Walking for Heritage; The Final Post

The last part of the Walking for Heritage in Digbeth route takes you from the Warwick Bar Stop Lock back up to Curzon Street. Simply follow the towpath around to the right and go under the railway bridge (Ashted Tunnel). You are now at the back of the Gun Barrel Proof House and the railway tracks go up to Moor Street, New Street and Snow Hill Stations.

  

...And that, is the last Walking for Heritage post! I hope you've enjoyed reading them, and maybe explored the area a bit. I learnt some new things whilst researching these posts and there are parts of Digbeth I'd never been before. Leaflets for the walk can be downloaded from the Thinktank blog, and I'm sure you can get physical ones from Thinktank too.

Walking for Heritage; Warwick Barr Stop Lock

As you walk up Heath Mill Lane, you will cross a bridge that takes you over the canal. On the right hand side there is a sign indicating the canal, and using my brilliant map, you should find yourself on the towpath! Go under the bridge, and this will take you along the rest of the route.

Warwick Barr is part of a conservation area in Digbeth. It can be found on the canal network close to the rear of the gun barrel proof house (when I was walking this route I heard some explosions and they were quite scary – took me a while to realise it was the proof house!).

This was once the boundary between two canal networks, the Birmingham Canal Network and what became the Grand Union Canal. It was built to stop each canal company stealing water from the others’ canal, much like the guillotine lock in King’s Norton. Warwick Bar lock is now permanently chained open as the Canals are all one network.

Walking for Heritage; More Toilets

...and a viaduct with pieces missing!

Thus post contains two elements, neither of which are on the actual walk guide, but are on the route. I have included them as points of interest as you will see them as you walk the route!


More Toilets
This time, a Victorian public urinal! Gosh I spoil you all don’t I?!

Located on the corner of Great Barr St and Heath Mill Lane, Digbeth, this structure has been closed off from the public. I only know about it and what it is because when I was at college in an attempt to become a plumber, we had a full scale discussion about it!

As far as I know, the inside is just a metal wall which gents can pee against, and some poor Victorian child probably had the job of cleaning it. It is quite a fine metal structure and the detail on the external panels is very decorative. I think it is cast iron. 

Partial Viaduct

This is quite something. This wall, as seen on Heath Mill Lane (if walking from Deritend back towards Eastside), doesn’t look like much. It’s only a wall, right?

Wrong.

Once you step onto the towpath and look back up at it, you will see that it is part of a huge brick built structure, a bridge, that goes across the canal. There are no signs to tell you anything about this, but a look on my old mate Google Earth at this area seems to suggest that this was built for use as a railway bridge! I am not sure if it was ever used to carry tracks through this area. It seems quite strange to knock out the archways over the road sections if it was just built to look pretty.

It is quite a peculiar thing to notice once you know that it isn’t just another really high brick wall! You can read more about them both here.

Walking for Heritage; Heath Mill Lane

The Walking for Heritage route now takes you from Deritend High Street at the Old Crown, down Heath Mill Lane towards Fazeley Street and the canal.

As the name suggests, there was once a corn grinding mill on this lane, powered by the water from the River Rea. I cannot find much information about this mill, though I did find out that it was unusual as it had two mill wheels which were in tandem.

One of the original Free Libraries of Birmingham is also situated on Heath Mill Lane, opposite the Old Crown.

Other points of interest down this road is the wall made of crushed cars, some Victorian urinals (which are the focus of the next post!) and also St Basils church.

Walking for Heritage; The Old Crown

This is stop 08 on the Walking for Heritage route. It is near the Custard Factory and the old Lloyd’s Bank – it is in fact over the road from the latter, on the corner of Heath Mill Lane/High Street Deritend.

A real gem, this! I love it, I love walking past it, I love looking at it!

The Old Crown is indeed very old – it dates back to the 1300s but most of it is actually 16^th century in age. It was possibly built for intended use as a guildhall, which would make it the first school in Birmingham. It is white and black timber framed and the top floor overhangs the bottom. There is a courtyard (beer garden!) to the rear and it looks almost like old stables – I was going to ask at the bar but I chickened out. Given the location, it is a strange building but then I suppose Birmingham grew around it, not the other way around!

I found an architects drawing whilst researching this blog post. It’s really interesting to see how much it hasn’t changed! There are also some old photos and information here.

The Old Crown has upstairs rooms and is also a B&B – I can’t seem to get on the website at the moment but when I can I’ll update this post.

When I was doing the walk, I went inside for a quick look. It feels like a proper pub - low ceilings, big oak tables, fires. There are pictures on the walls and the tables have key dates from history burnt into them.

Walking for Heritage; Lloyd's Bank

This blog post follows on from the previous WfH post about the Custard Factory. This next location is pretty much in the same place – it is now a music shop that you walk past when entering the Custard Factory site!

Lloyd’s bank goes back in time to 1765 and has its roots in Birmingham. You can read more about it here.

When I was doing the walk I actually forgot about it and had to go back! As such, the pictures I took were not very good, but fortunately some kind people of the Flickr-verse have loads, so here they are.

Walking for Heritage; The Custard Factory

The Custard Factory is the next location on the Walking for Heritage route. To get here, continue walking down Digbeth High Street, away from the city centre. The Custard Factory will be on your left. This blog follows on from the previous WfH post.

The Custard Factory is sometimes called the Devonshire Works, and was built in 1902 as a… custard factory! This was the home of Alfred Bird and his eggless custard powder. This grand building is now a complex of offices, galleries, independent shops and I believe a TV studio. It is also the home of my favourite bead shop!

Bird’s also produced baking powder and blancmange, and their custard powder is still used today.

The Custard Factory is the place to be for creative, arty types. The atmosphere there is very chilled out; people can wonder around, walk through it, browse the shops and get a bite to eat. The building exterior has been preserved (the letter box still exists in the wall!) and it is very grand and imposing.

The exterior of the Custard Factory, taken from an open top buz! 

Walking for Heritage; Public Toilets!

I have included these on the blog purely as an attempt to show off.

Behind this billboard on the way down Digbeth High Street towards the Custard Factory, is an old block of public toilets! I only know this because it was on the telly a while ago on a programme called Grime Busters (I think, I may be wrong!) and some poor council guy had to go in wearing full PPE and breathing equipment to try and clear up all the pigeon poo!

The only hint at this being a toilet block is around the side (facing the High St) – the blue tiled wall gives it away.

The remains of these toilets can be seen on Digbeth High Street, as you walk from the HMV Institute towards the Custard Factory. You are now entering Deritend, possibly the oldest part of Birmingham.

Walking for Heritage; HMV Institute

The next stop on the route is the HMV Institute, just down the high street from the police station. Walk away from the city centre and you’ll see it!

The HMV Institute is now a music venue (and quite a good one at that), but it was originally built to be a Methodist chapel in the early 1900s.

The exterior of the building is very ornate – red brick and stone work – and there are some carved stone figures, all of which are different. More can be read on the Wiki page.

You can read more about Digbeth here. This is stop 5 of the Walking for Heritage route.

Walking for Heritage; Digbeth Police Station

This blog posts continues the Walking for Heritage route. The previous post can be read here. 

From the Typhoo Tea Factory, follow the route of the walk (Fazeley St, New Canal St, Meriden St, Coventry St, Allison St, Digbeth High Street]. The police station is on the corner on your left. You will also pass a second ‘art house’ on the way.

The Digbeth police station is a grand building, designed by Henry Stilgoe (the City Surveyor) in 1911. I can’t find much more information about its history, which is a shame. If anyone knows of any then do let me know! This police station is still in use today.

As I was walking down Allison St, I saw the police station (pretty awesomely) reflected in the windows of the building opposite! 

One more pic 

Walking For Heritage; Typhoo Tea Factory

From the Art House, cross the road to the bridge. The Typhoo Factory is just across the water.

I had no idea Typhoo originated in Birmingham. At all. Some digging around on Ye Olde Interwebs has told me otherwise, and their website is quite a good source of information!

The Typhoo Factory is now empty, but you get a clear view of it whilst on the WfH walk route at the corner of Andover St/Fazeley St. Cross the road to get a better view. This web page has a picture of the Birmingham factory in 1926.

I’m not sure if there is a way to get closer to the building – this is still a very industrial working area. The Typhoo website has quite a lot of detail regarding the origins of this brand!

Walking for Heritage; Art House

This is not on the Walking for Heritage map, but it is on the route! I have included it as it is eye catching and pretty (and deserves a mention).

From the Proof House, follow the route. The Art House is on the right.

This arty house is located on the corner of Fazeley Street and Andover Street. I have included it on the WfH series of posts as it is quite eye catching and gives a hint at the creative hub that is Digbeth.

I don't know much about it (who, when, why etc.) but I wanted to include it as an extra thing to see!

Walking for Heritage; Gun Barrel Proof House

This blog post follows on from the previous Walking for Heritage post.

The second stop on the walking route is the Gun Barrel Proof House, which is located on Banbury Street. From Curzon Street Station follow the route and it will take you right there. Unfortunately you cannot actually enter the grounds of the Proof House – there is some wonderful architecture here and I would love to walk around and get pictures, but alas it is not to be. You can catch a glimpse of the Proof House from the road, behind two sets of gates – this is a working Proof House and I expect they don’t want any accidents! You can also get quite a good view of the Proof House if you are on the train to Lichfield. 

The Birmingham Proof House was established in 1813, at the request of the Birmingham Gun Trade, by an act of Parliament. The job of the workers here is to ensure that guns operate safely, without failure. There is a lot more information freely available on the interwebs about the actual process of proofing. As an aside, the re-enactment unit that I used to be part of had the field cannon proofed here.

You can go on tours around the Proof House – there is an internal museum – but these need to be booked in advance. You can find out more on their website.

You can read more information here and here.

Walking For Heritage; Curzon Street Station

This post follows on from the first Walking for Heritage post.

The First Stop – Curzon Street Station

From Millenium Point (at the Science Park), walk away from it towards Digbeth. Curzon Street Station is on the left.

Curzon Street Station is a fine piece of stonework, it really is beautiful. A few years ago, before it was boarded up, you could see the old hand pulled signal change levers on the top floor! Curzon Street stands quite proud against a backdrop of investment and change for the City – to one side there is Millenium Point and Thinktank, to the other the start of Digbeth as well as the Bullring. To the front and sides is a lot of building work as the new Eastside Park is being developed. To the back is wasteland – presumably the remains of the old platforms and goods yard, but it is now being used as a storage facility, car park and skate park!

Curzon Street was the original London-Birmingham terminus and opened in 1838. It went through a period of change as it went from being a passenger terminal to a goods terminal, and then it was wholly replaced by New Street Station in 1854. There is a plaque on the front wall near the door that commemorates the anniversary of the first arrival of a train from London.

With the proposed HS2 line due to head this way, Curzon Street could well be once again open for business, as the HS2 London-Birmingham link. I believe the plans are to incorporate the current building into the new one and to also extend the line to Moor Street Station (demolishing Park Street Graveyard on its’ way). I was also told the other day that an industrial estate in Nechalls (down near Dollman Street) would also be demolished, as that is where the tracks are due to be laid.

As a first stop for the Heritage Walk, it is quite a grand start and sets you up wondering what else there is to see in the surrounding area.

Walking for Heritage in Digbeth

This will become a series of posts based on a walk that I did recently, which follows a route devised by Thinktank and some young Birmingham citizens. It is called Walking for Heritage and takes the walker around parts of Digbeth that are not usually explored, with a view to showcasing the industrial past of the City. When I walked the route I stopped at extra locations and took photographs; I shall give these their own blog post under the same umbrella heading as it is all interesting! The walk took me about an hour and a half – I kept stopping – and is mostly on footpaths (there is a stretch along the canal, but the towpath is paved) so it is suitable for all users. Digbeth is very much still a hub of activity! Be aware of cars, buses, lorries and forklift trucks.

The route can be viewed here on Google Maps. Leaflets are due to be produced soon, but if you go to the Thinktank blog you can view a .pdf of the route.

The Starting Place – Thinktank at Millenium Point.

Currently obscured by fences due to the construction of the Eastside City Park, Millenium Point is the starting location for this walk. The walk has a route, and is ‘circular’, so you can walk it either way. I started at the start and followed the route, but I expect it’ll be equally as good if done in reverse.

image taken from the Thinktank blog