Black Country Blues

[Killybegs]

Lichfield City  (No.2 box Down Home)  on this page http://www.roscalen.com/signals/WestMids/index.htm

 

An interesting an informative site.

[beast66606]

Lichfield City  (No.2 box Down Home)  on this page http://www.roscalen.com/signals/WestMids/index.htm

 

I only got that in it's Westernised form (and we are talking G rather than LN) - LNWR signals lasted until the mid 1970s. On the Wirral, Bromboroughs up (fast) distant was a drop arm until 1976, some at Ellesmere Port - in the yard -  lasted until the 1980s

[TheSignalEngineer]

I only got that in it's Westernised form (and we are talking G rather than LN) - LNWR signals lasted until the mid 1970s. On the Wirral, Bromboroughs up (fast) distant was a drop arm until 1976, some at Ellesmere Port - in the yard -  lasted until the 1980s

IIRC the s/h GW-style bracket at Lichfield was put up as a short term replacement in 1973, possibly when the Goods Shed was sold. It probably lasted until Cross City electrification.

[martin_wynne]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/in-pictures-29219727

[2ManySpams]

Thanks for that Martin.

[Siberian Snooper]

Some luverly phot's would be nice to have locations appended for us suverners, wot don't know the place.

[Enterprisingwestern]

Wow.

Change of backscene required?

 

Mike.

(Whilst converting to a roundy round)

[martin_wynne]

Mr Fred Bevan talking about Stourport industries in 1917 (as dictated to Stourport Civic Society 1992):

 

-------------------------

"When I started work, I went home from school just after my thirteenth birthday and Dad came home and he says 'you aren't going back to school; I've got a job for you.' So I went to school in the morning and work in the afternoon. 56 hours was the standard week then and I had 5 shillings and 25 pence a week and I thought I kept the home, you know. That was at the Anglo Enamelware Limited, in the Time Office; There were two sections to the Anglo, the one in Mitton Street, the other in Baldwin Road. There was a whistle on top of the boiler; a cord or a wire used to go all the way from the time office to the top of the boiler, and if you pulled it it opened a valve and the whistle blew. This used to have to be blown at five to six in the morning, and at five to nine when it was breakfast time and at five to two when they came back from their dinner, then you worked to half past five.

 

At that time the war was on, and for years and years they made water bottles for the army, literally hundreds and hundreds of thousands of them. They brought what we call tinkers down from the Black Country and the bottles were made by hand; they were covered in felt, had a cord on and a cork in the top, and they were enamelled. They started with just a piece of metal. Well it got to the point where they couldn't keep up with it by hand, and from America they brought a machine which made the tins: the bottle just went round a time or two and the bottom was on, whereas before it was actually knocked on, all the way round. Then about that time spot welding came in and they used to rivet the neck on. The war brought that about.

 

But ordinarily, in everyday life, they used to make practically everything in enamel; and why the enamelware that they made was so good was that it didn't rust. They put a coat of what they used to call 'grey' underneath (so that it did not rust if chipped). They sent to India millions of rice bowls, and they found it was cheaper to build a factory in India and make the rice bowls out there. In the office where I worked, all along the mantelshelf was a row of enamel plates, and on them were all the different ships; They would have an order for so many thousand plates for HMS Ebenezer or whatever it was. There was always a very very big show in Hamburg in Germany and you know, there was no one to touch them at all. They've done enamelware that you'd think was porcelain. That was a real job that was; they could not afford to do that.

 

I worked there about two years, then there came a vacancy tor a young lad up at the Foundry (the same people that were Kendricks at West Bromwich owned both the Anglo and the Foundry. The 'Baldwin' name never changed). I used to have to make the railway consignment notes out. At that time there were two railways - the London Midland & Scottish which had their headquarters in Mart Lane; that's where the boats ,were loaded. But everything for the Great Western, by goods, was col¬lected by Thomas Bantocks; they had the horses and the drays. I used to have to ring the station every morning and find out what stations were open that we could send to; this was the immediate aftermath of the war. They made more hinges, door hinges, at the foundry than all the rest of the firms in the world put together. From the station they used to bring pig iron bars, pick them up and drop them on a piece on the floor - there was a knack in 'dropping them on' - it would break the bars into pieces which was then put into the cupola and melted. If you got a Baldwin hinge, they never wear out, nobody could ever understand how the pin got in the middle. They made half the hinge, then they put the pin down inside and they covered the pin, with the finest camel hair brushes you could get , with whale oil, dipped them in sand so it stopped the iron; On the back of the hinge, so that it wouldn't stick, they used to use pitch, just dab it on. Then they put that half into a box and poured the box and made the other half - so the pin was in the middle. So really the whole thing was made by hand.And they made cores; that's how they put a hollow spout on a kettle.

 

Different Parts of the country used different cast-iron saucepans. And they used to make maselines to do jam in and those were enamelled inside. They made quite a lot of , kitchens', with a brass tap in the front; you put it on the side of the hob (for hot water). When the war was on they made hand grenades; nearly every house in Stourport had got a foundry hand grenade; they used to blacklead them and polish them and put them on the side of the grate! If you go up and look in the old churchyard, you will see cast-iron grave stones that were made in the foundry. And Mr Isaac Wedley's brother, Mr Bill Wedley, he used to do all the odd work and he made the church door hinges - they would be 6-8 feet long, all scroll,you know. Another thing they used to make, cast iron boot scrapers: one of those was always outside the door. They invented, and they are used to this day, skew-butts, lifting hinges. Incidentally, the foundry was the first place to be lit by gas.

They used tons and tons of sand, and that came from Masons sandhole up by Oldington; a man used to pull it down the canal - he'd got a padded rope round him and off we go, he'd bring it down to the foundry. And that was the reason that the tunnel is under Foundry street. They filled the barrows and wheeled them up and under and into the foundry. There was also another went under Worcester Street into the part where they did the enamelling.

Stourport was a marvellously industrial place: we had the vinegar Works, the Gas Works where I used to go with Dad to fetch the tar to caulk the seams of the floating bandstand, and there was the Textile over the Stour Bridge. The Tannery was a real going concern; there was the Anglo and the Foundry, and Baldwins at Wilden. And Worths carpets. As I say, I left school at 13. Never once did it ever enter your head or crop up that you hadn't got a job to go to; if you were out of work, you wanted to to be out of work. That's gone."

[TheSignalEngineer]

I don't know if this has been up before in any of the threads but it gives a good insight into some of the workings in the area c1980 http://www.atlanticpublishers.com/traction/2013/07/26/princes-end-tables-part-two/

[KevinWalsh]

Hi Guys,

 

When and where is BCB next appearing in the south (or even south of the Thames)?

[2ManySpams]

Hi Guys,

 

When and where is BCB next appearing in the south (or even south of the Thames)?

I believe that the closest show will by Aylesbury - 23rd and 24th May 2015.

[Mark Forrest]

I don't know if this has been up before in any of the threads but it gives a good insight into some of the workings in the area c1980 http://www.atlanticpublishers.com/traction/2013/07/26/princes-end-tables-part-two/

Yes, that info and the related articles in Traction were of great interest, very useful info, although not sure we've posted a link here before so thanks for that.

[DonB]

In my emails this morning:-

 

Don't forget Wolverhampton Civic and Historical Society Black History Month event 

'Black Country History - a Shared History'

a talk exploring the lives and experiences of people from the many different communities in Wolverhampton

speakers - various

Wednesday 22nd October 7.30pm

at

The Old School 73 Dudley Road Wolverhampton WV2 3BY.

Ample car parking available - Refreshments available- all welcome - £2 on the door for non-members

Edited October 14, 2014 by DonB

[Fat Controller]

Being Stourbridge born and raised, and married to a Wall Heath Wench, it's nice to see the grot of the black country being modelled. I've only just read this thread and I'm amazed that no-one has mentioned Simpkiss or Sarah Hughes for other breweries. 

 

My Nanny Nock (There's a black country surname) makes the ultimate Faggots, they are the best you've ever tasted. The recipe is as follows:

 

1.5lb of Pigs Fry (Usually made up of Liver, Heart, Lungs, and Cheeks). Don't forget the Caul (Kell)

2 Large Onions

Salt and Pepper

Teaspoon of Mace

Tablespoon of Dried Sage

 

Wash the fry, and soak the caul (kell) in luke warm water to soften it and make it easier to use.

Mince  the the fry with the diced onions and mix well with the mace,sage and seasoning.

Divide the mixture into eight pieces and form into balls with your hands. Wrap each ball with in a piece of kell.

Place into a moderate oven for about three hours, basting them regularly until browned.

 

Don't forget the Mushy Pays, Orange Chips and Pint of Holdens Mild

Caul can be difficult to get hold of; if you can't get it, very thinly sliced streaky bacon does work, as the function is to baste the meat and afford protection from direct heat. If the liver, in particular, isn't protected, then it does a good impression of shoe leather. If you're squeamish, just use liver, and omit the other variety meats (as our American friends call them); if you can't get cheeks, then pork belly will do. The mace is perhaps a bit overpowering in the quantities given, though I suspect it's about the amount my mother used to use; its presence is an indication of the antiquity of the original recipe, as it was a common spice in medieval savoury recipes.

When cooking, put them in a greased roasting tin, and then put this in another, larger, tin, half-filled with water; this stops the bottoms getting too well-cooked. They're basically the same thing as the pates/terrines found in France, though cooked individually, not as a big lump. The French have something called 'crepinettes', made either with minced belly pork or 'blette' (perpetual spinach), wrapped in caul-fat, but they're a pale shadow...

Make sure to save the cooking juices, as they'll form the basis of a proper onion gravy.

[wagonbasher]

Caul can be difficult to get hold of; if you can't get it, very thinly sliced streaky bacon does work, as the function is to baste the meat and afford protection from direct heat. If the liver, in particular, isn't protected, then it does a good impression of shoe leather. If you're squeamish, just use liver, and omit the other variety meats (as our American friends call them); if you can't get cheeks, then pork belly will do. The mace is perhaps a bit overpowering in the quantities given, though I suspect it's about the amount my mother used to use; its presence is an indication of the antiquity of the original recipe, as it was a common spice in medieval savoury recipes.

When cooking, put them in a greased roasting tin, and then put this in another, larger, tin, half-filled with water; this stops the bottoms getting too well-cooked. They're basically the same thing as the pates/terrines found in France, though cooked individually, not as a big lump. The French have something called 'crepinettes', made either with minced belly pork or 'blette' (perpetual spinach), wrapped in caul-fat, but they're a pale shadow...

Make sure to save the cooking juices, as they'll form the basis of a proper onion gravy.

I want to lick my lips but I'm freightened!!!!

 

Andy

[deadlyduck]

I used to work at Lloyds British Cradley Rd Netherton where the chains of the Titanic were tested.Ive even been down on that very test bed.Now sadley closed.Young at the time so never knew the significance.It was right on the side of the cut.Fagguts n pays land.Lower Gornal is 1 of the best for Black country lingo.If u con understond them u con understond any,them really broard

[deadlyduck]

Also worked at the Vono,any one remember the Duport foundries The Revo?

[Fat Controller]

Also worked at the Vono,any one remember the Duport foundries The Revo?

Was the Vono also known as the Slumberland? Back in 1981, I remember Lynne going for an interview at Slumberland, which was apparently in the same group as Duport; it was something to do with control systems for spring-making machinery. The springs would have been drawn from 4" bar supplied by the Duport plant in Llanelli, which was at the bottom of my parent's street.

[deadlyduck]

Yes Slumberland took over the Vono,they are the ones that closed it moved all the work to their place.I was 1 that was made redundant.There were about 1,000 working there.All went great times.there was Duport + another which made kitchens Cant remember their name,though i worked there for a while after losing my job at the Vono.All were in the same group The Vono is still as it was

[bike2steam]

Lower Gornal is 1 of the best for Black country lingo.

Many years ago when I worked, and lived in Darlaston, I can remember someone telling me that Lower Gornal was where the broadest version of the Black Country accent was spoken. Strange, just one of those things that stick in the memory.

[deadlyduck]

Yes its true ive lived in the Black country most of my life.My accent is very broad.But compared to them i spake English.If you ever get the chance to go there its an experience in its self.Antwhere outside where i live im called a Brummie which im not

Have you been watching  peaky blinders ?

[Mark Forrest]

BCB is on the front cover of the current EMGS Newsletter, great photo of Arthur's DE2 standing on the viaduct on the industrial line:

 

Inside the Newsletter readers are treated to a photo of Andy "wagonbasher" Banks collecting the best layout award ExpoEM North.

[Arthur]

 

Thanks for posting that Mark, I wouldn't have seen it otherwise. Looks good.

[2ManySpams]

Nice to see a photo of my viaduct.

[Stubby47]

BCB  is EM guage then ? Damm, I build Millwards to OO guage.