Forums Forums Wirral History : Chasing the Past Wirral History Borough Road.

I came across this picture while trawling t'internet. Says it's Borough Road, Birkenhead but I just can't place exactly where it is on that stretch of road. I know a lot of house clearance took place to widen the road but the bend and the junctions are confusing me. The church too, where is/was this?

At first glance i thought its by where the Carlton pub is, not sure when the pub was built though and how old that pic is, you can see the Cathedral in the background.

Dave

Taking the cathedral into account it can't be by the Carlton. You just wouldn't see the cathedral. I had a virtual wander down Borough Rd on google street view cos that was my first thought as to where it was. Looked at an old map from 1910 too and the houses just don't match up. It's a bit of a puzzle.

I think that it's looking down towards Central Station from Whetstone Lane.

if that is Borough rd Birkenhead it would be a view from around Whetstone lane, on your map Stegga what is the name of the church off Grange Rd, half way down, in between Grange and Borough. just can't remember, is it St Johns?

Yes, it's St.John's. That should be Vincent Street on the left. Surely someone must remember the barbers and that advert painted on the end wall.

The houses look familiar, had a cousin who lived on the right hand side, around where the girls memorial stone is now. Don't remember the barbers though.

Well before my time that picture.

Good to see what it used to look like instead of beeing told about it by parents.

What's the two big roofs by the spire? Wracking my brains and can't envisage how it used to look down there.

Although it still looks like Borough Rd., I'm not happy about the church. I think it's the wrong shape and I don't think it came that close to Borough Rd.
Borough Rd. is just off the bottom of this map.

Just thinking that myself Chris when finding this

It's Borough Road without a doubt. Tram traction poles still in use for the street lights. Centre of carraigeway a different surface to the edges - tarmac over the cobbles that flanked the tram rails. The edges were glass smooth (Trinidad Lake Asphalt). Great on a bike - as long as it was dry!

Early 1950's pic at a guess. Not a TV aerial in site!

It is definitely Borough Road looking down from Whetstone Lane towards Central Station. And that's definitely St John's Church.
Just next to the No Left Turn sign (out of picture) was the old fire station. I think the barber's name was Charles Tunna.
The big two roofs by the spire are almost certainly the gable ends of the main church building.

The Barbers shop was run for many years by a guy named Jimmy Miller. It is a view from outside of the fire station looking towards central station.

Good photo brings back lots of memories about 1950
I think the barbers shop Charles Tunna was nearer Central Station and on the other side of the road.
Hitchells fishing tackle shop by the bus stop just out of photo

Thanks for the replies everyone. I can see exactly where the piccy was taken now. I would say though, if i was whisked away from that very spot in the 50s and deposited in the same spot today you would never know you were even in the same town let alone being on the same spot. Great detective work guys. I knew about the church, just didn't know it had a spire.

I think you may find that the road on the left is Vincent Street as Chriskay said, one road further down than Whetstone Lane.

I can vaguely remember Borough Road before it was demolished. Are we not looking down Borough Road towards the tunnel and the fire station (Whetstone Lane) would be on the left.

Hi Guys.
It's definitely Borough Road by Vincent St.
I think the advert on the barbers shop was for Pykes the jewelers, who were at the top of Vincent St, on Grange Rd. I think they moved down Grange Rd by one block, to the next corner, sometime in the 60's.
There are two Corporation bus stop shelters on the right, and I think the one nearest the camera is also the one nearest the traffic lights. (Was the fishing tackle shop called Hitchells or Mitchells?) There were always two Corporation bus stops together from Woodside up to the Library, usually followed by the Crosville one.
The first stop was for the No's 6, 28, 64 & 86, while the second stop served the Woodchurch Rd routes such as the 70, 71, 77 etc.
Borough Rd & Victoria Rd was the first single stop, and it was also the first drop off point for the lomited stop services, sometimes used at peak-times. These were identified by red letters on a white background in the destination blinds.
Back to the picture, the houses on the left at the bottom of the bend were very flat fronted, and I think they were prone to flooding. The front door steps were almost level with the pavement. They were amongst the first to be demolished when the tunnel flyover was being built.
On the right, you can just make out a gap where the sunlight crosses the pavement. This is probably the end of Fearnley Rd, leading into the Woodlands, past the end of the school yard.
The road widening of Borough Rd. to Whetstone La. was done in several phases, and I think for a short period that there was a pet shop (Wirral Pets?)next to Mitchells fishing tackle shop, which had to re-locate due to the next phase of widening. If I'm right in thinking, then the pet shop moved to Oxton Rd Tetbury St.
The memorial that was mentioned is for Diane Sidall.

Thanks for posting that photo. My nan's house was right where the bus stops were. House was demolished beginning of the 70's. Great memories of a happy childhood. We were at my nan and Grandads almost every day.

Hi, Norton; I think you're right about the advert being for Pykes. I don't think Pyke's ever moved from the top of Vincent St., in fact I think it's still there to this day. Here's a pic I took in 2008. You can just see Pyke's sign; it's next to what used to be W.H.Smith's, where I worked in 1952.

Excellent photo of Borough Road! To me, the only thing on it that looks familiar is the old style bus stop. That type were still around in places, even during my childhood. At least there were two of them like that outside the plaza IIRC. This was before the demolition of buildings further up Borough Road at the bottom of Woodville/Briardale etc.. That occured sometime in the early 1980s I think.

I do wonder if during the widening scheme, the section of Borough Road road near Whetstone Lane/Vincent Street was realigned slightly? I say this because on looking at the photo, there's quite a bend on the road at that point. The exact same spot on the modern-day google maps satellite images doesn't appear to have a bend in the road quite to that extent. i.e. the bend is there, but not that sharp. (assuming that road on the left is Vincent Street, which still exists but only as a pedestrian walkthrough)

Slightly off topic but is part of Borough road. DIANE SIDALL. am I right in thinking that it is still an unsolved murder case.

No i think someone was convicted for it shortly after.

The sad story is HERE

Always remember that, so sad.

me and TC stumbled across her grave the other week

I think that may be because the picture was taken with a telephoto lens, possibly from roughly the bottom of Cook St. That would exaggerate the bend.

Ah yes that would explain it, thanks for the reply.

The other thing I thought of was that, generally when a primary route is upgraded to dual carriageway standards, the aim is to make the road faster.

I am reminded of the upgrade of Edge Lane in Liverpool. I'd previously taken a few photos before and after the demoltion of adjacent properies. The new alignment of the road has some of the bends (or rather kinks) smoothed out a bit, no doubt allowing for a smoother flow of traffic.

I doubt very much if a photographer at that time would have been using a telephoto lens to take this sort of shot; what you can see is just the normal compression of perspective you would get shooting with a standard lens. If you look at old maps of Borough Road there was a distinct bend just as you approached Whetstone Lane (it's more evident if you look at the building line of the old houses that used to face the Fire Station). The lack of any 'bend' now is simply because the widening of the road and the demolition of the properties on the right-hand side has made it less apparent.

Interestingly, it would seem that the road, some time between 1912 and the date of the picture, actually became more "bent".
When you compare the 1912 O.S. map with the photo, the pavement on the right in the photo is much wider where the building line changes (where the sun shines through the alley) than on the map. Also, the line where the tram tracks have been tarmaced over is more bent that on the map.
I've always assumed that the O.S. 1:2500 maps are pretty accurate as to this level of detail; am I wrong?

As you look at the picture I think the woodlands school was hidden behind the house's on right hand side Hitchells moved to oxton road.My brother had a friend who lived in one of them house oppsite the school. Am 44 now but am sure they started demolished the house,s about 1970.

Recycled from another thread on Borough Rd that Chriskay posted in 2008.

The entrance to St John's church was from the Grange Road end
Not sure if it had any graves

The map above is the nearest to me finding out whether Borough Road may once have been called Happy Valley Road

Just noticed it only has a small "r" compared to other roads with a capital "R"

No burials took place at St John the Evangelist

SOURCE

There was once a pub that used to be called The Happy Vally.It was oppsite the libary.

The first section of Borough Road to be built is clearly marked on the 1875 OS map as Happy Valley Road. The name was changed in 1877 when Birkenhead was incorporated as a municipal borough.

I've got this old photo of Birkenhead in 1900, no idea where it is though.

Anyone help?

Well it's on Borough Road somewhere Pablo - so the street sign says anyway.

How the hell can you see that?

Lol!
Hold the control button down on the keyboard and if you've got a mouse with a middle roller, you can zoom in and out. Not sure about a two or three button mouse tho'...

Hope its helps anyway.

It's a "Prenton Bogie" car on the left - so that ties in with Borough Road.

Ha, you guy got eyes like shit house rats...

oh no Pablo,behave

H Sproston, Chemist, was in 1900, 436 Borough Road, Birkenhead. Somewhere between the car spares shop (400) and the Carlton Public House, perhaps bottom of Glover St? map required.

It is the bottom of Glover street, The building on the far left of the picture is the bottom of Victoria road it is still there today.

Think they were demolished in the mid eighties

conway street i have just been informed. max

I seem to remember them being in the process of being demolished with all scaffolding around them and the butchers still being open

Conway Street or Borough Road?

Nice work guys

A Now & Then composite, courtesy of Google Maps.
Corner of Victoria Rd & Borough Rd.

Thanks, Manowar; the building on the corner of Borough/Victoria has hardly changed, just the sash window replaced.

Max: don't know who informed you it was Conway St., but they were wrong.

Well... I never knew that. Excellent tip. Thanks for that.

Nice bit of work Manowar1952. Thanks.

If you havent got a scroll wheel on your mouse then hold ctrl and press + or - to zoom in or out respectively!

I was just about to post this tip, you just beat me to it.

Another tip if you have used either of the previoulsy mentioned tips and you quickly want to get back to normal page view 100% hold Ctrl and press 0 (on the top row of numbers) and back to normal view.

Well, thank you, I didn't know that one!

yes the shame. my dad told me and i will be having words with him. lol. max

why you been looking at shit house rats? {by the way,did you notice the colour of there eyes?}

Thanks for that tip about how to get back to normal 100%

Great pic of Borough Road, Manowar1952.

Well I was born in 1973 and so will turn 40 next year.

I do remember some of the shops in that area from when I was a young child.

At the bottom of Briardale was some sort of car parts shop. I always seem to think it sold car batteries or something, but my memory is hazy!

Along that row, there was also a newsagents - I remember that one quite well, because I used to go in there and spend my 25p pocket money!

Also there was some sort of clothes shop, as I remember seeing the mannequins there and then further along was a I think, a butchers' shop.

Of course it all changed after the demolition which to me looks like some attempt at a road widening scheme, however there's now the trees, the grass verges and the bus layby yet the road at this point remains one lane in each direction.

I remember as kids we all used to use the entire demolition site as a playground. Nowadays it'd all be securely fenced off with danger signs everywere. Can't remember exactly what year that all happened in, think it was around the eraly 80s.

Thanks Pablo - I used to go to Kelly's and get sliced bread for me mum. They had a wire bread slicer thingy. Used to get little hovis from there amd the "scrapling" from the said bread slicer thingy. That would have been late 50's early 60's.

yes taken from the junction of whetstone lane down towards the mersey - THE CHURCH is ST. JOHNS - where the pyrimids now is

The sash window which you mention here was infact just bricks their was never a window before. Due to the layout inside and an extra room being made inside the bricks where removed and the window what you see now is that same one from where the bricks where first taken out which would of been late 80s early 90s

I got quite a shock when I saw chriskay’s name on that post, he was a gentleman and is sadly missed, may he rest in peace.

Hi Paul. Don't know if you will still read this, but I was also born 1973 and lived in Halcyon Road and also remember playing amongst all the rubble. Further up at the bottom of Halcyon, there was also a car showroom there and there were big advert boards which we would climb then jump off into a big heap of sand when they also knocked that down. That would've been 1982.

The butcher's was very old fashioned with sawdust on the floor and those collecting boxes for politically incorrectly named charities on the counter and outside. The newsagent was also old fashioned. Across the road was Prenton Philatelist, stamp collecting shop. Was the newsagent called Bailey's? I can't access any photos which is frustrating.