OLD WEST BROMWICH PHOTOS

Does anyone know anything about the history of heath lane?

no: 20 Heath lane (by old church). Its been closed for around 10 years now and the co-op apparently now own it.

I used to live in heath lane when I was a child and my neighbour always told me it used to be a sweet store/factory ???

Also No:1 which has always been hidden behind the wooden gates. The guy who owns it now also owns the house at the top of newton road covered in ivy.

one other thing, Churchfield house........where was it actually situated?

can anyone help? :-)

Lee at 06:06PM on Nov 29, 2008

Does anyone know anything about the history of heath lane?

no: 20 Heath lane (by old church). Its been closed for around 10 years now and the co-op apparently now own it.

I used to live in heath lane when I was a child and my neighbour always told me it used to be a sweet store/factory ???

Also No:1 which has always been hidden behind the wooden gates. The guy who owns it now also owns the house at the top of newton road covered in ivy.

one other thing, Churchfield house........where was it actually situated?

can anyone help? :-)

That building (Number 20) I am sure used to house the offices or day centre for the Blind or was it the deaf ?? in the 70/80s?

I do recall someone telling me it used to be a sweet factory years ago but never found anything out

I have often wondered about that other house across the road and I wonder if it had anything to do with the church as the vicarage used to be there and I am sure there used to be a farm there also, so I done a bit of digging in the archives and found out a bit which I have quoted below

Now, Churchfield House, acording to my 1890 map, was situated close to Vale Street, off the All saints way/Church Vale, about where Temple Meadows Road is now

But according to British History Online it wasn't originally there, it was in Hall End which is the Vicarage Rd area...Quote....

"Sandwell was providing a house for the chaplain of West Bromwich by 1336, apparently in the Hall End area west of All Saints'; the chaplain was still living in that area in 1526, but his house was then described as in decay. It was in a house at Hall End that the minister and his wife were living in 1611.  About 1758 Lord Dartmouth built a new house for the incumbent, Churchfield House to the south-east of the church. The old house, at Hall End on the north side of what is now Vicarage Road, became the assistant curate's residence and later the house of the teacher at the school established at Hall End in 1811. About 1843 Lord Dartmouth exchanged Church Farm, opposite the church at the junction of Heath Lane and All Saints Street, for the house at Hall End. Church Farm became the assistant curate's residence, but the incumbents have lived there since the appointment of Frederic Willett in 1865. The house, which may be partly of the 18th century, was enlarged and altered in 1868 and modernized in the early 1930s. Churchfield House, which reverted to Lord Dartmouth, was derelict by 1945 and has been demolished"

west-bromwich-photos at 07:26AM on Nov 30, 2008

Lee at 06:06PM on Nov 29, 2008

Does anyone know anything about the history of heath lane?

no: 20 Heath lane (by old church). Its been closed for around 10 years now and the co-op apparently now own it.

I used to live in heath lane when I was a child and my neighbour always told me it used to be a sweet store/factory ???

Also No:1 which has always been hidden behind the wooden gates. The guy who owns it now also owns the house at the top of newton road covered in ivy.

one other thing, Churchfield house........where was it actually situated?

can anyone help? :-)

That building (Number 20) I am sure used to house the offices or day centre for the Blind or was it the deaf ?? in the 70/80s?

I do recall someone telling me it used to be a sweet factory years ago but never found anything out

I have often wondered about that other house across the road and I wonder if it had anything to do with the church as the vicarage used to be there and I am sure there used to be a farm there also, so I done a bit of digging in the archives and found out a bit which I have quoted below

 

Now, Churchfield House, acording to my 1890 map, was situated close to Vale Street, off the All saints way/Church Vale, about where Temple Meadows Road is now

But according to British History Online it wasn't originally there, it was in Hall End which is the Vicarage Rd area...Quote....

"Sandwell was providing a house for the chaplain of West Bromwich by 1336, apparently in the Hall End area west of All Saints'; the chaplain was still living in that area in 1526, but his house was then described as in decay. It was in a house at Hall End that the minister and his wife were living in 1611.  About 1758 Lord Dartmouth built a new house for the incumbent, Churchfield House to the south-east of the church. The old house, at Hall End on the north side of what is now Vicarage Road, became the assistant curate's residence and later the house of the teacher at the school established at Hall End in 1811. About 1843 Lord Dartmouth exchanged Church Farm, opposite the church at the junction of Heath Lane and All Saints Street, for the house at Hall End. Church Farm became the assistant curate's residence, but the incumbents have lived there since the appointment of Frederic Willett in 1865. The house, which may be partly of the 18th century, was enlarged and altered in 1868 and modernized in the early 1930s. Churchfield House, which reverted to Lord Dartmouth, was derelict by 1945 and has been demolished"

 

 

I found your quote really interesting Paul. I live on "Churchfields Estate" but I never visited Churchfields House although I believe my husband and other residents of the newly built Temple Meadows houses used to look around what used to be Churchfields House. When was Churchfields House demolished?

To my surprise  I noticed Churchfields House  marked on a map but at the moment I can`t find that particular map! (  It may be one of the maps Paul has for sale)

I think Roberts Sweet factory was in that building at the junction of Heath Lane and Walsall Road and that`s where those Sela Cough Sweets were made.

anne west bromwich at 02:19PM on Nov 30, 2008

west-bromwich-photos at 07:26AM on Nov 30, 2008

Lee at 06:06PM on Nov 29, 2008

Does anyone know anything about the history of heath lane?

no: 20 Heath lane (by old church). Its been closed for around 10 years now and the co-op apparently now own it.

I used to live in heath lane when I was a child and my neighbour always told me it used to be a sweet store/factory ???

Also No:1 which has always been hidden behind the wooden gates. The guy who owns it now also owns the house at the top of newton road covered in ivy.

one other thing, Churchfield house........where was it actually situated?

can anyone help? :-)

That building (Number 20) I am sure used to house the offices or day centre for the Blind or was it the deaf ?? in the 70/80s?

I do recall someone telling me it used to be a sweet factory years ago but never found anything out

I have often wondered about that other house across the road and I wonder if it had anything to do with the church as the vicarage used to be there and I am sure there used to be a farm there also, so I done a bit of digging in the archives and found out a bit which I have quoted below

 

Now, Churchfield House, acording to my 1890 map, was situated close to Vale Street, off the All saints way/Church Vale, about where Temple Meadows Road is now

But according to British History Online it wasn't originally there, it was in Hall End which is the Vicarage Rd area...Quote....

"Sandwell was providing a house for the chaplain of West Bromwich by 1336, apparently in the Hall End area west of All Saints'; the chaplain was still living in that area in 1526, but his house was then described as in decay. It was in a house at Hall End that the minister and his wife were living in 1611.  About 1758 Lord Dartmouth built a new house for the incumbent, Churchfield House to the south-east of the church. The old house, at Hall End on the north side of what is now Vicarage Road, became the assistant curate's residence and later the house of the teacher at the school established at Hall End in 1811. About 1843 Lord Dartmouth exchanged Church Farm, opposite the church at the junction of Heath Lane and All Saints Street, for the house at Hall End. Church Farm became the assistant curate's residence, but the incumbents have lived there since the appointment of Frederic Willett in 1865. The house, which may be partly of the 18th century, was enlarged and altered in 1868 and modernized in the early 1930s. Churchfield House, which reverted to Lord Dartmouth, was derelict by 1945 and has been demolished"

 

 

I found your quote really interesting Paul. I live on "Churchfields Estate" but I never visited Churchfields House although I believe my husband and other residents of the newly built Temple Meadows houses used to look around what used to be Churchfields House. When was Churchfields House demolished?

To my surprise  I noticed Churchfields House  marked on a map but at the moment I can`t find that particular map! (  It may be one of the maps Paul has for sale)

 

I think Roberts Sweet factory was in that building at the junction of Heath Lane and Walsall Road and that`s where those Sela Cough Sweets were made.

Anne, I got a few of those Maps off Paul and they are excellent !!

Looking on the Maps, Heath Lane was actually called Cemetery Road in 1890 and Churchfield House is on the bottom right where Paul said it was, close to Churchfield Farm and it is amazing at how many colliery's there was close by

20 heath lane is history! co-op did plan to turn it into a funeral home but they have had the plans passed to demolish the entire building and build flats on there!!!!

Churchfield House.

Location of Churchfield House and a little about it surroundings during WW2.

 I knew it very well, we lived in Parsonage St which connected Churchfield and the junction of Tenscore St and All Saints St.

Opposite the top of Parsonage St / Churchfield was a drive with a Lodge House on the left, at the end of the drive was Churchfield House. I have no recollection of the house being occupied.

To the right of the house was a double gate which led onto the back lawns, beyond the lawn the ground dropped down to a lake, this lake had a small island and the area was well populated with Moorhens.

During WW2 the lawn had a sloping road cut through it  to allow fire vehicles to get to the lake for water, also an air raid shelter was built just past the Lodge House, this was where we had to go during air raids. After a time we had shelters buit in the party yards behind our houses.

To the left of the house stood the coachman's cottages, the Bunn family lived in them.

 A road went around the side of the cottages leading to a tip, to the left of this road was the Churchfield Golf Club buildings. We would go playing on the tip but had to take a long diversion as we were not allowed to go past the front of the golf club.

On the left of the drive were allotments, these went over to the backs of the houses in Vale St,  my Grandfather and Grandmother Tolley lived at 39 Vale St.

 Also backing on to the allotments was Woodward's Timber Yard.

 To the right of the drive was a field which was owned by Marsh's who had the Greengrocery shop on Churchfield, this field went over to Dagger Lane.

I have recollections of Churchfield Farm which was accessed down Vale St, as was the Golf Club, then on to various woods going towards Jubillee Colliery.

Now as has been stated the area is Temple Meadow.

Arthur Nichols

Just drove up health lane this evening and noticed that the Hospital has been demolished! another part of west bromwich history destroyed

You know I came up 2 weeks ago and I saw all the portacabins there when I went past and I was wondering if Heath Lane was going

Wasn't it recently used to hold sex offenders there ??

If you can get your hands on this years Black Country Bugle Annual there is a fantastic 4 page story about Heath Lane Hospital and it tells you in graphic detail what the hospital was used for during the TB outbreaks

It wasn't a place I would like to have ended up in and at the time it used to be a dreaded hospital to have had to go to, which filled fear into everyone local !

west-bromwich-photos at 03:59AM on Dec 26, 2009

If you can get your hands on this years Black Country Bugle Annual there is a fantastic 4 page story about Heath Lane Hospital and it tells you in graphic detail what the hospital was used for during the TB outbreaks

It wasn't a place I would like to have ended up in and at the time it used to be a dreaded hospital to have had to go to, which filled fear into everyone local !

hi does anyone know what heath lane hospital was used for in the early 1980's?as in what did they treat people for?thanks

The chest hospital (Heath Lane) was just that, I went there in 1987 to have an asthma check the pipe in your mouth with the nose clip on, all that allergy tests. I think originally it was a TB hospital and before that a fever hospital i think.

Slighty gruesome if you look at the cemetry wall nearest to the hospital you can see where they bricked up the gate they used bring people to bury at night in pauper graves.

Funny thing is a fever hospital was smallpox and such......nice eh!

It was a TB and infectious hospital for many years  There was also one on Friar Park!

Lee at November 29, 2008 at 6:06 PM

Does anyone know anything about the history of heath lane?

no: 20 Heath lane (by old church). Its been closed for around 10 years now and the co-op apparently now own it.

I used to live in heath lane when I was a child and my neighbour always told me it used to be a sweet store/factory ???

Also No:1 which has always been hidden behind the wooden gates. The guy who owns it now also owns the house at the top of newton road covered in ivy.

one other thing, Churchfield house........where was it actually situated?

can anyone help? :-)

I was interested to see this. I was born at 20 Heath Lane, it was where my family lived. My dad owned a newsagents and was also a wholesale supplier of sweets. The warehouse at the side had racks upon racks of sweets in jars. We didn't mke them, he just sold them. Unfortunately Sandwell (West Bromwich) Council slapped a compulsory purchase order on the house and put my dad out of business. He lost heavily on the "deal". It has always been a source of bitterness in the family that the house remained over 38 years later. I'll be sad to see it demolished though.

west-bromwich-photos at November 30, 2008 at 7:26 AM

Lee at 06:06PM on Nov 29, 2008

Does anyone know anything about the history of heath lane?

no: 20 Heath lane (by old church). Its been closed for around 10 years now and the co-op apparently now own it.

I used to live in heath lane when I was a child and my neighbour always told me it used to be a sweet store/factory ???

Also No:1 which has always been hidden behind the wooden gates. The guy who owns it now also owns the house at the top of newton road covered in ivy.

one other thing, Churchfield house........where was it actually situated?

can anyone help? :-)

That building (Number 20) I am sure used to house the offices or day centre for the Blind or was it the deaf ?? in the 70/80s?

I do recall someone telling me it used to be a sweet factory years ago but never found anything out

I have often wondered about that other house across the road and I wonder if it had anything to do with the church as the vicarage used to be there and I am sure there used to be a farm there also, so I done a bit of digging in the archives and found out a bit which I have quoted below

 

Now, Churchfield House, acording to my 1890 map, was situated close to Vale Street, off the All saints way/Church Vale, about where Temple Meadows Road is now

But according to British History Online it wasn't originally there, it was in Hall End which is the Vicarage Rd area...Quote....

"Sandwell was providing a house for the chaplain of West Bromwich by 1336, apparently in the Hall End area west of All Saints'; the chaplain was still living in that area in 1526, but his house was then described as in decay. It was in a house at Hall End that the minister and his wife were living in 1611.  About 1758 Lord Dartmouth built a new house for the incumbent, Churchfield House to the south-east of the church. The old house, at Hall End on the north side of what is now Vicarage Road, became the assistant curate's residence and later the house of the teacher at the school established at Hall End in 1811. About 1843 Lord Dartmouth exchanged Church Farm, opposite the church at the junction of Heath Lane and All Saints Street, for the house at Hall End. Church Farm became the assistant curate's residence, but the incumbents have lived there since the appointment of Frederic Willett in 1865. The house, which may be partly of the 18th century, was enlarged and altered in 1868 and modernized in the early 1930s. Churchfield House, which reverted to Lord Dartmouth, was derelict by 1945 and has been demolished"

 

 

With what I've studied I agree that Churchfields House was originally the Vicars Residence, and Church Farm was originally  the Curate's residence whilst the Vical resided in Churchfields House.  

Church Farm eventually became the Vicars residence and was known as the Vicarage.  Now demolished - great shame - but the buildings to the side, as you went  into the entrance, coach houses/stables? still remain.  Had wonderful garden parties and fetes there.  I went to the Infants and Junior Church School just along the way, now a housing estate.

Churchfields house was also occupied by Joshua Fellows 1885 - Managing Director of the Canal Carriers - Fellows, Morton & Clayton and he added two further wings.

My schoolfriends and I used to enter the driveway up to Churchfields House from Hallam Street.  There was a Lodgehouse now gone next to what was then a Drapers -STILL there!  but a hairdresser I think.  This was oppositeand across the road from Parsonage Street.

We used to walk up the chalky driveway with large open spaces either side in the hot sun and of course the house was derelict but we used to visualise it in its heyday.  A  few years later it was demolished making way for the Temple Meadows Estate.

If you go onto Google Earth and search Temple Meadows Road - Churchfields House was bang right in the middle of the road circle ..  If you go back in time clicking the button,  It will take you back to 1945.  Not clear but you can just make out the building.

it's a pity I wasn't a photography enthusiast in those days.  I've searched and searched for a picture or two - haven't been in the library however.  Needs a special trip.

Similarly Churchfields Farm just scanning to the right of Churchfields House to just beyond the end of Vale Street you'll come across the building outlines in 1945 - other than that in recent years it marks 13th tee!  Had wonderful parties at Kemps Farm (Churchfields) and held our secret meetings!  Mum & Dad were avid members of Dartmouth Golf Club almost within the grounds.

Hope this helps.

Has anyone got any pictures of Connor Hall down the driveway adjacent to the Churchfields Infant school playground.  Brownies Days and Girl Guides Days! plus Morris Dancing etc etc etc! and lovely Guy Fawkes celebrations sported by the All Saints Netball Team - my Big brother-in-law in charge (and of the netball) in the Rev. Peter Capehorn Days.  I hasten to add I was a very little girl then!  All these haunts have now only become a memory.

In addition to what I wrote  above you'll note that Google Earth refers to the Old Church as Hall End Church

Anne

west-bromwich-photos at November 30, 2008 at 7:26 AM

Lee at 06:06PM on Nov 29, 2008

Does anyone know anything about the history of heath lane?

no: 20 Heath lane (by old church). Its been closed for around 10 years now and the co-op apparently now own it.

I used to live in heath lane when I was a child and my neighbour always told me it used to be a sweet store/factory ???

Also No:1 which has always been hidden behind the wooden gates. The guy who owns it now also owns the house at the top of newton road covered in ivy.

one other thing, Churchfield house........where was it actually situated?

can anyone help? :-)

That building (Number 20) I am sure used to house the offices or day centre for the Blind or was it the deaf ?? in the 70/80s?

I do recall someone telling me it used to be a sweet factory years ago but never found anything out

I have often wondered about that other house across the road and I wonder if it had anything to do with the church as the vicarage used to be there and I am sure there used to be a farm there also, so I done a bit of digging in the archives and found out a bit which I have quoted below

 

Now, Churchfield House, acording to my 1890 map, was situated close to Vale Street, off the All saints way/Church Vale, about where Temple Meadows Road is now

But according to British History Online it wasn't originally there, it was in Hall End which is the Vicarage Rd area...Quote....

"Sandwell was providing a house for the chaplain of West Bromwich by 1336, apparently in the Hall End area west of All Saints'; the chaplain was still living in that area in 1526, but his house was then described as in decay. It was in a house at Hall End that the minister and his wife were living in 1611.  About 1758 Lord Dartmouth built a new house for the incumbent, Churchfield House to the south-east of the church. The old house, at Hall End on the north side of what is now Vicarage Road, became the assistant curate's residence and later the house of the teacher at the school established at Hall End in 1811. About 1843 Lord Dartmouth exchanged Church Farm, opposite the church at the junction of Heath Lane and All Saints Street, for the house at Hall End. Church Farm became the assistant curate's residence, but the incumbents have lived there since the appointment of Frederic Willett in 1865. The house, which may be partly of the 18th century, was enlarged and altered in 1868 and modernized in the early 1930s. Churchfield House, which reverted to Lord Dartmouth, was derelict by 1945 and has been demolished"

 

 

i lived in hall end for 20 years,50 yards from stanway road,but i never knew what area "Hall End"actually covered,i do know there was a sign saying "Hall End"on the wall of the old "Rampa" on the corner of Stanway Road and Vicarage Road.

My Mum was in Heath Lane hospital in 1990, when it was a rehabilitation unit for people who had suffered strokes or other brain injuries. Mum had encephalitis, which left her with brain damage, and she was in Heath Lane for a month while they assessed her to see whether she would be able to return to her own home. Sadly, this wasn't possible, and she eventually went into Bromford House care home, but Heath Lane was a wonderful help at a difficult time for all the family.

The house in Heath Lane with the large wooden gates, (opposite Old Church) was used by the council for storage purposes at one time. My ex brother-in-law who worked for the council lived there with his wife in the early seventies. Weren't sela cough sweets made in a small factory on the Birmingham Road, just past the Albion ground?

Bryn Mason at September 7, 2011 at 10:26 AM

The house in Heath Lane with the large wooden gates, (opposite Old Church) was used by the council for storage purposes at one time. My ex brother-in-law who worked for the council lived there with his wife in the early seventies. Weren't sela cough sweets made in a small factory on the Birmingham Road, just past the Albion ground?

The Sela Sweet factory was in Thynne Street, just off the Birmingham Rd, close to Dartmouth Sq

They were there for years and I am sure they moved a couple of years ago ?