Minutes of the May meeting of Brierley Hill Civic Society

Minutes of the meeting of Brierley Hill Civic Society held on Monday 18th May 2015 at St Michael’s Church commencing at 6pm.

Present

Joy Cooper, Stephen Dunn, John James, Betsy Lafferty, Tim Lee, Lorna Morrison, Maggie Norton, Jenny Sunter, Tim Sunter, Dennis Whittaker, Norma Whittaker.

Apologies

Pat Cobern, Rachel Harris, Zafar Islam, John Martin

Minutes of the previous meeting

The minutes of the previous meeting had been circulated and were agreed as a true record.

Correspondence

JS gave informed the meeting of the correspondence received:
* NCVO general election briefing on the impact of the recent election on voluntary organisations
* Civic Voice weekly newsletter including details of the work on war memorials
* Information on the Community Rights pilot
* Details of NCVO workshops for volunteers

SD asked about whether Civic Voice had a website that he and other members could refer to. JS confirmed that this was the case.

Treasurer’s Report

DW gave the treasurer’s report:
* Cash in hand £53.46
* Bank account £1323.97
* Less money held on behalf of SNOW -£985.75
* Total £391.68

Organisation Sub

It had been agreed at the last meeting that an ‘organisation sub’ should meet to plan the future direction and activities of the Society. SD, TL, LM, TS, and DW had subsequently met at the Bull & Bladder (venue purely to support local industry).

Key points from the meeting were:

  • Need to have a balance in the Society’s activites between celebrating the past, action in the present and influencing the future.
  • Potential speakers with a historic perspective could be on the topics of Round Oak, Marsh & Baxter, the history of brickmaking in the area. To determine what actions the Society could take to improve Brierley Hill engagement with Dudley MBC cabinet members would be a positive step.
  • Partnership working with the public, private and voluntary/community sectors has the potential to achieve shared goals in the town.

Key actions to follow up were:
* To extend the Brierley Hill in Bloom meeting on 3rd June to involve the organisation sub and Christmas Festival team would be a good forum to start to pull partners together.
* Brierley Hill Civic Society to consider its priorities for action at its next meeting (i.e. tonight)
* Establish relationship with BHCF as there did seem to be overlapping objectives
* The chase Dudley Archives re a visit to the new facility with a chance to view materials in the Brierley Hill collection.
* To establish a programme of speakers.
* To consider whether the Society can offer any help to make the council’s forums more effective.

TS reported that following this meeting he had made contact with the archives. The Society’s meeting on Monday 20th July would now take place at the archives and we would receive a tour and then the opportunity to look at Brierley Hill materials. There would be a pass through charge from the archives of £4 and a minimum total charge of £40. It was agreed that this should be publicised as far and wide as possible to ensure maximum attendance.

Future activities

Following on from the organisation sub meeting the Society had been asked to bring ideas for future activities for the Society. The following ideas were suggested:
* Continued engagement with NHR and DMBC to try and get some regeneration activity moving in the area.
* Presentation of a replica of the Gibbons/Jordan painting for display in the town centre. Andy Gray of DCVS had indicated an interest for it to be hung in the Civic Centre.
* Restoration of the Brierley Hill war memorials
* Resolution of the difficulties with access to and use of Lawyers Field (Friends of Marsh Park are leading on this). There was talk of whether the plaque commemorating the opening was still in the park.
* Litter picking events together with anti-graffitti activities. Questions arose about the best way to go about this and advice from DMBC should be sought. The litter strewn state of canals in the area was also highlighted.
* The introduction of weight limits on roads which are being used inappropriately by heavy vehicles, North Street for example.
* Replacement trees for those that once flourished in the High Street
* The renaming of Venture Way to something more appropriately reflecting the history of the town
* A ‘blue plaque’ scheme celebrating some of the achiements of the town
* A cultural regeneration programme to attract more visitors to the town centre. A brass band playing in Marsh Park was one suggestion put forward.
* Getting the publicly visible clocks in the town working – St Michael’s and The Moor Centre were mentioned.
It was suggested that the organisation sub on 3rd June could pick up some of these ideas and put meat on the bones (thought: is there a vegetarian equivalent for this phrase?)

Brierley Hill in Bloom

TS reported than the planters were now fixed on Venture Way; lamp post baskets were suggested for along the High Street and it was aimed to have these in place for the winter planting; the plants for the summer had been grown and it was planned to put them out early in June.

Brierley Hill Christmas Festival

TS had met with AG from DCVS. AG was keen to get involved as it was a potential project for the Civic Hall. He would be attending the meeting on 3rd June.

DMBC review of criteria for locally listed buildings

A spokesperson from the planning department had now agreed to come to the next meeting to talk through the implications of this. There were some concerns that the changing of the criteria might weaken the ability to protect historic buildings in the town.

Regeneration update including planning matters

DW updated the meeting on progress.
A date for further engagement with NHR and DMBC was awaited. At the previous meeting priorities of making a pedestrian link between the High Street and Merry Hill together with environmental improvements in the High Street had been identified. Indications had been given that funding may be available for the link but it was doubtful whether funds might be there for the High Street.
Intu were interested in development of the Daniels Land site for residential purposes whilst Rachel Harris had put forward the idea for a white water centre.
DW was also creating a planning database to keep track of proposed developments in the town. He gave an exhaustive list of live applications:
* Two applications for residential and offices adjacent to Red Peppers including the former Doug Holmes Taylors.
* The Dock and Iron in Delph Road was saved following objections to its demolition by the council as the building is on the Heritage Assetts Register. Instead the proposal has been amended to keep the pub and to use the car park as a van hire centre.
* 81 Church Street – the former Radio Shack building – application to demolish and build one dwelling.
* Housing proposals for the former RDF site. The environment agency has no objections subject to safeguards being put in place. They had also expressed they concern with respect to the site being suitable for a waste site.
* ASDA car park for a self service filling station. Members expressed their concern that this ran counter to the AAP for the area, would undermine the pedestrian link to the area and would not be appropriate to front on to the proposed public square.
* Arc Alloys building on Moor Street adjacent to Foxdale drive. Two applications had been submitted for residential but problems remained about access to the site due to the hump backed bridge.
* The Plough has a residential planning permission and was sold at auction for £57,000. Work is presently taking place on the site.
* The former Alma Pub has an application for five flats upstairs, three on the first floor and two on the second floor.
* The Cottage Spring in Mill Street has had an application to turn it into a vets passed.
* The former Black Country Stoves shop on High Street has been approved for a launderette.
* HVC supplies in Bull Street has had an application for five homes agreed. An earlier application for six homes had been rejected because of lack of parking facilities.
* The former Round Oak Pub had been approved for a home improvements store on the ground floor and one flat upstairs.
* Harts Hill bus station – adjacent to hazardous chemical plants had had an application for a supermakret withdrawn as well and an application for 45 homes withdrawn.

DW is creating a 3 year database of applications to enable further close monitoring.

Any Other Urgent Business

There was no other urgent business.

The meeting closed at 7.30pm.

1914: Brierley Hill soldiers describe the famous Christmas Truce

War memorial snow
Brierley Hill war memorial in the snow

These extracts from the County Express 100 years ago contain letters from Brierley Hill soldiers who were serving at the front in 1914 when the famous Christmas Truce took place. There is also an article which describes how much the town raised to send parcels to serving soldiers and where they were stationed.


Christmas Day
Peace in the Trenches

British and Germans Fraternise

Writing to his brother at Brettell Lane, Pt. A. Gill, 2nd Monmouth Regiment states:

“We spent Christmas Day in the trenches, and came out at night, so the mince pies and chocolate had a good innings.

“On Christmas Day the Germans got out of the trenches; we left ours afterwards, and meeting them halfway shook hands and gave them bully beef.

“The Germans do not get looked after like we do. The one to whom we were talking with his hands the way they hold rifle and said “English dam good!””

“Whilst they were out the Germans buried their dead, a good 200 of them, but I wonder if they would have allowed us the same privilege.

“We have all received a present from Princess Mary, consisting of a pint, tobacco, and fags.

“We have also had a Christmas pudding each, and they were fine.”

County Express 9th January 1915

 


 

A BROCKMOOR SOLDIER

Meets German Waiter from Birmingham
In Christmas Truce.

Pte William Hubble Has visited his home, 30 Cressett Lane, Brockmoor, convalescent after being eight weeks under hospital treatment suffering chiefly from frostbite and also from a shrapnel wound.

He was an under hand puddler, employed by the Hart’s Hill Iron and Steel Company when war broke out, and when men were asked for Lord Kitchener’s army he enlisted…his company becoming attached to the 1st South Staffordshires.

“We did enjoy ourselves on Christmas Day.

“Early in the morning a German came from the enemy’s trenches carrying a white flag.

“When he reached our trenches we blindfolded him so he could not see our positions, and then in English, he asked if we would like to have a drink with them.

“Some of our fellows readily said ‘yes,’ and the German replied ‘Meet us halfway; carry no arms. ‘

“So we left our rifles and trenches and met the Germans between our respective lines. We took some bully beef and exchanged this for cigars and cigarettes.

“They then brought two bottles of whiskey from their trench and we had a drink with them.

“One German told us that before the war he was a waiter in one of the big Birmingham hotels, and he said he wished he was back in Brum, and also that the Germans were ‘getting fed up with the war. ‘

“We made a football out of some old shirts and formed a side. We made goalposts with great coats from 20 to 30 aside took part in the match – English on the one side and Germans on the other.

“It was a draw, neither side scoring; in fact, you couldn’t shoot with the ‘ball ‘when you tried.”

Prior to the last season Private Hubble was a member of the Moor Lane Albion football Club, Brierley Hill.

“The truce” Private Hubble added, “lasted until 9 o’clock on the morning following, so that after having breakfast, we and the Germans were enemies again, shooting one another whenever the chance came.”

The officers, he said, looked sympathetically on the unofficial truce, but apart from a visit to the ‘playing ground‘ between the trenches, they took no part in it and remained in their dugouts nearly all the time…

County Express 06 Mar 1915


 

Wordsley’s Soldier’s Thanks

Peace on Christmas Day.

Pte. Adams, of the 3rd Worcesters, and formerly of Brettell Lane, states in a letter to a friend at Wordsley:-

“It is with great pleasure that I write to tell the parishioners of Wordsley that I received the Christmas card on Christmas morning. I cannot express the feelings which that day brought, but I am proud that there are people in Wordsley whose thoughts are for the men who are doing their best of the country’s sake. I was in the trenches on Christmas Day. There were six of us trying to get a warm from three pieces of wood we had alight in a bucket, when the Germans gave us a tune on a violin. Of course we gave them a cheer. We thought we should have a quiet day, although hold days are their fighting days; and we were right, for there was hardly a shot fired.”

County Express 09 Jan 1915


 

During the whole of the war effort local residents gave great support for the men in the services – and there are many letters throughout this time from soldiers expressing their gratitude for gifts received from the town.

This report of the 1916 town effort is interesting as it gives a glimpse of where soldiers from Brierley Hill were serving. It also gives an indication of the scale of the collecting which took place. £251 is the equivalent of £15,264 at today’s prices:

 

Report of Brierley Hill effort

The report, read by Mr Waldron, said the committee acknowledged with sincere and hearty thanks the assistance rendered by the ladies and gentlemen who voluntarily undertook work in connection with the various efforts for raising funds, and also packing and despatching the parcels to their destinations.

Some 735 parcels were forwarded to the addresses sent in to the committee by Mr T Williams, who undertook to complete the list of men serving with HM forces.

Every effort was made by means of circulars, advertisements in local papers, and by personal applications to get a complete list, and the committee could safely say that if any name has been missed it was entirely the fault of those who neglected to send in the names and addresses required.

The parcels were dispatched as follows:

Mesopotamia 8

India 12

HM Naval Forces 17,

Egypt 12

France and Belgium 370

Salonika 20

England, Scotland and Wales 267

Ireland 29

Some 50 parcels were returned by the postal authorities, as persons to whom they were sent could not be traced, and the parcels were readdressed and forwarded.

About 45 new parcels and a few pipes, packets of tobacco, cigarettes and chocolate still remains to be disposed of.

The financial statements showed the amount collected and subscribed this year was £251 4 s 10d.

… This was very gratifying and spoke volumes for the goodwill and generosity of the bridal public, and been fused the answer of the workers.

County Express 16 April 1917

 

1983 poem by A. Billingham on the closure of Round Oak #NationalPoetryDay

Round Oak Steelworks
Images courtesy of 68Cardon

In the late seventies and early eighties Brierley Hill witnessed the collapse of its local industries. With Marsh & Baxter, Round Oak, Baldwins and others – factories which had stood for over a hundred years – disappearing it was a time of terrible change. As the industry disappeared the social networks associated with them went too.

This poem, by A. Billingham, appeared in the Black Country Bugle in January 1983. I think it captures the mood of the time very well.

Th’Earl’s – Gone West
By A. Billingham

At six an two, an then at ten
Yoe’d ’ear et blow ter tell the men,
Ess time ter change the shift again
Yoe woe ’ear it no moower.

Ah’m on about th’Earl’s bull, yoe know
Et yewsta goo, cum rain, cum snow,
An them fiery ingots orl aglow
Yoe woe see them no moower.

Ef yoe goo by now, the gaetes am shit
On a notice, R.I.P. they’ve put,
Tried ’ard they have ter keep et, but
They woe open them no moower.

Iss like a graveyard, quiet an’ still
Ther’s no sparks a flyin’ in the mill,
Iss another piece uv Bri’ley ’Ill
As woe be used no moower.

Stacks a stonden, tall en proud
Spew forth a red oxide cloude,
Soon ter be covered in a rusting shroud
Fer they woe smoke no moower.

The powers that be, ’ow con they sleep
Orl them men, et meks yer weep,
Chock the lot on the scrap-heap
We doe want them no moower.

An now et’s gone wi’ great regret
Ter get Macgregor out uv debt,
Er monewment to toil an’ sweat
Et woe cum back now moower.

This famous town once Industry’s lap
Like the muffler en cloth cap,
Slowly being rubbed right off the map
Et woe be known no moower.

Baldwin’s en Marsh en Baxters am done
Woolworths the co-ope, and Boots ’ave gone,
The shaps am close, one by one
Never to cum back no moower.

Bri’ley ill’s lost most uv it’s pride, alas
But at least we’ver gorrer touch of class,
We’ve still got Royal Brierley Glass
That wull goo on some moower.

Men round ’eer am bred ter werk
Evolved through tryanny, toil an murk,
Ess in their blood, the never shirk
Why cor they work some moower.

Tossed on the slag heap, ter fall apart
Orl on the dole, left in the cart,
A shocken crime, et breaks yer eart
Et ay our world no moower.

Round Oak Steelworks RIP

The Beggar who connects Brierley Hill, Jane Austin and Charles Dickens #NationalPoetryDay

The Beggars Petition

As it’s National Poetry Day I’ve been looking at some poems which are Brierley Hill related. It’s fascinating stuff and there’s more out there than you’d expect. Perhaps the most famous of Brierley Hill’s poems was penned in the eighteenth century by Thomas Moss who was the first vicar of St Michael’s.

The Beggar’s Petition was so famous that it is even mentioned by Jane Austin (Northanger Abbey) and Charles Dickens (Nicholas Nickleby) in their works as explained by the Black Country Bugle.

Here is the poem in full:

PITY the sorrows of a poor old man!
  Whose trembling limbs have borne him to your door,
Whose days are dwindled to the shortest span,
  O, give relief, and Heaven will bless your store.

These tattered clothes my poverty bespeak,
  These hoary locks proclaim my lengthened years;
And many a furrow in my grief-worn cheek
  Has been the channel to a stream of tears.
 
Yon house, erected on the rising ground,
  With tempting aspect drew me from my road,  
For plenty there a residence has found,
  And grandeur a magnificent abode.
 
(Hard is the fate of the infirm and poor!)
  Here craving for a morsel of their bread,
A pampered menial drove me from the door,
  To seek a shelter in the humble shed.

O, take me to your hospitable dome,
  Keen blows the wind, and piercing is the cold!
Short is my passage to the friendly tomb,
  For I am poor and miserably old.
       
Should I reveal the source of every grief,
  If soft humanity e’er touched your breast,
Your hands would not withhold the kind relief,
  And tears of pity could not be repressed.
 
Heaven sends misfortunes,—why should we repine?
  ’T is Heaven has brought me to the state you see:
And your condition may be soon like mine,
  The child of sorrow and of misery.

A little farm was my paternal lot,
  Then, like the lark, I sprightly hailed the morn;
But ah! oppression forced me from my cot;
  My cattle died, and blighted was my corn.
 
My daughter,—once the comfort of my age!
  Lured by a villain from her native home,
Is cast, abandoned, on the world’s wild stage,
  And doomed in scanty poverty to roam.

My tender wife,—sweet soother of my care!—
  Struck with sad anguish at the stern decree,
Fell,—lingering fell, a victim to despair,
  And left the world to wretchedness and me.
        
 Pity the sorrows of a poor old man!
  Whose trembling limbs have born him to your door,
Whose days are dwindled to the shortest span,
  O, give relief, and Heaven will bless your store.

War Memorial preservation – Wordsley School offers to raise funds.

https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2923/14539347728_e1c572e287_z.jpg

It’s good to see some work has been done to replace the bayonet on Brierley Hill war memorial as well as painting some of the rails adjacent to it.

There’s more good news too.

Recently Wordlsey School indicated that they would like to adopt the memorial as their commemorative project for the Great War. One idea is that their students could raise money to restore it over the next four years whilst the commemorations are taking place across the country.

Two weeks ago we had a meeting with the council’s conservation officer at the Memorial.

The figure of a soldier on top of the memorial is looking tired to say the least. This was made from Sicilian Marble and has struggled to stand the test of time. It is, after all, located in one of the most exposed positions in Brierley Hill.

Of the four scenes depicted beneath the figure, one on each side of the memorial, three are in fairly good condition. But the one depicting the sinking of the Arethusa and the rescue of German sailors is in very poor condition. If you didn’t know what the scene was supposed to be you’d never guess.

All of which resulted in a fascinating discussion about what ‘conservation’ and ‘restoration’ actually meant.

Is it best, for example, to commission a copy of the original panel as a replacement and store the original elsewhere? Or is it better to coat the panel with a chemical to prevent further deterioration? Or should we leave it to weather with time and produce interpretive materials instead?

And then…who is it who should decide?

In the end we thought it would be best to meet in September to determine a way forward and perhaps to hold a town meeting. Watch this space.

On the tiles @thebathams – and the remarkable Gibbons family of Brierley Hill

If you take time and look there’s lots of outstanding art in Brierley Hill. You just have to look for it…and at what better place than the Bull and Bladder in Delph Road.

Of course there’s lots of things to appreciate about the Bull and Bladder – the best value for money food in the West Midlands and the most delicious beer to name just too.

It was after a few of those pints that I was, so as to say, in the mood to stare. And I saw these tiles.

IMG_4133

The tiles line the main corridor and reminded me of some I’d seen somewhere else in Brierley Hill – at the old Brierley Hill Technical Institute and Library in Moor Street.

These are the green dado tiles which adorn the entrance hall and stairway:

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and

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There’s other pleasing tile work there too. For example:

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I thought I found out more about these tiles and came across details of a remarkable family who lived in Brierley Hill and area at the turn of the last century.

The tiles in the Technical School were gifted to the building by Francis Gibbons, of Gibbons, Hinton and Co who were local tile manufacturers (they seem to have been based at Buckpool). One of Francis Gibbons brothers, Arthur Gibbons, had designed some of the terracotta artwork on the outside of the building. Here is his work above the doorway to the library.

Technical-Institue-6

and similar work at the Technical Institute entranced:

Technical-Institute-9

Now I’d come across Arthur Gibbons before. He was the head of Brockmoor Schools during the First World War and sent letters he had received from his former pupils who were serving to the County Express, hence preserving for posterity, in their own words, the experiences of local soldiers.

But a bit more digging uncovered even more about the remarkable Gibbons family.

Born in Cheltenham five members of the family moved to the Brierley Hill area and developed an extraordinary record in arts and education from which the town greatly benefitted:

  • One, a sister, was a head teacher of a school in Pensnett, went on to marry the chairman of the board of education and then became the mistress of the first Board School girls’ department in the district.
  • A second sister was for 20 years the headmistress of Bent Street Girls’ School and wrote frequently for magazines which circulated through the whole of Great Britain.
  • Owen Gibbons was an artist who studied at South Kensington and won national prizes for his art work, before becoming the curator of the Royal Architectural Museum in London and later the headmaster of Coalbrookdale School. He was also at the forefront of the establishment of Wordsley Art School and was one of the teachers of Fred Carder of international glass fame. In 1885 he established with his brother in law Mr W. J. Hinton his art tile factory at Buckpool in partnership with his brother Francis.
  • Francis Gibbons won a scholarship at South Kensington Royal College of Art and then became art director at Doulton’s Royal Pottery at Lambeth where he designed many of their world renowned ceramic products. When he established the tile works at Brockmoor he introduced many improvements in the decorative and mechanical production of tiles. Francis was also an expert in oil and water colour painting and had exhibited at the Roayl Academy.
  • Arthur Gibbons, after serving in the Moor Street School as class master was appointed to be headmaster of Brockmoor School when it was first built and held that post for more than 30 years whilst also becoming the first principal of the new art school in Brierley Hill.

I think that is an extraordinary record for a local family. Something we should be admiring and celebrating as residents of Brierley Hill.

There’s a sad side to this story too. I realised that I’d blogged before about Francis Gibbons painting. He painted this as a tribute to Sgt William Jordan, a Brockmoor Solidier who lost his life during the first world war, and presented it to the town in July 1917. Francis died on 4th October 1918 so this must have been one of his last works.

FrancisGibbonsArtwork

The painting has been lost whilst in the care of Dudley Council.

So a fantastic and pleasurable journey into local art and history. All courtesy of a few pints at the Bathams.

Post Script – more examples of Gibbons work

Browsing the web I came across some more images of the Gibbons family work – and I can’t help but to be impressed with the quality.

Here is an Owen Gibbons fireplace:

OwenGibbonsFirePlace

and here are example of some of the other tiles he designed:

OwenGibbonsTileDesign

OwenGibbonsTileDesign2

OwenGibbons/TileDesign3

Finally, here are some further examples of the work produced by Gibbons, Hinton and Co at their Brierley Hill factory:

GibbonsHinttonTilec1905

$_57

GibbonsHintonTileGoAntiques<br /><br />

The legislative framework protecting Brierley Hill’s historic buildings.

TheOldCrown

In and around Brierley Hill we have 3 conservation areas, 2 scheduled ancient monuments, 10 grade II listed buildings and 25 locally listed buildings. It is important that we protect and preserve these. I wonder can you name them?

I couldn’t, although I had a good guess at some of them: St Michael’s Church, the Old Technical School and Library in Moor Street and I was also aware that the pair of shops (empty at the moment) next to St Mary’s Catholic Church on High Street were also listed.

The Brierley Hill Civic Society is concerned that the best of our heritage should be preserved.

But what to do?

To answer that question the Society invited Jayne Pilkington, Borough Conservation officer, to its meeting held in June 2014.

The legislative framework

Jayne commenced her talk with a run through the legislative framework to protect and conserve our heritage. This included:

glasscone
The Red House Glass Cone is a scheduled ancient monument

stmichaels
St Michael’s church is one of Brierley Hill’s Grade II listed buildings

  • the local list of buildings and conservation areas.

littledevils
The ‘Little Devils’ on Moor Street is locally listed because of its connections to historic local industry

To be placed on the statutory list, which were established by the Town and Country Planning Acts of 1945 and 1947 a building has to be of architectural interest, or historic interest (even so there has to be some quality of inteest in the physical fabric of the building itself to justify listing).

Being listed gives some protection to the building. You can’t just do what you want with it…you have to ask permission. English Heritage guidelines state:

“Listing does not freeze a building in time, it simply means that listed building consent must be applied for in order to make any changes to that building which might affect its special interest. Listed buildings can be altered, extended and sometimes even demolished within government planning guidance. The local authority uses listed building consent to make decisions that balance the site’s historic significance against other issues such as its function, condition or viability.”

Problems with the act

The problem is that the act assumes that all buildings dating from earlier than 1840 will qualify for listing. This arbritrary date presents problems for those towns – such as Brierley Hill – which developed during the industrial revolution.

This is where local listing and conservation areas come in. Local authorities are able to produce a local list of buildings it considers worthy of preservation, but which don’t quite make it to listed status’. The council’s website explains:

“Although controls are not as strict as those related to the statutory list the Council is committed to resisting proposals to demolish or adversely alter Locally Listed Buildings.”

Conservation areas are declared following a ’character appraisal of an area. You can read about how these are designated by clicking here.

In conservation areas the local authority you will need planning permission for:

  • changes to external features like doors and windows
  • satellite dishes
  • alterations to roofs
  • the demolition and erection of garden walls
  • building new structures or extensions
  • demolishing buildings.

So how does this affect Brierley Hill?

In Dudley borough

In Dudley borough there are:

Actually, Jayne didn’t make that last point. I did.

It concerns me that for all the legislation to protect buildings there still needs to be resources locally to do the enforcement. Dudley’s team is now one. I wonder if this is another hidden cutback we will come to regreat by the time it is too late.

On the following pages you will find more information about Brierley Hill’s buildings – at least one of which has now disappeared.

RedLion
The Red Lion is part of Brierley Hill’s conservation area and is therefore afforded some protection

The day Lord Ednam unveiled Brierley Hill war memorial

Opening ceremony
The unveiling of Brierley Hill war memorial, 12th November 1921

The following article is from the County Express 19th November 1921 and describes the unveiling ceremony of Brierley Hill war memorial. The article includes a list of those commemorated on the memorial.

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

The photo, which has had to be cropped for the web in the article above, is shown below:

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Shadows and silhouettes – the grave art of St Michaels churchyard, Brierley Hill

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What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare

W. H. Davies

It was a beautiful evening. Arriving early at St Michael’s for a Community First meeting gave me an opportunity to admire the shadows, silhouettes, symmetries and artistic brilliance contained in the churchyard.

There’s almost nothing on grave artists in general on that source of infinite knowledge, Google. It seems to me that the work of the stone masons was something exceptional as these pictures illustrate.

Symmetry

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Silhouettes

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Shadows

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Artwork

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Brierley Hill war memorial names: U to Z

Underhill, Job
– Saturday, July 01, 1916
Cemetery or memorial: Thiepval Memorial

Service number: 16258
Regiment: South Staffordshire Regiment
Battalion: 1st Battalion

  • Click on name for more information including service records and news cuttings where available.
  • Click on the name of the cemetery or memorial for more information about locations and actions.

If any details of the above are incorrect, or if you have further information about this person, please get in touch at: blog@brierleyhill.org.


Walsh, Rowland Frederick Burnell
– Tuesday, July 23, 1918
Cemetery or memorial: Marfaux British Cemetery

Service number: 241608
Regiment: Gordon Highlanders
Battalion: 6th

Son of Roland and Martha Walsh, of 116, John St., Round Oak, Brierley Hill, Staffs

  • Click on the name of the cemetery or memorial for more information about locations and actions.

If any details of the above are incorrect, or if you have further information about this person, please get in touch at: blog@brierleyhill.org.


Walters, James Henry
– Tuesday, October 08, 1918
Cemetery or memorial: Forenville Military Cemetery

Service number: 44553
Regiment: Suffolk Regiment
Battalion: 2nd

Son of Albert James and Alice Walters, of 1 19, Bank Street, Brierley Hill, Staffs

  • Click on the name of the cemetery or memorial for more information about locations and actions.

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Warren, William Edward
– Thursday, December 28, 1916
Cemetery or memorial: Wimereux Communcal cemetery

Service number: 37123
Regiment: Gloucestershire
Battalion: 8th

Son of Percy and Kate Warren, of Brierley Hill, Staffs.

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Westwood, George
– Monday, January 21, 1918
Cemetery or memorial: Fifteen Ravine British Cemetery, Villers-Plouich

Service number: 21802
Regiment: Gloucestershire
Battalion: 8th

Son of Mr. And Mrs. H. Westwood, of Moor St., Brierley Hill, Staffs.

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Whittaker, Jesse Hubert
– Saturday, November 07, 1914
Cemetery or memorial: Arras Memorial

Service number: 9053
Regiment: South Staffordshire Regiment
Battalion: 1st Battalion

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Whittaker, Herbert
– Thursday, March 21, 1918
Cemetery or memorial: Arras Memorial

Service number: 202452
Regiment: Worcestershire Regiment
Battalion: 10th

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Willetts, William
– Friday, January 28, 1916
Cemetery or memorial: Cerisy-Gailly Military Cemetery

Service number: 79260
Regiment: Royal Engineers
Battalion: 184th Tunnelling Coy

Son of William Willetts, of 9, Moor Lane, Brierley Hill, Staffs.

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Williams, Jacob
– Tuesday, December 22, 1914
Cemetery or memorial: Le Touret Memorial, Pas de Calais

Service number: 9899
Regiment: Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders
Battalion: 1st Battalion

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Wood , Albert Edward
– Thursday, October 04, 1917
Cemetery or memorial: Tyne Cot Memorial

Service number: 16517
Regiment: South Staffordshire Regiment
Battalion: 7th

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Worton, Arthur
– Saturday, April 06, 1918
Cemetery or memorial: Brierley Hill (St Michael) Churchyard

Service number: 202198
Regiment: South Staffordshire Regiment
Battalion: 2/5th (T.F.)

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Worton, Fred
– Wednesday, October 15, 1919
Cemetery or memorial: Brierley Hill (St Michael) Churchyard

Service number: 200620
Regiment: South Staffordshire Regiment
Battalion: 5th

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Worton, Edward Victor
– Sunday, December 12, 1915
Cemetery or memorial: Gallipoli, Canakkale, Turkey

Service number: 19302
Regiment: Worcestershire Regiment
Battalion: 4th

Husband of Sarah Ann Worton, of 28, Silver St., Brierley Hill, Staffs.

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