The Miner Island end of the Pelsall Road in Brownhills, looking towards the Council House (now the Parkview Centre) as depicted on a postcard for sale on everyone’s favourite tat bazaar, eBay.

Thanks to local historian and author Clive Roberts who tipped me off, I can share with readers the above, somewhat remarkable image of the Brownhills end of Pelsall Road from a George Lewis postcard, dated around 1915.

It’s on a genuine postcard, currently on sale on eBay for the sum of £25 here.

On the far right is the Brownhills Council House, still extant today on the island as the Parkview Centre. The Central Boys School – now the Activity Centre, or Annex – is just next to it in the foreground.

I think most of the other houses have now gone, any views on whether the white ones present now are in the old image are welcome.

Almost the same view today, from google Street View.

I’m interested in the crowd. Did they come out just for this image? One lad seems to have a hoop. I wonder if he’s the same scally featured in another old Brownhills image, which I can recall, but can’t find?

If this was an event, does anyone know what it was, or whether the image can be dated effectively from clothing? What dos we know about the postcard publisher, George Lewis?

Comment here or mail me: BrownhillsBob at Googlemail dot com.

Thanks to Clive for a wonderful piece of happenstance, which I would otherwise have missed. It’s worth pointing out that Clive currently has an excellent book out on the subject of Brownhills history at the moment, containing quite a few historical surprises. I shall be reviewing it in the next few days.

‘Snippets of History In and around Brownhills’ is just £8 and can be obtained from Brownhills and Walsall Wood libraries, Egans in the High Street, and the shop in Friezland Lane, Shire Oak – as well, of course, as Walsall Local History Centre.