NeilsYard Coventry All posts by this member | 1 of 40 Tue 18th Sep 2012 8:47am Member: Joined Aug 2010 Total posts:2857 Does anyone know what used to be around the site where today's Days Hotel is (formerly Aston Court / Godiva Hotel)? The building clearly is not that old and is a fairly sizeable site? Any images anyone? The corner of Holyhead Road / Barras Lane. |
Memories and Nostalgia - Barras Lane | |
charabanc Coventry All posts by this member | 2 of 40 Tue 18th Sep 2012 12:33pm Member: Joined Apr 2012 Total posts:167 If it's of any help to jog people's memories, I seem to remember that the RAF Club used to be on the lower corner of the same junction. |
Memories and Nostalgia - Barras Lane | |
dutchman Spon End All posts by this member | 3 of 40 Tue 18th Sep 2012 2:06pm Member: Joined Mar 2010 Total posts:2976 This picture claims to be of that corner but I haven't been able to identify it positively. |
Memories and Nostalgia - Barras Lane | |
Rob Orland Historic Coventry All posts by this member | 4 of 40 Tue 18th Sep 2012 7:14pm Webmaster: Joined Jan 2010 Total posts:1651 That was my first thought too, it looks just like the stone wall on the corner of Barras Lane. However, looking at Google street view it seems that St. Osburg's church spire ought to be visible. But now I can't think of another corner that looks quite like that! |
Memories and Nostalgia - Barras Lane | |
dutchman Spon End All posts by this member | 5 of 40 Tue 18th Sep 2012 7:29pm Member: Joined Mar 2010 Total posts:2976 I think you're looking at the wrong corner Rob, I believe it's the one to the left of that one? Note the steps up to the houses on the left, they are still there.
Also, unless the picture is reversed, the driver appears to be on the wrong side of the road! Perhaps he's a German spy? ![]() |
Memories and Nostalgia - Barras Lane | |
Rob Orland Historic Coventry All posts by this member | 6 of 40 Tue 18th Sep 2012 7:50pm Webmaster: Joined Jan 2010 Total posts:1651 Whoops! ![]() |
Memories and Nostalgia - Barras Lane | |
dutchman Spon End All posts by this member | 7 of 40 Tue 18th Sep 2012 11:56pm Member: Joined Mar 2010 Total posts:2976 Both pre-war maps and this one from 1951 suggest that no buildings like the one in the Blitz photo existed on the corner of Barras Lane and Holyhead Road before the war:
Old-Maps.co.uk
In fact I'm unable to find evidence that the picture was taken anywhere along Barras Lane or in the immediate vicinity. ![]() |
Memories and Nostalgia - Barras Lane | |
morgana the secret garden All posts by this member | 8 of 40 Wed 19th Sep 2012 1:33am Member: Joined Nov 2011 Total posts:1932 I typed into google images Barras Lane Coventry and it came up with tall big houses, I then found in 1827 was when the Holyhead Road was built, named after Holyhead, Wales, but said might as well been called Belfast as that is where it led, it was engineered by Thomas Telford, I found this by typing into google images 1827 Holyhead Road Coventry which I thought might help your search. |
Memories and Nostalgia - Barras Lane | |
Foxcote Warwick All posts by this member | 9 of 40 Wed 19th Sep 2012 4:55pm Member: Joined Jan 2012 Total posts:900 St. Osburg's was damaged pretty badly according to the photos in our books, no roof at all after the bombing, maybe your landmark spire wasn't there at the time of the unidentified photo? Confused though, cos of the Dutchman's map, doesn't tie up somehow. ![]() |
Memories and Nostalgia - Barras Lane | |
dutchman Spon End All posts by this member | 10 of 40 Wed 19th Sep 2012 5:05pm Member: Joined Mar 2010 Total posts:2976 On 19th Sep 2012 4:55pm, Foxcote said:
St. Osburg's was damaged pretty badly according to the photos in our books, no roof at all after the bombing, maybe your landmark spire wasn't there at the time of the unidentified photo?
We've already established that Rob was viewing a different corner to the one being discussed. ![]() On 19th Sep 2012 4:55pm, Foxcote said:
Confused though, cos of the Dutchman's map, doesn't tie up somehow.
Indeed Foxcote. The nearest match I could find was the junction of Barras Lane and Coundon Road but in that case both roads would slope upwards away from the camera. I'm not convinced the picture is Barras Lane at all but somewhere which looks a bit like Barras Lane and whoever found it simply assumed it was. ![]() ![]() |
Memories and Nostalgia - Barras Lane | |
NeilsYard Coventry All posts by this member Thread starter | 11 of 40 Thu 20th Sep 2012 9:50am Member: Joined Aug 2010 Total posts:2857 Not sure which corner this was as I don't think it's still there but there's an interesting painting here of a synagogue on the corner of Barras Lane somewhere circa 1922? It's on the Herbert Art Galleries Flickr Album. |
Memories and Nostalgia - Barras Lane | |
Foxcote Warwick All posts by this member | 12 of 40 Thu 20th Sep 2012 12:18pm Member: Joined Jan 2012 Total posts:900 Synagogue and Rabbi's house
I didn't think it would still exist. |
Memories and Nostalgia - Barras Lane | |
Catshed Old Chapelfields All posts by this member | 13 of 40 Thu 20th Sep 2012 1:32pm Member: Joined Feb 2012 Total posts:214 The Synagogue and Rabbi's house is still there on the corner of Gloucester St and Barras Lane just down the road from the old Carburettor garage. Triumph - 'The Best Motorcycle in the World'. |
Memories and Nostalgia - Barras Lane | |
NeilsYard Coventry All posts by this member Thread starter | 14 of 40 Fri 21st Sep 2012 8:33am Member: Joined Aug 2010 Total posts:2857 ![]() |
Memories and Nostalgia - Barras Lane | |
Foxcote Warwick All posts by this member | 15 of 40 Fri 21st Sep 2012 10:46am Member: Joined Jan 2012 Total posts:900 Description of the raid A scary night indeed ![]() |
Memories and Nostalgia - Barras Lane |