Unconfigured Ad Widget

Collapse

Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Birmingham, 1860's

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Birmingham, 1860's

    I'm trying to paint a word picture of 1860's Birmingham.

    Canals, railways, widget makers on every corner and the 2nd Industrial Revolution a work in progress.

    What I'd like to know is:
    Were all the main streets gas lit and paved? How far did this extend into residential areas?
    How dense was the smoke and fog?
    Biggest threats/risks families faced?
    Any other insights/links into everyday life as an 1860's Brummie welcomed

    Ta
    Brian
    Brian

  • #2
    Don't know where you live Brian but you might find the Back to Backs in Birmiingham city centre run by The National Trust an interesting and informative place to visit.
    They have a cd that can be purchases too.

    National Trust | Birmingham Back to Backs

    You could always contact the Central Library too as they have a good history centre there.

    Last edited by Durham Lady; 13-01-09, 08:34.
    Daphne

    Looking for Northey, Goodfellow, Jobes, Heal, Lilburn, Curry, Gay, Carpenter, Johns, Harris, Vigus from Cornwall, Somerset, Durham, Northumberland, Cumberland, USA, Australia.

    Comment


    • #3
      Thanks Daphne.

      I'm in Lancashire so a visit isn't possible at the moment; but I'll have a dig around the Library site thou.
      Last edited by BrianT; 13-01-09, 10:29.
      Brian

      Comment


      • #4
        Hi Brian,

        I don't really know that much about the everyday life of a Brummie in 1860, but I can give a bit of background information. All info below is taken from a book called 'A History of Birmingham' by Chris Upton.

        By the 1860's there were two major gas lighting companies, both vying with the other for trade. They were the B'ham Gas Light and Coke Co, (founded 1819), and the B'ham and Staffs Gas Light Co (founded 1828). By about 1849, there is concerns that the council is paying too much money for the price of gas. This suggests to me that nearly all the streets in the town were lit, and probably all the roads leading there as well.

        As for pollution, I imagine there would have been tonnes of it. Probably not as bad as what was seen in London in the 40's and 50's, but there were still some big manufacturing plants in the town. There was Boulton and Watt's factory at Handsworth for a start, which included other factories such as a Mint, the Jewellery quarter was probably also production a lot of pollution as well.

        As for major threats to a family in the 1860's, well I guess that the most concerning, as with any other large town or city, was illness. It would have been easy for an outbreak of Cholera to occur, and there was a national outbreak in 1853 that started in B'ham.

        If you have any other questions, give us a shout.

        Tippin
        Families Intrested in
        Archer (DBY), Bannister (SFK/STS), Br(o/a)mley (DBY), Darrall (SAL/WAR), Florence (STS), Freeman (WAR), Grimsdell (BKM/STS), Knight (WAR), Sheldrake (SKF), Simpson (LND/STS), Smith (SFK/WAR/WOR), Tatham (LND), Tippin(s) (HEF/WAR), Wagstaff (DBY/NTT), Whitefoot (SAL/WAR)

        Comment


        • #5
          Hi Tippin,

          Great help thanks

          This topic lured me over to the dark side.

          I'm trying to describe the lifestyle and influences of a working class family from the 1860's to 1880's.
          Any idea what the area around Alma Street, Aston would have been like?

          Thank you
          Brian
          Brian

          Comment


          • #7
            Hi Brian

            Have you tried the forum specific to Brum there may be someone there who could tell you more about Alma Street
            Birmingham History Forum - Powered by vBulletin

            also this dictionary of birmingham has bit about the gas lighting


            good luck

            Comment


            • #8
              Mary and Kaz - Thank you
              Brian

              Comment

              Working...
              X