Friday Photo – 48 Camden Street

I’m still focussing on the Jewellery Quarter – there’s just too many fantastic buildings to discover! This week’s Friday photo takes us to Camden Street, 48 Camden Street to be precise. I pass this building almost every day and it stands out for a few reasons. The first reason is that its facade is incredibly striking, and the second is that the date 1916 is inscribed on the front elevation. That date’s always been significant to me because it’s the year my Nan was born.

So what was this building used for? It’s actually only the facade of the building that dates from 1916, with the original building dating from the nineteenth century. The facade is an extension and refronting of original 19th century houses, by Harry bloomer, who was an architect for G Hopkins and Co Brassfounders. I took the photo from this angle rather than front-on, because you can actually see the line of the refronting of the new facade against the original building – clever idea!

Workshops were constructed to the rear of the property and the new frontage was extended to the south east to give the impression of a completely new factory, and ultimately hide the earlier building. This style, so typical of the period, housed offices at the front with the workshops at the rear, powered by a gas engine. The gas engine was most likely made in Birmingham, a city of a 100 trades!

The site’s currently being advertised as a development opportunity. I just hope that whoever buys it, ensures its history is preserved for future generations to enjoy!

I’m not going to give too much away, but this building has inspired my next Friday Photo…but you’ll just have to wait a month to find out what it is!