Railway Timeline

1862 - LNWR line from Birmingham to Aston extended to Sutton Coldfield
1865 - Earlier proposal by MR for line through park is abandoned due to ‘monetary pressure’
1871 November - Survey of proposed line and ‘book of references’ published
1872 January 17th - Sutton Coldfield Corporation appoints a Railway Committee
1872 June 19th - Case goes before House of Lords Committee
1872 August 6th - Branch from Water Orton through Streetly to Walsall authorized
1873 May - Exact route of line staked out through Sutton Park
1874 July 30th - W,W & MJR absorbed by Midland Railway
1875 Spring - Construction of WWMJR begins
1879 May 19th - Branch opened for goods
1879 July 1st - Branch opened for passengers
1884 December 15th - Opening of mainline extension from SC to Lichfield
1917 January 7th - Stretch from Sutton Park to Aldridge reduced to single line ‘worked by tablet’
1921 March 20th - Double track restored
1923 January 1st - The 1921 Railways Act sees the MR grouped into the LMS
1925 January 1st - Sutton Coldfield Town station closed
1964 December 7th - Sutton Park goods station closed
1965 January 18th - Stopping passenger services withdrawn
1968 January 7th - Line becomes goods-only (NB from 1970 to 1983 some summer season passenger trains ran on Fridays/Saturdays)

"Pratt's Depot"

In 1861, John Pratt occ. builder was aged 79 and living with daughter Mary Ann aged 35 on Blind Lane, Sutton Coldfield. Same year, there's another John Pratt occ. builder aged 37 and living with his uncle John Swift at Four Oaks.

This younger John Pratt is the son of the older John Pratt, and they are living together for 1841 and 1851. And again for 1871, when the older is "former builder" and the younger is "builder" and still unmarried.

By 1881, neither John Pratt is in Sutton Coldfield.

The older John Pratt (b. 1782) is the son of James & Elizabeth Pratt, and has brothers James 1773; William 1775; Thomas 1778 (who m. Sarah); Abraham 1788; Joseph 1791. Of these brothers, only Abraham is in Sutton Coldfield for the 1841 census and is working as a shoe maker.

It looks like the Pratt builders were the two John Pratt generations, and maybe the name "Pratt's Depot" continued beyond their lifetimes.

Depot Businesses

The station and yard drawing that I have from the chief engineer's department is (I believe wrongly) dated 1950s in the book. Looking at the details of it and the surrounding properties it is difficult to date and I wonder if it is several periods collapsed - I've made some enquiries and hope to find out soon. It certainly isn't pre-1887 (OS first edition).

The drawing has marked a number of trades/companies and I've also realised that the goods shed has two 50cwt cranes indicated in the area of the cross-beams. Marked are: C H Crees and Sons builders merchants; Bassett & Sons; Shell Mex depot; Pratts depot; G H Dykes coal office; Davenport & Co. There are also indicated various Oil tanks, timber stores and other tanks and a lime shed next to the goods shed. Basset & son have a compound marked that I think is in today's wooded area.

Despite all these businesses the yard looks fairly empty but I'm assuming it would have been stacked with timber, coal and such like and also needed room for loading/unloading.

Site Brick Bonds

Remains of wall in woodland at east end of site.

DO building chimney.

Substation in visitor's car park.

DO building showing end wall (left) and side wall (right).

Goods shed.

Film Footage

The railway was (and still is a big deal) for the area. Yes, the US presence was headline grabbing but in the end was only there due to the railway already being there (and ditto for the PO/RM presence). The railway proposal through the park really divided opinion and forced a lot of important people to show their true colours. It looks like a similar situation will unfold with the proposed re-opening of the line to passengers.

On the subject of sorting British Pathe has some nice (non-Sutton) stuff:

http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=53113
http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=22585
http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=51227

The first one of the above was where the British Forces PO moved after SC wasn't it?

Summary Site History

The site seems to be part of the 93 acres 3 roods and 36 perches of land given in November 1827 to the Warden and Society of the Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield by Sir Edmund Cradock-Hartopp of Clifton. This land included " 'two closes of land and the greater part of the third close of land (called 'The Moors') adjoining Sutton Park and to the New Forge Pool."

In exchange, the Warden and Society of the Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield gave Cradock-Hartopp 63 acres and 31 perches of Sutton Park ("a slip of land adjoining Four Oaks Park and the greater part of Lady Wood and land adjoining") to allow the then owner of Four Oaks Hall Estate "to create a more pleasing oval shape to his deer park".

The exchange also obliged Cradock-Hartopp, at a cost of £1000.00, to build a new entrance to the Park (the present Town Gate) and a new road (Park Road) linking the town to Sutton Park.

Sir Edmund Cradock-Hartopp had purchased Four Oaks Hall in 1792. When the Pudsey Estates (including nearby Langley Hall) were divided on the death of Henry Pudsey in 1686, his daughter Elizabeth and her husband Henry Folliott, 1st Baron Folliott of Ballyshannon, exercised their right granted in the Royal Charter of Sutton Coldfield to enclose up to 60 acres of Common land for a new house. Four Oaks Hall was designed by the architect and sculptor Sir William Wilson (a student of Sir Christopher Wren), who also built the 'Old Art School' building (next to Bishop Vesey's Grammar School) for himself and his new wife, Jane, the widow of aforementioned Henry Pudsey.

Henry Folliott died in 1716, and his widow, Elizabeth, continued to live at Four Oaks Hall until 1744. In 1751, the Hall was sold to Simon Luttrell (later Baron Luttrell of Luttrells Town and Earl of Carhampton) in 1751, and he rebuilt the Hall in the Palladian style. Four Oaks Hall was then sold in 1778 to the Reverend Thomas Gresley, who sold it to Hugh Bateman in 1785, who in turn sold it to Edmund Cradock-Hartopp in 1792.

Having at one point been in the ownership of the Pudsey family, the site is associated with a number of other important local families going back to the 13th century. These include:

the de Beresfords of Wishaw
Jesson of Langley Hall and Wishaw
Holte of Aston
Bracebridge of Atherstone, and
Digby of Meriden.

Following an earlier investigation in 1865 ("abandoned due to monetary pressure"), Sutton Coldfield Corporation appointed a Railway Committee in January 1872, and the Act of Parliament (35 & 36 Vict.) was passed later the same year. The line was staked out in May 1873, construction began in the Spring of 1875, and the 'Sutton Park Line' finally opened for business on the 1st July 1879. The contractor was Joseph Firbank, and the engineer for the Wolverhampton, Walsall and Midland Junction Railway was John Addison.

Archive Update

Summary observations on material at Stafford, Walsall and Sutton Coldfield.

The Tudor Hill estate was transferred to the W&S as part of the Hartopp exchange in 1827 but it wasn't until 1864 that the demand for high-status housing in Sutton Coldfield warranted fuller development.

Nearby Anchorage estate was laid out and advertised for sale in July 1870 - 26 building lots - the owner was RH Sadler and a minimum value of £500 per plot was a condition of development. No industry allowed. Four houses were built prior to a delay of 16 years in which time the Sutton Park Line was built. Because the Anchorage estate was already in existence, the Railway Company had to provide a bridge.

There is a little 'unofficial' footpath through from the top of Richmond Road and down the bank to the entrance to the sorting office.

Have had a further play around with the Lavender House plan and think that there is only one possible area for it and that is one of the two or three plots around the house named 'Drumcrieff' on the 1914 OS map. The angles of the plots on the Lavender plan preclude a lot of potential sites.

Have contacted the Scout Association to try and find a copy of the boarding passes from the 1957 Jamboree and am still trying to uncover the reason for 'Birmingham Z' being applied to the site or the railway spur.

Have some good photos of various documents re. the railway line through the Park including the proposed line marked on an OS map and more detailed surveys with sections... "datum line 250 feet below the underside of girders where intersecting the face of the Northern Abutment of the Turnpike Road over Bridge from Walsall to Bloxwich".

A few new names as landowners appear in the proposed railway line reference book. Halford Parker farmed fields 24,25,26, and 31 - this was mainly ex Samuel Smith land held in trust at the coming of the railway. Williams Bach and Barker leased plots 27 to 30, 32 to 40 with a host of occupiers listed. 'Carriage Road' 33 (i.e. today's Richmond Road) was owned by Thomas Storer Eddowes, Warden and Sutton Coldfield Gas Company. Mr Eddowes went on to be a supporter of the railway through the Park and it is his firm's archive that contains the lovely, crumbly old papers. Other 'carriage roads' were owned by Warden & Society (29 and 32), RH Sadler (48) and Thomas Hayward (49).

Several of these names crop up as supporters of the railway.

In Kelly's Directory for Warwickshire, the only other trade listed in 1892 and 1896 in and around Tudor Hil apart from Billson is Henry Duncalfe, a surgeon at Aragon House.

Have found what looks like somebody's Masters thesis that was a precursor to the Collins' book (QSH 75.8). Angela Andrews in 1992 wrote 'Over Here: A study of the stationing of American troops in Sutton Coldfield for the purposes of sorting mail for their forces throughout the European theatre of war 1942 - 1945'.

Collins is listed in the acknowledgements and is mentioned as a local author compiling a book on the theme. A lot of the information is in the Collins' book as are many of the photos. Angela Andrews mentions one source as a Mr Brock of the 'Army Postal Workers Association'. One or two useful photos are credited to M. Rothert widow of Eugene.

In BCOL Q 385.0942496MID there is an excellent account of the toing and froings to get the railway line built. Apparently an initial investigation was made in 1865 but "abandoned due to monetary pressure". The ball really started rolling with a meeting of Sutton Coldfield Corporation on 8th January 1872. On the 12th January opposers of the railway included Mr Charles Beaton and Rev WKR Bedford who presented a petition signed by 194 individuals. On the 18th the Corporation appointed a Railway Committee made up of Warden Eddowes, Rev EH Kittoe, Dr G Bodington, Mr J Wiggan and Dr A Johnson, but only Kittoe and Johnson were against the railway.

There followed lots of ill-feeling - letter writing in the Birmingham Gazettte, accusations of skulduggery, and the breaking up of meetings by 'rowdy' groups. A meeting against the railway on 5th April 1872 heard the Rev. Crosskey state that he would as soon see a railway "through Lichfield Cathedral as through the Park". A petition was adopted and signed by J. Sadler, Mayor of Birmingham, for presentation to Houses of Parliament. Also on the 5th, Dr Bodington chaired a 150-strong meeting in support of the railway.

An engineer called Wilson was appointed by the 'No' camp to survey an alternative route to the north of the Park but to no avail. Apparently Joseph Chamberlain was signed-up to the 'No' cause. By the 19th June the Bill had passed it's second reading and then went to the House of Lords Committee (Lord Camoys in the chair, Earl Fortesque, Viscounts Hereford and Gough and Lords Aranmore and Brown).

Promoters of the line were represented by (among others) Messers Denison, Sergeant, Sargood and Round. Inhabitants of Sutton Coldfield were represented by Mr Rodwell and the Hon. Chandos-Leigh. The hearing lasted five days but from the off seemed in favour of the railway. The argument for the railway was based mainly on economics (access to Black Country industries, with many industrialists in favour of the railway), and the argument against was mainly 'environmental'. The resident engineer John Addison made some very poor arguments, but even so by the 26th June the hearing was over.

In May 1873 the exact line of the route was staked-out, construction began in the Spring of 1875, and the railway finally opened in 1879.

Sutton Coldfield Archives

Sutton Coldfield Library has four publications on Francis J. Field, although there might be a folder full of stuff in one of the filing cabinets. The Library has Aero Field Handbooks Nos 3, 4, 7 and 15.

The material is rather haphazard and some of the stuff is catalogued in people's heads and kept in a box on top of a cupboard. This box includes some lovely sketch survey maps of the rail route on fast disintegrating tracing paper. Have photos of some of the key documents.

The Lavender house caused more trouble. Can't find anything on Richmond Road or Tudor Hill that matches the drawing from Walsall archives, so:

a) it was never built;

b) it was built but has been knocked down (war damage?); or

c) it has been altered significantly.

Still think the key might be the dumb well on the original drawing matching the shape on the 1887 OS map.

Been trying to find architects drawings for Sutton Park station, but have had no luck. Apparently it was built to standard MR design so this supports the the thinking on the standardised Goods Shed. A lot of the drawings of rail stations are from the Cattell collection.

Have done another field map overlay and am still having trouble matching things up accurately - a quirk of surveys done at different periods probably. The attached uses magenta for c.1800 and cyan for c.1870. The field numbers refer to the plots affected by the proposed rail line and I have the ownership details for these. The barn is shown on both surveys and is perhaps the reason for the (dumb) well on the OS map.

Jamboree Train Tickets

The 1957 Scout Jubilee Jamboree used three stations on the Sutton Park Line, namely Sutton Park, Streetly and Sutton Coldfield. Jamboree attendees were issued with boarding passes colour-coded to the station they should use. Sutton Park was blue, Streetly was yellow and Sutton Coldfield was red. Apparently there were trains every 12 minutes for a while.

Archives Visit

Railway Society

There is a railway society in Sutton Coldfield. It seems to be more about modelling but this does seem to be backed up by a deep knowledge of railway history.

Mr Joseph Firbank

"Mr Firbank used, however, to say that, of all his contracts, this one [Walsall and Water Orton] gave him the most trouble and anxiety, on account of the vexatious and unnecessary interference of the Engineer - not one of the Midland Company's permanent officials - and his assistants, who, instead of doing all in their power to assist him in his labours - as other chief and resident engineers did - took every occasion to make suggestions, which were totally unnecessary, and added very heavily to the cost of the works. This conduct ultimately led to litigation, but, unfortunately, a clause in the specification appointed the Engineer sole arbitrator, without appeal from his decisions."

A sentence or two then describes Firbank's 'defeat' in court and he is criticised by the judges for signing such a claused contract before ending the entry with: "...a compromise arranged, which, if it did not give him his due, fully cleared him in the eyes of the Midland Directors, whose good opinion he valued very highly." The chief engineer on the line was, as we know, J Addison and the resident engineer was J Keen.

Firbank had previously had problems with co-workers and after a particularly bad partnership in the 1840s never worked in partnership again. His career was helped by the recommendation of renowned engineer Charles Liddell.

He was highly respected as an engineer and hard-worker, and had "sturdy independence and reliability. He would rise early, even before 5am, and be in his bed by 9pm. He thought more of his fellow workers if they adhered to the same lifestyle."

Firbank trouble?

Like the idea of the landscape cancelled and then the idea of the switch of usage (in the case of the landscape) from commercial to residential.

Have almost finished Firbank's story. In very simple terms the Sutton Park Line was one of his worst projects and he ended up in court (not his fault it would seem). He started off in the pits in Co. Durham at the age of seven and then improved himself and gained great respect for his honesty and hard work.

Goods Shed details

In the c1940s photo in LfV the extension is reached up a flight of steps that look remarkably like the ones that are there today. I assume the current ramp was added to the right-hand door to wheel post trolleys up whereas previously a truck would have been backed up to the bay as in the current postal depot.

Goods Yard

The Stafford Archives catalogue lists several documents relating to Addison and the Sutton Park Line so it will definitely be worth a trip.

Billson Record

John Billson Ltd, coal merchants, 1886-1913: records, ref: GB/NNAF/C117182 at Leicestershire, Leicester and Rutland, Record Office, Wigston Magna.

More Firbank

By way of surmise because the rail line was not popular and the bribe was coal, it is likely that the presence of the Goods Depot was due to it fitting a Midland Railway template for station/depot layout.

Another line of enquiry might be the Midland Railway Society at Derby - they might have something on standard layouts.

Billson Family Tree

As per the 1896 Kelly listing of 'Billson Jn. Park Station (Midland Ry) depot' under coal and coke merchants:

1901
Devon Villa, Coleshill Road, Sutton Coldfield

John Billson married occ. coal merchant employer b. abt 1829 Loughborough
Mary Billson [wife] b. abt 1845 Walsall

1901
Maney, Sutton Coldfield

John Henry Billson occ. coal & lime merchant employer b. abt 1869 Aston
Violet C. Billson [wife] b. abt 1871 Clun, Shropshire
John V. Billson b. abt 1898 Sutton Coldfield

1901
Blind Lane, Sutton Coldfield [boarder]

Charles Billson occ. coal merchant employer b. abt 1870 Aston


1891
208 Victoria Road, Sutton Coldfield

John Billson widower occ. coal merchant b. abt 1829 Loughborough
John Henry Billson occ. coal merchant clerk b. abt 1869 Birmingham
Charles Billson occ. coal merchant clerk b. abt 1870 Birmingham


1881
Birmingham Road, Sutton Coldfield

John Billson widower occ. coal merchant b. abt 1829 Loughborough
John Henry Billson occ. scholar b. abt 1869 Aston
Charles Billson occ. scholar b. abt 1870 Aston


1871
Upper Sutton Street, Aston [surname misspelt]

John Bilson junior widower occ. coal merchant b. abt 1829 Loughborough
John Bilson senior occ. coal merchant b. abt 1801 Loughborough
John Henry Bilson b. abt 1869 Birmingham
Charles Bilson b. abt 1870 Birmingham


1861
8 Thimble Street, Aston

Edmund [Edward] Billson occ. house polisher b. abt 1827 Loughborough
Louisa Billson [wife] b. abt 1828 Birmingham
[plus 5 children]
John Billson [brother] unmarried occ. house collar maker b. abt 1829 Loughborough


1851
Yates Street, Aston

John Bilson occ. corn factory clerk b. abt 1796 Loughborough
Sarah Billson [wife] b. abt 1804 Woodcroft, Worcestershire
John Billson occ. saddle maker b. abt 1827 Loughborough
Thomas Billson occ. button maker b. abt 1830 Loughborough
George Billson occ. apprentice b. abt 1834 Loughborough
Ann jane Billson occ. scholar b. abt 1837 Loughborough


1841
Barford Street Birmingham

John Bilson occ. clerk b. abt 1801 not Warwickshire
Sarah Billson [wife] b. abt 1805 not Warwickshire
Edward Billson occ. painter apprentice b. abt 1827 not Warwickshire
Thomas Billson occ. pearl button maker b. abt 1831 not Warwickshire
George Billson b. abt 1834 not Warwickshire
Ann Billson b. abt 1837 not Warwickshire

[note: John Billson b. abt 1827 not listed]


25.11.1828
John Billson s/o John Billson & Sarah nee Belcher baptised General Baptist, Loughborough

18.02.1827
Edward Billson s/o John Billson & Sarah nee Belcher baptised General Baptist, Loughborough

15.05.1826
John Billson m. Sarah Belcher at Woodhouse, Leicestershire

25.12.1795
John Billson s/o Edward & Amey Billson baptised All Saints, Loughborough

28.12.1772
Edward Billson s/o William & Elizabeth Billson baptised All Saints, Loughborough

09.09.1743
William Billson s/o Edward Billson baptised All Saints, Loughborough

01.09.1742
Edward Billson m. Tamar Burton at St Nicholas, Leicester

Firbank

Just Googled it and came across this link...

http://www.circa-club.com/gallery/gay_history_icons_ronald_firbank.php

The archive stuff is a lot of work for small reward but it helps piece together the ownership of this land and how it fits into the wider dealings of Sutton Coldfield and beyond.

Also took a quick look at Street Directories for Sutton Coldfield and the station master in 1880 was a William John Newth. By 1886 he had been replaced by Harry Adams Ball who stayed in place until around 1906 when Henry J Waine took over and stayed for about a couple of decades.

The 1896 Kelly also lists a 'Billson Jn. Park Station (Midland Ry) depot' under coal and coke merchants. In 1880 there was a 'Billson Thos.' in Station Street, Sutton Coldfield. Looks like the son started up in business in another part of town. By 1912 there is a John Henry Billson coal merchant with addresses at Coleshill and Park Station. Anyway, coal was present from the early days.

Just one note about the fields, given the fact that the site seems to have been excavated for the railway it is strange to think that that was all happening above the heads of the current site.

Firbank Book

It's that thing about sites not just being what they are, but also being about how they have been shaped by deed and Wills, etc..

Interesting costs, etc. on the railway. Think you might need to read this:

The Life and Work of Joseph Firbank, Railway Contractor (Paperback)
by Frederick Mcdermott (Author)
No customer reviews yet. Be the first.
Price: £14.50 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
In stock.
Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk. Gift-wrap available.

Only 1 left in stock--order soon (more on the way).