Barras Lane

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.

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.

This picture claims to be of that corner but I haven't been able to identify it positively.

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!

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?

Whoops! Yes, I see what you mean, the steps and the terrain do seem to match that corner. I wonder if there are any other photos of that era and area that will help identify it?

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.

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.

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.

We've already established that Rob was viewing a different corner to the one being discussed. 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.

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.

Synagogue and Rabbi's house I didn't think it would still exist.

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.

Description of the raid A scary night indeed