Showell's Dictionary of Birmingham Part 41

The fares first charged between Birmingham and London were 30s. by first cla.s.s, and 20s. second cla.s.s (open carriages) by day trains; 32s. 6d.

first cla.s.s and 25s. second cla.s.s, by night. In 1841 the fares were 30s.

first, 25s. second, and 20s. 3d. third cla.s.s; they are now 17s. 4d., 13s. 6d., and 9s. 5d.

"Booking" was a perfectly correct term when the lines were first used, as when pa.s.sengers went for their tickets they had to give their names and addresses, to be written on the tickets and in the book containing the counterfoils of the tickets.

The day the Grand Junction line was opened was kept as a general holiday between here and Wolverhampton, hundreds of tents and picnic parties being seen along the line.

The directors of the Birmingham and Gloucester line ordered eleven locomotives from Philadelphia at a cost of 85,000 dollars, and it was these engines that brought their trains to Camp Hill at first. In comparison with the engines now in use, these Americans were very small ones. The trains were pulled up the incline at the Lickey by powerful stationary engines.

On the completion of the London line, the engineers who had been employed presented George Stephenson at a dinner held here with a silver tureen and stand worth 130 guineas. This celebrated engineer made his last public appearance at a meeting in this town of the Inst.i.tute of Mechanical Engineers, July 16, 1848, his death taking place on the 12th of the following month.

The L. & N.W.R. Co. have 46,000 men in their employ.

The G.W.R. has the longest mileage of any railway in England, 2,276-1/2 miles; the L. and N.W.R., 1,774-1/2 miles; the Midland, 1,225 miles.

The returns of the L. and N.W., Midland and G.W.R. Companies for 1878 showed local traffic of 936,000 tons of goods, 693,000 tons of coal, c.o.ke and other minerals, 20,200 loads of cattle, and 7,624,000 pa.s.sengers.

The south tunnel in New Street was blocked April 18, 1877, by a locomotive turning over. In October, 1854, an engine fell over into Great Charles Street.

The unused viaduct between Bordesley and Banbury Street belongs to the G.W.R. Co. and was intended to connect their lines with the other Companies. It now stands as a huge monument of the "Railway Mania" days.

The extensive carrying trade of Crowley and Co. was transferred to the L. & N.W.R. Co. May 17, 1873.

~Railway Stations.~--As noted on a previous page, the first railway stations were those in Duddeston Row, Lawley Street, Vauxhall, the Camp Hill, but the desirability of having a Central Station was too apparent for the Companies to remain long at the outskirts, and the L. & N.W.R.

Co. undertook the erection in New Street, of what was then (and will soon be again) the most extensive railway station in the kingdom, making terms with the Midland for part use thereof. The work of clearance was commenced in 1846, the estimated cost being put at 400,000, 39,000 being paid to the Governors of the Grammar School for land belonging to them. Several streets were done away with, and the introduction of the station may be called the date-point of the many town improvements that have since been carried out. The station, and the tunnels leading thereto, took seven years in completion, the opening ceremony taking place June 1, 1853. The iron and gla.s.s roof was ihe largest roof in the world, being 1,080 ft. long, with a single span of 212 ft. across at a height of 75 ft. from the rails. This immense span has since been surpa.s.sed, as the roof of the St. Pancras Station, London, is 243 ft.

from side to side. The roof of Lime Street Station, Liverpool, is also much larger, being 410ft wide, but it is in two spans. The station has been since greatly enlarged, extending as far as Hill Street, on which side are the Midland Booking Offices. The tunnels have been partially widened or thrown into open cuttings, additional platforms constructed, and miles of new rails laid down, one whole street (Great Queen Street) being taken bodily into the station for a carriage drive. The station now covers nearly 12 acres, the length of platforms exceeding 1-1/2 miles. The cost of this enlargement was over half-a-million sterling.

As in the case of New Street Station, the introduction of the Great Western Railway caused the removal of a very large number of old buildings, but the monster wooden shed which did duty as the Snow Hill Station for many years was as great a disgrace to the town as ever the old tumbledown structures could have been that were removed to make way for it. This, however, was remedied in 1871, by the erection of the present building, which is extensive and convenient, the platforms having a run of 720 feet, the span of the roof being 92 feet.

~Rateable Values.~--In 1815 the annual rateable value of property in the borough was totaled at 311,954; in 1824 the amount stood at 389,273, an increase of 77,319 in the ten years; in 1834 the return was 483,774, the increase being 94,501; in 1814 it was 569,686, or an increase of 85,912; in 1854 the returns showed 655,631, the increase, 85,934, being little more than in the previous decennial period. The next ten years were those of the highest prosperity the building trade of this town has ever known, and the rateable values in 1864 went up to 982,384, an increase of 326,763. In 1870 a new a.s.sessment was made, which added over 112,000 to the rateable values, the returns for 1874 amounting to 1,254,911, an increase in the ten years of 272,527. In 1877 the returns gave a total of 1,352,554; in 1878 1,411,060, an increase in the one year of 58,506; but since 1878 the increase has not been so rapid, the average for the next three years being 36,379; and, as will be seen by the following table, the yearly increase of values during the last three years is still less in each of the several parish divisions of the borough:--

1881 1882 1883

Birmingham parish 985,081 991,445 1,001,541 Yearly increase 18,483 6,364 10,096

Edgbaston parish 179,328 180,327 181,552 Yearly increase 8,474 999 1,225

Aston, part of parish 355,788 362,337 365,875 Yearly increase 9,419 6,549 3,538

Total rateable value of the Borough 1,520,179 1,534,109 1,548,968 Yearly increase 36,379 13,912 14,859

~Rainfall.~--The mean annual rainfall in the eleven years ending with 1871, in this neighbourhood, was 29.51 inches, in the following eleven years 36.01 inches, the two heaviest years being 1872 with 47.69 inches, and 1882 with 43.06 inches. The depth of rain registered in the last three months of 1882 (14.93 inches), was the largest for any three consecutive months ever recorded by our painstaking meteorologist, the late Mr. T.L. Plant, of Moseley.

~Ravenhurst.~--The old house at Camp Hill, which gave names to Hurst Street and Ravenhurst Street, leading in the direction of the mansion, where in 1810 there were found a number of coins and tokens of the period of Queen Elizabeth and Charles I., as well as sundry Scotch "bawbees."

~Rea.~--This little river takes its rise among the Lickey Hills, and from certain geological discoveries made in 1883, there is every reason to believe that, in Saxon days, it was a stream of considerable force.

The name Rea, or Rhea, is of Gaelic derivation, and, with slight alteration, it is the name of some other watercourses in the kingdom.

From time to time, alterations have been made in the course of the Rea, and prior to the introduction of steam its waters were used extensively for mill-power, dams, fleams, and shoots interfering with the free running in all directions. Long little better than an open sewer, there is a prospect that, within a few years, it may be cleansed and become once more a limpid stream, if the sanitary authorities will but find some more convenient site as burial-place for unfortunate canines and felines.

~Rebellion of 1745.~--The first news of the Rebellion and of the landing of the Young Pretender reached here Aug. 19, 1745. The Scotch did not come so far as Birmingham, but [though thousands of swords were made here for "Bonnie Prince Charlie"] some little preparation was made to receive them. At a meeting held October 5, 1745, it was proposed to form a regiment of volunteers against them, and Sir Lister Holte found 250 horses to pursue the unfortunate "Pretender," whose great-grandfather had been the guest of Sir Lister's ancestor.

~Rebus.~--Poking fun at our town is no new game, as may be seen by the following local rebus (by "Darda.n.u.s") copied from the _Gentlemen's Magazine_ of 1752:--

"Take three-fourths of a creature which many admire, That's often confined in a castle of wire; Three-fourths of a herb that the garden doth yield, And a term used by husbandmen ploughing the field; With that part of a swine which is now much in fashion, And a town you'll discover in this brave English nation."

The answer was _Bir_d, _Min_t, _G_, and _Ham_--Birmingham, the scribe who poetically replied, [**]inding-up by saying that it was

"A town that in trading excels half the nation, Because, Jove be thanked, there is no Corporation!"

~Recorders.~--The first Recorder appointed for the borough was Mr.

Matthew Davenport Hill, whose name is so intimately connected with the history of Reformatory and Industrial Schools. Mr. Arthur Robarts Adams, Q.C., who succeeded Mr. M.D. Hill on his resignation in January, 1866, was a native of the county, and had acted as Deputy-Recorder for some years. He died in an apoplectic fit, while out shooting (Dec. 19, 1877), in Bagley Wood, near Oxford, in his 65th year. The present Recorder is Mr. John Stratford Dugdale, of Blythe Hall, Coleshill.

~Recreation Grounds.~--Early in 1854 Joseph Sturge set apart a field in Wheeley's Lane as a public playground for children, and this must rank as the first recreation ground. The last is the disused burial ground of St. Mary's Church, which, after an expenditure of about 1,500 was thrown open to the public as "St. Mary's Garden," October 16, 1882.--see "_Parks_."

~Red Book.~--Quite a local inst.i.tution is the yearly publication known as "The Birmingham Red Book," which was first issued in 1865.

~Reformatories.~--See "_Industrial Schools_."

~Reform Leagues.~--The first local affair of this kind that we have note of (though likely enough there had been "reform clubs" before that date) seems to have originated at a meeting of some dozen or so gentlemen at the Royal Hotel, Dec 14, 1829. On the 25th of Jan., 1830, a public meeting to organise a kind of local political body was held at Beardsworth's Repository, and it is chronicled that about 15,000 persons were present. The result was the formation of the celebrated Birmingham Political Union, though the full name was "The General Political Union between the Lower and Middle Cla.s.ses of the People." The Union's "Pet.i.tion of Rights" was issued Dec. 13, and the "Declaration of Council" Dec. 20, 1830. This is not the place to enter upon a history of the doings of the Political Union, which was dissolved by mutual consent of the leaders May 10, 1834, but there can be no doubt that it did have considerable influence on the political changes of the period. In 1848 an attempt was made to resuscitate the Old Union, though the promoters of the new organisation called it the "Political Council," and in 1865 another League or Union was started, which has a world-wide fame as "The Caucus." Indeed, it may be safely said the town has never, during the past sixty years or so, been without some such body, the last appointed being the "Reform League," started Sept. 2, 1880, by the Rev. Arthur O'Neill and his friends, to agitate for a change in the Const.i.tution of the House of Lords.

~Reform Meetings.~--We have had a few big meetings of the kind one time and another, and give the dates of the princ.i.p.al. Newhall Hill used to be the favourite spot, and the first meeting held there was on January 22, 1817.--On July 22, 1819, there were 60,000 there, and a member was chosen to represent the town in Parliament. (See "_Newhall Hill_.") The meeting of October 3, 1831, had only 150,000 persons at it, but May 7, in following year, saw 200,000 on the Hill.--The "great" Reform meetings at Brookfields were on August 27, 1866, and April 22, 1867.--A procession to, and demonstration at Soho Pool, Aug. 4, 1884, at which 100,000 persons are said to have been present, is the last big thing of the kind.

~Regattas.~--Usually the A1 amus.e.m.e.nt of places blessed with sea or river s.p.a.ce, but introduced to us (Aug 2, 1879), on the Reservoir, by the Y.M.C.A., whose members had to compete with some crack rowers from Evesham, Shrewsbury, Stratford, Stourport, and Worcester.

~Registers.~--At what date a parish register was first kept here is not known, but Mr. Hamper, the antiquarian, once found some old parts stowed away under the pulpit staircase, and he had them bound and preserved.

There are very few perfect registers in this neighbourhood, though Aston can boast of one dated from 1544, King's Norton 1547, Handsworth 1558, Northfield 1560, Castle Bromwich 1659, and Moseley 1750--The Registration Act was pa.s.sed Aug. 17, 1836.

~Register Offices.~--The custom of hiring servants at "statute fairs"

and "mops" still exists in theory if not in practice, in several parts of the adjoining counties but thanks to the low scale for advertising, such a system is not needed now. The introduction of register offices was a great improvement, the first opened in Birmingham being at 26, St.

John Street (then a respectable neighbourhood), in January 1777, the fee being 6d. for registering and 3d. for an enquiry. There are a number of respectable offices of this kind now, but it cannot be hidden that there have been establishments so called which have been little better than dens of thievery, the proprietors caring only to net all the half-crowns and eighteen-pences they could extract from the poor people who were foolish enough to go to them.

~Rejoicing, Days of.~--Great were the rejoicings in Birmingham, October 9, 1746, when the news came of the battle of Culloden. The capture of Quebec, in 1759, was celebrated here on December 3, by a gneral illumination; the peace-loving Quakers, however, had to rejoice over broken windows, for the mob smashed them, one unfortunate Friend having to provide 115 squares of gla.s.s before his lights were perfect again. We were _loyal_ in those days, and when we heard of our gallant boys thrashing their opponents, up went our caps, caring not on whose heads lay "the blood-guiltiness," and so there was shouting and ringing of bells on May 20, 1792, in honour of Admiral Rodney and his victory. The next great day of rejoicing, however, was for the Peace of Amiens in 1802, and it was notable the more especially from the fact of Soho Works being illuminated with gas, for the first time in the world's history used for such a purpose. In 1809, we put up the first statue in all England to the hero of Trafalgar, and we made the 6th of June the day to rejoice over it, because forsooth, it happened to be the jubilee day of George the Third. What _he_ had done for us to rejoice about would be hard to tell; even more difficult is the query why we were so gleeful and joyous on February 1, 1820, when his successor was proclaimed.

George IV.'s Coronation was celebrated here by the public roasting of oxen, and an immense dinner party in front of Beardsworth's Repository.

~Religious Queerosities.~--Among all its multifarious manufactures it would have been strange, indeed, if Birmingham had not produced something new in religious matters, and accordingly we find that in 1840 some of our advanced townsmen had formed themselves into a "Universal Community Society of Rational Religionists." We have not met with a copy of their rules, though Tidd Pratt registered them as of a Friendly Society (under cap. 4, Will. IV.), but the county magistrates, at the November Quarter Sessions would not pa.s.s them nor seal them. Of late years there have been introduced amongst us several other curiosities in the way of religious bodies, like the Theists, the Polytheists, the Positivists, the Secularists, the Latter-day Saints, and others.

~Religious Societies.~--In addition to those noted elsewhere, there have been many societies formed here which may come under this heading, such as the Lay a.s.sociation for the Refutation of Infidelity, founded in 1839; the Protestant a.s.sociation, commenced in 1847; the Christian Evidence Society, began in 1869; the Church Defence and Reform a.s.sociation, formed in 1871, the Protestant and Church a.s.sociation, inaugurated May 23, of same year, &c.

~Repository.~--Before the building of the Town Hall, there was no place in which a town's meeting could be held, except the Public Office in Moor Street, besides Beardsworth's Repository. As its name implies, it was originally built as a sale-room for horses and carriages, but some of the most important meetings known in Birmingham history have been held within its walls, grand banquets were often laid out there, popular lecturers have discoursed, and popular pugilists exhibited their prowess in the same arena, and the building has even been used as a barracks.

~Republicanism.~--In 1873 a small band of Brummagem bouncers patriotically provided us with a real "Republican Club," and proud of the feat announced the world-stirring fact to the "Hero of Caprera." The simple honest-hearted General, who knew not the guile of their hearts, was deluded into wishing them success. Ten years have pa.s.sed since "Mio Caro Cattell" secured Garibaldi's autograph, but still Victoria remains Queen of Great Britain, Empress of Hindostan, and the best-beloved sovereign on the earth.