Smethwick
Encyclopedia
Smethwick is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell
, in the West Midlands
of England. It is situated on the edge of the city of Birmingham
, within the historic boundaries
of Staffordshire
, Worcestershire
and Warwickshire
.
and from 1894 a Municipal Borough in the county of Staffordshire
. In 1907 it became a County Borough. In 1966, Smethwick was merged with the boroughs of Oldbury
and Rowley Regis
to form the new County Borough of Warley
, and was transferred into the county of Worcestershire
. This in turn was merged with West Bromwich
in 1974 to form the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell
, which was incorporated into the new West Midlands
county.
Smethwick had always had strong economic links to Birmingham (even after its independence of county control following the creation of Smethwick County Borough in 1907), although like most areas and towns of the West Midlands has a strong sense of its own identity. The Warley County Borough was placed entirely in Worcestershire on its creation, but Smethwick has also been in Warwickshire and Staffordshire, and since 1974 has formed part of the West Midlands
county. The former boundary of Staffordshire, and detached parts of Worcestershire and Shropshire could be found at the Three Shires Oak, in Bearwood.
Smethwick has previously been suggested to mean 'smiths' place of work' however a more recent interpretation has suggested the name means "The settlement on the smooth land". Smethwick was recorded in the Domesday book
as Smedeuuich. Until the end of the 18th century it was an outlying hamlet of the south Staffordshire
village of Harborne
. Harborne became part of the county borough of Birmingham and thus transferred from Staffordshire
to Warwickshire
in 1891, leaving Smethwick in the County of Staffordshire.
The oldest building in Smethwick is The Old Church which stands on the corner of Church Road and The Uplands. This was consecrated in 1732 as a Chapel of Ease in the parish of St Peter, Harborne, Birmingham. The building was originally known as "Parkes' Chapel" in honour of Mistress Dorothy Parkes who bequeathed the money for the church and also for a local school. The chapel was later known as "The Old Chapel", and public house next to it is still called this. In the church there are several fine memorials, including one to Dorothy Parkes.
From the 18th century, three generations of the Birmingham Canal Navigations Main Line
were built through Smethwick, carrying coal and goods between the nearby Black Country
and Birmingham.
The Grade I listed Galton Bridge
spans the New Line canal and railway. When built in 1829 by Telford, it was the longest single-span bridge in the world. Its name commemorates Samuel Galton
, a local landowner and industrialist. It is identical to Telford's bridge at Holt
Fleet over the River Severn
built in 1828 and opened in 1830.
Matthew Boulton
and James Watt
opened their Soho Foundry
in the North of Smethwick (not to be confused with the Soho Manufactory
in nearby Soho
) in the late 18th century. In 1802, William Murdoch
illuminated the foundry with gas lighting
of his own invention. The foundry was later home to weighing scale makers W & T Avery Ltd.
.
The world's oldest working engine, made by Boulton and Watt
, the Smethwick Engine
, originally stood near Bridge Street, Smethwick. It is now at Thinktank
, the new science museum in Birmingham.
The public library in the High Street was originally built as the Public Hall in 1866-7 and is designed by Yeoville Thomason
.
Other former industry included railway rolling stock manufacture, at the Birmingham Railway Carriage and Wagon Company
factory; screws and other fastenings from Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds (GKN), engines from Tangye, tubing from Evered's, steel pen nibs from British Pens and various products from Chance Brothers
' glassworks, including lighthouse lenses and the glazing for the Crystal Palace
(the London works, in North Smethwick, manufactured its metalwork). Phillips Cycles
, once one of the largest bicycle manufacturers in the world was based in Bridge Street, Smethwick. Nearby, in Downing Street, is the famous bicycle saddle maker, Brooks Saddles
. The important metalworking factory of Henry Hope & Sons Ltd
was based at Holford Lane where the company manufactured steel window systems, roof glazing, gearings and metalwork.
Council housing development began in Smethwick after 1920, beginning with houses being built in the grounds of Holly Lodge, although the building itself survived the development and a school opened in its buildings in 1922, though it was later used as an orpathedic clinic.
The Ruskin Pottery
Studio, named in honour of the artist John Ruskin
, was in Oldbury Road. Many English churches have stained glass windows made by Hardman Studios in Lightwoods House, or, before that, by the Camm family.
Former Prime Minister
John Major
's parents married at Holy Trinity Church in Smethwick while they were on tour with a music hall variety act.
After the Second World War, Smethwick attracted a large number of immigrants from Commonwealth
countries, the largest ethnic group being Sikh
s from the Punjab
in India. The ethnic minority communities were initially very unpopular with the white British population of Smethwick, prompting the election of Conservative Party
Member of Parliament
(MP) Peter Griffiths
at the 1964 general election
, in which the Labour Party
MP was unseated following the campaign slogan "If you want a nigger for a neighbour, vote Labour" by his supporters. This came two years after race riots had hit the town in 1962.http://www.searchlightmagazine.com/index.php?link=template&story=35
In 1966, Smethwick ceased to be a single County Borough
and was absorbed into the new County Borough of Warley
, geographically although not administratively in Worcestershire
.
In the 1960s, a large council estate in the west of Smethwick was built. It was officially known as the West Smethwick Estate, but as all of the homes were concrete blocks the estate was known locally as the 'concrete jungle'. The estate quickly became unpopular and was redeveloped in the early 1990s with modern low-rise housing and renamed Galton Village. There is another housing estate called the Windmill Lane Estate, located near Cape Hill.
There is a collection of red brick turn-of-20th century terrace, 1930s semi-detached, newly built modern housing, and a number of high rise blocks of flats. Other estates and areas include Black Patch, Cape Hill, Uplands, Albion Estate, Bearwood, Londonderry and Rood End.
Rofle Street public baths were among the first public swimming baths in the country when opened north of the town centre in 1888. The baths remained open for nearly a century before closing. In the late 1980s, the Black Country Museum expressed interest in transferring the building to its site in Dudley
and so the transfer of the building began in 1989. It was finally opened to visitors at the museum in 1999, housing the museum's exhibition gallery and archive resource centre.http://www.bclm.co.uk/map1.htm
in 1918, having previously been part of the Handsworth constituency
. At that year's general election
, Christabel Pankhurst
, standing as a Women's Party candidate, narrowly failed to become Britain's first woman MP, being defeated by Labour
by 775 votes in a straight fight.
Labour held the seat until 1931, from 1926 the MP being Sir Oswald Mosley
, future founder of the British Union of Fascists
. Mosley resigned the Labour whip
in March 1931 but continued to represent the constituency until it was taken by the Conservatives
at that year's general election
.
Labour won in the UK general election, 1945
on 26 July. However, the victorious MP, Alfred Dobbs
, was killed in a car crash the very next day. He is the shortest-serving Member of Parliament
(MP) in British history, if one discounts a few cases of people being elected posthumously. In the resulting by-election
, Patrick Gordon Walker
won for Labour.
In the 1964 general election
, Gordon Walker, who was Shadow Foreign Secretary, was defeated in controversial circumstances in the constituency by Conservative candidate Peter Griffiths
. Smethwick had been a focus of immigration from the Commonwealth
in the economic and industrial growth of the years following World War II and Griffiths ran a campaign critical of the government's policy. There were rumours that his supporters had covertly circulated the slogan "If you want a nigger
for a neighbour, vote Liberal
or Labour." Hardly had the heat of the election subsided when, on February 12, 1965, United States black activist Malcolm X
visited the region just nine days before his assassination. He fuelled further controversy when he told the press:
Malcolm X's visit to Smethwick had been organised by a BBC News
journalist with a view to X having a debate with Peter Griffiths outside the Smethwick council house. Griffiths declined at late notice and so an interview with X was conducted on the streets of Smethwick. This was to be X's last TV interview before his assassination nine days later. It was never aired.
Labour candidate, actor Andrew Faulds
, defeated Griffiths in the 1966 general election
and was MP for the constituency until his retirement at the 1997 general election
. (The constituency was renamed Warley East
in 1974.)
opened a brewery
on Cape Hill in 1879. It was a local landmark in Smethwick and provided employment in the town for 123 years. However, following a decline in sales and revenue, American owners Coors
closed the brewery on 6 December 2002. It was demolished two years later and a 650-home private housing estate was developed on its site.
Smethwicks has a long association with Canals, and was the town’s first major transport link from a time before decent roads and of course railways. The Birmingham Canal Navigation Old and New Mainline Canals run through the industrial areas and right past the High Street, running parallel to the Stour Valley Railway Line both of which end up in Wolverhampton. James Brindley was the engineer charged with building the canal, a man who gives his name to the busy district in the centre of Birmingham near the International Convention Centre, National Indoor Arena and Broad Street.
The old main line was completed though Smethwick by 1769 which required 13 locks to climb the hill though the town, Brindley had found the earth too soft to dig a cutting though at the time. Water was supplied by two steam engines one of which was located on the Engine Arm which led to the Smethwick Engine
on Rabone Lane and the other was near Spon Lane. Smethwick New Pumping Station next to Brasshouse Lane was added later in 1892. Because of the locks the canal through Smethwick became somewhat of a bottle neck and Thomas Telford
(famous for his Iron Bridge) was commissioned in 1824 to look at alternatives.
The new mainline through Smethwick was completed by 1829 and completely bypassed all 13 locks of the summit with a cutting, the Engine Arm and Stewarts Aqueducts were built to carry their respective canals over the new mainline. The cutting was build through the land of the local businessman Samuel Galton
's and thus this cutting created the Galton Valley and Galton Bridge was named in his honour, Galton Bridge was the longest single span iron bridge in the world at that time. The Canals of the new and old mainline diverged at one end at Smethwick Junction
near Bridge Street and re joined at Bromford Junction
near Bromford Road in Oldbury.
Today Galton Valley is a nature area and of more historical interest than commercial, and used mainly for leisure rather than transporting commercial goods. The Galton Valley Canal Heritage Centre
focuses on the civil engineering feats of the local area.
and the Rugby-Birmingham-Stafford Line
. The former links Birmingham Snow Hill station
with Worcester
, Stratford-upon-Avon
and Leamington Spa
. The Rugby-Birmingham-Stafford Line links Birmingham New Street railway station, Coventry
and Wolverhampton
, with onward connections. The Birmingham Wagon & Carriage Works was based in Smethwick until it's closure, the company built trains for London Underground as well railways across the world.
Further Reading:
The station on the West Coast Main Line is called Smethwick Rolfe Street
. This station serves local trains from Wolverhampton
and Birmingham New Street. This station was the site of railway goods yard, located at the none High St side of the station. The road bridge leading over the railway lines, once was crossed by a level crossing and Rolfe Street is Smethwick's oldest station dating from 1852. Soho Railway station was located on Soho St, which can be reached just off Rabone Lane. This station was opened in 1867 and closed in 1949, there is nothing left of the railway station.
The former Smethwick West Railway Station was replaced by a new facility opened at the same time as the Jewellery Line 1995 called Smethwick Galton Bridge
. Smethwick West was reached off two junctions diverging from the Stour Valley Line from Birmingham New Street Railway Station. The line that know runs over Summit Bridge, the large brick structure that crosses the canal along side Thomas Telford's Galton Bridge, towards the Hawthorns station through the current Galton Bridge station was closed to passenger trains in 1972. This line obviously re opened as the Jewellery Line in 1995 and saw the closure the Great Western Railway's last contribution to the railway stations of Smethwick. The station platforms still remain, as dose the Booking Office, but these have been the target of vandals since closure.
Galton Bridge station serves a limited service to London, regular trains to Birmingham International Airport, Wolverhampton and further north. It also serves trains to Stourbridge
, Kidderminster
, Worcester
, Dorridge
and Stratford Upon Avon. Not to mention it has regular services to all three of Birmingham
central stations. The station is divided into High and Low levels, this used to be stated on departure screens at places like Birmingham Snow Hill (High Level or H.L) and Birmingham New Street (Low Level or L.L). Platform's 1 and 2 of the Jewellery Line are on the High Level situated on Summit Bridge and of course platforms 3 and 4 of the Stour Valley are on the low level.
To the north of Smethwick High Street on Brasshouse Lane is The Hawthorns
again on the "Jewellery Line" and also on the Midland Metro
, this station is located next to the West Bromwich Albion Football Club. This station serves a limited service to London, as well as local trains to Stourbridge
, Kidderminster, Worcester, Birmingham, Dorridge and Stratford Upon Avon. The Midland Metro
serves parts of Birmingham and Wolverhampton
via West Bromwich
, Wednesbury
and Bilston
. The original Hawthorns (Halt) railway station was located on the opposite side of Halfords Lane, and was only open from 1931 until 1968 and did no see a regular service except on Matchdays at West Bromwich Albion. It saw new life in 1995 when passenger trains returned, followed by the Midland Metro in 1999. The line from the direction of Galton Bridge was still in use after it's 1972 closure as a single line to Coopers Scrap Yard in Handsworth only, this scrap yard is still in use to this day along with its railway connection. The track bed through to Birmingham Snow Hill past Coopers Scrap Yard was lifted, and the line towards West Bromwich formed a local path that was retained when the metro was built.
The town of Smethwick has long association with buses, the famous Birmingham and Midland Motor Omnibus Company or Midland Red was based on Bearwood Road on the site of the former Safeway Supermarket. Also to be found in Bearwood is its bus station, Bearwood Bus Station
is a small but well served affair and the only bus station in Smethwick. It is served by the famous number 11 Birmingham Outer Circle as well as the Hagley Road Corridor buses and of course a regular National Express Coach Service. Bearwood is an important bus hub is Smethwick, as is to a lesser extent Cape Hill both of which make up Smethwick’s major shopping area. Smethwick High Street is also well served by buses and as noted above is home to two railway stations.
Birmingham Corporation Tramways
was the last to run trams through Smethwick, closing there last routes in 1939. Trams had their running through Cape Hill and then diverging to either take the route towards Dudley via the High Street or towards Bearwood, via Waterloo Road and Bearwood Road, terminating near the site of Bearwood Bus Station and Kings Head Public House. Both the current National Express West Midlands
routes 82 and 87 are former tram routes and the 87 in fact uses the same number, the former 29 route is now the 82 of course. Route 34 from Birmingham to Bearwood along the Hagley Road also operated, even though it terminated next to the route via Cape Hill there was no physical link to each other. Route 34 was the first route to go in Smethwick in 1930, although there has been talk of the Midland Metro following a new route down Hagley Road to Quinton.
The Midland Metro
opened in 1999, and is more of a light railway than a tramway. It follows the former Great Western Railway
track bed from Birmingham Snow Hill Railway Station to the former Wolverhampton Low Level via West Bromwich until Priestfield in Wolverhampton, after that is a tramway proper and runs along the street. The metro can be at caught at the Hawthorns railway station.
Sandwell
Sandwell is a metropolitan borough of the West Midlands with a population of around 289,100, and an area of . The borough is named after Sandwell Priory, and spans a densely populated part of both the Black Country, and the West Midlands conurbation, encompassing the urban towns of Blackheath,...
, in the West Midlands
West Midlands (county)
The West Midlands is a metropolitan county in western central England with a 2009 estimated population of 2,638,700. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972, formed from parts of Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. The...
of England. It is situated on the edge of the city of Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, within the historic boundaries
Historic counties of England
The historic counties of England are subdivisions of England established for administration by the Normans and in most cases based on earlier Anglo-Saxon kingdoms and shires...
of Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
, Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
and Warwickshire
Warwickshire
Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...
.
Geography and administration
Originally the area was an Urban DistrictUrban district
In the England, Wales and Ireland, an urban district was a type of local government district that covered an urbanised area. Urban districts had an elected Urban District Council , which shared local government responsibilities with a county council....
and from 1894 a Municipal Borough in the county of Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
. In 1907 it became a County Borough. In 1966, Smethwick was merged with the boroughs of Oldbury
Oldbury, West Midlands
Oldbury is a town in the West Midlands in England. It is a part of the Black Country and the administrative centre of the borough of Sandwell.-Local government:...
and Rowley Regis
Rowley Regis
Rowley Regis is a town in the Sandwell metropolitan borough of the West Midlands county and a part of the Black Country in the United Kingdom. Being part of the Black Country, locals speak with the traditional dialect, though in a form regarded by many as the quickest and the hardest to...
to form the new County Borough of Warley
County Borough of Warley
Warley was a county borough and civil parish forming part of the West Midlands conurbation, England, and geographical county of Worcestershire. It was formed in 1966 by the combination of the existing county borough of Smethwick with the municipal boroughs of Oldbury and Rowley Regis Warley was a...
, and was transferred into the county of Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
. This in turn was merged with West Bromwich
West Bromwich
West Bromwich is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell, in the West Midlands, England. It is north west of Birmingham lying on the A41 London-to-Birkenhead road. West Bromwich is part of the Black Country...
in 1974 to form the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell
Sandwell
Sandwell is a metropolitan borough of the West Midlands with a population of around 289,100, and an area of . The borough is named after Sandwell Priory, and spans a densely populated part of both the Black Country, and the West Midlands conurbation, encompassing the urban towns of Blackheath,...
, which was incorporated into the new West Midlands
West Midlands (county)
The West Midlands is a metropolitan county in western central England with a 2009 estimated population of 2,638,700. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972, formed from parts of Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. The...
county.
Smethwick had always had strong economic links to Birmingham (even after its independence of county control following the creation of Smethwick County Borough in 1907), although like most areas and towns of the West Midlands has a strong sense of its own identity. The Warley County Borough was placed entirely in Worcestershire on its creation, but Smethwick has also been in Warwickshire and Staffordshire, and since 1974 has formed part of the West Midlands
West Midlands (county)
The West Midlands is a metropolitan county in western central England with a 2009 estimated population of 2,638,700. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972, formed from parts of Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. The...
county. The former boundary of Staffordshire, and detached parts of Worcestershire and Shropshire could be found at the Three Shires Oak, in Bearwood.
History
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
as Smedeuuich. Until the end of the 18th century it was an outlying hamlet of the south Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
village of Harborne
Harborne
Harborne is an area three miles southwest from Birmingham city centre, England. It is a Birmingham City Council ward in the formal district and in the parliamentary constituency of Birmingham Edgbaston.- Geography :...
. Harborne became part of the county borough of Birmingham and thus transferred from Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
to Warwickshire
Warwickshire
Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...
in 1891, leaving Smethwick in the County of Staffordshire.
The oldest building in Smethwick is The Old Church which stands on the corner of Church Road and The Uplands. This was consecrated in 1732 as a Chapel of Ease in the parish of St Peter, Harborne, Birmingham. The building was originally known as "Parkes' Chapel" in honour of Mistress Dorothy Parkes who bequeathed the money for the church and also for a local school. The chapel was later known as "The Old Chapel", and public house next to it is still called this. In the church there are several fine memorials, including one to Dorothy Parkes.
From the 18th century, three generations of the Birmingham Canal Navigations Main Line
BCN Main Line
The BCN Main Line, or Birmingham Canal Navigations Main Line describes the evolving route of the Birmingham Canal between Birmingham and Wolverhampton in England....
were built through Smethwick, carrying coal and goods between the nearby Black Country
Black Country
The Black Country is a loosely defined area of the English West Midlands conurbation, to the north and west of Birmingham, and to the south and east of Wolverhampton. During the industrial revolution in the 19th century this area had become one of the most intensely industrialised in the nation...
and Birmingham.
- James BrindleyJames BrindleyJames Brindley was an English engineer. He was born in Tunstead, Derbyshire, and lived much of his life in Leek, Staffordshire, becoming one of the most notable engineers of the 18th century.-Early life:...
built the first canal, the Old Line, over the Smethwick Summit in 1769 - his summit level was lowered and improved by John SmeatonJohn SmeatonJohn Smeaton, FRS, was an English civil engineer responsible for the design of bridges, canals, harbours and lighthouses. He was also a capable mechanical engineer and an eminent physicist...
in 1790 - Thomas TelfordThomas TelfordThomas Telford FRS, FRSE was a Scottish civil engineer, architect and stonemason, and a noted road, bridge and canal builder.-Early career:...
built a parallel, more direct route, in deeper cuttings and without locks, the New Line, in 1829.
The Grade I listed Galton Bridge
Galton Bridge
Galton Bridge is a canal bridge in Smethwick, West Midlands, England built by Thomas Telford in 1829. It spans Telford's Birmingham Canal Navigations New Main Line carrying Roebuck Lane. When it was constructed, its single span of 151 feet was the highest in the world . Originally a road bridge...
spans the New Line canal and railway. When built in 1829 by Telford, it was the longest single-span bridge in the world. Its name commemorates Samuel Galton
Samuel Galton, Jr.
Samuel "John" Galton Jr. FRS , born in Duddeston, Birmingham, England. Despite being a Quaker he was an arms manufacturer. He was a member of the Lunar Society and lived at Great Barr Hall.He married Lucy Barclay...
, a local landowner and industrialist. It is identical to Telford's bridge at Holt
Holt, Worcestershire
Holt Fleet is a village in the Malvern Hills District in the county of Worcestershire, England. The church is dedicated to St. Martin, and dates from about the 12th century. Holt Bridge, over the River Severn, was designed by Thomas Telford, and opened in 1830.-Early history:Holt saw archaeological...
Fleet over the River Severn
River Severn
The River Severn is the longest river in Great Britain, at about , but the second longest on the British Isles, behind the River Shannon. It rises at an altitude of on Plynlimon, Ceredigion near Llanidloes, Powys, in the Cambrian Mountains of mid Wales...
built in 1828 and opened in 1830.
Matthew Boulton
Matthew Boulton
Matthew Boulton, FRS was an English manufacturer and business partner of Scottish engineer James Watt. In the final quarter of the 18th century the partnership installed hundreds of Boulton & Watt steam engines, which were a great advance on the state of the art, making possible the...
and James Watt
James Watt
James Watt, FRS, FRSE was a Scottish inventor and mechanical engineer whose improvements to the Newcomen steam engine were fundamental to the changes brought by the Industrial Revolution in both his native Great Britain and the rest of the world.While working as an instrument maker at the...
opened their Soho Foundry
Soho Foundry
Soho Foundry was a factory created in 1795 by Matthew Boulton and James Watt at Smethwick, West Midlands, England , for the manufacture of steam engines.-History:...
in the North of Smethwick (not to be confused with the Soho Manufactory
Soho Manufactory
The Soho Manufactory was an early factory which pioneered mass production on the assembly line principle, in Soho, Smethwick, England, during the Industrial Revolution.-Beginnings:...
in nearby Soho
Soho, Birmingham
Soho is an area in north west Birmingham, approximately 2 miles from the City Centre on the A41, which until 1911 formed part of Handsworth District. Soho is also a ward within the council constituency of Ladywood...
) in the late 18th century. In 1802, William Murdoch
William Murdoch
William Murdoch was a Scottish engineer and long-term inventor.Murdoch was employed by the firm of Boulton and Watt and worked for them in Cornwall, as a steam engine erector for ten years, spending most of the rest of his life in Birmingham, England.He was the inventor of the oscillating steam...
illuminated the foundry with gas lighting
Gas lighting
Gas lighting is production of artificial light from combustion of a gaseous fuel, including hydrogen, methane, carbon monoxide, propane, butane, acetylene, ethylene, or natural gas. Before electricity became sufficiently widespread and economical to allow for general public use, gas was the most...
of his own invention. The foundry was later home to weighing scale makers W & T Avery Ltd.
W & T Avery Ltd.
W & T Avery Ltd. is a British manufacturer of weighing machines. The company was founded in the early 18th century and took the name W & T Avery in 1818. Having been taken over by GEC in 1979 the company was later renamed into GEC-Avery. The company became Avery Berkel in 1993 when GEC acquired the...
.
The world's oldest working engine, made by Boulton and Watt
Boulton and Watt
The firm of Boulton & Watt was initially a partnership between Matthew Boulton and James Watt.-The engine partnership:The partnership was formed in 1775 to exploit Watt's patent for a steam engine with a separate condenser. This made much more efficient use of its fuel than the older Newcomen engine...
, the Smethwick Engine
Smethwick Engine
The Smethwick Engine is a steam engine made by Boulton and Watt; brought into service in May 1779.Originally, it was one of two engines used to pump water back up to the summit level of the BCN Old Main Line canal at Smethwick, not far from the Soho Foundry where it was made...
, originally stood near Bridge Street, Smethwick. It is now at Thinktank
Thinktank, Birmingham
Thinktank is a science museum in Birmingham, England. Opened in 2001, it succeeded and has several exhibits from the City's Museum of Science and Industry. It is part of the Millennium Point complex.-Building:...
, the new science museum in Birmingham.
Yeoville Thomason
H. R. Yeoville Thomason was an architect in Birmingham, England. He was born in Edinburgh to a Birmingham family. Thomason set up his own practice in Birmingham 1853-1854....
.
Other former industry included railway rolling stock manufacture, at the Birmingham Railway Carriage and Wagon Company
Birmingham Railway Carriage and Wagon Company
The Birmingham Railway Carriage and Wagon Company was a railway locomotive and carriage builder, founded in Birmingham, England and, for most of its existence, located at nearby Smethwick, with the factory was divided by the boundary between the two places...
factory; screws and other fastenings from Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds (GKN), engines from Tangye, tubing from Evered's, steel pen nibs from British Pens and various products from Chance Brothers
Chance Brothers
Chance Brothers and Company was a glassworks originally based in Spon Lane, Smethwick, West Midlands , in England. It was a leading glass manufacturer and a pioneer of British glassmaking technology....
' glassworks, including lighthouse lenses and the glazing for the Crystal Palace
The Crystal Palace
The Crystal Palace was a cast-iron and glass building originally erected in Hyde Park, London, England, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. More than 14,000 exhibitors from around the world gathered in the Palace's of exhibition space to display examples of the latest technology developed in...
(the London works, in North Smethwick, manufactured its metalwork). Phillips Cycles
Phillips Cycles
Phillips Cycles Ltd. was a British bicycle manufacturer based in Smethwick near Birmingham, England. Its history began early in the 20th century and ended in the 1980s by which time it had become part of Raleigh Industries, itself a part of the Tube Investments group. For a number of years, the...
, once one of the largest bicycle manufacturers in the world was based in Bridge Street, Smethwick. Nearby, in Downing Street, is the famous bicycle saddle maker, Brooks Saddles
Brooks England
Brooks England is a bicycle saddle manufacturer in Smethwick, Birmingham, England. It has been making leather bicycle saddles since 1866, when it was founded in Hockley, Birmingham....
. The important metalworking factory of Henry Hope & Sons Ltd
Henry Hope & Sons Ltd
Henry Hope & Sons Ltd were a major manufacturer of metal components, including steel and metal windows, roofing, gearing and decorative metal ironmongery based in Smethwick, Birmingham, UK...
was based at Holford Lane where the company manufactured steel window systems, roof glazing, gearings and metalwork.
Council housing development began in Smethwick after 1920, beginning with houses being built in the grounds of Holly Lodge, although the building itself survived the development and a school opened in its buildings in 1922, though it was later used as an orpathedic clinic.
The Ruskin Pottery
Ruskin Pottery
The Ruskin Pottery was an English pottery studio founded in 1898 by Edward R. Taylor, the first Principal of Birmingham School of Art, to be run by his son, William Howson Taylor, formerly a student there. It was named after the artist, writer and social thinker John Ruskin, as the Taylors agreed...
Studio, named in honour of the artist John Ruskin
John Ruskin
John Ruskin was the leading English art critic of the Victorian era, also an art patron, draughtsman, watercolourist, a prominent social thinker and philanthropist. He wrote on subjects ranging from geology to architecture, myth to ornithology, literature to education, and botany to political...
, was in Oldbury Road. Many English churches have stained glass windows made by Hardman Studios in Lightwoods House, or, before that, by the Camm family.
Former Prime Minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
John Major
John Major
Sir John Major, is a British Conservative politician, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990–1997...
's parents married at Holy Trinity Church in Smethwick while they were on tour with a music hall variety act.
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
countries, the largest ethnic group being Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
s from the Punjab
Punjab (India)
Punjab ) is a state in the northwest of the Republic of India, forming part of the larger Punjab region. The state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the east, Haryana to the south and southeast and Rajasthan to the southwest as well as the Pakistani province of Punjab to the...
in India. The ethnic minority communities were initially very unpopular with the white British population of Smethwick, prompting the election of Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) Peter Griffiths
Peter Griffiths
Peter Harry Steve Griffiths is a retired English Conservative Party politician. He is best known for controversially gaining the Smethwick seat in the 1964 general election against the national trend.-Life:...
at the 1964 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1964
The United Kingdom general election of 1964 was held on 15 October 1964, more than five years after the preceding election, and thirteen years after the Conservative Party had retaken power...
, in which the Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
MP was unseated following the campaign slogan "If you want a nigger for a neighbour, vote Labour" by his supporters. This came two years after race riots had hit the town in 1962.http://www.searchlightmagazine.com/index.php?link=template&story=35
In 1966, Smethwick ceased to be a single County Borough
County borough
County borough is a term introduced in 1889 in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland , to refer to a borough or a city independent of county council control. They were abolished by the Local Government Act 1972 in England and Wales, but continue in use for lieutenancy and shrievalty in...
and was absorbed into the new County Borough of Warley
County Borough of Warley
Warley was a county borough and civil parish forming part of the West Midlands conurbation, England, and geographical county of Worcestershire. It was formed in 1966 by the combination of the existing county borough of Smethwick with the municipal boroughs of Oldbury and Rowley Regis Warley was a...
, geographically although not administratively in Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
.
In the 1960s, a large council estate in the west of Smethwick was built. It was officially known as the West Smethwick Estate, but as all of the homes were concrete blocks the estate was known locally as the 'concrete jungle'. The estate quickly became unpopular and was redeveloped in the early 1990s with modern low-rise housing and renamed Galton Village. There is another housing estate called the Windmill Lane Estate, located near Cape Hill.
There is a collection of red brick turn-of-20th century terrace, 1930s semi-detached, newly built modern housing, and a number of high rise blocks of flats. Other estates and areas include Black Patch, Cape Hill, Uplands, Albion Estate, Bearwood, Londonderry and Rood End.
Rofle Street public baths were among the first public swimming baths in the country when opened north of the town centre in 1888. The baths remained open for nearly a century before closing. In the late 1980s, the Black Country Museum expressed interest in transferring the building to its site in Dudley
Dudley
Dudley is a large town in the West Midlands county of England. At the 2001 census , the Dudley Urban Sub Area had a population of 194,919, making it the 26th largest settlement in England, the second largest town in the United Kingdom behind Reading, and the largest settlement in the UK without...
and so the transfer of the building began in 1989. It was finally opened to visitors at the museum in 1999, housing the museum's exhibition gallery and archive resource centre.http://www.bclm.co.uk/map1.htm
Politics
The town has often enjoyed a somewhat turbulent political history. Smethwick was created as a separate parliamentary constituencyUnited Kingdom constituencies
In the United Kingdom , each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one or more members to a parliament or assembly.Within the United Kingdom there are now five bodies with members elected by constituencies:...
in 1918, having previously been part of the Handsworth constituency
Birmingham Handsworth (UK Parliament constituency)
Birmingham Handsworth was a parliamentary constituency centred on the Handsworth district of Birmingham. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom...
. At that year's general election
United Kingdom general election, 1918
The United Kingdom general election of 1918 was the first to be held after the Representation of the People Act 1918, which meant it was the first United Kingdom general election in which nearly all adult men and some women could vote. Polling was held on 14 December 1918, although the count did...
, Christabel Pankhurst
Christabel Pankhurst
Dame Christabel Harriette Pankhurst, DBE , was a suffragette born in Manchester, England. A co-founder of the Women's Social and Political Union , she directed its militant actions from exile in France from 1912 to 1913. In 1914 she became a fervent supporter of the war against Germany...
, standing as a Women's Party candidate, narrowly failed to become Britain's first woman MP, being defeated by Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
by 775 votes in a straight fight.
Labour held the seat until 1931, from 1926 the MP being Sir Oswald Mosley
Oswald Mosley
Sir Oswald Ernald Mosley, 6th Baronet, of Ancoats, was an English politician, known principally as the founder of the British Union of Fascists...
, future founder of the British Union of Fascists
British Union of Fascists
The British Union was a political party in the United Kingdom formed in 1932 by Sir Oswald Mosley as the British Union of Fascists, in 1936 it changed its name to the British Union of Fascists and National Socialists and then in 1937 to simply the British Union...
. Mosley resigned the Labour whip
Whip (politics)
A whip is an official in a political party whose primary purpose is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. Whips are a party's "enforcers", who typically offer inducements and threaten punishments for party members to ensure that they vote according to the official party policy...
in March 1931 but continued to represent the constituency until it was taken by the Conservatives
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
at that year's general election
United Kingdom general election, 1931
The United Kingdom general election on Tuesday 27 October 1931 was the last in the United Kingdom not held on a Thursday. It was also the last election, and the only one under universal suffrage, where one party received an absolute majority of the votes cast.The 1931 general election was the...
.
Labour won in the UK general election, 1945
United Kingdom general election, 1945
The United Kingdom general election of 1945 was a general election held on 5 July 1945, with polls in some constituencies delayed until 12 July and in Nelson and Colne until 19 July, due to local wakes weeks. The results were counted and declared on 26 July, due in part to the time it took to...
on 26 July. However, the victorious MP, Alfred Dobbs
Alfred Dobbs
Alfred James Dobbs was a British Labour Party politician and trade unionist. He is most notable for being the Member of Parliament who served the shortest term, since the Second World War — just one day....
, was killed in a car crash the very next day. He is the shortest-serving Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) in British history, if one discounts a few cases of people being elected posthumously. In the resulting by-election
Smethwick by-election, 1945
The Smethwick by-election, 1945 was a by-election held on 1 October 1945 for the British House of Commons constituency of Smethwick in Staffordshire ....
, Patrick Gordon Walker
Patrick Gordon Walker
Patrick Chrestien Gordon Walker, Baron Gordon-Walker CH, PC was a British Labour Party politician. He was a Member of Parliament for nearly thirty years, and served twice as a Cabinet minister...
won for Labour.
In the 1964 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1964
The United Kingdom general election of 1964 was held on 15 October 1964, more than five years after the preceding election, and thirteen years after the Conservative Party had retaken power...
, Gordon Walker, who was Shadow Foreign Secretary, was defeated in controversial circumstances in the constituency by Conservative candidate Peter Griffiths
Peter Griffiths
Peter Harry Steve Griffiths is a retired English Conservative Party politician. He is best known for controversially gaining the Smethwick seat in the 1964 general election against the national trend.-Life:...
. Smethwick had been a focus of immigration from the Commonwealth
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
in the economic and industrial growth of the years following World War II and Griffiths ran a campaign critical of the government's policy. There were rumours that his supporters had covertly circulated the slogan "If you want a nigger
Nigger
Nigger is a noun in the English language, most notable for its usage in a pejorative context to refer to black people , and also as an informal slang term, among other contexts. It is a common ethnic slur...
for a neighbour, vote Liberal
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
or Labour." Hardly had the heat of the election subsided when, on February 12, 1965, United States black activist Malcolm X
Malcolm X
Malcolm X , born Malcolm Little and also known as El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz , was an African American Muslim minister and human rights activist. To his admirers he was a courageous advocate for the rights of African Americans, a man who indicted white America in the harshest terms for its...
visited the region just nine days before his assassination. He fuelled further controversy when he told the press:
Malcolm X's visit to Smethwick had been organised by a BBC News
BBC News
BBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...
journalist with a view to X having a debate with Peter Griffiths outside the Smethwick council house. Griffiths declined at late notice and so an interview with X was conducted on the streets of Smethwick. This was to be X's last TV interview before his assassination nine days later. It was never aired.
Labour candidate, actor Andrew Faulds
Andrew Faulds
Andrew Matthew William Faulds was a British actor and politician.Born in Isoko, Tanganyika , to missionary parents, Faulds married Bunty Whitfield in 1945...
, defeated Griffiths in the 1966 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1966
The 1966 United Kingdom general election on 31 March 1966 was called by sitting Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson. Wilson's decision to call an election turned on the fact that his government, elected a mere 17 months previously in 1964 had an unworkably small majority of only 4 MPs...
and was MP for the constituency until his retirement at the 1997 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
. (The constituency was renamed Warley East
Warley East (UK Parliament constituency)
Warley East was a parliamentary constituency in the borough of Sandwell in the West Midlands of England.It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom...
in 1974.)
Industry and commerce
Mitchells & ButlersMitchells & Butlers
Mitchells & Butlers plc runs around 2,000 managed pubs, bars and restaurants throughout the United Kingdom. The Company's headquarters is in Birmingham, England, United Kingdom...
opened a brewery
Brewery
A brewery is a dedicated building for the making of beer, though beer can be made at home, and has been for much of beer's history. A company which makes beer is called either a brewery or a brewing company....
on Cape Hill in 1879. It was a local landmark in Smethwick and provided employment in the town for 123 years. However, following a decline in sales and revenue, American owners Coors
Coors Brewing Company
The Coors Brewing Company is a regional division of the world's fifth-largest brewing company, the Canadian Molson Coors Brewing Company and is the third-largest brewer in the United States...
closed the brewery on 6 December 2002. It was demolished two years later and a 650-home private housing estate was developed on its site.
Canals
See also: BCN Main LineBCN Main Line
The BCN Main Line, or Birmingham Canal Navigations Main Line describes the evolving route of the Birmingham Canal between Birmingham and Wolverhampton in England....
Smethwicks has a long association with Canals, and was the town’s first major transport link from a time before decent roads and of course railways. The Birmingham Canal Navigation Old and New Mainline Canals run through the industrial areas and right past the High Street, running parallel to the Stour Valley Railway Line both of which end up in Wolverhampton. James Brindley was the engineer charged with building the canal, a man who gives his name to the busy district in the centre of Birmingham near the International Convention Centre, National Indoor Arena and Broad Street.
The old main line was completed though Smethwick by 1769 which required 13 locks to climb the hill though the town, Brindley had found the earth too soft to dig a cutting though at the time. Water was supplied by two steam engines one of which was located on the Engine Arm which led to the Smethwick Engine
Smethwick Engine
The Smethwick Engine is a steam engine made by Boulton and Watt; brought into service in May 1779.Originally, it was one of two engines used to pump water back up to the summit level of the BCN Old Main Line canal at Smethwick, not far from the Soho Foundry where it was made...
on Rabone Lane and the other was near Spon Lane. Smethwick New Pumping Station next to Brasshouse Lane was added later in 1892. Because of the locks the canal through Smethwick became somewhat of a bottle neck and Thomas Telford
Thomas Telford
Thomas Telford FRS, FRSE was a Scottish civil engineer, architect and stonemason, and a noted road, bridge and canal builder.-Early career:...
(famous for his Iron Bridge) was commissioned in 1824 to look at alternatives.
The new mainline through Smethwick was completed by 1829 and completely bypassed all 13 locks of the summit with a cutting, the Engine Arm and Stewarts Aqueducts were built to carry their respective canals over the new mainline. The cutting was build through the land of the local businessman Samuel Galton
Samuel Galton, Jr.
Samuel "John" Galton Jr. FRS , born in Duddeston, Birmingham, England. Despite being a Quaker he was an arms manufacturer. He was a member of the Lunar Society and lived at Great Barr Hall.He married Lucy Barclay...
's and thus this cutting created the Galton Valley and Galton Bridge was named in his honour, Galton Bridge was the longest single span iron bridge in the world at that time. The Canals of the new and old mainline diverged at one end at Smethwick Junction
Smethwick Junction
Smethwick Junction is a junction on the Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster Line. With Galton Junction, northbound trains on the West Coast Main Line's Rugby-Birmingham-Stafford Line can join the Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster Line in a westbound direction.Until the re-opening of...
near Bridge Street and re joined at Bromford Junction
Bromford Junction
Bromford Junction is a canal junction at the foot of the Spon Lane Locks where the Spon Lane Locks Branch meets the BCN New Main Line near Oldbury in the West Midlands, England....
near Bromford Road in Oldbury.
Today Galton Valley is a nature area and of more historical interest than commercial, and used mainly for leisure rather than transporting commercial goods. The Galton Valley Canal Heritage Centre
Galton Valley Canal Heritage Centre
Galton Valley Canal Heritage Centre is a small museum, located in Smethwick, on the border with Birmingham and alongside the BCN Main Line canal, which focuses on civil engineering feats in the local area...
focuses on the civil engineering feats of the local area.
Railways
Smethwick is served by trains on both the Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster LineBirmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster Line
The Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster Line is a commuter railway line from Birmingham Snow Hill to Worcester via Stourbridge and Kidderminster. It is part of the Snow Hill Lines, with trains operated by London Midland and Chiltern Railways using by and diesel units...
and the Rugby-Birmingham-Stafford Line
Rugby-Birmingham-Stafford Line
The Rugby–Birmingham–Stafford Line is a railway line in central England. It is a loop off the West Coast Main Line between Rugby and Stafford via the West Midlands cities of Coventry, Birmingham and Wolverhampton.-Places served:The cities, towns and villages served by the line are listed...
. The former links Birmingham Snow Hill station
Birmingham Snow Hill station
Birmingham Snow Hill is a railway station and tram stop in the centre of Birmingham, England, on the site of an earlier, much larger station built by the former Great Western Railway . It is the second most important railway station in the city, after Birmingham New Street station...
with Worcester
Worcester
The City of Worcester, commonly known as Worcester, , is a city and county town of Worcestershire in the West Midlands of England. Worcester is situated some southwest of Birmingham and north of Gloucester, and has an approximate population of 94,000 people. The River Severn runs through the...
, Stratford-upon-Avon
Stratford-upon-Avon
Stratford-upon-Avon is a market town and civil parish in south Warwickshire, England. It lies on the River Avon, south east of Birmingham and south west of Warwick. It is the largest and most populous town of the District of Stratford-on-Avon, which uses the term "on" to indicate that it covers...
and Leamington Spa
Leamington Spa
Royal Leamington Spa, commonly known as Leamington Spa or Leamington or Leam to locals, is a spa town in central Warwickshire, England. Formerly known as Leamington Priors, its expansion began following the popularisation of the medicinal qualities of its water by Dr Kerr in 1784, and by Dr Lambe...
. The Rugby-Birmingham-Stafford Line links Birmingham New Street railway station, Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
and Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
, with onward connections. The Birmingham Wagon & Carriage Works was based in Smethwick until it's closure, the company built trains for London Underground as well railways across the world.
Further Reading:
- Smethwick Rolfe StreetSmethwick Rolfe Street railway stationSmethwick Rolfe Street railway station serves the town of Smethwick, West Midlands, England. It is situated on the Stour valley line 5 km north west of Birmingham New Street...
– Rolfe Street (near the Hight Street) - Smethwick Galton BridgeSmethwick Galton Bridge railway stationSmethwick Galton Bridge is a railway station in Smethwick, West Midlands, England.The station is situated where two lines cross at different levels: the line from Birmingham Snow Hill to Stourbridge Junction crosses over the Stour Valley Line by means of a bridge. There are four platforms, two on...
– Oldbury Road - The Hawthorns – Halfords Lane
- Smethwick WestSmethwick West railway stationSmethwick West was a railway station on the Great Western Railway between Stourbridge Junction station and Smethwick Junction. It was opened as Smethwick Junction railway station in 1867....
CLOSED – Oldbury Road (Opposite Galton Bridge) - SohoSoho railway stationSoho railway station was a railway station in England, built by the London and North Western Railway on their Stour Valley Line in 1853. It served the eastern part of Smethwick, and included goods sheds and sidings....
CLOSED – Soho Street (near Rabone Lane) - Stour Valley Railway LineRugby-Birmingham-Stafford LineThe Rugby–Birmingham–Stafford Line is a railway line in central England. It is a loop off the West Coast Main Line between Rugby and Stafford via the West Midlands cities of Coventry, Birmingham and Wolverhampton.-Places served:The cities, towns and villages served by the line are listed...
& LMS – For Rolfe Street, Soho & Galton Bridge Low Level Stations - Jewellery LineBirmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster LineThe Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster Line is a commuter railway line from Birmingham Snow Hill to Worcester via Stourbridge and Kidderminster. It is part of the Snow Hill Lines, with trains operated by London Midland and Chiltern Railways using by and diesel units...
& Great Western RailwayGreat Western RailwayThe Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
– For Galton Bridge High Level. Smethwick West & The Hawthorns
The station on the West Coast Main Line is called Smethwick Rolfe Street
Smethwick Rolfe Street railway station
Smethwick Rolfe Street railway station serves the town of Smethwick, West Midlands, England. It is situated on the Stour valley line 5 km north west of Birmingham New Street...
. This station serves local trains from Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
and Birmingham New Street. This station was the site of railway goods yard, located at the none High St side of the station. The road bridge leading over the railway lines, once was crossed by a level crossing and Rolfe Street is Smethwick's oldest station dating from 1852. Soho Railway station was located on Soho St, which can be reached just off Rabone Lane. This station was opened in 1867 and closed in 1949, there is nothing left of the railway station.
The former Smethwick West Railway Station was replaced by a new facility opened at the same time as the Jewellery Line 1995 called Smethwick Galton Bridge
Smethwick Galton Bridge railway station
Smethwick Galton Bridge is a railway station in Smethwick, West Midlands, England.The station is situated where two lines cross at different levels: the line from Birmingham Snow Hill to Stourbridge Junction crosses over the Stour Valley Line by means of a bridge. There are four platforms, two on...
. Smethwick West was reached off two junctions diverging from the Stour Valley Line from Birmingham New Street Railway Station. The line that know runs over Summit Bridge, the large brick structure that crosses the canal along side Thomas Telford's Galton Bridge, towards the Hawthorns station through the current Galton Bridge station was closed to passenger trains in 1972. This line obviously re opened as the Jewellery Line in 1995 and saw the closure the Great Western Railway's last contribution to the railway stations of Smethwick. The station platforms still remain, as dose the Booking Office, but these have been the target of vandals since closure.
Galton Bridge station serves a limited service to London, regular trains to Birmingham International Airport, Wolverhampton and further north. It also serves trains to Stourbridge
Stourbridge
Stourbridge is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, in the West Midlands of England. Historically part of Worcestershire, Stourbridge was a centre of glass making, and today includes the suburbs of Amblecote, Lye, Norton, Oldswinford, Pedmore, Wollaston, Wollescote and Wordsley The...
, Kidderminster
Kidderminster
Kidderminster is a town, in the Wyre Forest district of Worcestershire, England. It is located approximately seventeen miles south-west of Birmingham city centre and approximately fifteen miles north of Worcester city centre. The 2001 census recorded a population of 55,182 in the town...
, Worcester
Worcester
The City of Worcester, commonly known as Worcester, , is a city and county town of Worcestershire in the West Midlands of England. Worcester is situated some southwest of Birmingham and north of Gloucester, and has an approximate population of 94,000 people. The River Severn runs through the...
, Dorridge
Dorridge
Dorridge is a village in the West Midlands borough of Solihull, England, with a population of 7800.-Location:Dorridge is to the East of the M40 and the South of the M42 which, along with a small but important green belt area, separates Dorridge and its neighbours of Knowle and Bentley Heath from...
and Stratford Upon Avon. Not to mention it has regular services to all three of Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
central stations. The station is divided into High and Low levels, this used to be stated on departure screens at places like Birmingham Snow Hill (High Level or H.L) and Birmingham New Street (Low Level or L.L). Platform's 1 and 2 of the Jewellery Line are on the High Level situated on Summit Bridge and of course platforms 3 and 4 of the Stour Valley are on the low level.
To the north of Smethwick High Street on Brasshouse Lane is The Hawthorns
The Hawthorns
The Hawthorns is an all-seater football stadium in West Bromwich, Sandwell, England, with a capacity of 26,484. It has been the home of West Bromwich Albion F.C. since 1900, when it became the sixth ground to be used by the club. The ground was the last Football League ground to be built in the...
again on the "Jewellery Line" and also on the Midland Metro
Midland Metro
The Midland Metro is a light-rail or tram line in the West Midlands of England between the cities of Birmingham and Wolverhampton via West Bromwich and Wednesbury. It is owned and promoted by Centro, and operated by West Midlands Travel Limited, a subsidiary of the National Express Group , under...
, this station is located next to the West Bromwich Albion Football Club. This station serves a limited service to London, as well as local trains to Stourbridge
Stourbridge
Stourbridge is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, in the West Midlands of England. Historically part of Worcestershire, Stourbridge was a centre of glass making, and today includes the suburbs of Amblecote, Lye, Norton, Oldswinford, Pedmore, Wollaston, Wollescote and Wordsley The...
, Kidderminster, Worcester, Birmingham, Dorridge and Stratford Upon Avon. The Midland Metro
Midland Metro
The Midland Metro is a light-rail or tram line in the West Midlands of England between the cities of Birmingham and Wolverhampton via West Bromwich and Wednesbury. It is owned and promoted by Centro, and operated by West Midlands Travel Limited, a subsidiary of the National Express Group , under...
serves parts of Birmingham and Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
via West Bromwich
West Bromwich
West Bromwich is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell, in the West Midlands, England. It is north west of Birmingham lying on the A41 London-to-Birkenhead road. West Bromwich is part of the Black Country...
, Wednesbury
Wednesbury
Wednesbury is a market town in England's Black Country, part of the Sandwell metropolitan borough in West Midlands, near the source of the River Tame. Similarly to the word Wednesday, it is pronounced .-Pre-Medieval and Medieval times:...
and Bilston
Bilston
Bilston is a town in the English county of West Midlands, situated in the southeastern corner of the City of Wolverhampton. Three wards of Wolverhampton City Council cover the town: Bilston East and Bilston North, which almost entirely comprise parts of the historic Borough of Bilston, and...
. The original Hawthorns (Halt) railway station was located on the opposite side of Halfords Lane, and was only open from 1931 until 1968 and did no see a regular service except on Matchdays at West Bromwich Albion. It saw new life in 1995 when passenger trains returned, followed by the Midland Metro in 1999. The line from the direction of Galton Bridge was still in use after it's 1972 closure as a single line to Coopers Scrap Yard in Handsworth only, this scrap yard is still in use to this day along with its railway connection. The track bed through to Birmingham Snow Hill past Coopers Scrap Yard was lifted, and the line towards West Bromwich formed a local path that was retained when the metro was built.
Buses & Trams
See Also:- Birmingham and Midland Motor Omnibus Company (BMMO or Midland Red)Midland RedMidland Red was a bus company which operated in the English Midlands from 1905 to 1981. It was the trading name used by the Birmingham and Midland Motor Omnibus Company , which was renamed Midland Red Omnibus Company in 1974...
- Birmingham Corporation TramwaysBirmingham Corporation TramwaysBirmingham Corporation Tramways operated a network of tramways in Birmingham from 1904 until 1953. It was the largest narrow-gauge tramway network in the UK, built to a gauge of 3 ft 6 inches...
- National Express West MidlandsNational Express West MidlandsNational Express West Midlands , formerly known as Travel West Midlands , is the trade name of West Midlands Travel Ltd , a company which operates bus services from depots in the cities of Birmingham, and Wolverhampton, as well as the boroughs of Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull and Walsall in the West...
- West Midlands Passenger Transport ExecutiveWest Midlands Passenger Transport ExecutiveThe West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive , sometimes known as Centro, is a local government organisation responsible for certain transport services in the West Midlands county in England....
- Midland MetroMidland MetroThe Midland Metro is a light-rail or tram line in the West Midlands of England between the cities of Birmingham and Wolverhampton via West Bromwich and Wednesbury. It is owned and promoted by Centro, and operated by West Midlands Travel Limited, a subsidiary of the National Express Group , under...
The town of Smethwick has long association with buses, the famous Birmingham and Midland Motor Omnibus Company or Midland Red was based on Bearwood Road on the site of the former Safeway Supermarket. Also to be found in Bearwood is its bus station, Bearwood Bus Station
Bearwood Bus Station
Bearwood bus station is a small bus station in Smethwick, West Midlands, England. It is located on the Hagley Road junction with Bearwood Road. It is Smethwick's only bus station, it is accessed via one way street’s and subsequently most services use the stands located outside the...
is a small but well served affair and the only bus station in Smethwick. It is served by the famous number 11 Birmingham Outer Circle as well as the Hagley Road Corridor buses and of course a regular National Express Coach Service. Bearwood is an important bus hub is Smethwick, as is to a lesser extent Cape Hill both of which make up Smethwick’s major shopping area. Smethwick High Street is also well served by buses and as noted above is home to two railway stations.
Birmingham Corporation Tramways
Birmingham Corporation Tramways
Birmingham Corporation Tramways operated a network of tramways in Birmingham from 1904 until 1953. It was the largest narrow-gauge tramway network in the UK, built to a gauge of 3 ft 6 inches...
was the last to run trams through Smethwick, closing there last routes in 1939. Trams had their running through Cape Hill and then diverging to either take the route towards Dudley via the High Street or towards Bearwood, via Waterloo Road and Bearwood Road, terminating near the site of Bearwood Bus Station and Kings Head Public House. Both the current National Express West Midlands
National Express West Midlands
National Express West Midlands , formerly known as Travel West Midlands , is the trade name of West Midlands Travel Ltd , a company which operates bus services from depots in the cities of Birmingham, and Wolverhampton, as well as the boroughs of Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull and Walsall in the West...
routes 82 and 87 are former tram routes and the 87 in fact uses the same number, the former 29 route is now the 82 of course. Route 34 from Birmingham to Bearwood along the Hagley Road also operated, even though it terminated next to the route via Cape Hill there was no physical link to each other. Route 34 was the first route to go in Smethwick in 1930, although there has been talk of the Midland Metro following a new route down Hagley Road to Quinton.
The Midland Metro
Midland Metro
The Midland Metro is a light-rail or tram line in the West Midlands of England between the cities of Birmingham and Wolverhampton via West Bromwich and Wednesbury. It is owned and promoted by Centro, and operated by West Midlands Travel Limited, a subsidiary of the National Express Group , under...
opened in 1999, and is more of a light railway than a tramway. It follows the former Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
track bed from Birmingham Snow Hill Railway Station to the former Wolverhampton Low Level via West Bromwich until Priestfield in Wolverhampton, after that is a tramway proper and runs along the street. The metro can be at caught at the Hawthorns railway station.
Neighbourhoods
See: Districts of SmethwickDistricts of Smethwick
Smethwick is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell, in the West Midlands of England.-Bearwood:The area is centred on Bearwood Road; one of Smethwick’s shopping areas, although this has diminished in recent years. Its home to Bearwood Bus Station located on the end of Bearwood Road and...
- Galton VillageGalton VillageGalton Village is a residential area of Smethwick, Birmingham, West Midlands, England. It takes its name from the iconic nearby Galton Bridge that was named after local business man Samuel Galton who land the new BCN Main Line canal was built through, the canal runs behind Galton Village as dose...
- Bearwood
- West Smethwick
- Windmill Lane
- The Uplands
- Londonderry
- Black Patch
- High Street Smethwick
- Victoria
- Cape HillCape HillCape Hill is an area of the town of Smethwick, West Midlands. It is centre around the road of the same name and includes the adjoining streets, Cape Hill starts at Waterloo Road near Shireland High School and the end of the High Street near Victoria Park. Cape Hill ends at the start of the Dudley...
Places of worship
- The Old Church, The Uplands
- Guru Nanak Gurdwara Smethwick, High Street www.gngsmethwick.com
- Church Of God Of Prophecy, Regent Street
- St Gregorys Roman Catholic Church, Three Shires Oak Road
- Raglan Road Christian Church, Raglan Road – www.rrcchurch.co.uk
- West Smethwick Congregational Church, Mallin Street
- St Matthew With St Chad C Of E Church, St Matthews Road
- St Hildas, Abbey Road
- Holy Trinity Church, South Road & High Street
- The Apostolic Church, Broomfield
- Warley Woods Methodist Church, Abbey Road
- St Philips Roman Catholic Church, Messenger Road
- Smethwick Baptist Church, Regent Street
- Smethwick Elim Pentecostal Church, Woodland Drive
- Rounds Green Methodist Church, Abbey Road
- Bearwood Baptist Church, Bearwood Road
- The Akril Memorial Church, The Uplands
- Gurdwara Nanaksar, Waterloo Road
- St Marks Church of England, Hales Lane
- Gurdwara Baba Sang, High Street, Smethwick
Parks
- Victoria Park – High Street & Windmill Lane Estate
- Smethwick Hall Park – Stoney Lane, Uplands
- West Smethwick Park – Holy Lane & West Park Road, West Smethwick
- Harry Mitchell Park – Parks Street & Coopers Lane, Uplands
- Black Patch ParkBlack Patch ParkBlack Patch Park is a park in Smethwick, England. It is bounded by Foundry Lane, Woodburn Road, Perrott Street and Kitchener Street, at .The park, covering over , was formerly part of a sparsely populated landscape of commons and woodland , dotted with farms and cottages which has been transformed...
, Foundry Lane, Soho - Lightwoods ParkLightwoods ParkLightwoods Park is a public park in Birmingham, England. It is located within Sandwell, but was ceded to Birmingham in the early 20th century.The park features a skateboard ramp and bowling green. It is also walled garden called "The Shakespeare Garden" with benches, ponds and flower beds...
, Hagley Road & Lightwoods Hill, Bearwood - Warley Park, Abbey Road & Lightwoods Hill, Bearwood
Education
- Holly Lodge High School, Holly Lane, West Smethwick
- Shireland Collegiate Academy, Waterloo Road, Cape Hill
- Abbey Junior and Infants (Two sites), Abbey Road, Bearwood
- Galton Valley Primary school
- Annie Lennard Infant School, The Oval, Thimblemill
- Bearwood Primary School, Bearwood Road, Bearwood
- Cape Hill Primary School, Cape Hill
- Crocketts Primary School, Coopers Lane, Cape Hill
- Devonshire Primary School, Auckland Road, Uplands
- George Betts Primary School, Wood End Avenue
- Ruskin House Pupil Ref. Unit, Holly Lane, West Smethwick
- Shireland Hall Infant and Junior School, Edith Road, Cape Hill
- St Gregory's Roman Catholic Primary School, Park Road
- St Mathews Church of England School, Windmill Lane
- St Phillips Catholic Primary, Messenger Road
- Uplands Manor Primary School, Addenbrooke Road, Uplands
- Victoria Park Primary School, Ballot Street
- Smethwick College (Part of Sandwell Colleges), Crocketts Lane
Public Houses
- Abbey, The (Abbey Road, Bearwood)
- Barleycorn, The (Bearwood Road, Bearwood)
- Bear Tavern, The (Bearwood Road, Bearwood)
- Blue Gates Hotel (100 High Street)
- Cock and Magpies, The (Hagley Road West, Bearwood)
- Dog, The (8 Hagley Road West, Bearwood)
- Dudley Arms (Cape Hill)
- Falcon, The (361 Messenger Road, Windmill Lane Estate)
- George, The (102 Grove Lane, Windmill Lane Estate)
- Goose on Cape Hill (39 Cape Hill)
- Hollybush, The (The Uplands)
- Hussar, The (Windmill Precinct, Windmill Lane Estate)
- Ivy Bush, The (218 St. Pauls Road, West Smethwick)
- London Works Tavern (London Street, Soho)
- Moilliett Arms (49 Cranford Street, Windmill Lane Estate)
- New Navigation (Lewisham Road, Soho)
- New Talbot, The (457 Hagley Road, Bearwood)
- Night Inn (53 Great Arthur Street, High Street)
- Old Chapel Inn (2 The Uplands)
- Old Corner House, The (Soho Street, Soho)
- Old Talbot (144 High Street)
- Pheasant, The (273 Abbey Road, Bearwood)
- Puffing Billy, The (Raglan Road, Cape Hill)
- Queens Head, The (Londonderry Lane, Londonderry)
- Red Cow (296 High Street)
- Robin, The (Suffrage Street, Windmill Lane Estate)
- Sampson Lloyd (24-26 Cape Hill)
- Shireland, The (Shireland Road, Cape Hill)
- Soho Foundry Tavern (Foundry Lane, Soho)
- The Old Comrades Club (50 Oldbury Road, Smethwick)
- Thimblemill, The (174 Thimblemill Road, Bearwood)
- Waggon & Horses (83 Lewisham Road, Soho)
- Waterloo Hotel (Shireland Road, Cape Hill)
Notable residents
- Sydney BarnesSydney BarnesSydney Francis Barnes was an English professional cricketer who is generally regarded as one of the greatest bowlers in the sport's history...
, England fast bowler, was born in Smethwick - Ann GeorgeAnn GeorgeAnn George was a British actress best known for her role as Amy Turtle in the television soap opera Crossroads.-Early life and career:...
, actress - Liza GoddardLiza GoddardLiza Goddard is an English television and stage actress best known for her work in the 1970s and 1980s.-Early life:Goddard was born in Smethwick, West Midlands, England...
, actress - Matt Hayes, TV angler, was born in Smethwick
- Lee HughesLee HughesLee Hughes is an English Footballer who plays for Notts County as a striker.-Non-League and West Bromwich Albion:On leaving Bristnall Hall High School, Oldbury in 1992 Hughes started playing semi-professionally in non-League football with Kidderminster Harriers in the Football Conference, as well...
, footballer - JameliaJameliaJamelia Niela Davis , best known mononymously as Jamelia, is an English singer-songwriter, model, entertainer, television presenter and actress. She is most famous for her use of a cappella and prolific work in the R&B genre...
, singer - Oswald RaynerOswald RaynerOswald Rayner was a British MI6 agent in Russia during World War I. He later went on to be the Daily Telegraph correspondent in Finland....
, Secret Intelligence ServiceSecret Intelligence ServiceThe Secret Intelligence Service is responsible for supplying the British Government with foreign intelligence. Alongside the internal Security Service , the Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence Intelligence , it operates under the formal direction of the Joint Intelligence...
agent during World War IWorld War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and possible assassin of Rasputin - Frank SkinnerFrank SkinnerFrank Skinner is a British writer, comedian and actor. He is best known for his television presenting, often alongside David Baddiel, with whom he also collaborated for the football song "Three Lions."He is a radio presenter on the Saturday morning slot on Absolute Radio.-Youth and early career...
, comedian - Herbert Lewis Turner, footballer
- Julie WaltersJulie WaltersJulie Walters, CBE is an English actress and novelist. She came to international prominence in 1983 for Educating Rita, performing in the title role opposite Michael Caine. It was a role she had created on the West End stage and it won her BAFTA and Golden Globe awards for Best Actress...
, actress - Richard SwinburneRichard SwinburneRichard G. Swinburne is an Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at the University of Oxford. Over the last 50 years Swinburne has been a very influential proponent of philosophical arguments for the existence of God. His philosophical contributions are primarily in philosophy of religion and...
, philosopher, was born in Smethwick - Philip Lynott, lead singer/bassist with Irish rock band Thin Lizzy was actually born in Smethwick
External links
- Sandwell Council
- Smethwick Local History Society
- Smethwick: Economic history, A History of the County of Staffordshire: Volume XVII: Offlow hundred (part) (1976), pp.107-18