Handsworth, West Midlands

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Not to be confused with Handsworth, South Yorkshire.

Handsworth is an inner city suburb of Birmingham in the West Midlands, England.

The Local Government Act 1894 divided the ancient Staffordshire parish of Handsworth into two urban districts: Handsworth and Perry Barr. Handsworth was annexed to the county borough of Birmingham in Warwickshire in 1911.^[1] Perry Barr UD would survive until 1928 when it was split between Sutton Coldfield and West Bromwich.^[2]

1 History
2 Civil unrest
3 Musical legacy
4 Events
5 See also
6 Notable residents
7 External links
8 References

[edit] History

The name Handsworth originates from its Saxon owner Hondes and the Old English word weorthing, meaning farm or estate. It was recorded in the Domesday Survey of 1086, as a holding of William Fitz-Ansculf, the Lord of Dudley, although at that time it would only have been a very small village surrounded by farmland and extensive woodland.

From the 13th century through to the 18th century, it remained a small village until Matthew Boulton who lived at the nearby Soho House set up the Soho Manufactory in 1764 on Handsworth Heath. Accommodation was built for the factory workers, the village quickly grew, and in 1851, there were over six thousand people living in the township. Forty years later over thirty-two thousand were counted at the census of 1881, and by 1911, this had more than doubled to 68,610.

The development of the built environment was sporadic and many of Handsworth's streets display a mixture of architectural types and periods - among them some of the finest Victorian buildings in the city. Handsworth has two grammar schools - Handsworth Grammar School for boys and King Edward VI Handsworth Girl's Grammar School. St Andrew's church is a listed building in Oxhill Road which also held Sunday School classes in a small building on the corner of Oxhill Road and Church Lane. It also contains Handsworth Park completing in 2006 a major restoration, the vibrant shopping of Soho Road, St. Mary's Church, Handsworth containing the remains of the founders of the Industrial Revolution - Watt, Murdoch and Boulton - and the unique bookbindery, source of specialist and antique books about the area - 'Bookbane' - in Nineveh Road.

Birmingham historian Dr.Carl Chinn noted that during WW2 the boundary between Handsworth and the outlying suburb of Handsworth Wood marked the line between being safe and unsafe from bombing, with Handsworth Wood being an official evacuation zone. (ref: Carl Chinn (1996) Brum Undaunted: Birmingham During the Blitz, Birmingham Library Services) During the Second World War, West Indians had arrived as part of the colonial war effort, where they worked in Birmingham munitions factories. Post-war, a rebuilding programme required much unskilled labour and Birmingham's industrial base expanded, significantly increasing the demand for both skilled and unskilled workers. During this time, there was direct recruitment for workers from the Caribbean and the area became a centre for Birmingham's African-Caribbean community.

The West Indian population in Birmingham numbered over 17,000 by the 1961 census count. In addition, during this time, Indians, particularly Sikhs from the Punjab arrived in Birmingham, many of them working in the foundries and on the production lines in motor vehicle manufacturing.

[edit] Civil unrest

Although these groups contributed to the local economy, they have suffered much racism and in Handsworth, and neighbouring Lozells, the problems and discontent escalated in September 1985 (an earlier riot took place in 1981). As in many parts of Britain, the conflict between black people in Birmingham and the police was a long-standing one. Blanket raids on black meeting places and a "stop and search" policy increased the tension between the police and the black community.

Many of these problems were focused upon attempts by media regulators continually trying to crush the "free radio" (pirate radio) station PCRL. This Handsworth station specifically catered to the West Indian population and gave voice to discontent. But the station also has a long and continuing history of attempting to provide not only a media outlet for alternative points of view, but support for a cottage industry of self-help programmes. PCRL carried programs that attempted to focus US media attention on the problems faced by PCRL and the West Indian community in Handsworth.

The 1985 riot saw an arson attack at the local post office which claimed the life of the owner.

After the Handsworth riots caused a huge publicity shock to world perception of British toleration, the heavy handed approach on the community was slackened, although a weakened PCRL remained unlicensed. Local government was forced into building new community relations as a way of managing both racial and cultural differences. Encouragement was provided by arts organisation like West Midlands Ethnic Minority Arts Service and private groups such as Shades of Black, which works closely with the community and is still going strong today.

Similarly, in 2005, further riots look part primarily on Lozells Road, in Handsworth/Lozells, in which two people were killed, many injured, and countless damage to property, launching the biggest investigation to ever be undertaken by West Midlands Police. The instigation of these riots this time round were because of an alleged rape of a young black girl by a group of Pakistani youths, although no evidence has ever been found to suggest a rape, and the supposed girl has never come forward despite numberous calls by members of the community at many levels, hence the police didn't investigate it. The riots erupted after a community meeting in a church on Lozells Road. Riot police were called out, and the events lasted a few days.

[edit] Musical legacy

Handsworth has produced some notable musical acts: Steel Pulse, Joan Armatrading, Pato Banton,Benjamin Zephaniah, Apache Indian, Ruby Turner and Bhangra group B21 and Mehsopuria- Jamaican musicians such as Mighty Diamonds, Alton Ellis, Burning Spear and Dennis Brown have performed in Handsworth.

In addition, progressive rock drummer Carl Palmer was born here.

[edit] Events

Handsworth Park has hosted numerous events: The Birmingham Tattoo, The Birmingham Festival (both originally called Handsworth- rather than Birmingham-) and the Flower Show, and in 1967 The Birmingham Dog Show. The Scouts Rally was another annual event held in the park for many years when scouts from a wide area congregated and paraded. The Handsworth Carnival grew out of the Flower Show and Carnival; Caribbean style carnivals began in Handsworth Park, in 1984, with a street procession via Holyhead Road. In 1994 the carnival was held in Handsworth Park for the last time. The following year it was moved from the park out onto the streets of Handsworth, since which time it has been known as the Birmingham (International) Carnival. In 1999, it was again held in a park, but this time in Perry Barr Park. Handsworth Park also hosts an annual Vaisakhi Mela.

[edit] See also

[edit] Notable residents

Francis Asbury, born in Handsworth, bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church^[3]
William Murdock (1754 - 1839). Inventor. He was the first to make extensive use of coal gas for illumination and a pioneer in the development of steam-power. In 1777, he entered the engineering firm of Matthew Boulton and James Watt, whose experiment on the distillation of coal and wood first brought gas lighting to a pratical stage, illuminating their factory with it in 1803. Presented with the Rumford Medal by the Royal Society. Buried in St Mary's Churchyard.

[edit] External links

[edit] References

^ Vision of Britain on Handsworth
^ Vision of Britain on Perry Barr
^ (1963) Who Was Who in America, Historical Volume, 1607-1896. Chicago: Marquis Who's Who.

Simon Baddeley (1997), The Founding of Handsworth Park 1882-1898, Birmingham University
Carl Chinn (1996), Brum Undaunted: Birmingham During the Blitz, Birmingham Library Services
Peter Drake (1998), Handsworth, Hockley, & Handsworth Wood, Tempus, Stroud, Glos
Allen E Everitt (1876), Handsworth Church and its Surroundings, E.C. Osborne, Birmingham
Frederick William Hackwood (1908), Handsworth: Old & New: A History of Birmingham's Staffordshire Suburb, (re-published: A & B Books, Warley, West Midlands)
John Morris Jones (1980), The Manor of Handsworth: An Introduction to its Historical Geography, with amendments by “Friends of Handsworth Old Town Hall” 1969. Handsworth Historical Society
Handsworth General Purposes & other Committees - Minute Book 1880A, Handsworth Local Sanitary Board, Birmingham City Council, Central Library Archives, (ref: BCH/AD 1/1/1)
Handsworth & Birmingham newspaper cuttings collected and arranged by G.H. Osborne between approx. 1870 and 1900, Birmingham City Council, Central Library Archive (ref: L.f30.3)
Victor J.Price (1992), Handsworth Remembered, Studley: Brewin Books