Birmingham Pageant
In 1938 Birmingham celebrated the 100th anniversary of the city’s Borough Charter. A pageant was the main feature of the celebrations, held at Aston Park from July 11th to the 16th (because of its success, ...
Behind the Scenes of a Pageant
The pageant of Birmingham of 1938 was a spectacle of epic proportion. Through the course of its 135 minutes it covered the period beginning in prehistory right up to modern trade unionism, using at least ...
Staff Recommends: 'Migration Stories'
This is an additional miscellaneous resource list of materials on the subject of ‘migration stories’. Each item was suggested by the staff of Birmingham's Archives and Heritage Services during research ...
Heeley Road, Selly Oak
Black and white photographic print of terraced housing, from the Warwickshire Photographic Survey.
Roland Grenade
This is a section of the Belgian Army hand grenade used by Allied forces at the start of WW1; William Mills, who had settled in Edgbaston and owned engineering factories in the suburbs, accepted commissions ...
Lee Enfield Rifle
During WW1 the Lee Enfield rifle was manufactured in Birmingham at two factories: the Birmingham Small Arms Company in Small Heath (at BSA Guns, Armoury Road) and the Royal Small Arms Factory in Sparkbrook. ...
Self-build Community Hall, Shenley Fields
Photograph of self-building by tenants on Burdock Road.
Weoley Castle Rent Strike
Newscutting regarding the Weoley Castle women rent strikers, from the Evening Despatch.
Weoley Castle Estate
Photograph of Weoley Castle Estate in Shenley Fields, by the City Engineer & Surveyor.
Letter from G.H. Browne to Neville Chambelain, MP
Arthur Neville Chamberlain was elected as Conservative-Unionist Member of Parliament for the Birmingham constituency of Ladywood in 1918. He played a leading role in directing national housing policy ...
Gwen Lally, Pageant Master
On the 2nd February 1938, the Birmingham Mail announced that Miss Gwen Lally (1882-1963) would direct the Birmingham Pageant to celebrate the centenary of the Charter of Incorporation, to be held in July ...
Selly Manor
Henry Baker’s painting shows Selly Manor in a ruinous condition. By the early 1900s it was threatened by demolition. George Cadbury arranged for its re-location from Selly Oak to Bournville, where the ...
Rose Sidgwick
This photograph reveals both Rose Sidgwick’s love of learning and her informal approach, both of which endeared her to students at the University of Birmingham. She was described as having a ‘freshness ...
"The Joseph Sturge Monument "
The Joseph Sturge Monument at Five Ways: A Photographic Essay.
All text by Dr Andy Green
This city story highlights the changing fortunes of Birmingham’s monument to Joseph Sturge (1793-1859). ...
Birmingham City Transport Report
Recruitment in Eire 1951
This report reflects a major aspect of Birmingham’s dependence on immigrant labour in the 1950s and beyond.1 Key sectors became associated with the Irish workforce, including ...
'What I think of the Estate' by a resident, Weoley Castle
Anonymous letter illustrating the views of a tenant printed in the Weoley Castle Review on the estate and its facilities.
Sir William Ashley
Sir William Ashley was chairman of the W.E.A. & Birmingham University Joint Committee. He was also instrumental in founding the country’s first Faculty of Commerce, at the university. Ashley saw this ...
'The "Southern" Cross'
This is the cover of the first issue of The "Southern" Cross, the magazine of the First World War military hospital based on the University campus at Edgbaston. In his Foreword, Lt-Colonel Marsh (Hospital ...