SHOWELL'S
Dictionary of Birmingham.
Hackney Coaches were introduced here in 1775. Hutton says the
drivers of the first few earned 30s. per day; those of the present day
say they do not get half the sum now. Hansom Cabs, the invention, in
1836, of the architect and designer of our Town Hall, were first put
on the stands in 1842.
Half-Holiday.—Ten to twelve hours a day, six days a week,
used to be the stint for workpeople here and elsewhere. A Saturday
Half-holiday movement was begun in 1851, the first employers to adopt
the system being Mr. John Frearson, of Gas Street (late of the
Waverley Hotel, Crescent), and Mr. Richard Tangye. Wingfields, Brown,
Marshall & Co., and many other large firms began with the year
1853, when it maybe said the plan became general.
Handsworth.—Till within the last thirty or forty years,
Handsworth was little more than a pleasant country village, though now
a well-populated suburb of Birmingham. The name is to be found in the
"Domesday Book," but the ancient history of the parish is
meagre indeed, and confined almost solely to the families of the lords
of the manor, the Wyrleys, Stanfords, &c., their marriages and
intermarriages, their fancies and feuds, and all those petty trifles
chroniclers of old were so fond of recording. After the erection of
the once world-known, but now vanished Soho Works, by Matthew Boulton,
a gradual change came o'er the scene; cultivated enclosures taking
the place of the commons, enclosed in 1793; Boulton's park laid
out, good roads made, water-courses cleared, and houses and mansions
springing up on all sides, and so continuing on until now, when the
parish (which includes Birchfield and Perry Barr, an area of 7,680
acres in all) is nearly half covered with streets and houses, churches
and chapels, alms-houses and stations, shops, offices, schools, and
all the other necessary adjuncts to a populous and thriving community.
The Local Board Offices and Free Library, situate in Soho Road, were
built in 1878 (first stone laid October 30th, 1877), at a cost of
£20,662, and it is a handsome pile of buildings. The library
contains about 7,000 volumes. There is talk of erecting public
swimming and other baths, and a faint whisper that recreation grounds
are not far from view. The 1st Volunteer Battalion of the South
Staffordshire Regiment have their head-quarters here. Old Handsworth
Church, which contained several carved effigies and tombs of the old
lords, monuments of Matthew Boulton and James Watt, with bust of
William Murdoch, &c., has been rebuilt and enlarged, the first
stone of the new building being laid in Aug, 1876. Five of the bells
in the tower were cast in 1701, by Joseph Smith, of Edgbaston, and
were the first peal sent out of his foundry; the tenor is much older.
The very appropriate inscription on the fourth bell is, "God
preserve the Church of England as by law established."
Harborne is another of our near neighbours which a thousand
years or so ago had a name if nothing else, but that name has come
down to present time with less change than is usual, and, possibly
through the Calthorpe estate blocking the way, the parish itself has
changed but very slowly, considering its close proximity to busy,
bustling Birmingham. This apparent stagnation, however, has endeared
it to us Brums not a little, on account of the many pleasant glades
and sunny spots in and around it. Harborne gardeners have long been
famous for growing gooseberries, the annual dinner of the Gooseberry
Growers' Society having been held at the Green Man ever since
1815. But Harborne has plucked up heart latterly, and will not much
longer be "out of the running." With its little area of
1,412 acres, and only a population of 6,600, it has built itself an
Institute (a miniature model of the Midland), with class rooms and
reading rooms, with library and with lecture halls, to seat a
thousand, at a cost of £6,500, and got Henry Irving to lay the
foundation-stone, in 1879. A Masonic Hall followed in 1880, and a Fire
Brigade Station soon after. It has also a local railway as well as a
newspaper. In the parish church, which was nearly all rebuilt in 1867,
there are several monuments of olden date, one being in remembrance of
a member of the Hinckley family, from whose name that of our Inkleys
is deducible; there is also a stained window to the memory of David
Cox. The practice of giving a Christmas treat, comprising a good
dinner, some small presents, and an enjoyable entertainment to the
aged poor, was begun in 1865, and is still kept up.
Hard Times.—Food was so dear and
trade so bad in 1757 that Lord Dartmouth for a long time relieved 500
a week out of his own pocket. In 1782 bread was sold to the poor at
one-third under its market value. On the 1st of July, 1795, the lessee
of the Theatre Royal, Mr. McCready, gave the proceeds of the
night's performance (£161 8s.) for the benefit of the poor.
The money was expended in wheat, which was sold free of carriage. Meat
was also very scarce on the tables of the poor, and a public
subscription was opened by the High Bailiff to enable meat to be sold
at 1d. per lb. under the market price, which then ruled at 3d. to 6d.
per lb. In November, 1799, wheat was 15s. per bushel. In May, 1800,
the distressed poor were supplied with wheat at the "reduced
price" of 15s. per bushel, and potatoes at 8s. per peck. Soup
kitchens for the poor were opened November 30, 1816, when 3,000 quarts
were sold the first day. The poor-rates, levied in 1817, amounted to
£61,928, and it was computed that out of a population of 84,000
at least 27,000 were in receipt of parish relief. In 1819 £5,500
was collected to relieve the distressed poor. The button makers were
numbered at 17,000 in 1813, two-thirds of them being out of work. 1825
and 1836 were terrible years of poverty and privation in this town and
neighbourhood. In 1838, 380,000 doles were made to poor people from a
fund raised by public subscription. In the summer of 1840, local trade
was so bad that we have been told as many as 10,000 persons applied at
one office alone for free passages to Australia, and all
unsuccessfully. Empty houses could be counted by the hundred. There
was great distress in the winter of 1853-4, considerable amounts being
subscribed for charitable relief. In the first three months of 1855,
there were distributed among the poor 11,745 loaves of bread, 175,500
pints of soup, and £725 in cash. The sum of £10,328 was
subscribed for and expended in the relief of the unemployed in the
winter of 1878-79—the number of families receiving the same
being calculated at 195,165, with a total of 494,731 persons.
Harmonies.—See "Musical Societies."
Hats and Hatters.—In 1820 there was but one hatter in the
town, Harry Evans, and his price for best "beavers" was a
guinea and a half, "silks," which first appeared in 1812,
not being popular and "felts" unknown. Strangers have noted
one peculiarity of the native Brums, and that is their innate dislike
to "top hats," few of which are worn here (in comparison to
population) except on Sunday, when respectable mechanics
churchward-bound mount the chimney pot. In the revolutionary days of
1848, &c., when local political feeling ran high in favour of Pole
and Hungarian, soft broad-brimmed felt hats, with flowing black
feathers were en regle, and most of the advanced leaders of the
day thus adorned themselves. Now, the ladies monopolise the feathers
and the glories thereof. According to the scale measure used by
hatters, the average size of hats worn is that called 6-7/8,
representing one-half of the length and breadth of a man's head,
but it has been noted by "S.D.R." that several local
worthies have had much larger craniums, George Dawson requiring a
7-1/2 sized hat, Mr. Charles Geach a 7-3/4, and Sir Josiah Mason a
little over an 8. An old Soho man once told the writer that Matthew
Boulton's head-gear had to be specially made for him, and, to
judge from a bust of M.B., now in his possession, the hat required
must have been extra size indeed.
Hearth Duty.—In 1663, an Act was passed for the better
ordering and collecting the revenue derived from "Hearth
Money," and we gather a few figures from a return then made, as
showing the comparative number of the larger mansions whose owners
were liable to the tax. The return for Birmingham gives a total of 414
hearths and stoves, the account including as well those which are
liable to pay as of those which are not liable. Of this number 360
were charged with duty, the house of the celebrated Humphrey Jennens
being credited with 25. From Aston the return was but 47, but of these
40 were counted in the Hall and 7 in the Parsonage, Edgbaston showed
37, of which 22 were in the Hall. Erdington was booked for 27, and
Sutton Coldfield for 67, of which 23 were in two houses belonging to
the Willoughby family. Coleshill would appear to have been a rather
warmer place of abode, as there are 125 hearths charged for duty, 30
being in the house of Dame Mary Digby.
Heathfield.—Prior to 1790 the whole of this neighbourhood
was open common-land, the celebrated engineer and inventor, James
Watt, after the passing of the Enclosure Act being the first to erect
a residence thereon, in 1791. By 1794 he had acquired rather more than
40 acres, which, he then planted and laid out as a park. Heathfield
House may be called the cradle of many scores of inventions, which,
though novel when first introduced, are now but as household words in
our everyday life. Watt's workshop was in the garret of the
south-east corner of the building, and may be said to be even now in
exactly the same state as when his master-hand last touched the tools,
but as the estate was lotted out for building purposes in May, 1874,
and houses and streets have been built and formed all round it, it is
most likely that the "House" itself will soon lose all its
historic interest, and the contents of the workshop be distributed
among the curiosity mongers, or hidden away on the shelves of some
museum. To a local chronicler such a room is as sacred as that in
which Shakespeare was born, and in the words of Mr. Sam Timmins,
"to open the door and look upon the strange relics there is to
stand in the very presence of the mighty dead. Everything in the room
remains just as it was left by the fast failing hands of the
octogenarian engineer. His well-worn, humble apron hangs dusty on the
wall, the last work before him is fixed unfinished in the lathe, the
elaborate machines over which his latest thoughts were spent are still
and silent, as if waiting only for their master's hand again to
waken them into life and work. Upon the shelves are crowds of books,
whose pages open no more to those clear, thoughtful eyes, and
scattered in the drawers and boxes are the notes and memoranda, and
pocket-books, and diaries never to be continued now. All these relics
of the great engineer, the skilful mechanic, the student of science,
relate to his intellectual and public life; but there is a sadder
relic still. An old hair-trunk, carefully kept close by the old
man's stool, contains the childish sketches, the early copy-books
and grammars, the dictionaries, the school-books, and some of the toys
of his dearly-beloved and brilliant son Gregory Watt."
Heraldry.—In the days of the mail-clad knights, who bore
on their shields some quaint device, by which friend or foe could tell
at sight whom they slew or met in fight, doubtless the
"Kings-At-Arms," the "Heralds," and the
"Pursuivants" of the College of Arms founded by Richard III.
were functionaries of great utility, but their duties nowadays are but
few, and consist almost solely of tracing pedigrees for that portion
of the community whom our American cousins designate as
"shoddy," but who, having "made their pile," would
fain be thought of aristocratic descent. In such a Radical town as
Birmingham, the study of or and gules, azure and
vert, or any of the other significant terms used in the antique
science of heraldry, was not, of course, to be expected, unless at the
hands of the antiquary or the practical heraldic engraver, both scarce
birds in our smoky town, but the least to be looked for would be that
the borough authorities should carefully see that the borough coat of
arms was rightly blazoned. It has been proved that the town's-name
has, at times, been spelt in over a gross of different ways, and if
any reader will take the trouble to look at the public buildings,
banks, and other places where the blue, red, and gold of the
Birmingham Arms shines forth, he will soon be able to count three to
four dozen different styles; every carver, painter, and printer
apparently pleasing himself how he does it. It has been said that when
the question of adopting a coat of arms was on the tapis, the
grave and reverend seniors appointed to make inquiries thereanent,
calmly took copies of the shields of the De Berminghams and the De
Edgbastous, and fitted the "bend lozengy" and the
"parti per pale" together, under the impression that the one
noble family's cognisance was a gridiron, and the other a
currycomb, both of which articles they considered to be exceedingly
appropriate for such a manufacturing town as Birmingham. Wiser in
their practicability than the gentlemen who designed the present
shield, they left the currycomb quarters in their proper sable
and argent (black and white), and the gridiron or and
gules (a golden grid on a red-hot fire.) For proper
emblazonment, as by Birmingham law established, see the cover.
Heathmill Lane.—In 1532 there was a "water mill to
grynde corne," called "Heth mill," which in that year
was let, with certain lands, called the "Couyngry," by the
Lord of the Manor, on a ninety-nine years' lease, at a rent of
£6 13s. 4d. per year.
Here we are again!—The London Chronicle of August
14, 1788, quoting from a "gentleman" who had visited this
town, says that "the people are all diminutive in size, sickly in
appearance, and spend their Sundays in low debauchery," the
manufacturers being noted for "a great deal of trick and low
cunning as well as profligacy!"
Highland Gathering.—The Birmingham Celtic Society held
their first "gathering" at Lower Grounds, August 2, 1879,
when the ancient sports of putting stones, throwing hammers, etc., was
combined with a little modern bicycling, and steeple-chasing, to the
music of the bagpipes.
Hill (Sir Rowland).—See "Noteworthy Men."
Hills.—Like unto Rome this town may be said to be built
on seven hills, for are there not Camp Hill and Constitution Hill,
Summer Hill and Snow Hill, Ludgate Hill, Hockley Hill, and Holloway
Hill (or head). Turner's Hill, near Lye Cross, Rawley Regis is
over 100ft. higher than Sedgley Beacon, which is 486ft. above sea
level. The Lickey Hills are about 800ft. above same level, but the
highest hill within 50 miles of Birmingham is the Worcestershire
Beacon, 1395ft. above sea level. The highest mountain in England,
Scawfell Pike, has an elevation of 3229ft.
Hailstorms.—In 1760 a fierce hailstorm stripped the
leaves and fruit from nearly every tree in the apple orchards in
Worcestershire, the hail lying on the ground six to eight inches deep,
many of the stones and lumps of ice being three and four inches round.
In 1798, many windows at Aston Hall were broken by the hail. A very
heavy hailstorm did damage at the Botanical gardens and other places,
May 9, 1833. There have been a few storms of later years, but none
like unto these.
Hector.—The formation of Corporation Street, and the many
handsome buildings erected and planned in its line, have improved off
the face of the earth, more than one classic spot, noted in our local
history, foremost among which we must place the house of Mr. Hector,
the old friend and schoolfellow of Dr. Samuel Johnson. The great
lexicographer spent many happy hours in the abode of his friend, and
as at one time there was a slight doubt on the matter, it is as well
to place on record here that the house in which Hector, the surgeon,
resided, was No. 1, in the Old Square, at the corner of the Minories,
afterwards occupied by Mr. William Scholefield, Messrs. Jevons and
Mellor's handsome pile now covering the spot. The old rate books
prove this beyond a doubt. Hector died there on the 2nd of September,
1794, after having practised as a surgeon, in Birmingham, for the long
period of sixty-two years. He was buried in a vault at Saint
Philip's Church, Birmingham, where, in the middle aisle, in the
front of the north gallery, an elegant inscription to his memory was
placed. Hector never married, and Mrs. Careless, a clergyman's
widow, Hector's own sister, and Johnson's "first
love," resided with him, and appears by the burial register of
St. Philip's to have died in October, 1788, and to have been
buried there, probably in the vault in which her brother was
afterwards interred. In the month of November, 1784, just a month
before his own decease, Johnson passed a few days with his friend,
Hector, at his residence in the Old Square, who, in a letter to
Boswell, thus speaks of the visit:—"He" (Johnson)
"was very solicitous with me, to recollect some of our most early
transactions, and to transmit them to him, for I perceived nothing
gave him greater pleasure than calling to mind those days of our
innocence. I complied with his request, and he only received them a
few days before his death." Johnson arrived in London from
Birmingham on the 16th of November, and on the following day wrote a
most affectionate letter to Mr. Hector, which concludes as
follows:—
"Let us think seriously on our duty. I send my kindest
respects to dear Mrs. Careless. Let me have the prayers of both. We
have all lived long, and must soon part. God have mercy upon us,
for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ! Amen!"
This was probably nearly the last letter Johnson wrote, for on the
13th of the following month, just twenty-seven days after his arrival
in London from Birmingham, oppressed with disease, he was numbered
with the dead.
Hinkleys.—Otherwise, and for very many years, known as
"The Inkleys," the generally-accepted derivation of the name
being taken from the fact that one Hinks at one time was a tenant or
occupier, under the Smalbroke family, of the fields or
"leys" in that locality, the two first narrow roads across
the said farm being respectively named the Upper and the Nether
Inkleys, afterwards changed to the Old and New Inkleys. Possibly,
however, the source may be found in the family name of Hinckley, as
seen in the register of Harborne. A third writer suggests that the
character of its denizens being about as black as could be painted,
the place was naturally called Ink Leys. Be that as it may, from the
earliest days of their existence, these places seem to have been the
abode and habitation of the queerest of the queer people, the most
aristocratic resident in our local records having been "Beau
Green," the dandy—[see "Eccentrics"]—who, for some years,
occupied the chief building in the Inkleys, nicknamed "Rag
Castle," otherwise Hinkley Hall. The beautiful and salubrious
neighbourhood, known as "Green's Village," an offshoot
of the Inkleys, was called so in honour of the "Beau."
Hiring a Husband.—In 1815, a Birmingham carpenter, after
ill-treating his wife, leased himself to another woman by a document
which an unscrupulous attorney had the hardihood to draw up, and for
which he charged thirty-five shillings. This precious document bound
the man and the woman to live together permanently, and to support and
succour each other to the utmost of their power. The poor wife was, of
course, no consenting party to this. She appealed to the law; the
appeal brought the "lease" before the eyes of the judiciary;
the man was brought to his senses (though probably remaining a bad
husband), and the attorney received a severe rebuke.
Historical.—A local Historical Society was inaugurated
with an address from Dr. Freeman, Nov. 18, 1880, and, doubtless, in a
few years the reports and proceedings will be of very great value and
interest. The fact that down to 1752 the historical year in England
commenced on January 1, while the civil, ecclesiastical, and legal
year began on the 25th of March, led to much confusion in dates, as
the legislature, the church, and civilians referred every event which
took place between January 1 and March 25 to a different year from the
historians. Remarkable examples of such confusion are afforded by two
well-known events in English history: Charles I. is said by most
authorities to have been beheaded January 30, 1648, while others, with
equal correctness, say it was January 30, 1649; and so the revolution
which drove James II. from the throne is said by some to have taken
place in February, 1688, and by others in February, 1689. Now, these
discrepancies arise from some using the civil and legal, and others
the historical year, though both would have assigned any event
occurring after the 25th of March to the same years—viz.,
1649 and 1689. To avoid as far as possible mistakes from these two
modes of reckoning, it was usual, as often seen in old books or
manuscripts, to add the historical to the legal date, when speaking of
any day between January 1 and March 25, thus:
|
Jan.30. 164-
|
{
|
8
|
i.e. 1648, the civil and legal year.
|
|
|
|
|
9
|
i.e. 1649 the historical year.
|
This practice, common as it was for many years, is, nevertheless,
often misunderstood, and even intelligent persons are sometimes
perplexed by dates so written. The explanation, however, is very
simple, for the lower or last figure always indicates the year
according to our present calculation.
Hockley Abbey.—Near to, and overlooking Boulton's
Pool, in the year 1799 there was a piece of waste land, which being
let to Mr. Richard Ford, one of the mechanical worthies of that
period, was so dealt with as to make the spot an attraction for every
visitor. Mr. Ford employed a number of hands, and some of them he
observed were in the habit of spending a great part of their wages and
time in dissipation. By way of example to his workmen he laid aside
some 12/-to 15/-a week for a considerable period, and when trade was
occasionally slack with him, and he had no other occupation for them,
he sent his horse and cart to Aston Furnaces for loads of
"slag," gathering in this way by degrees a sufficient
quantity of this strange building material for the erection of a
convenient and comfortable residence. The walls being necessarily
constructed thicker than is usual when mere stone or brick is used,
the fancy took him to make the place represent a ruined building,
which he christened "Hockley Abbey," and to carry out his
deceptive notion the date 1473 was placed in front of the house, small
pebbles set in cement being used to form the figures. In a very few
years by careful training nearly the whole of the building was
overgrown with ivy, and few but those in the secret could have guessed
at the history of this ruined "abbey." For the house and
some fifteen acres of land £100 rent was paid by Mr. Hubert
Gallon, in 1816 and following years, exclusive of taxes, and by way of
comfort to the heavily-burdened householders of to-day, we may just
add that, in addition to all those other duties loyal citizens were
then called upon to provide for the exigencies of the Government, the
parochial taxes on those premises from Michaelmas, 1816, to
Michaelmas, 1817, included two church rates at 30s. each, three
highway rates at 30s. each, and thirty-six levies for the poor
at 30s. each—a total of £61 10s. in the twelve months.
Hollow Tooth Yard.—At one time commonly called the
"Devil's Hollow Tooth Yard." This was the name given to
the Court up the gateway in Bull Street, nearest to Monmouth Street.
Holt Street, Heneage Street, Lister Street, &c., are named
after the Holte family.
Home Hitting.—The Rev. John Home, a Scotch divine, who
visited Birmingham in 1802, said, "it seemed here as if God had
created man only for making buttons."
Horse Fair.—Formerly known as Brick-kiln Lane, received
its present name from the fairs first held there in 1777.
Horses.—To find out the number of these useful animals at
present in Birmingham, is an impossible task; but, in 1873, the last
year before its repeal, the amount paid for "horse duty" in
the Borough was £3,294 7s. 6d., being at the rate of 10s. 6d. on
6,275 animals.
Hospital Saturday.—The fact of the contributions on
Hospital Sundays coming almost solely from the middle and more wealthy
classes, led to the suggestion that if the workers of the town could
be organised they would not be found wanting any more than their
"betters." The idea was quickly taken up, committees formed,
and cheered by the munificent offer of £500 from Mr. P.H. Muntz
towards the expenses, the first collection was made on March 15th
1873, the result being a gross receipt of £4,705 11s. 3d. Of
this amount £490 8s. 10d. was collected from their customers by
the licensed victuallers and beerhouse keepers; the gross totals of
each year to the present time being—
|
1873
|
£4,705
|
11
|
3
|
|
1874
|
4,123
|
15
|
2
|
|
1875
|
3,803
|
11
|
8
|
|
1876
|
3,664
|
13
|
8
|
|
1877
|
3,200
|
17
|
0
|
|
1878
|
3,134
|
5
|
0
|
|
1879
|
3,421
|
10
|
2
|
|
1880
|
3,760
|
9
|
0
|
|
1881
|
3,968
|
18
|
7
|
|
1882
|
4,888
|
18
|
9
|
|
1883
|
5,489
|
9
|
0
|
|
1884
|
6,062
|
16
|
6
|
After deducting for expenses, the yearly amounts are divided, pro
rata, according to their expenditures among the several hospitals
and similar charities, the proportions in 1883 being:—General
Hospital. £1,843 4s. 1d.; Queen's Hospital, £931 8s.
3d.; General Dispensary, £561 1s. 7d.; Children's Hospital,
£498 0s. 4d.; Eye Hospital, £345 0s. 4d.; Birmingham and
Midland Counties' Sanatorium, £211 0s. 4d., Women's
Hospital, £193 1s. 9d.; Homoepathic Hospital, £195 5s.
3d.; Orthopædic Hospital, £138 13s. 6d.; Lying-in Charity,
£67 6s. 5d.; Skin and Lock Hospital, £44 14s. 8d.; Ear and
Throat Infirmary, £26 12s. 8d.; Dental Hospital, £9 5s.
3d.; and Birmingham Nursing District Society, £34 17s. 7d. The
total sum thus distributed in the twelve years is £48,574 18s.
9d.
Hospital Sunday.—There is nothing new under the sun!
Birmingham has the honour of being credited as the birth-place of
"Hospital Sundays," but old newspapers tell us that as far
back as 1751, when Bath was in its pride and glory, one Sunday in each
year was set aside in that city for the collection, at every place of
worship, of funds for Bath Hospital; and a correspondent writing to
Aris's Gazette recommended the adoption of a similar plan
in this town. The first suggestion for the present local yearly Sunday
collection for the hospitals appeared in an article, written by Mr.
Thos. Barber Wright, in the Midland Counties Herald in October,
1859. A collection of this kind took place on Sunday, the 27th, of
that month, and the first public meeting, when arrangements were made
for its annual continuance, was held in the Town Hall, December 14th
same year, under the presidency of Dr. Miller, who, therefrom, has
been generally accredited with being the originator of the plan. The
proceeds of the first year's collection were given to the General
Hospital, the second year to the Queen's, and the third year
divided among the other charitable institutions in the town of a like
character, and this order of rotation has been adhered to since.
The following is a list of the gross amounts collected since the
establishment of the movement:—
|
1859
|
General Hospital
|
£5,200
|
8
|
10
|
|
1860
|
Queen's Hospital
|
3,433
|
6
|
1
|
|
1861
|
Amalgamated Charities
|
2,953
|
14
|
0
|
|
1862
|
General Hospital
|
8,340
|
4
|
7
|
|
1863
|
Queen's Hospital
|
3,293
|
5
|
0
|
|
1864
|
Amalgamated Charities
|
3,178
|
5
|
0
|
|
1865
|
General Hospital
|
4,256
|
11
|
11
|
|
1866
|
Queen's Hospital
|
4,133
|
2
|
10
|
|
1867
|
Amalgamated Charities
|
3,654
|
9
|
7
|
|
1868
|
General Hospital
|
4,253
|
9
|
11
|
|
1869
|
Queen's Hospital
|
4,469
|
1
|
8
|
|
1870
|
Amalgamated Charities
|
4,111
|
6
|
7
|
|
1871
|
General Hospital
|
4,886
|
9
|
2
|
|
1872
|
Queen's Hospital
|
5,192
|
2
|
3
|
|
1873
|
Amalgamated Charities
|
5,370
|
8
|
3
|
|
1874
|
General Hospital
|
5,474
|
17
|
11
|
|
1875
|
Queen's Hospital
|
5,800
|
8
|
8
|
|
1876
|
Amalgamated Charities
|
5,265
|
10
|
10
|
|
1877
|
General Hospital
|
5,280
|
15
|
3
|
|
1878
|
Queen's Hospital
|
6,482
|
12
|
10
|
|
1879
|
Amalgamated Charities
|
5,182
|
3
|
10
|
|
1880
|
General Hospital
|
4,886
|
1
|
8
|
|
1881
|
Queen's Hospital
|
4,585
|
1
|
3
|
|
1882
|
Amalgamated Charities
|
4,800
|
12
|
6
|
|
1883
|
General Hospital
|
5,145
|
0
|
5
|
|
1884
|
Queen's Hospital
|
|
|
|
[Transcriber's note: the 1884 figures are missing in the
original.]
Hospitals.—The General Hospital
may he said to have been commenced in the year 1766, when the first
steps were taken towards the erection of such an institution, but it
was not formally opened for the reception of patients until 1779. The
original outlay on the building was £7,140, but it has received
many additions since then, having been enlarged in 1792, 1830, 1842,
1857 (in which year a new wing was erected, nominally out of the
proceeds of a fête at Aston, which brought in £2,527 6s.
2d.), 1865, and during the last few years especially. The last
additions to the edifice consist of a separate "home" for
the staff of nurses, utilising their former rooms for the admittance
of more patients; also two large wards, for cases of personal injury
from fire, as well as a mortuary, with dissecting and jury rooms,
&c., the total cost of these improvements being nearly
£20,000. For a long period, this institution has ranked as one
of the first and noblest charities in the provinces, its doors being
opened for the reception of cases from all parts of the surrounding
counties, as well as our own more immediate district. The long list of
names of surgeons and physicians, who have bestowed the benefits of
their learning and skill upon the unfortunate sufferers, brought
within its walls, includes many of the highest eminence in the
profession, locally and otherwise, foremost among whom must be placed
that of Dr. Ash, the first physician to the institution, and to whom
much of the honour of its establishment belongs. The connection of the
General Hospital with the Triennial Musical Festivals, which, for a
hundred years, have been held for its benefit, has, doubtless, gone
far towards the support of the Charity, very nearly £112,000
having been received from that source altogether, and the periodical
collections on Hospital Sundays and Saturdays, have still further
aided thereto, but it is to the contributions of the public at large
that the governors of the institution are principally indebted for
their ways and means. For the first twenty-five years, the number of
in-patients were largely in excess of the out-door patients, there
being, during that period, 16,588 of the former under treatment, to
13,009 of the latter. Down to 1861, rather more than half-a-million
cases of accident, illness, &c., had been attended to, and to show
the yearly increasing demand made upon the funds of the Hospital, it
is only necessary to give a few later dates. In 1860 the in-patients
numbered 2,850, the out-patients 20,584, and the expenditure was
£4,191. In 1876, the total number of patients were 24,082, and
the expenditure £12,207. The next three years showed an average
of 28,007 patients, and a yearly expenditure of £13,900. During
the last four years, the benefits of the Charity have been bestowed
upon an even more rapidly-increasing scale, the number of cases in
1880 having been 30,785, in 1881 36,803, in 1882 44,623, and in 1883
41,551, the annual outlay now required being considerably over
£20,000 per year. When the centenary of the Hospital was
celebrated in 1879, a suggestion was made that an event so interesting
in the history of the charity would be most fittingly commemorated by
the establishment or a Suburban Hospital, where patients whose
diseases are of a chronic character could be treated with advantage to
themselves, and with relief to the parent institution, which is always
so pressed for room that many patients have to be sent out earlier
than the medical officers like. The proposal was warmly taken up, but
no feasible way of carrying it out occurred until October, 1883, when
the committee of the Hospital had the pleasure of receiving a letter
(dated Sept. 20), from Mr. John Jaffray, in which he stated that,
having long felt the importance of having a Suburban Hospital, and
with a desire to do some amount of good for the community in which,
for many years, he had received so much kindness, and to which, in
great measure, he owed his prosperity, he had secured a freehold site
on which he proposed to erect a building, capable of accommodating
fifty male and female patients, with the requisite offices for the
attendants and servants, and offered the same as a free gift to the
Governors, in trust for the public. This most welcome and munificent
offer, it need hardly be said, was gratefully accepted, and a general
appeal was made for funds to properly endow the "Jaffray Suburban
Hospital," so that its maintenance and administration shall not
detract from the extending usefulness of the parent institution. The
site chosen by Mr. Jaffray is at Gravelly Hill, and it is estimated
the new branch hospital, of which the first stone was laid June 4,
1884, will cost at least £15,000 in erection. Towards the
endowment fund there have been nine or ten donations of £1,000
each promised, and it is hoped a fully sufficient amount will be
raised before the building is completed, for, in the words of Mr.
Jaffray, we "have great faith in the liberality of the public
towards an institution—the oldest and noblest and ablest of our
medical charities—which for more than a century has done so much
for the relief of human suffering: and cannot help believing that
there are in Birmingham many persons who, having benefited by the
prosperity of the town, feel that they owe a duty to the community,
and will gladly embrace this opportunity of discharging at least some
part of their obligation." Patients are said to be admitted to
the General Hospital by tickets from subscribers; but, in addition to
accidents and cases of sudden illness, to which the doors are open at
all hours, a large number of patients are admitted free on the
recommendation of the medical officers, the proportion of the cases
thus admitted being as six to ten with subscribers' tickets.
It is estimated that a capital sum of at least £60,000 will be
required to produce a sufficiently large income to maintain the
Jaffray Suburban Hospital, and donations have been, and are solicited
for the raising of that sum. Up to the time of going to press with the
"Dictionary," there has been contributed nearly
£24,000 of the amount, of which the largest donations
are:—
|
G.F. Muntz, Esq
|
£2,000
|
0
|
0
|
|
The Right Hon. Lord Calthorpe
|
1,000
|
0
|
0
|
|
Trustees of Dudley Trust
|
1,000
|
0
|
0
|
|
W.B. Cregoe Colmore, Esq
|
1,000
|
0
|
0
|
|
Ralph Heaton, Esq
|
1,000
|
0
|
0
|
|
James Hinks, Esq
|
1,000
|
0
|
0
|
|
Lloyds' Old Bank
|
1,000
|
0
|
0
|
|
W. Middlemore, Esq
|
1,000
|
0
|
0
|
|
Mrs. Elizabeth Phipson
|
1,000
|
0
|
0
|
|
Miss Ryland
|
1,000
|
0
|
0
|
|
Mrs. Simcox
|
1,000
|
0
|
0
|
|
Messrs. Tangyes (Limited)
|
1,000
|
0
|
0
|
|
Henry Wiggin, Esq., M.P
|
1,000
|
0
|
0
|
|
Mr. John Wilkes
|
1,000
|
0
|
0
|
About £5,000 more has been sent in hundreds and fifties, and
doubtless many other large gifts will follow.
The Queens Hospital was commenced in 1840, the first stone
being laid by Earl Howe on the 18th of June. His Royal Highness the
Prince Consort was chosen as first president, and remained so until
his death, the office not being filled up again until 1875, when Lord
Leigh was appointed. Many special efforts have been made to increase
the funds of this hospital, and with great success; thus, on Dec. 28,
1848, Jenny Lind sang for it, the receipts amounting to £1,070.
On July 27, 1857, a fête at Aston Park added £2,527 6s.
2d. (a like sum being given to the General Hospital). In 1859, Mr.
Sands Cox (to whom is due the merit of originating the Queen's
Hospital), commenced the arduous task of collecting a million postage
stamps, equivalent to £4,166 13s. 4d., to clear the then
liabilities, to erect a chapel, and for purposes of extension. Her
Majesty the Queen forwarded (Feb. 15, 1859) a cheque for £100
toward this fund. On January 16, 1869, the workmen of the town decided
to erect a new wing to the Hospital, and subscribed so freely that
Lord Leigh laid the foundation stone Dec. 4, 1871, and the
"Workmen's Extension" was opened for patients Nov. 7,
1873. In 1880 a bazaar at the Town Hall brought in £3,687 17s.,
increased by donations and new subscriptions to £5,969. The
system of admission by subscribers' tickets was done away with
Nov. 1, 1875, a registration fee of 1s. being adopted instead. This
fee, however, is not required in urgent cases or accident, nor when
the patient is believed to be too poor to pay it. The ordinary income
for the year 1882 was £5,580, as compared with £4,834 in
the previous year, when the ordinary income was supplemented by the
further sum of £4,356 from the Hospital Sunday collection, which
falls to the Queen's Hospital once in three years. The chief items
of ordinary income were, subscriptions 1881, £2,780; 1882,
£2,788; donations, 1881, £397; 1882, £237; Hospital
Saturday, 1881, £711; 1882, £852; legacies, 1881,
£208; 1882, £870; dividends, 1881, £178; 1882,
£199; registration fees, 1881, £538; 1882, £597. The
expenditure for the year was £7,264, as compared with
£6,997 in 1881. The number of in-patients in 1882 was 1,669, as
compared with 1,663 in 1881; the number of out-patients was 16,538, as
compared with 14,490 in the preceding year. The cost of each
in-patient was £3 2s. 3-1/4d. Of the in-patients, 811 were
admitted by registration, the remainder being treated as accidents or
urgent cases. Of the out-patients, 8,359 were admitted by
registration, the remainder, namely, 8,179, were admitted free.
The Children's Hospital, founded in 1861, was first opened
for the reception of patients Jan. 1, 1862, in the old mansion in
Steelhouse Lane, fronting the Upper Priory. At the commencement of
1870 the Hospital was removed to Broad Street, to the building
formerly known as the Lying-in Hospital, an out-patient department,
specially erected at a cost of about £3,250, being opened at the
same time (January) in Steelhouse Lane, nearly opposite the mansion
first used. The Broad Street institution has accommodation for about
fifty children in addition to a separate building containing thirty
beds for the reception of fever cases, the erection of which cost
£7,800; and there is a Convalescent Home at Alvechurch in
connection with this Hospital to which children are sent direct from
the wards of the Hospital (frequently after surgical operations) thus
obtaining for them a more perfect convalescence than is possible when
they are returned to their own homes, where in too many instances
those important aids to recovery —pure air, cleanliness, and
good food are sadly wanting. In addition to the share of the Saturday
and Sunday yearly collections, a special effort was made in 1880 to
assist the Children's Hospital by a simultaneous collection in the
Sunday Schools of the town and neighbourhood, and, like the others,
this has become a periodical institution. In 1880, the sum thus
gathered from the juveniles for the benefit of their little suffering
brethren, amounted to £307 9s. 11d.; in 1881, it was £193
10s. 5d.; in 1882, £218 5s. 2d.; in 1883, £234 3s. 1d. The
number of patients during 1883 were: 743 in-patients 12,695
out-patients, 75 home patients, and 475 casualties—total 13,998.
The expenditure of the year had been £4,399 0s. 3d., and the
income but £4,087 14s. 2d.
Dental.—This Hospital, 9, Broad Street, was instituted
for gratuitous assistance to the poor in all cases of diseases of the
teeth, including extracting, stopping, scaling, as well as the
regulation of children's teeth. Any poor sufferer can have
immediate attention without a recommendatory note, but applicants
requiring special operations must be provided with a note of
introduction from a governor. About 6,000 persons yearly take their
achers to the establishment.
Ear and Throat Infirmary, founded in 1844, and formerly in
Cherry Street, has been removed to Newhall Street, where persons
suffering from diseases of the ear (deafness, &c.) and throat, are
attended to daily at noon. During the year ending June, 1883, 6,517
patients had been under treatment, and 1,833 new cases had been
admitted. Of the total, 1,389 had been cured, 348 relieved and 116
remained under treatment. The increase of admissions over those of the
previous year was 181, and the average daily attendance of patients
was 25. The number of patients coming from places outside Birmingham
was 577. The income of this institution is hardly up to the mark,
considering its great usefulness, the amount received from yearly
subscribers being only £129 13s. 6d., representing 711 tickets,
there being received for 875 supplementary tickets, £153 2s.
6d., and £15 11s. from the Hospital Saturday collections.
The Eye Hospital was originated in 1823, and the first patients
were received in April, 1824, at the hospital in Cannon Street. Some
thirty years afterwards the institution was removed to Steelhouse
Lane, and in 1862 to Temple Row, Dee's Royal Hotel being taken and
remodelled for the purpose at a cost of about £8,300. In 1881
the number of patients treated was 12,523; in 1882, 13,448 of whom 768
were in-patients, making a total of over a quarter of a million since
the commencement of the charity. Admission by subscriber's ticket.
Originally an hotel, the building is dilapidated and very unsuitable
to the requirements of the hospital, the space for attendants and
patients being most inadequate. This has been more and more evident
for years past, and the erection of a new building became an absolute
necessity. The governors, therefore, have taken a plot of land at the
corner of Edmund Street and Church Street, upon a lease from the
Colmore family for 99 years, and hereon is being built a commodious
and handsome new hospital, from carefully arranged plans suitable to
the peculiar necessities of an institution of this nature. The
estimated cost of the new building is put at £20,000, of which
only about £8,000 has yet been subscribed (£5,000 of it
being from a single donor). In such a town as Birmingham, and indeed
in such a district as surrounds us, an institution like the Birmingham
and Midland Eye Hospital is not only useful, but positively
indispensable, and as there are no restrictions as to distance or
place of abode in the matter of patients, the appeal made for the
necessary building funds should meet with a quick and generous
response, not only from a few large-hearted contributors, whose names
are household words, but also from the many thousands who have
knowledge directly or indirectly of the vast benefit this hospital has
conferred upon those stricken by disease or accident—to that
which is the most precious of all our senses. It is intended that the
hospital should be a model to the whole kingdom of what such an
institution ought to be; the latest and best of modern appliances,
both sanitary and surgical, will be introduced. There will be in and
out departments, completely isolated one from the other, though with a
door of communication. From sixty to seventy beds will be provided,
special wards for a certain class of cases, adequate waiting-rooms for
out-patients, and the necessary rooms for the officers and medical
attendants, all being on an ample scale.
Fever Hospital.—There was a Fever Hospital opened in
March, 1828, but we have no note when it was closed, and possibly it
may have been only a temporary institution, such as become necessary
now and then even in these days of sanitary science. For some years
past fever patients requiring isolation have been treated in the
Borough Hospital, but the Health Committee have lately purchased a
plot of land in Lodge Road of about 4-1/2 acres, at a cost of
£4,500, and have erected there on a wooden pavilion, divided
into male and female wards, with all necessary bath rooms, nurses'
rooms, &c., everything being done which can contribute to the
comfort and care of the inmates, while the greatest attention has been
paid to the ventilation and other necessary items tending to their
recovery. This pavilion is only a portion of the scheme which the
committee propose to carry out, it being intended to build four, if
not five, other wards of brick. A temporary block of administrative
buildings has been erected at some distance from the pavilion. There
accommodation is provided for the matron, the resident medical
superintendent, the nurses when off duty, and the ordinary kitchen,
scullery, and other offices are attached. When the permanent offices
have been erected this building will be devoted to special fever
cases, or, should there be a demand, private cases will be taken in.
The cost of the whole scheme is estimated at £20,000, including
the sum given for the land. It is most devoutly to be wished that this
hospital, which is entirely free, will be generally used by families
in case of a member thereof be taken with any nature of infectious
fever, the most certain remedy against an epidemic of the kind, as
well as the most favourable chance for the patient being such an
isolation as is here provided. The hospital was opened September 11,
1883, and in cases of scarlet fever and other disorders of an
infectious character, an immediate application should be made to the
health officer at the Council House.
Homoeopathic.—A dispensary for the distribution of
homoeopathic remedies was opened in this town in 1847, and though the
new system met with the usual opposition, it has become fairly
popular, and its practitioners have found friends sufficient to induce
them to erect a very neat and convenient hospital, in Easy Row, at a
cost of about £7,000, which was opened November 23rd, 1875, and
may possibly soon be enlarged. A small payment, weekly, is looked for,
if the patient can afford it, but a fair number are admitted free, and
a much larger number visited, the average number of patients being
nearly 5,000 per annum. Information given on enquiry.
Hospital for Women.—This establishment in the Upper
Priory was opened in October, 1871, for the treatment of diseases
special to females. No note or ticket of recommendation is required,
applicants being attended to daily at two o'clock, except on
Saturday and Sunday. If in a position to pay, a nominal sum of 2s. 6d.
a month is expected as a contribution to the funds, which are not so
flourishing as can be wished. The in-patients' department or home
at Sparkhill has accommodation for 25 inmates, and it is always full,
while some thousands are treated at the town establishment. The number
of new cases in the out-patient department in 1883 was 2,648, showing
an annual increase of nearly 250 a year. Of the 281 in-patients
admitted last year, 205 had to undergo surgical operations of various
kinds, 124 being serious cases; notwithstanding which the mortality
showed a rate of only 5.6 per cent. As a rule many weeks and months of
care and attention are needed to restore the general health of those
who may have, while in the hospital, successfully recovered from an
operation, but there has not hitherto been the needful funds or any
organisation for following up such cases after they have left
Sparkhill. Such a work could be carried on by a District Nursing
Society if there were funds to defray the extra expense, and at their
last annual meeting the Managing Committee decided to appeal to their
friends for assistance towards forming an endowment fund for the
treatment of patients at home during their convalescence, and also for
aiding nurses during times of sickness. An anonymous donation of
£1,000 has been sent in, and two other donors have given
£500 each, but the treasurer will be glad to receive additions
thereto, and as early as possible, for sick women nor sick men can
wait long. The total income for 1883 amounted to £1,305 16s.
4d., while the expenditure was £1,685 4s. 11d., leaving a
deficit much to be regretted.
Lying-in Hospital.—Founded in 1842, and for many years
was located in Broad Street, in the mansion since formed into the
Children's Hospital. In 1868 it was deemed advisable to close the
establishment in favour of the present plan of supplying midwives and
nurses at the poor patients' homes. In 1880 the number of patients
attended was 1,020; in 1881, 973; in 1882, 894; in 1883, 870. In each
of the two latter years there had been two deaths in mothers (1 in 441
cases) about the usual average of charity. The number of children born
alive during the last year was 839, of whom 419 were males, and 420
females. Four infants died; 37 were still-born. There were 6 cases of
twins. The assistance of the honorary surgeons was called in 24 times,
or once in 37 cases. The financial position of the charity is less
satisfactory than could be wished, there being again a deficiency. The
subscriptions were £273, against £269 in 1882 and
£275 in 1881. There was a slight increase in the amount of
donations, but an entire absence of legacies, which, considering the
valuable assistance rendered by the charity to so many poor women, is
greatly to be deplored. The medical board have the power to grant to
any woman who passes the examination, the subjects of which are
defined, a certificate as a skilled midwife, competent to attend
natural labours. One midwife and four monthly nurses have already
received certificates, and it is hoped that many more candidates will
avail themselves of the opportunity thus readily afforded to them, and
supply a want very generally felt among the poor of the town.
Subscribers have the privilege of bestowing the tickets, and the
offices are at 71, Newhall Street.
Orthopædic and Spinal Hospital—Was founded in June,
1817; the present establishment in Newhall Street being entered upon
in December, 1877. All kinds of bodily deformity, hernia, club feet,
spinal diseases, malformations, and distortions of limbs, &c., are
treated daily (at two o'clock) free of charge, except where
instruments or costly supports are needed, when the patient must be
provided with subscribers' tickets in proportion to the cost
thereof. In 1881 and 1882, 4,116 cases received attention, 2,064 being
new cases, and 678 from outside Birmingham. The variety of diseases
was very numerous, and instruments to the value of £420 were
supplied to the patients.
Skin and Lock Hospital, Newhall Street, was founded in 1880,
and opened Jan. 10, 1881. Admission on payment of registration fee,
attendance being given at two o'clock on Monday, Tuesday,
Wednesday, and Thursday in each week.
Smallpox Hospital.—A few years back, when there was a
pretty general epidemic of smallpox, a temporary ward or addition was
attached to the Workhouse, but many persons whose intelligence led
them to know the value of isolation in such cases, could not
"cotton" to the idea of going themselves or sending their
friends there. The buildings in Weston Road, Winson Green, and now
known as the Borough Hospital, have no connection whatever with the
Workhouse, and were opened for the reception of persons suffering from
smallpox and scarlet fever in Nov. 1874. The latter cases are now
taken to the Hospital in Lodge Road, so that present accommodation can
be found in the Borough Hospital for nearly 250 patients at a time
should it ever be necessary to do so. Persons knowing of any case of
smallpox should at once give notice to the officers of health at
Council House.
Hotels.—This French-derived name for inns, from what
Hutton says on the subject, would appear to have been only introduced
in his day, and even then was confined to the large coaching-houses of
the town, many of which have long since vanished. The first railway
hotel was the Queen's, at the entrance of the old railway station,
Duddeston Row, though originally built and used for officers for the
company's secretaries, directors' boardroom, &c. As part
of the New Street Station, a far more pretentious establishment was
erected, and to this was given the title of the "Queen's
Hotel," the Duddeston Row building reverting to its original use.
The Great Western Hotel was the next to be built, and the success
attending these large undertakings have led to the erection of the
handsome Midland Hotel, opposite New Street Station, and the still
grander "Grand Hotel," in Colmore Row, opened Feb. 1, 1879.
The removal of the County Court to Corporation Street, and the
possible future erection of Assize Courts near at hand, have induced
some speculators to embark in the erection of yet another extensive
establishment, to be called the "Inns of Court Hotel," and
in due course of time we shall doubtless have others of a similar
character. At any of the above, a visitor to the town (with money in
his purse) can find first-class accommodation, and (in comparison with
the London hotels of a like kind) at reasonably fair rates. After
these come a second grade, more suitable for commercial gentlemen, or
families whose stay is longer, such as the new Stork Hotel, the
Albion, in Livery Street, Bullivant's, in Carr's Lane, the
Acorn, the Temperance at the Colonnade, and the Clarendon, in Temple
Street, Dingley's, in Moor Street, Knapp's, in High Street,
Nock's, in Union Passage, the Plough and Harrow, in Hagley Road,
the Swan, in New Street, the White Horse, in Congreve Street (opposite
Walter Showell and Sons' head offices), the Woolpack, in Moor
Street, and the other Woolpack, now called St. Martin's, at the
back of the church.
For much entertaining information respecting the old taverns of
Birmingham, the hotels of former days, we recommend the reader to
procure a copy of S.D.R.'s little book on the subject, which is
full of anecdotes respecting the frequenters of the then houses, as
well as many quaint notes of the past.
The Acorn in Temple Street.—The favourite resort of the
"men of the time" a few score years ago was at one period so
little surrounded with houses that anyone standing at its door could
view a landscape stretching for miles, while listening to the song
birds in the neighbouring gardens. It dates from about 1750, and
numbers among its successive landlords, Mr. John Roderick, the first
auctioneer of that well-known name, Mr. James Clements, and Mr.
Coleman, all men of mark. The last-named host, after making many
improvements in the premises and renewing the lease, disposed of the
hotel to a Limited Liability Company for £15,500. It is at
present one of the best-frequented commercial houses in the town.
The Hen and Chickens.—In Aris's Gazette, of
December 14, 1741, there appeared an advertisement, that there was
"to be let, in the High Street, Birmingham, a very
good-accustomed Inn, the sign of the Hen and Chickens, with stables,
&c." Inasmuch as this advertisement also said "there is
a very good Bowling Green joining to it," it has been quoted by
almost every writer of local history as an evidence of the popularity
of those places of recreation, or as showing the open aspect of the
then existing town. This establishment is believed to have been on the
site of Messrs. Manton's cabinet warehouse, the adjoining Scotland
Passage leading to the stables, and possibly to "the Bowling
Green." In 1798, the tenant, Mrs. Lloyd, removed to a new house
in New Street, and took the Hen and Chickens' title with her, the
place becoming famous as a posting-house, and afterwards, under Mr.
William Waddell, as one of the most extensive coaching establishments
in the Midlands. A mere list only, of the Serene Highnesses, the
Royalties, Nobility, and celebrated characters of all kinds, who have
put up at this hotel, would fill pages, and those anxious for such
old-time gossip, must refer to S.D.R.'s book, as before-mentioned.
At the close of 1878, the premises were acquired by the
"Birmingham Aquarium Co., Limited," who proposed to erect a
handsome concert-room, aquarium, restaurant, &c. The old building
has been considerably altered, and somewhat improved in appearance,
but the aquarium and concert-room are, as yet, non est, an
Arcade being built instead.
The Midland, New Street.—One of the modern style of
hotels, having over a hundred good bedrooms, besides the necessary
complement of public and private sitting and dining rooms, coffee,
commercial, smoking and billiard rooms, &c., erected for Mr. W.J.
Clements in 1874; it was sold early in 1876 to a Limited Company,
whose capital was fixed at £40,000 in £10 shares.
The Royal, in Temple Row, was erected on
the tontine principle in 1772, but was not called more than "The
Hotel" for a long time afterwards the word Royal being added in
1805, after His Royal Highness the Duke of Gloucester slept there (May
4) on his way to Liverpool. In 1830 the Duchess of Kent, and Princess
Victoria (our present Queen) honoured it by their presence. In June,
1804, the Assembly Room (for very many years the most popular place
for meetings of a social character) was enlarged, the proprietors
purchasing a small piece of adjoining land for the purpose at a cost
of £250, being at the rate of £26,000 per acre, a
noteworthy fact as showing the then rapidly increasing value of
property in the town. The portico in front of the hotel was put there
in 1837, when the building had to be repaired, in consequence of the
kind attentions of the Birmingham Liberals at the time of the general
election then just passed. The whole of the front and main portion of
the hotel is now used for the purposes of the Eye Hospital, the
Assembly Rooms, &c., being still public.—Portugal House, in
New Street, on the present site of the Colonnade, prior to its being
taken for the Excise and Post Offices, was used for hotel purposes,
and was also called "The Royal."
The Stork.—The Directory of 1800 is the first which
contains the name of the Stork Tavern, No. 3, The Square, the host
then being Mr. John Bingham, the title of Hotel not being assumed
until 1808. For a few years the one house was sufficient for the
accommodation required, but as time progressed it became necessary to
enlarge it, and this was accomplished by taking in the adjoining
houses, until, at last, the hotel occupied one-fourth of The Square,
from the corner of the Minories to the Lower Priory, in which were
situated the stables, &c. It was in one of the houses so annexed
to the hotel (No. 1) that Dr. Hector, the friend of Dr. Johnson,
resided; and at the rear of another part of the premises in the Coach
Yard, there was opened (in 1833) the "The Equitable Labour
Exchange." The whole of the hotel buildings were sold by auction,
Sept. 26, 1881, and quickly razed to the ground, which was required
for Corporation Street; but the Stork, like the fabulous Phoenix, has
risen from its ashes, and in close proximity to the old site, stands
boldly forth as one of the magnificences of that-is-to-be
most-magnificent thoroughfare.
The Union, in Cherry Street, was built in 1790, but much
enlarged in 1825. It was one of the principal coaching houses, but
will be remembered mostly as furnishing the chief saleroom in the town
for the disposal of landed property. The site being required for
Corporation Street, the building was "knocked down" on the
21st April, 1879.
The Woolpack, in Moor Street, saw many strange events, and had
in its olden days undergone some few changes for there are not many
sites in Birmingham that can compare with this in regard to its
recorded history, but at last it is being cleared to make way for a
more modern structure. It is believed there was a tavern called the
Green Tree here close upon 500 years ago, and even now there is still
to be traced the course of an ancient "dyche" running
through the premises which was described as the boundary dividing
certain properties in 1340, and forming part of that belonging to the
Guild of the Holy Cross. The house itself was the residence of William
Lench, whose bequests to the town are historical, but when it was
turned into a tavern is a little uncertain, as the earliest notice of
it as such is dated 1709, when John Fusor was the occupier. It was the
house of resort for many Birmingham worthies, especially those
connected with the law, even before the erection of the Public
Offices, and it is said that John Baskerville used to come here for
his tankard of ale and a gossip with his neighbours. In the time of
the Reform agitation it was frequented by the leaders of the Liberal
party, and has always been the favourite shelter of artists visiting
the town.
The Woolpack, in St. Martin's Lane.—Some eighty odd
years ago the tavern standing at the corner of Jamaica Row and St.
Martin's Lane was known as the Black Boy Inn, from the figure of a
young negro then placed over the door. Being purchased in 1817 by the
occupier of a neighbouring tavern called the Woolpack, the two names
were united, and for a time the house was called the "Black Boy
and Woolpack," the first part being gradually allowed to fall
into disuse. Prior to its demolition it was the noted market
hostelry for cattle dealers and others, the respected landlord, Mr.
John Gough, who held the premises from 1848 till his death in 1877,
being himself a large wholesale dealer. When the Town Council decided
to enlarge and cover in the Smithfield Market, the old house and its
adjuncts were purchased by them, and a new hotel of almost palatial
character has been erected in its place, the frontage extending nearly
the entire length of St. Martin's Lane, and the Black Boy and the
Woolpack must in future be called St. Martin's Hotel.
Hothouses.—Those at Frogmore, comprising a range of
nearly 1,000 feet of metallic forcing houses, were erected in 1842-3,
by Mr. Thomas Clark, of this town, his manager, Mr. John Jones, being
described by the celebrated Mr. London, as "the best hot-house
builder in Britain."
House and Window Tax.—See "Taxes."
Howard Street Institute.—Founded in 1869. The first
annual meeting, for the distribution of prizes, was held in December,
1872. The many sources for acquiring knowledge now provided at such
institutions as the Midland Institute, the Mason College, &c.,
have no doubt tended much to the end, but, considering the amount of
good derived by the pupils from the many classes held in the Howard
Street rooms, it is a pity the Institute should be allowed to drop.
Humbug.—The Prince of Humbugs, Phineas Barnum, at the
Town Hall, February 28, 1859, gave his views of what
constituted "Humbug." As if the Brums didn't know.
Humiliation Days.—February 25, 1807, was kept here as a
day of fasting and humiliation, as was also September 25, 1832.
Hundred.—Birmingham is in the Hundred of Hemlingford.
Hungary.—The first meeting in this town to express
sympathy with the Hungarians in their struggle with Austria, was held
in the Corn Exchange, May 23, 1849, and several speakers were in
favour of sending armed help, but no volunteers came forward.
Hunter's Lane and Nursery Terrace take their names from the
fact that Mr. Hunter's nursery grounds and gardens were here
situated. The "Lane" was the old road to Wolverhampton, but
has a much older history than that, as it is believed to have been
part of the Icknield Street.
Hurricanes.—The late Mr. Thos. Plant, in describing the
great storm, which visited England, on the night of Sunday, 6th
January, 1839, and lasted all next day, said it was the most
tremendous hurricane that had occurred here for fifty years. A large
quantity of lead was stripped off the roof of the Town Hall, the
driving force of the gale being so strong, that the lead was carried a
distance of more than sixty yards before it fell into a warehouse,
'at the back of an ironmonger's shop in Ann Street.—See
"Storms and
Tempests."
Hurst Street, from Hurst Hill, once a wooded mount (the same
being the derivation of Ravenhurst Street), was originally but a
passage way, leading under an arch at the side of the White Swan in
Smallbrook Street (now Day's establishment). Up the passage was a
knacker's yard, a shop for the dyeing of felt hats, and a few
cottages.
