Guest, Keen & Nettlefolds

[Bardess]

At long last I have photos of the above memorial and would love to know the street address of each of the different working areas

HEATH ST WORKS

W ANDERTON A HAMPTON J SHELLY

E BAGNALL J HOLDEN H SILK

H COLCLOUGH J INSALL J STEVENS

P C K COLLETT J R LOWE W J STOCKDALE

W DEARN W R MERIDITH J TREGLOWN

C DOHERTY A E POWELL D E TURLEY

G FAULKNER T RICKARDS C A WALLINGTON

H J GILBERT B A ROBINSON F J WARBURTON

E H HALL S ROSE C H WATKINS

E YATES

KING’S NORTON WORKS

T E ALLEN B DAFT S C MUSGROVE

H CROW G H FENN J ROBINSON

J J WEAVER

IMPERIAL MILLS

A BARNES J KELLY G H SADLER

H BARNES G H LATHAM H STALLARD

J BURROWS F LAVELL W G TYTE

T CARTER A PARKES W WEST

S FOLLIS W PARTRIDGE J WIDDOWS

T H HAWTHORNE A G PEARCE S WILLIAMS

G HIGGINS A J PICKERING T WILLIAMS

A INSTON E ROBINSON T E YARDLEY

STOUR VALLEY WORKS

G DAVIS H MORRIS A REED

C H FAIRCLOUGH J MORRIS E SMITH

W GRICE W MORRIS B STOKES

W MATTHEWS T OAKES H STONE

J THOMAS

LONDON WORKS

J H ASTON S F FOWLER W SMITH

A B BLEWITT E JOHNSON F W SNELUS

W BREESE G A JOHNSON H SWINDELLS

G BRITTAIN J A JONES H THOMAS

F G BURRELL J KIRKHAM H THORNE

W BURTON A KING J TRUBY

W CAUSIER W MERRITT J TURNER

S COOPER J H W PERKS E WARRINGTON

A DOLMAN W SELVEY F WHEATLEY

G DOLMAN G SMITH

ST GEORGE’S WORKS

H ATKINSON B J HAWTHORNE J H REEVES

J C BATES F B HAYES E SMALLWOOD

J E BECK E HILL R WILLIAMS

G GREW W JARVIS

Oh dear, that's not how it looks on my Word doc

[Bardess]

The monument is in the GKN Rec on Thimblemill Road, Smethwick

[Dawley Jockey]

Hi Diane,

I remember when working at GKN (Hadley Castle) Hadley, Telford, Shropshire that in the main reception was a couple of large memorial plaques in pride of place, one was for the local area lads who had given their lives and the second was for the Bilston plant which had shut and the plaque moved to a new home within the group.

Can't for the life of me remember the name ie Cable street , Hadley Castle of the Bilston plant but that would have been in the area of the others that you are researching.

Dave

[Alan Tucker]

Hi Diane...

Kelly's Directory of Birmingham 1913 gives five sites...

16, Broad Street - probably head office

Cranford Street, Smethwick - bolts and nuts

Heath Street, Smethwick - screws (last two are highly likely to be adjacent)

Grove Lane, Smethwick

Pershore Road, Smethwick - screws (this is probably the Kings Norton Works)

If I had known about this I would have included the memorial in my 'Birmingham Great War Trail' . Can I use the photo when I update the section on my web site (see below - section called 'Trail - Out of Town'?. I can then research some names and also see how many are in my Royal Warwicks database.

[Bardess]

Hi Dave. Thanks and I hope it comes back to you [or other members can assist].

Hi Alan. Thanks for the street addresses - the only one I don't recognise is Pershore Road [would that be the one in Brum?]

Please help yourself to the photo and, if you are going to include GKN then have you considered M&B? [Great website btw]

Cheers

[Alan Tucker]

Yes Pershore Road, Stirchley on the road to Kings Norton i.e. within the 1911 city extension. M&B are in the Great War Trail book published this Autumn.

[Dragon]

Diane, the historical directories for England and Wales (1750 - 1919) are online here. I use them a lot.

[Bardess]

Thanks Alan.

Thanks for the link Gwyn - excellent resource

[Dawley Jockey]

Diane , its come back to me ...

The Bilston sites were Albert street and Bankfield road which where seperated by the sports ground. The Bilston and Hadley (Telford) sites where original GKN sites and Bilston being in the 'Black Country' is why I thought of the link with the Smethwick site you are researching

Dave

[Bardess]

Well done Dave!!! Thanks

[enoch beard]

smethwick telephone

[enoch beard]

one of the west bromwich papers!

[Bardess]

Outstanding!!!! Thanks so much Steve

[enoch beard]

found a article on 5332 sgt j.h. thomas MM of the m.g.c., article states he worked at gkn. i wonder if he is h thomas on london works section, can you double check panel?

enoch

[Bardess]

[enoch beard]

c.h. fairclough looks like g.h. fairclough to me (stour vally works)

[Stuggs]

With regards to the location of the GKN sites at Cranford Street, Smethwick, Heath Street, Smethwick and Grove Lane, Smethwick. Cranford Street and Heath Street are basically the same road and Grove Lane runs almost parallel to it. In between, connecting the two, runs London Street and there is an old disused pub on the road called The London Works Tavern. GKN had huge sites in this part of Smethwick, but there is little or nothing left of the buildings now. I have tried to post a map with the roads labelled, but because I have recently joined I am unable to attach images just yet.

[Bardess]

Thanks for the extra info, Stu, and would be very interested in your map

[MartinWills]

I guess it is worth remembering that GKN were on the Smethwick/Birmingham border. Much of the area, on both sides, has been redeveloped and with mass clearances of old housing some old roads have gone and others have been created which, in places, makes it hard to identify where things were as little as forty years ago. The only things that have not changed significantly is the older infrastructure of railways and canals (though a few basins and short arms have gone) Somewhere I have a 1960 Kelly's for the area and at that point in time the area was relatively little changed and GKN was still the major employer in the immediate area along with others such as the Ionic plating works which suffered a disastrous fire around the late 1960's.

[John(txic)]

You'll be pleased to read this article, Diane:

http://www.redditchstandard.co.uk/2013/07/16/news-War-memorial-returned-after-being-found-on-car-boot-77815.html

Just a pity they lost it in the first place.....

[BereniceUK]

Diane , its come back to me ...

The Bilston sites were Albert street and Bankfield road which where seperated by the sports ground. The Bilston and Hadley (Telford) sites where original GKN sites and Bilston being in the 'Black Country' is why I thought of the link with the Smethwick site you are researching

Dave

The memorial plaques for Sankey's Albert Street Works and Bankfield Works, Bilston, and Mount Works in Ettingshall, are all now in St Leonard's Church, Bilston.

[Bardess]

You'll be pleased to read this article, Diane:

http://www.redditchs...boot-77815.html

Just a pity they lost it in the first place.....

Indeed! At least the names recorded are the same too

[AndrewThornton]

Here is a photo of the memorial being unveiled.

And another photo of the memorial after the ceremony.