Bell Green

Annewiggy. That is most brilliant, thank you so much, I wasn't sure of the name and the league. Regards, Kaga.

What Annewiggy says about Bell Green Albion is quite true but being so arouses other questions. Where would the home ground be? There only a couple flat fields in the area both belonging to the Hall Green Manor and both hay meadows that the farmer would value for winter feed. I played cricket for the local team and we played at the back of the Green Man pub but even that field was not ideal because of its slope. Other problem is that between 1914 and 1918 most young men would be away in the War to End All Wars. Norman

Norman. At the top of the hill there was a small farm, behind that was it a small field, could that have taken a football pitch, all vague now. I believe my father played for them in 26/27, won some cup, but the inscription is vague too, as I'm the oldest in the family no one to ask, it's all lost in the mist, but this forum has opened up so much of the past, you never know what might turn up. Thanks, Kaga.

A quick bit of research suggests that Bell Green Albion played at Windmill Road, which could well mean that their ground was on Longford Park. possibly on one of the pitches that exist there today! They are also shown as playing regularly throughout the whole of World War One.

Some snippets of information about Bell Green Albion, from the British Newspaper Archive. In October 1914 they were listed as registered to play in the Midland Daily Telegraph Challenge Cup, Junior Cup. Kit was green shirts, white cuffs & collars and white shorts. Their ground was Church Road, Bell Green and their headquarters the "Rose and Crown". They played Longford in October 1915. The team was Atkins, Roston, Pearson, Goode, Aldridge, Wright, Fleming, East, Hewitt, W Hilton & J Hilton. In 1915 they were in the Midland Daily Telegraph Challenge Cup. In December 1917 they played at Windmill Road. The team then was Lowe, Bivins, Marlow, W Hughes, Sockett, Ward, Fleming, Aldridge, Wade, East & Kerry. The team could well have been made up of younger men who had not yet been called up or even older men, possibly miners etc as many of the names of teams would suggest pits or men working in reserved occupations. On Saturday December 22nd 1917 the league table for Coventry and North Warwickshire League was as below.

There is or was a football pitch behind the fence in Old Church Rd. It belonged to Courtaulds and as far as I am aware it only had access through Courtaulds and over the canal via the footbridge that is still there. The pitch was used by several teams one of those could quite possibly have been BG Albion. Norman

Annewiggy, great bit of search work, but my father was in the army then, 1926/7 is the time I'm really looking for, how you get to trace so much is beyond me, so thanks again, and thanks to David and Norman for info, Kaga.

Hi there, I have recently been researching my family history and found on my dad's birth certificate it states he was born at The Big Entry, Courthouse Green, in 1908. Has any one else ever heard of this, as we would love to know what area/street this relates to. Thanks

Sorry Les, never heard of it, someone on this site may have. I don't really expect a reply to my question because if anyone knows it should be me, and I don't know. Talking to a friend yesterday evening about old Bell Green where we were both brought up. The triangular piece of land junction of Old Church Rd and Bell Green Rd. What was once on it? My friend Dennis and I can both remember the partly demolished walls around the triangle, rotting brick walls no more than two ft high. I seem to recall being told it was once a public house but somehow I doubt that as there was the Bell Hotel opposite that was built about 1765.

Norman Conquest, hi. Way I remember from the top the trams ran down to the city, immediately on the right was the red rocks, believe they had brickwork round. Onthe right of those was Old Church Road, just inside OCR on the left above the rocks was a church hall or something, then the road ran on to the Foleshill Road, somewhere along there was the church itself, but it's all very vague, as I did not travel it very often. Norman, we arrived at Taylors Farm one morning to find a bit of a panic, the head lad had just been kicked by a horse, bang on his forehead - for a few moments they thought he had been killed. I think they rushed him up to Dr Mac's, but a few weeks later I believe he was ok, had to be 1940 time. We used to deliver cartons of Carnation Milk, and pick up animal feed then call in at the mill for more feed - sadly both farms have been swallowed by housing and roads. Along the SSRd as you came out of the dip before the Morris there were fields and hedgerow. Sewall H had not been built then, maybe a little before your time, not sure. Long long time ago. Regards, Kaga.

Kaga, the red sandstone rocks are still there, except now they have mesh covering them because some fell onto the pavement a couple of years back.

Hi Kaga/NormK. I haven't been Bell Green way for several years. Expect those rocks will be there for many years to come. The top of those rocks where the Community Centre is now was our playground. Think it was the council that made that area a store place for building material, bricks, slabs and all manner of stuff was stored there after the war. That area stretched right back and over where Rock Close is now. In the 40s there was only two horses on Taylors Farm but they belonged to a couple of old ladies that lived over at Nettle Hill. There was a pony or two that the girls used to ride and a donkey that refused to be ridden. There was a "Head Boy" who was a man about 30 years old but I don't think it was him that was kicked. Sadly he was slightly mentally handicapped but a nice guy for all that. Do you recall Kaga that he was also an albino with pink eyes and white hair. Doctor Mac would see anyone at his home even outside his working hours. I once came across a web page about him. It said that he kept two large jars in his surgery, one contained red liquid and the other green. If one didn't cure his patient he would give him a bottle of the other. Jim Taylor was probably the one that was kicked, I know that he was kicked by a big Freisian bull that was very short tempered. The whole Taylor family were nice people unlike the other Bell Green farmer Harry Kay (we called him Hairy Kay but not to his face). The field you mention beyond Roses Garage, on the left before the Morris factory, we called the 10 acre meadow although it was possibly bigger than that. A friend had acquired a Dianna pistol and he used it, loaded with green elderberry, to go hunting rats in that field. Truth was that the gun had a range of about 15ft and couldn't hit a bull in an entry. As you say, the fields and farms in Hall Green Rd are now under concrete and the elm trees that lined the Sowe are all gone. I rarely visit the area now but when I do I see how ugly it all is and rue the things that have gone.

A bit more info about Bell Green area, I used to know a resident of Sewell Court and she had two florists, one in Bell Green, near where the opticians is, opposite the chemist and the other in Macaulay Road just off Hipswell Highway. She told me the triangle near the pub used to be called ''The God-cake', and Proffitt Avenue was 'Workhouse Lane'. She was born in 1910. Her husband came from Abingdon near Oxford to work at Morris Engines. She also said something about an uncle who was a chief police officer, by the name of Pendleton, not sure about that.