Sutton Coldfield Local History Research Group

For the first time we have a comprehensive study of the available information concerning this serious fire that devastated a large section of Streetly Wood and the surrounding heathland, probably some 800 acres. The research covers the social history of Sutton’s residents at the time of the fire, a summary of the weather conditions in 1868, a brief history of Sutton Coldfield Golf Club and its association with this part of the Park after the fire, the early history of Streetly and some conjectural thoughts on the extent of the damage to Streetly Wood.

Part 1: During the early summer of 1921, when Sutton Coldlfield, like the rest of the British Isles, experienced very hot weather. There had been very little rainfall for some time resulting in the ground being extremely dry and the heathland of Sutton Park being susceptible to random outbreaks of fire. The Borough Council's Park and Estates Committee initially took the view that the fires were started deliberately but later their attitude changed when they realised that the extent and frequency of the fires was largely due to natural causes. Outbreaks of fires in Sutton Park were first reported as occurring on 17th and 25th June.1921. Part 2: In complete contrast to the drought and subsequent widespread fires of 1921 described in Part 1, a sudden cloudburst occurred two years later on Saturday, July 14, 1923 producing excessive rainfall in Sutton Park. The Borough Council were once again faced with a natural disaster and its consequential effects.

An Archaeological Appreciation and Historical Notes to accompany a visit by Sutton Coldfield Local History Research Group Summer 1992.

Is this one of the oldest cottages in Reddicap Heath, Sutton Coldfield?  This brief history suggests it might be.

In April 2005, what initially appeared to be a simple hobby of collecting garden sprayers and spraying machines made in Birmingham has led me on a fascinating journey into the history of, and to some extent the people behind, these varied products.  My particular interest, however, is the Four Oaks Spraying Machine Company which was situated in the Mere Green area of Sutton Coldfield.  Hopefully this article will be of equal interest to you.

On a 33-acre site in the north of Sutton Park, a large anti-aircraft base was built to defend Birmingham against the threat of German bombing during the Second World War. The base held up to 200 personnel - initially manned by the regular army, but subsequently by the local Home Guard. After the war, the base housed homeless families - mainly ex-servicemen - until being demolished in the mid-fifties. Whilst in operation, knowledge of the site was kept secret, and after the war, existence of the site was forgotten. This is the story of Sutton Park’s anti-aircraft base and how it came to be rediscovered.

In 1977, whilst working as a solicitor at 46 High Street, I discovered a file of letters and legal documents dating from 1897 which related to the bankruptcy of Nelson Snelling Caunter. Solicitors' files are usually kept for some twelve years, but I imagine that this particular file was kept for much longer because Caunter was the manager of the Sutton Coldfield branch of Lloyds Bank, then operating from 36 High Street. This article details the documents in the file and gives some idea of legal practice in the late Victorian era.

Before 1857 a marriage could be dissolved only by an Act of Parliament, the cost of which was prohibitive to all but the extremely wealthy.  The 1857 Matrimonial Causes Act provided a much cheaper method by giving the High Court of Justice jurisdiction to grants divorce decrees.  This meant that people in humble circumstances could petition for divorce.  One such person was William Hopkins, a labourer from Whitehouse Common, who instructed Sutton Coldfield Solicitors Messrs Eddowes & Son to obtain a dissolution of his marriage in 1900.  This article, based on a file of papers found in the Solicitors’ office in 1977, recounts the progress of the divorce case from petition to hearing, and throws some light on legal practice in the late Victorian/early Edwardian era.

“This is the illustrated account of the creation in 1924 of the Children’s Paddling Stream in Sutton Park by the Sutton Coldfield Borough Council.”

Albert Wood, tenant of Midland Lodge in Sutton Park from 1892 to 1917, was a typical Victorian lower middle-class gentleman who had many interests. He was a chemist by training but from childhood took an interest in horticulture and natural history. These interests included ferns and alpine plants as well as birds and molluscs. He was also a founder member of The Vesey Club and counted Benjamin Stone, Sutton Coldfield’s first mayor, as one of his friends. He wrote this article for the 1900 edition of a guidebook of the Town which briefly presents his research of the snails and molluscs that inhabited Sutton Coldfield at the turn of the 19th century.