BrownhillsBob's Brownhills Blog

What a great idea!

Oh my (school) days, there’s a terrific thing going on at Brownhills Community Centre, what my generation called the Annex but was originally the Central Boys School – there’s going to be a celebration, reunion and open day for those who remember the days of that particular school yard.

It’s taking place on Saturday 30th June 2018 from 11am until 3pm at the former school, now Brownhills Community Centre, and there will be memory-jogging tours of the building you knew so well, archive photo displays, real school meals (including concrete and custard!) a film show of old Brownhills and loads of people to chat to and reminisce about the days of Mr. Massey and co.

A wonderful image from 1962 and the days of the Boy’s School sent in by Malcolm Jamison.

There are some great pics of this old days in this post here…

The day itself is free, but if you want to partake of lunch, it’s £5 for mains and pud, and you can book in advance at the link in the text below.

Brownhills Community Centre wrote:

ALL BACK TO BROWNHILLS CENTRAL SCHOOL
Open Day Saturday 30th June 11am – 3pm

You may know it as the Boys’ School, Central School, the Annexe or the Activity Centre. The building has been all these things, and has now been extensively refurbished in its new role as Brownhills Community Centre and The Lamp.

You may not know that it has a fully-equipped Ladies’ Gym, a cinema/theatre/concert venue with bar, a nursery, a motorcycle training centre, a computer suite, rooms for hire for parties and training and a wide variety of activities to suit every interest. Its facilities are for everyone, local or further afield.

The building is 125 years old this year, and to celebrate we are hosting a Back to School open day on 30th June. The whole Centre will be open for you to look around, a chance to reminisce or to explore the new facilities.

We have a big archive of photographs which will be on display. Perhaps you’ll be in some of them! We will also be serving (edible) school dinners.

Free parking via Pelsall Road entrance. WS8 7JE.

The open day is free, no need to book. School dinners need to be booked in advance. £5 gets you 2 choices of main meal and pudding, including concrete and custard! Tickets from (no booking fee): https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/the-lamp-arts-centre

If you haven’t yet visited th Community Centre, you really are missing out; it’s a busy and welcoming hive of activity with a great atmosphere operated by a lovely community of dedicated folk, located in the old Annex or Brownhills Central Boys School right there on the Miner Island in Brownhills. You can find out more here.

There’s loads going on at the Activity Centre on the Miner Island in Brownhills!

The canal is clearly back on the up: This photo was taken yesterday evening at Clayhanger, and despite a further drop over the weekend, is now at the same level as last Thursday.

Following the sudden and unexpected drop in water level of the canal through Brownhills, and the Wyrley and Essignton Canal as a whole, top Canal and River Trust operatives have isolated the leak in the canal bed at Stoney Lane, Little Bloxwich with dams, and are now working to fix the hole.

This means that with Chasewater valves open, the canal should now be slowly refilling. It dipped to about 200mm off full level on Saturday 2nd June 2018, but last night was back to 125mm down measured at Clayhanger overflow, the same level it was at the previous Thursday 31st May 2018.

The best place to keep up to date with all the latest news on this mater is the wonderful blog of canal historian and local lad Andy Matthews – click here.

An emergency stoppage notices posted on Saturday 2nd June 2018 and emergency dams have been erected. Tellingly, the isolated stretch drained itself without pumps…

Presumably the work to repair the under-canal culvert will start soon. In the meantime, the towpath is still currently open to passers by, cyclists and those interested, but probably offers limited angling opportunities for the time being.

Phil Griffin took a great set of the drained cut yesterday (Monday 4th June 2018):

On the matter of my contempt for the the Canal and River Trust, the following tweet issued yesterday by their stellar press office is breathtaking:

Hi, I do apologise. This notice is for the closure that had to take place on Saturday. The water loss on Friday was as a result of the Chase water pump being switched off. ~ Tigs

— CRT Customer Service (@CRTContactUs) June 4, 2018

They lost a huge quantity of water and are still blaming Chasewater’s owner, Staffordshire County Council, even though it appears they haven’t actually closed the vales since early April.

If you have a view on this, or pictiures, please do get in touch. Comment or mail me: BrownhillsBob at Googlemail dot com. Thanks.

What a fantastic image courtesy of Keith Clegg!

A quick one for a Sunday from reader Keith Clegg – can you identify anyone in this photo?

He wrote:

Photo of Pantomime at the Brownhills church hall guessing about 1968.

Do you recognise anyone?

I don’t think there’s anything I can add to that, except I love the little guy in the bowler with specs!

Thanks to Keith for a wonderful image – that’s really excellent. Can you help? Comment here or mail me: BrownhillsBob at Googlemail dot com.

Top Canal and River Trust operatives look for a leak. Image Kindly supplied by Andy Bennets.

Several people have brought to my attention in recent days the falling level of the local canal in Brownhills and surrounds, which has naturally been causing concern, particularly following the recent wet weather which saw the canal overflowing heavily on Sunday, 27th May 2018.

By yesterday afternoon (Saturday, 2nd June 2018), I measured the level as 144mm lower than the overflow height at Clayhanger: Nearly six inches of water lost in five days from about 25 miles of canal at the same level with no locks is a huge amount of water to disappear without obvious trace.

9pm last Sunday evening (27th May 2018). This canal was not short of water then…

Initial enquiries with the pretty useless PR people at the Canal and River Trust blamed Staffordshire County Council for turning off the supply of water from Chasewater, which was clearly arrant toss as it had been running since April.

Hi all, sorry to just get back to you. It was an issue where the local council who control the valve on Chasewater turned it off without us being aware. Our teams are on the case and pumping water from Bradley to try and bring levels back up. -Amy

— CRT Customer Service (@CRTContactUs) June 1, 2018

Online discussions had centred around someone perhaps leaving a lock sluice open, as so much water leaking would surely be evident somewhere. As incidents at Middlewich and Llangollen show, canals leaking so much tend to be catastrophic and very evident!

In the early 1980s, a breach at Sandhills near Anchor Bridge, Brownhills caused much damage, too.

Oh dear. Clcik image to see original stoppage notice. Chasewater my eye.

It turns out that from an emergency stoppage notice posted yesterday (Saturday 2nd June 2018) water has been leaking from the canal into a stream culvert at Little Bloxwich, and thankfully hasn’t burst through. Work is currently underway to isolate the section and repair it, damming the canal to prevent water loss in the interim.

On Thursday evening, at Clayhanger the drop was 123mm from the Clayhanger overflow level.

Hopefully this should see levels stabilise in a short time.

This incident has further convinced me that the Canal and River Trust couldn’t find their arses with both hands, an arse map, a mirror, a team of very expensive arse finding consultants and an example arse flown in from America.

There’s a great, and growing write up of this in much more detail than I can mange at the brilliant canal blog of Andy Matthews – do visit it and have a read.

Clcik image to visit Andy’s blog and read his take of the amazing sinking canal.

Thanks to everyone who brought this to my attention and debated it: great stuff.

If you have a view on this, or pictiures, please do get in touch. Comment or mail me: BrownhillsBob at Googlemail dot com. Thanks.

People keep asking me for ride galleries, and I’m happy to oblige – and fortunately the weather so far this season has been pretty good, I’m pleased to say – so last weekend I did a century into Derbyshire to visit old haunts.

On a day that started out overcast, I hit the road at dawn, up through Lichfield, Burton and Derby and from there, rode through Keddleston Park, a beautiful stately home. Moving on through Mercaston to Bradley and Madge Hill, I swung east to Hognaston, Hopton and Middleton top, then up the High Peak Trail to Parsley Hay; a fast run back down the Tissington to Ashbourne, then out to Hole in the Wall, Osmaston, Shirley, Longford, Tutbury, Barton and home via Lichfield. 116 miles in all.

It was interesting to note the trails were not busy, and the ice cream stop at Harrington Signal Box seems to have closed; I do hope these wonderful cycleways are not losing their appeal.

It’s rare you fine a true Holloway. Imagine the continual use over centuries that cut this track into the hill.

At Osmaston Park, the bridleway past the water-driven sawmill is beautiful, and forms a true Holloway up the hill. It’s well worth seeing. You can find out more about the mill here.

So glad I’m getting lots of riding in this year – I hope it continues.

For more of this sort of thing, my 365daysofbiking journal is still running…

The Osmaston Sawmill is stunning.

Lichfield Road was almost as much a major artery to Brownhills as High Street itself. Image from ‘Memories of Brownhills Past’ by Clarice Mayo and Geoff harrington.

I was contacted by old friend of the blog Mike Sarsfield a last week, all the way from Wales, and he would like to know if anyone remembers him, or the Brownhills of his youth – I’m sure this will trigger a few memories.

Mike wrote:

HI everyone,

I am Michael Sarsfield, I was born in 1952 qt 20 Lichfield Road, and lived there until I moved to Swansea where I still live.

I like to keep up with Brownhills Bob, and still have relations in the area.

I went to St.Josephs RC Infants in Chasetown and then moved to Ogley Hay Infants till 1959. I have lost touch with so many, but still remember the twins I used to play with at Poxons the butchers, Barry Winters neighbor, the Slatcher girls who also lived in the same yard as me, Richard Bailey lived at end of Great Charles Street, and Linda Brough who lived in the same row as Richard.

My mother worked in Willets Shoe Shop.

Mike Sarsfield.

I’m sure that there are many people reading this who will remember Mike, and can help place the people he mentions.

Please, if you can help, do get in touch: Comment here or mail me – BrownhillsBob at Googlemail dot com. Thanks!

Images posted on Facebook by the Reading Rooms

It’s always great to hear from old pals of the blog, and Laura Hucker mailed me a couple of weeks ago to tell me that she was starting a new venture at Pelsall Village Centre: The Reading Rooms coffee shop in the Book Exchange, the community-run library there.

This terrific looking cake stop opened to the public just yesterday (Tuesday 29th May 2018) to rave reviews, and I for one will whip out my passport and will be over there in the principality as soon as I can to sample the goodies on offer: Laura made a fantastic job of the fairs she ran and they bode well for a great social and food space that will really become a focus for the community.

Since Brownhills Community Association have become involved with the Village Centre in Pelsall, it’s really picking up with so much going on there (see here) and it’s good to see Pelsall finally benefit from the expertise and dedication of people who really make the Community Centre in Brownhills the hive of activity it is. Best wishes to all involved.

You can find out more about The Reading Rooms at their website here, or their Facebook here – and you can learn more, including opening hours and contact details below.

The Reading Rooms was established in May 2018 as a result of a demand for excellent coffee and exciting cake whilst the people of Pelsall enjoyed activities and The Book Exchange services at the Pelsall Village Centre. The Centre, now re-named ‘The Hub’ is a great space with a vibrant range of activities, see our What’s On page.

The mission of The Reading Rooms is to provide an area where individuals, groups and families can enjoy the space provided by The Hub whilst enjoying excellent quality coffee brewed locally, great tea, quality food, and, most importantly, really special cake!

The Reading Rooms will grow with the demands of the people of Pelsall and surrounding areas, and Laura, business owner and the main face of The Reading Rooms, looks forward to inviting you with a smile. We will be holding a wide range of events once we are settled in, and we cannot wait for you to join us!

Julia and Anne also work at The Reading Rooms two days a week, and they too look forward to welcoming you.

Looking for a bit of company? View more details about our inclusion in the Chatter and Natter Scheme!

THE READING ROOMS
Pelsall Village Centre
High Street
Pelsall
WS3 4LX

Telephone: 01543 373768

Email: hello@the-reading-rooms.co.uk

THE READING ROOMS OPENING HOURS
MONDAY – FRIDAY: 8:30am – 3pm
SATURDAY: 9:30am – 11:30am
SUNDAY: Closed

THE BOOK EXCHANGE OPENING HOURS
MONDAY, TUESDAY AND THURSDAY: 10am – 3pm
SATURDAY: 9:30am – 11:30am
SUNDAY: Closed

For any further details regarding the Book Exchange, room hire or activities, please contact Janet Davies on 07977 464 908 or email janet.davies@brownhillsca.org.uk

On wet days, the maypole dane apparently took place in the school hall. The gym equipment on the walls reminded me of my school. What a fantastic expression! Image Kindly supplied by Dawn Hayton.

it’s time, I think for the last set in the amazing collection of images sent in by old pal of the blog Dawn Hayton, from her mother’s personal collection – and this is a fantastic set continuing the recent Ogley Hay School May Day celebrations that were a feature of the school for many years.

This photos compliment the other May Day images from Janet Bullock here, the follow up set from Kate Dixon here and this wonderful one from Sheila Kelly here.

Can anyone name the other children please? Image Kindly supplied by Dawn Hayton.

These images are beautiful and the photography and scanning are very high quality.

Of the whole donation from Dawn and her mum, there are three distinct sets – this one, the one of Brownhills Carnival in the 1970s here and also the very popular one of the 1977 Silver Jubilee celebrations in Middleton and Freeth Road here.

A stunning image of Dawn Hayton. Some good stuff in the background, too!Image Kindly supplied by Dawn Hayton.

My thanks to Dawn and her mum for some wonderful memory-jogging photos – they really are wonderful and very much appreciated.

If you see anyone you recognise, or have anything to add, please do.

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

Love the flowers! Can anyone help with names please? Image Kindly supplied by Dawn Hayton.

Since it’s Spring Bank Holiday Monday , there’s a whole load of stuff going on – and today, Monday (28th May 2018) sees one of the occasional openings of something remarkable I visited way back in spring 2017, and it’s well worth a visit.

Balleny Green is a narrow gauge, passenger-carrying miniature model railway located at Little Hay, east of Shenstone and north of Sutton Coldfield, just down the lane from the Holly Bush pub.

You can see exact directions on the SCMS website here.

The railway runs it it’s own grounds which are beautiful, and is skilfully and safely operated by dedicated and clever engineers. It’s genuinely breathtaking, and what’s more, absolutely free (although you’d a total tightarse not to make a donation for such a wonderful thing – collecting box right by the clubhouse!)

Balleny Green is something I heartily recommend – it won’t take all day, but it’ll easily burn a couple of hours and leave you feeling thoroughly charmed. It’s open from 11am until 3pm, and would make a great thing to call into on the way to or from New Hall Mill, which is also open Bank Holiday Monday.

You can find out more at the Sutton Coldfield Model Engineering Society’s site here. I posted the following on my 365daysofbiking journal after my last visit. It’s a terrific thing.

May 1st – Today, I did something I’d been meaning to do for years – I paid a visit to Balleny Green, a little-known narrow gauge railway layout run by Sutton Coldfield Model Engineering Society at Little Hay, between Lichfield and Sutton Coldfield.

I’ve known this place was here for years, but never caught it open. This time, I made a concerted effort to find out when it was a ‘steam up day’ and popped in.

This was just so English. No entry fee. No charges to ride. Just a bunch of people sharing their love of a fascinating, beautifully engineered hobby in the middle of rolling countryside in gorgeous grounds.

There is a long layout consisting of several tracks – including a miniature one – but on the larger one, which interestingly is dual gauge – passengers sit in or on carriages and are conveyed by small locomotives – today one steam, one electric – through tunnels, over junctions, level crossings, past ponds, signals, signal boxes. It’s gorgeous.

The whole thing is clearly a labour of love.

There were no other attractions, and none were needed: tea and biscuits, and a tin for donations to cover running costs.

All right here on the doorstep, and few know about it. A wonderful thing.

Find out more about Balleny Green at their website here. I’d like to thank the members for a beautiful, life-affirming thing.

Brickyard Road, on the Aldridge/Walsall Wood border this evening, posted on Facebook by Dan C. Hall

Watch out folks – we’ve had some remarkably heavy storms this afternoon (Sunday, 27th May 2018), and many local roads are flooded with reports of swamped roads and houses across our area.

It takes as little as a foot of water to wash away a car, so take care and don’t travel unless you have to. This is the lights at usual this evening, as posted on Facebook by Georgia Bird:

Beware particularly in rural areas like Mill Lane, Stonnall and near the Memorial Arboretum at Alrewas.

Beware driving through floodwater – it can conceal all manner of unseen horrors, and if part of a river flow can easily sweep cars away. If your car has a low air intake, getting water into the engine will kill it.

Take care folks. Welcome to the British summer…

Boing, boing!

Just a heads to point out there’s a Big Bounce family fun day taking place at Holland Park, Brownhills RIGHT NOW Sunday (27th May 2018)

It’s £6 per child, with under fives at £5 – there are two sessions, 11-1:30pm and 2-4:30pm.

There will be rides, inflatables, slides, go-karts and all sorts of fun, including a toddler zone.

You can check out the Facebook page for the event here.

The organisers said:

Big Bounce Walsall is heading back to Holland park for a Whitsun extravaganza!

The cheap and affordable fun day hosts more rides & inflatables than ever before with over a dozen inflatables & interactive games for all ages of children to play, slide, bounce, jump and race, you will never want the fun to end!

Only £6 per child and £5 for under 5’s.
Adults & Babies go FREE!

Morning Session: 11 – 1:30pm
Afternoon Session: 2 – 4:30pm

I think very few buildings on this card now remain. Image posted on an eBay sale by Sittingblack cat. Click for a larger version.

A wonderful postcard of Brownhills I’ve only ever seen in low resolution versions has appeared for sale on everyone’s favourite tat bazaar, eBay.

Postally used on the 19th August 1921, this card shows a period view looking up Brownhills High Street towards Brownhills Bridge (what would now be the Miner Island) with the Church Road junction on the right. What’s really remarkable is the card clearly shows a short lived pub, the Royal George (locally known as the ‘Fourpenny Shop’ and I don’t recall ever seeing a picture of it in this clarity before.

I’d say the image would be 1910-1920. Love the guy with the bike.

The Royal George was fairly short lived, running from around 1866 until 1926 when it was closed, and a cinema – the Regal I think – built in it’s place; that was later itself replaced by Ravens Court.

The card seems to have been sent to a Miss Smitten, care of Miss MBusswell, Aston Terrace, Market Street, Cheltenham, from her father. Transcriptions as ever, welcome.

For sale by postcard dealer sittingblackcat, at time of publication the card could be yours for around 25 quid.

The scan is of very high quality.

Any observations? Please do comment here or mail me: BrownhillsBob at Googlemail dot com.

What can we find out about Miss Smitten? In service, perhaps? Image posted on an eBay sale by Sittingblack cat. Click for a larger version.

Everyone loves a lab!

Facebook pal of the blog Mark Poole has asked me to shout out to readers that he’s staging an event in Walsall Arboretum this coming May Bank Holiday (28th May 2018) in aid of the Laradorsinneed.co.uk charity.

At Tails in the Park 2018 there will be dog shows, activities for kids, entertainment and all the usual stuff – as well of lots of great Labs. So if you’re into the lovable retrievers, this could be the thing for you.

Mark says you can find out more through the event’s Facebook page here, as well as lots about the project supported.

Come on, everyone loves a Labrador!

Get you lab coat on, and go perform a lab test!

Derek Weaver with Ian Neville and friends, raising money for the Remembrance Parade in Brownhills. Image from Ian Neville.

Following the sad news of the death of Derek Weaver, Wendy Dance has asked me if I’d share the arrangements for his funeral for anyone who wants to pay their respects.

Derek was a well known teacher in Brownhills and a respected member of Brownhills Royal British Legion and campaigner for the funding of local Remembrance parades. He will be sadly missed. My sympathies and sincerest condolences to Derek’s family and friends – we have lost a true pillar of the community.

Derek’s funeral will take place on Wednesday 30th May 2018, at St Bernadettes Church, High Street, Brownhills at 10:00am. There will then follow a service at  Streetly Crematorium at 11.30am.

Wendy Dance added the following on Wednesday 23rd May 2018:

Update on Derek Weaver’s funeral:

I have spoken to Derek’s wife Pam and she has confirmed any ex pupils or anyone that knew him in what ever capacity is more than welcome to attend the funeral or the crematorium, or afterwards at Aldridge conservative club Portland road to raise a glass to a wonderful man.

Since it’s Spring Bank Holiday Monday next weekend, there’s a whole load of stuff going on – and Bank Holiday Monday (28th May 2018) sees one of the occasional openings of something remarkable I visited way back in spring 2017, and it’s well worth a visit.

Balleny Green is a narrow gauge, passenger-carrying miniature model railway located at Little Hay, east of Shenstone and north of Sutton Coldfield, just down the lane from the Holly Bush pub.

You can see exact directions on the SCMS website here.

The railway runs it it’s own grounds which are beautiful, and is skilfully and safely operated by dedicated and clever engineers. It’s genuinely breathtaking, and what’s more, absolutely free (although you’d a total tightarse not to make a donation for such a wonderful thing – collecting box right by the clubhouse!)

Balleny Green is something I heartily recommend – it won’t take all day, but it’ll easily burn a couple of hours and leave you feeling thoroughly charmed. It’s open from 11am until 3pm, and would make a great thing to call into on the way to or from New Hall Mill, which is also open Bank Holiday Monday.

You can find out more at the Sutton Coldfield Model Engineering Society’s site here. I posted the following on my 365daysofbiking journal after my last visit. It’s a terrific thing.

May 1st – Today, I did something I’d been meaning to do for years – I paid a visit to Balleny Green, a little-known narrow gauge railway layout run by Sutton Coldfield Model Engineering Society at Little Hay, between Lichfield and Sutton Coldfield.

I’ve known this place was here for years, but never caught it open. This time, I made a concerted effort to find out when it was a ‘steam up day’ and popped in.

This was just so English. No entry fee. No charges to ride. Just a bunch of people sharing their love of a fascinating, beautifully engineered hobby in the middle of rolling countryside in gorgeous grounds.

There is a long layout consisting of several tracks – including a miniature one – but on the larger one, which interestingly is dual gauge – passengers sit in or on carriages and are conveyed by small locomotives – today one steam, one electric – through tunnels, over junctions, level crossings, past ponds, signals, signal boxes. It’s gorgeous.

The whole thing is clearly a labour of love.

There were no other attractions, and none were needed: tea and biscuits, and a tin for donations to cover running costs.

All right here on the doorstep, and few know about it. A wonderful thing.

Find out more about Balleny Green at their website here. I’d like to thank the members for a beautiful, life-affirming thing.

The Birmingham Canal Navigations Explorer Cruise is always a real spectacle. Image by the very talented Steve Martin.

Hi folks – it’s a lovely day today (Sunday 20th May 2018) and Brownhills is set to see the passage of a large number of narrowboats on the Birmingham Canal Navigations 2018 cruise.

The boats are headed from Pelsall where they spent the night, through Brownhills to Catshill Juction, up to Anglesey Basin near Chasewater, then back down to Longwood Junction in Aldridge through Walsall Wood.

This is a fantastic waterway spectacle, which drone photographer Steve Martin captured beautifully with his wonderful drone photo set of the cruise visiting Brownhills this time last year – click here to see here.

Thanks to David Hodgkinson for the headsup. You can read more ant the BCN website here.

If you see the tour and take some pics, why not send them in? BrownhillsBob at Googlemail dot com.

Day 2 Sunday 20^th May, to Longwood, Daw End canal (11 miles 0 locks 6 hrs)

Leave Pelsall Junction and continue to Catshill Junction, visit Anglesey Basin, return to Catshill Junction and take the Daw End canal.  Moor at the Longwood Junction where a Chineese take away evening and Historical talk/presentation is planned at the Longwood Boat Club.

I do like Anita Chicken Pox. There’s a story there, I’m sure. Image Kindly supplied by Dawn Hayton.

In order to mark the royal weekend, I continue to share the remarkable photos donated by old pal of the blog and community whizz Dawn Hayton, who’s been digging in her mother’s collection and found this selection of images from the 1977 Queen’s Silver Jubilee.

See, I don’t just throw this stuff together – well, not all the time…

As many of you will know, I’m not a royalist, but the 1977 event was possibly the last such celebration where there were mass street parties, and it was a really notable thing. I don’t think there was quite such a fuss over the Golden Jubilee in 2002, which I found interesting, and a sign perhaps of changing times.

This is a remarkable set that are really a great time capsule of the period – and I thank Dawn and her mum for their wonderful generosity and the great scans. Wonderful stuff.

Dawn wrote the following wonderful piece about the set, and her memories of the celebration in the Freeth and Middleton road area, this really is superb:

Middleton and Freeth Road Silver Jubilee Street Party

The Queen’s Silver Jubilee Party 1977 became a huge community event in Middleton and Freeth Roads. From memory mostly inspired by my lovely nutty mother Mary Hayton, full of inspirational barmy ideas.

What started off with a small group of similarly minded community neighbours Sandra Cox, Doreen Brogan and Jean Jolly (and yes she was incredibly jolly) turned into a hugely successful event with help from two streets worth of families.

The pram, the mixture of chairs. The tartan trousers! Image Kindly supplied by Dawn Hayton.

Preparations started well in advance to raise funds and a small amount of money was collected regularly from each family to cover costs for their children to attend, alongside many fundraisers.

I recall many jumble sales, very fashionable at the time and held in the Methodist Church, Weekly flower arranging classes by Irene Mayher the local Cub Leader in the day We filled her house weekly with all monies added to the street party fund.  Both my sister and I are not too bad at flower arranging as a result and I volunteered as a Cub Leader alongside the amazing Sue Wright who is still in scouting.  All a result of getting to know the neighbours.

Love the wee truck/pedal car. Image Kindly supplied by Dawn Hayton.

Other events included a pancake party held by Doreen Brogan with every filling you could imagine and a shoe party held by Jolly Jean who also made a 10 foot cake for the day.

Items begged stolen and borrowed included a huge amount of very ugly red/white/blue wallpaper which organised by Doreen Brogan was cut into triangles, glued together and then sewn onto tape by a whole team of Moms to finally become amazing bunting and finally all hung from the lampposts by Bill Woolley. I’m sure they covered the whole of the two streets!  Mum and Betty Ashmore managed to scrounge enormous  4’ x 6’ polystyrene coats of arms decorations from Rackhams which were hung around the streets.

Can anyone read the sign on the grass? Image Kindly supplied by Dawn Hayton.

We chose the actual day which was brilliant sunshine unlike most parties who opted for the weekend. Neighbours brought out their kiddie swings, slides, sea-saws and little bikes onto the green to occupy the toddlers. Tables and chairs were set out around the turning circle and food was plentiful but haven’t a clue by who or how this was prepared.  A massive job, who did it?  I guessing those Magical Mommy Fairies.

What a terrific image – the car, the clothes, the 70s in a nutshell. Image Kindly supplied by Dawn Hayton.

The roads were shut off for the day and pretty much every house was decorated for a competition…. so much crepe paper!

Our next door neighbour Iris Gee had ice-cream in her garage as she had a spare freezer, Pat (Collins I think) who went on to run The Chase Inn for a short time had a house full of balloons, apparently to the extent where they couldn’t open the front door and all the kids wore in fancy dress.  Some amazing outfits shown in the pictures and yes I am in the embarrassing Charleston Girl outfit.   Mother’s favourite old dress and probably her shoes looking at them as it suspect my style at the time was monkey boots….

Love the guy in the bowler. Image Kindly supplied by Dawn Hayton.

AND The Wombles of Wimbledon attended, such a catch in the day but the local papers didn’t, we couldn’t believe it! They missed out on some good photographs.

Fundraising was so successful that all kids had a huge goodie bag with commemorative coins, mugs, spoons, a pencil box to name but a few.  There was so much money in the end and it had to be spent.

In the 70s, Womble tribute acts were common – I particularly remember the Pelsall Wombles. More Pelsall Common than Wimbledon Common. Image Kindly supplied by Dawn Hayton.

What a day, what memories and all sorted by many adults/parents when I was probably the grumpy teenager hanging out at Barnetts most nights, the Memo Disco on a Friday and The Galleon after.

Thank you Middleton and Freeth Roads. Parents are cool when your old enough to appreciate them.

Wonder who these Wombles actually were? Image Kindly supplied by Dawn Hayton.

Just a few families I recall:

Hornsby, Pritchard, Taylors, Smiths, Barnes, Woolley, Clements, Collins, Ashmore, Clarke, Hayton, Gee, Bryan, Brogan, Cox, Jolly, Wright, Mayher, Taylor, Morgan, Little, Crane, Dance, Smith, Mayer and many many more.

Of the whole donation from Dawn and her mum, there are three distinct sets – the one of Brownhills Carnival in the 1970s I shared last week here, a set of Ogley Hay May Day photos and this set. I’ll post the May Day ones in a few days.

If you see anyone you recognise, or have anything to add, please do.

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

The clothes, the happy faces. Gorgeous. Image Kindly supplied by Dawn Hayton.

Down on the track bed, it’s very soggy and 30 years of litter stinks, quite frankly. Image from Brian Stringer/Back the Track.

Ages ago, I ran a piece here about how local activist and Clayhanger Kid himself Brian Stringer was starting a campaign to bring back into use the old rail line that runs from Pelsall through Brownhills – not to carry trains, but as a walking and cycling route for the community.

Since then, I’ve reported on how Brian and the crew have been beavering away, clearing rubbish, getting and excavator in and have shifted skinfuls of rubbish and detritus from the disused cutting – well, not you can do something to really help this worthwhile endeavour.

The Back the Track crew and Brian himself have been sharing the following great news and request for help n social media:

We are very pleased to find we are included as a choice in the TESCOs blue token charity scheme in the Brownhills store.

So if you feel you would like to support our local community project, as they say, Every little helps.

Now, the blue token scheme works like this: there are a selection of collecting tubes near the checkout in store, labelled with different charities or causes. What you shop, you’ll be given a number of blue tiddlywink counters with your receipt, depending upon how much you have spent: You put these in the tube relating to your chosen cause and when the appeal ends, the number of counters are totalled up and converted to cash and donated accordingly to each cause.

Right now, Back the Track are one of the causes you can support, and I think it would be an excellent idea if we donated our counters to them.

This is a really worthy project, on a formerly polluted and rubbish-filled derelict rail cutting at the very heart of Brownhills; to see it tidy now after years of neglect is a joy in itself.

Much of the old South Staffordshire line is already an official, Sustrans supported cycleway, from Ryecroft to Pelsall, and more of it is an unofficial, but well-used trail from Ryders Hayes to the rear of the Swan Pub in Brownhills. Brian and the Back the Track campaign would like to see this extended further into Brownhills, linking to Chasewater – and eventually to Lichfield if possible.

Again, my thanks and admiration to Brian and all who help either physically in person or by donating your blue tokens in Tesco. You are the true spirit of Brownhills and we’re all proud of you.

I have no idea what I’m doing.

Important public service announcement:

Folks, you may have noticed I’ve flipped back to the old blog theme for a bit.

I’m experiencing some problems under the hood with the site at the moment, so things may get a bit odd from time to time. Hoping to have it sorted soon.

Everything is still here and functioning, but son’t be surprised if sometimes it’s a bit slow or looks different.

Apologies for any inconvenience
Bob

The odd thing is I think I recognise the handwriting style on the sign. Local supermarket signwriter perhaps? (Common before computers and printers!) Image Kindly supplied by Dawn Hayton.

I’ve had a very generous donation of photos from old freiend of the blog and community activist Dawn Hayton, who has scanned a real assortment of gems from her mother’s collection – they really are stunning.

There are three distinct sets – this one, of Brownhills Carnival in the 1970s, a set of Ogley Hay May Day photos and a set of celebrations of the 1977 Silver Jubilee in the Freeth Road area – the latter two I’ll post later in the week.

This set stands well with the 1934 Carnival Film by Edgar Pritchard here, the remarkable set of a late 1970s carnival by Peter Booth here and the warm and touching carnival memories of Lisa Ashby here and of course here.

I thank Dawn for some lovely photos, great memories and very nice scans – an please, if you see anyone you recognise, or have anything to add, please do.

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

Now, this picture is of real interest. I assume the lass in the picture is Dawn or one of her family, but I’m interested in where it might have been taken. It’s Brownhills High Street – is that perhaps George Mason’s supermarket in the background, or maybe a later incarnation like Pricerite? Image Kindly supplied by Dawn Hayton.

Travelling in style. I think that brick wall is near Freeth Road if I’m not mistaken. Image Kindly supplied by Dawn Hayton.

I wonder where 1971 Carnival Queen Jennifer Brierey is today. I just about remember mention of Councillor Arkell. Image Kindly supplied by Dawn Hayton.

Ah, the Seven Dwarfs, passing the Brian Marklew ‘Turf Accountant’ (betting shop!)where Shadez of Bronze is today. Who are the people on the float? Image Kindly supplied by Dawn Hayton.

Down on the track bed, it’s very soggy and 30 years of litter stinks, quite frankly. Image from Brian Stringer/Back the Track.

Ages ago, I ran a piece here about how local activist and Clayhanger Kid himself Brian Stringer was starting a campaign to bring back into use the old rail line that runs from Pelsall through Brownhills – not to carry trains, but as a walking and cycling route for the community.

Since then, I’ve reported on how Brian and the crew have been beavering away, clearing rubbish, getting and excavator in and have shifted skinfuls of rubbish and detritus from the disused cutting – well, not you can do something to really help this worthwhile endeavour.

The Back the Track crew and Brian himself have been sharing the following great news and request for help n social media:

We are very pleased to find we are included as a choice in the TESCOs blue token charity scheme in the Brownhills store.

So if you feel you would like to support our local community project, as they say, Every little helps.

Now, the blue token scheme works like this: there are a selection of collecting tubes near the checkout in store, labelled with different charities or causes. What you shop, you’ll be given a number of blue tiddlywink counters with your receipt, depending upon how much you have spent: You put these in the tube relating to your chosen cause and when the appeal ends, the number of counters are totalled up and converted to cash and donated accordingly to each cause.

Right now, Back the Track are one of the causes you can support, and I think it would be an excellent idea if we donated our counters to them.

This is a really worthy project, on a formerly polluted and rubbish-filled derelict rail cutting at the very heart of Brownhills; to see it tidy now after years of neglect is a joy in itself.

Much of the old South Staffordshire line is already an official, Sustrans supported cycleway, from Ryecroft to Pelsall, and more of it is an unofficial, but well-used trail from Ryders Hayes to the rear of the Swan Pub in Brownhills. Brian and the Back the Track campaign would like to see this extended further into Brownhills, linking to Chasewater – and eventually to Lichfield if possible.

Again, my thanks and admiration to Brian and all who help either physically in person or by donating your blue tokens in Tesco. You are the true spirit of Brownhills and we’re all proud of you.

A great charity football mach on today!

There’s a very special football match today (Sunday 13th May 2018) at Walsall Wood’s Oak Park ground in memory of Pelsall lad Reagan Asbury who tragically lost his life following disorder after a boxing match event at Walsall Town Hall last October.

The match – called the Asbury Cup in Reagan’s memory – is between his friends, Reagan FC and Pelsall United FC and is intended as a light hearted, fun match in honour of a fondly remembered and sadly missed young lad.

The match will be just £1 to enter, with kids getting in free, and kicks off at 2pm. There will be refreshments and a bar, open all day of course – a bouncy castle for the kids – half time crossbar challenge and loads of other fun and games that Reagan would have loved.

It’s all in aid of the Ben Kinsella Trust to whom all proceeds will be donated – they’re a great charity who are working to halt knife crime and deserve out support.

So what’s not to love? Why not get down there and cheer the teams on? Best wishes to everyone involved – it’s nice to see something positive come out of tragedy.

If you pop down, why not take a few pictures and tell us about it? Comment here or mail me: BrownhilsBob at Googlemail dot com. Cheers.

Looks like a great event

Here’s one I’ve been meaning to catch for a while, but always seem to miss somehow – the periodic Toy and Train Collectors Fair at Oak Park Leisure Centre, Walsall Wood.

This one runs this Sunday, 13th May 2018 from 10:30am until 3pm, and is just £1:80 entry for adults, £1:50 for OAPs and just a quid for the kids.

There will be over 80 stalls, with all manner of models, toy trains, toy cars and other collectibles, and there’s also a cafe on site.

You can find out more at the website of the organisers, Transtar Promotions here or by calling them on 01922 643385.

The organisers would like visitors to note that although parking on the centre car park is likely to be quite busy, there is parking on the old Oak Park car park accesses from the side of the KFC restaurant.

Wish I’d known about this sooner…

I’m also interested to note this event going on this weekend – Saturday’s events are on now and continue until 8pm, but there’s a packed day for tomorrow, Sunday 13th May 2018 too from 12 noon to 5pm at the 31st Sutton Coldfield Scout Group’s May Fest, being held next to Farmer John’s Pub, Aldridge Road, Streetly.

There will be live music, dance, barbecue, bar, bouncy castle, face painting, stalls and all manner of fun and games for all the family – and best of all, it’s only a quid to get in with under 2s free!

Sorry for the late headsup on this one. All proceeds to the Scouts.

Some great stuff on there