology student at Birmingham University (perhaps she might get involved in the project).

So, there you have it, my experiences on my first Birmingham Grid Project outing. These photos won't be uploaded to the project website for a few days, but once it gets into full swing you'll be able to see just how much Birmingham has changed since Phyllis Nicklin took to the streets with her camera. I can't wait to see the other photos (and get out to do some more myself!).

#158 The Great Stone, Northfield, Birmingham : 1953 to 2014

The Great Stone Inn has stood on this site for centuries and it is named for a huge boulder that used to stand on the corner. This boulder is a glacial erratic, and was dropped by the ice as it retreated in the last ice age! The stone is now housed in the 17^th Century pound, which is adjacent to the pub – this sandstone enclosure was where stray animals were kept until their owners paid a fee to get them back.

© Phyllis Nicklin 1953

This photo (along with two others of the Great Stone) was taken in 1953 by Phyllis Nicklin. She took many pictures of Birmingham through the 1950's and 1960's which can be found as part of University of Birmingham's Chrysalis Project. This is a fascinating archive for those of us who love old pictures of places we know. My only regret is that Phyllis Nicklin wasn't as obsessed with pubs as I am!

So, from a time before I was born, how does the pub look now?

Not very different as you can see apart from the slight name change. This picture was taken in the afternoon of Friday 15th August 2014. The boulder is behind the gate by the red car.

It is many years since I visited The Great Stone for a drink, probably when I was a student. In those days it was an M&B pub, but I see now that it is part of the Stonegate Pub Company.

#132 White Swan, Harborne, Birmingham : 1967 to 2013

As I didn't first visit Birmingham until 1975, you can probably guess that this photo isn't one of mine!

© Phyllis Nicklin 1967

Some months ago I came across this archive held by Birmingham University as part of Project Chrysalis. Phyllis Nicklin took lots of photos of urban Birmingham over a period from 1953 to 1968 and I've spent many a joyful hour looking through them to see a Birmingham I didn't know. Sadly, from my point of view, there aren't enough pubs in the collection, but not everyone shares my obsession.

Over the years I've been in the White Swan (or Dirty Duck as it is also known) several times, although not for quite a few years. It has always been a bit more upmarket than most Brum pubs.

This is the photo I took earlier this year.

© Peter Allen 2013

From the outside remarkably little has changed in the intervening 46 years! The tree trunk is a bit wider and a low fence/hedge has been added. It is also interesting to note how many more lines there are on the road now compared to in 1967!