William Dargue  A History of BIRMINGHAM Places & Placenames from A to Y

Moseley - Laburnum Grove

B13 - Grid reference SP078833

Laburnum Grove - A History

by Brendan Patchell

1405 St. Mary's Row and the Church

 

In 1405 the residents of Moseley obtained a licence for their own chapel. Completion of the first small building is of uncertain date; a chaplain was recorded in 1446.

 

The tower was begun in 1513 but long unfinished. 48 loads of dressed stone from Bromsgrove Old Parsonage were used in it, so the worn blocks may be 700 years old.

 

 

The tower was the village refuge, defensible against attack - see original slit windows. The buttresses and decorated windows are later. The clock was restored recently; it has adorned the tower since 1857.

 

 

1732 A view of Birmingham from Moseley and the South West

 

 

1840 Tithe Map

This shows the railway but no houses or Moseley station. The Grove is shown as “Part Upper Dunwells”
This shows the railway but no houses or Moseley station. The Grove is shown as “Part Upper Dunwells”

1840 Birmingham to Bromsgrove and Gloucester Railway

This building of a railway line from Birmingham to Gloucester was authorised by Act of Parliament in 1836. The line was opened in sections starting with a 31 miles long stretch from the Company workshops at Bromsgrove to Cheltenham on 24th June 1840.


On the way out of Birmingham there were stations at Brighton Road, Moseley (opened by the Midland Railway in 1867), Kings Heath (called Moseley until 1867) and Hazelwell (opened 1867). All four of these stations closed 27th November 1946.

 

1847 Parish map South East

 

 

Window Tax 1696-1851

Many houses of this period avoided windows due to window tax. In 1696 in the reign of William III another form of taxation came into force this was known as the "Window Tax" and would last until 1851.


In 1696 there was a financial crisis created by a growing inflation caused by the many conflicts both in Ireland and on the continent. One of the forms of taxation created to help pay the debt was known as the "Window Tax".


By 1700 reforms had taken place by slashing taxes, auditing the accounts showing irregularities, and finally the nine-year war had come to an end in 1697, but the "Window Tax" would stay for another fifty one years.


The tax would be paid on a house of more than six windows. Unfortunately none of these records appeared to have survived, one way for a person to by pass the tax was to brick up one or two windows over the stated six, even today on some of the older houses the bricked up windows are still there.


In 1792 houses with 7-9 windows had to pay a tax of 2 shillings, and those people with property containing 10-19 windows would pay a tax of 4 shillings.


In 1825 the number of widows taxable went from six to eight windows. The Window Tax would be replaced in 1851 with a tax called House Duty.

 

 

1857 Henry Blood’s Map “Birmingham and its Environs” 1857

This appears to show the railway, built in 1840, but no houses on Laburnum Grove.
This appears to show the railway, built in 1840, but no houses on Laburnum Grove.

 

 

1867 Moseley Station opened.

Woodbridge Road, and bridge, site of Moseley Station

 

Moseley station was added to the Birmingham to Worcester railway, now Midland Railway, in 1867. The existing station in Kings Heath, called Moseley, was renamed Kings Heath. Overgrown ramps and platform blocks are still just definable. At one time 30 trains a day stopped there.

 

A timber bridge took Blayney Street over the railway, and gave it the present name; it was replaced in 1894 by the brick structure. The Blayney family owned the land and Woodbridge Road was originally called Blayney Road. Woodbridge Road and Trafalgar Road were sporadically built up from the 1850's.

 

1868

A view of Moseley village in 1870
A view of Moseley village in 1870

 

 

The 1868 entry for Moseley in Kelly's Directory reads:

 

"Moseley is a village two and a half miles south from Birmingham and three and a half miles north from Kings Norton, on the high road to Evesham; in the western division of the county of Worcestershire, union and parish of Kings Norton......The village is pleasant and possesses fine scenery .... ...the population in 1861 was 1491 ...... omnibuses to Birmingham from the Fighting Cocks ten times a day"

 

 

 

Trafalgar pub and other buildings

The Trafalgar Inn, now the Patrick Kavagnah dates from1875. It was backed by a large skating rink, which has been demolished. Caroline Place is c.1860. The Police Station was opened c.1900, being built off-street for lack of frontage sites. Beyond it, amid large gardens, was the Arnold School, one of Moseley's many private seats of learning. Mount Street is the back lane that separates the gardens of Alcester and Trafalgar Roads.

 

1884

Birmingham's first steam tramway to Witton opened in December 1882, followed by a route to Moseley Village in 1884.
The vicar was so appalled he started the "Anti-Steam Tram Nuisance Society".

 

1890 Moseley Station

“There is no more prettier station or more picturesque situated than that which was opened at Moseley about seventeen years ago… “. This would make the station 1873 rather than 1876.
“There is no more prettier station or more picturesque situated than that which was opened at Moseley about seventeen years ago… “. This would make the station 1873 rather than 1876.

1895

Moseley Village in 1895
Moseley Village in 1895

 

 

1899 The “Fighting Cocks” pub is opened, the post office in 1900

 

 

1909

A map of 1909 shows Laburnum Grove and station.
A map of 1909 shows Laburnum Grove and station.

 

 

1910

This picture shows the station in use in 1910. You can see number 11 and 13 on the right hand side, the Church in the background.
This picture shows the station in use in 1910. You can see number 11 and 13 on the right hand side, the Church in the background.

 

 

1911 Moseley becomes a district of Birmingham.

 

 

1916

 

 

Wake Green Road 1935
Wake Green Road 1935

 

 

1946 Moseley Station demolished

 

 

 

 

The station was closed down during the war, in 1941, never reopened and was demolished 27th November 1946.

 

 

1975 Refurbishment

Laburnum Grove was refurbished in 1975. The distinctive path and fencing was part of this refurbishment project.

 

References and Links

References

"The Birmingham Gloucester Line" by Colin Maggs, Line One Publishing Limited, 1986, ISBN 0 907036 10 4. This book provides a history of the line, many historic photographs and good track plans. Recommended.


"The Birmingham and Gloucester Railway" by P.J. Long and The Reverend W.V. Awdry, Alan Sutton Publishing, 1987, ISBN 0 862993 29 6. This seems to be the definitive guide to this railway line and includes a wealth of detail, photographs and statistical information. Recommended.

 

Links

www.miac.org.uk/gloucesterline.htm

http://www.moseley-society.org.uk/

 

If you have any more information please contact me: Brendan [at] Patchell.org

 

Brendan Patchell 05.11.2008

 

 

 

 

 

Laburnum Grove is a grove of fourteen houses formed by two rows of terraces facing onto a central path. There is no road. The Grove is within the Moseley conservation area.

 

This and other photographs of Moseley are © Brendan Patchell and are available on the Geograph website OS reference SP0783. They are reusable under Creative Commons Licence Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic. See Acknowledgements for a link to the Creative Commons website.

 

 

 

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