Tuesday 15 November 2022

A Bostin' Day Out, Bab!



 On Sunday we met up with our mates, Claire and Gareth at The Black Country Living Museum in Dudley. Built on reclaimed industrial land, the open air museum has over fifty shops, houses and industrial buildings rescued from around The Black Country, the area made up of the metropolitan boroughs of Dudley, Walsall, Sandwell and the city of Wolverhampton.

 To our eternal shame, despite the museum opening in 1978 and being just seven miles from our front door, neither Jon or I had ever been but with it forming the backdrop of numerous episodes of Peaky Blinders along with The Colour Room, the gorgeous film based on Clarice Cliff's early life, we were already familiar with the streets. Stan and Ollie, the Steve Coogan film which we've yet to see, was also filmed there. 




Demolished in 2001 before it could be listed, The Elephant and Castle was built in 1905 and stood in the centre of Wolverhampton. Typical of its era, it had a public bar for the working class and for the middle class and had a separate smoking room with slightly higher prices. The pub’s clientele was known to be diverse, with Wolverhampton being home to many thousands of Irish immigrants during the 19th century. After World War Two, both the Irish and Commonwealth citizens from India, Pakistan and the Caribbean could be found enjoying a drink in the Elephant & Castle. The building has been painstakingly replicated by craftsmen from around the Black Country.


International tourists aside, visiting the museum really does feel like you've wandered on to the set of Peaky Blinders.




Broome’s Garage depicts a 1930’s garage and is a replica of the Conway Garage in Sedgley Road, owned by the late Wolverhampton garage mechanic Alex Broome. Alex Broome worked for Sunbeam as a racing mechanic and when the company closed he started his own garage in 1936 which he ran into his eighties.







With the four of us obsessed with architectural salvage and weird old tat in general, we spent ages wandering around the Builder's Merchants Yard, a replica of one which stood at the entrance of Bilston's Stone Quarry in 1930. Apparently, a reluctance to waste anything is a Black Country trait, I'd say it was just common sense especially with things as gorgeous as these carved stone heads.






Horses provided the key to transport in the Black Country well into the twentieth century. Used as draught animals to haul narrow boats loaded with goods on the canals, drag heavy coal carts and pull trams, carriages, milk floats, delivery wagons and fire engines.


Heavy horses, usually shires, like William (above), were used for haulage in heavy industry. His stable was built in 1900 and was dismantled and moved from Burntwood. 




Sidebotham's Trap Works were constructed in Wednesfield in 1913, the the major centre for the manufacture and worldwide export of small animal traps. The stencils below were used to label the packaging crates and bear the names of the far-flung destination ports to which the goods were transported.






Established in 1848 and still trading as a family business, Noah Bloomer manufactured chains, anchors and other marine equipment from their factory in Quarry Bank.
 



At the end of the Nineteenth Century, 90% of all of Britain's chains were manufactured in the Black Country. 







The boys queued for fish & chips at Hobbs and Sons Restaurant, which was built in 1930 and transported brick by brick from Dudley's High Street. Being an authentic Black Country chippy, beef dripping is the medium used to fry food. Luckily there's a separate fryer for us vegetarians so I was able to enjoy a cow-free bag of chips (my first since June 2019!)



We ate them inside The Glass & Bottle Inn, a traditional working class spit 'n' sawdust pub (see the middle photo in montage below), which was transported brick by brick from nearby Brierley Hill where it had stood since 1840. 







Harry Morrall’s menswear shop was a familiar sight in Hall Street, Dudley, where he traded from 1928 to 1935. 







Based in West Bromwich, Gripton's Radio Shop traded until 1940. 


A.Preedy & Sons was a Black Country chain of tobacconists, founded in Dudley in 1868 and still trading in Walsall well into the 1980s. My Mum used to take her lighter to be refilled in the Park Street branch every week. 


Thomas Cook ran a small confectionery business at 21, Bond Street, Dudley between 1871 and 1901. This shop is a replica based on archive material.



Built in the latter half of the 19th Century, E Langston's Hardware shop is an original building and came from Piper's Row in Wolverhampton. 

 


Hartills motor cycle shop was located in Mount Pleasant, Bilston (where Claire & I visited Bilston Museum & Crafts Gallery a few weeks ago).Abraham Hartill opened the shop in 1937, having moved from a smaller unit in the same block. He sold mainly second-hand motorcycles, some fifteen or so a week. 


The Workers' Institute was designed by Albert Thomas Butler (1872-1952), a local architect, in the Arts & Crafts style. Originally sited in  Cradley Heath, it stands as a landmark to one of the most significant yet hidden achievements of British labour history. The interior of the Workers' Institute is set in 1935 and the ground floor houses the union offices along with the auditorium where trade union meetings would have taken place in the 1930s.


The Chainmaker's House was one of a pair built in 1886 and transported from Old Hill. The interior is displayed to reflect the domestic life of a prosperous chainmaker in 1914 whilst the chain business was still a strong market for the shipbuilding and dock trades. 

 


Built with a washhouse, privy and coalhouse, it reflects the improving standards for the working classes.


The flat above Humphrey Bros. is decorated in typically 1930s style. The Art Deco wallpaper added some jazz age glamour to the rather gloomy interior and drab furniture.
 

It was Remembrance Sunday, hence the Home Guard being out in force. 


There were once 42 mine shafts where the Museum now stands, today just two remain. 



Visitors to the Black Country of all sexes are often a little disconcerted by being called Bab 


In 1712, Thomas Newcomen built the world's first successful steam engine which was used for pumping water from the coal mines on the site. In 1986, after ten years of research, the museum completed the construction of a full-scale working replica of the engine which is housed within the building below.






Photo courtesy of Claire - follow her blog (HERE)

Thanks, Claire & Gareth, we really did have a bostin' day!


40 comments:

  1. What a fascinating and remarkable place to visit. Such museums give you a real feel for the history of an area. Xx

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    1. It's so interesting for children and adults alike, we loved it! xxx

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  2. That really was a cool place to wander and spend time with friends. I love the stylish Peaky Blinder wardrobe on the young man.

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    1. There's very few men who don't suit the Peaky Blinders look! xxx

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  3. So glad you enjoyed it! We had a lovely day! Still hoping that the museum sees the light and donates the stone man to me. He belongs in a garden doesn't he? We can share custody. xxx

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    1. It seems such a waste to have that stone man festering away, if you have him I'll have the lady! Thanks so much for taking us! xxx

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  4. That's a much grander scale than the wee village my mom and I visited last spring! Wow - I do recognize some of it from Peaky Blinders! What a fun day! Love your gorgeous skirt, Vix!!

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    1. I remember that village, Sheila! It's a great place and as Peaky Blinders is so popular there were tourists there from as far afield as Denmark and Germany.
      The skirt's a dress, I should have taken my coat off and flashed the fancy sleeves - it's not been showcased on my blog yet! xxx

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  5. I'm completely embarrassed to say I haven't been either, and I think it may be even closer to me! Even worse, I've managed to get to the similar place in Telford. Oh the shame!
    I do recognise a lot of it, but I really must make a real life visit xxx

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    1. Aren't we terrible? I haven't been to that place in Ironbridge either. I think you'd really enjoy The Black Country Museum. Claire tells me that the cottage gardens are particularly lovely in Summer! xxx

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  6. What a fascinating place! It's going straight on our list for next year, as this is absolutely our cup of tea. Will show your post to Jos in a minute.
    We do have one or two living museums here as well, but they're all about rural heritage rather than industrial.
    Blists Hill Victorian Town in the Ironbridge gorge has been on our list for ages, but I'm liking the sound of The Black Country Museum more. xxx

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    1. I thought it would be right up yours and Jos's street, there's so much to see and a lot more currently being added ready for the Spring. I bet you'd love the fish and chips, too!
      We need to go to Blists Hill next! xxx

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  7. Oh how exciting to see the beam engine! We have one at our local mining museum and its just been reconstructed by volunteers. It's a mighty piece of equipment and you can just imagine the noise it would have made. It was made and transported from Cornwall so must check if it's a Newcomen (coalminers' Granddaughter here so a complete mining geek!)Your local industrial history is fascinating!My sister just volunteered to help out at the 'shire horse world championships' in Aberdeen. Martin Clunes was there in his role as President of the Association. She said he was very amiable. xxx

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    1. It was a sight to behold, the size of it was immense and you're right, the noise it must have made would have been something else!
      Like you, I'm from a coal mining background, my dad broke the mould. Its a shame that the pit was temporarily closed, I wouldn't have minded a look around, I can't imagine a grimmer occupation.
      Fancy your sister meeting Martin Clunes, I'm not surprised to hear that he was lovely. xxx

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    2. My Dad too. He was a plumber! Martin Clunes has Clydesdale horses. He bought them in Perth and took them all the way home to Cornwall.

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    3. A plumber sounds like a far better occupation, at least he saw daylight! Mine joined the RAF. Jon like Martin Clunes as he's a VW campervan collector, I didn't know about the horses! xxx

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  8. Oh, what an absolute stunner of a place. Blue Bus and I definitely want a day out there :-)
    Until then, thank you for sharing your visit and the wonderful photos.

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    1. You'd love it, the cottage gardens are supposed to be lovely in the spring. xxx

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  9. Totally fascinating place to visit, lots of details, brick architecture, industrial heritage and all kind of salvaged stuff in a fab atmosphere, everything we love. I've immediately pointed it to Mr.A. who has also enjoyed your post!
    Thanks for the photos!
    besos

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    1. Thanks, Monica. I'm so happy that you both enjoyed your virtual visit! xxx

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  10. Enjoyed this post very much, Vix. I think Bab is lovely - we're all 'loves' here (now being rapidly replaced by 'lovely'!). When I lived in Liverpool, girls and ladies were 'queens' - last time we visited, someone called me queen and it brought me to tears; reminded me so much of my Grandad. Happy days!
    It makes me sad for all the tremendous buildings that have just gone in the name of what? There was a neglected beauty of a cinema in Liverpool called The Futurist (which is now a bloody Lidl ffs) - so sad - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Futurist_Cinema

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    1. Hello Elaine. Goodness me, how gorgeous was The Futurist? We've traded in Liverpool a handful of times and every time we drove into the city I was transfixed by some of the fantastic architecture. The Victorians really knew how to make a statement. There needs to be more museums that are able to preserve our heritage and keep them for future generations, it's a crying shame when they're left to rot and replaced by grey breeze block monstrosities.
      An elderly Scouser I used to see at Walsall's baths always called me "queen", I love it! xxx

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  11. My mum and dad live near beamish it’s an open air similar to this one, it’s featured in many a Tv series and Catherine cookson drama. We took the kids a couple of years ago they were fascinated and couldn’t believe how people lived in the Olden days.
    We have let me see English town no seriously we do! It’s hilarious, but we do have some wonderful muesums as well. Shame we were such a violent bunch. But I would love to visit there. Love and hugs Allie

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    1. Hi Allie! I remember you mentioning Beamish to me in one of your emails and I immediately Googled it. They are really similar. There's also one up the road from us in Ironbridge, Blists Hill, we need to go there next. Its so important to preserve our heritage for future generations. Loads of love. xxx

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  12. Ah, this was such an interesting post to read! I love it! The museum looks hugely interesting and reminds me of Beamish, near Durham! Can you buy things from the shops there like you can there?
    I didn't make it to the Colliery and chipshop there so I'm still longing to try Beef fat chips to see if there is any difference!
    Nice to go with blogging friends!
    Like Sheila, I spied your new dress!!!

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    1. Hello Kezzie! Allie (commenter above) told me about Beamish a while ago, they do seem to be very similar. Yes, there's shops where you can buy produce. The cake shop was doing a roaring trade. Apparently there's a really good cheese shop which sadly wasn't open when we went.
      My new dress is a Louis Caring - you're the only other person I know who owns one by him! xxx

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  13. Thanks for sharing such a fascinating place , so much working history and brilliantly done.
    I wonder if it is popular with local school groups to learn about the history of the local area.
    I loved the stone man too. Hope you enjoyed your special chips.

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    1. Thanks, Jill! My Mum used to take groups from the infant school she worked at, it's really popular with schools! xxx

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  14. I can't believe this is your first visit here, it's one of my favourite places. We have drunk quite a few pints in the old Bottle and Glass Inn. On my first visit I accidently ate the chips not knowing that they were cooked in beef dripping, I was in need of sustenance after being in the chippy queue for an hour, so I decided not to be too hard on myself when I eventually found out. The shops and houses here are fantastic aren't they, although we have never ventured into the mine.

    I also love The Weald and Downland Living Museum in Chichester and Beamish Open Air Museum in the Northeast. In fact, after seeing your photos I need to re-visit all three if I can.

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    1. I know, I should be ashamed of myself. Mind you, in my defence, large parts of the Black Country are still pretty much like the museum, we've got several of those exquisite tiled pubs within a short walk of home and we still get the rag and bone men trawling the neighbourhood in horse driven carts!
      I'm not sure if there's a sign about the beef fat used in the chips, I only knew because chips are pretty much a no-no in most chip shops around here. You were right not to beat yourself up over it.
      There's Blists Hill in Ironbridge, too - somewhere else I've not been! xxx

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  15. How amazing they reconstructed so much so painstakingly! I was immediately transported back to my childhood seeing the biscuit boxes in the Cook's shop. Biscuits were sold loose by the pound or half pound or quarter pound and Ireland continued to sell them this way for even longer. The other thing was the 1930s dining table and chairs in the gloomy flat; we had an almost identical set in my childhood home where I grew up in the 1950s and 1960s; it had a matching bulbous sideboard. Mum and Dad obviously bought it second hand as they did with their birds-eye maple wood bedroom suite!

    You all looked very cool and no wonder you had a great day out! Another place to add to my list of must-sees....
    xxx

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    1. It's so interesting to see fairly recent, working class history, isn't it? You'd absolutely love the Black Country Museum. They are currently in the process of reconstructing some 1950s - 1970s shops including a hairdressers which I'd love to see. xxx

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  16. So great you finally got to visit...and nice to see that you have had such a nice time.

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    1. Welcome back, Ivana! Lovely to hear from you! x

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  17. What a cool place. But you two win the Style awards , as usual!

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  18. Love this. I have been to similar museums in Beamish and Ironbridge were I discovered the art of quilling. They are such fabulous places. X

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    1. We really need to go to the Ironbridge museum, it's so close to us! xxx

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  19. Thanks for sharing Vix, I thoroughly enjoyed the tour babs :) Always interesting to see posts by you and Claire to the same place - as they are always so different! xXx

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Lots of love, Vix