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1. Sixty Years of Cycling - 1897 magazine article
2. The Arno Motor Company of Coventry 1908-1916, by Damien Kimberley
3. The New Bablake Schools - 1889 article
4. Public Baths - The Building News, Jan 24th 1896
5. A short history of Coventry's Theatres and Cinemas, by Bill Birch
6. The Brough Superior, by Damien Kimberley
7. Proposal for St. Michael's Campanile c1890
8. Coventry's Rich Heritage, by Pete Walters
9. Coventry, the Home of the Cycle Trade - 1886 magazine article
10. The Dragoon Cycle Company of Coventry, by Damien Kimberley
11. Edwin Brown, Victorian Animal Artist, by Stephen Catton
12. Coventry Volunteer Fire Brigade - Illustrated London News, Jan 4th 1862
13. The Great Flood of December 1900, and the lost Bridges, by Damien Kimberley
14. Coventry's Great Flood - London Daily Graphic, 2nd January 1901
15. New Drinking Fountain at Coventry - 17 Sep 1859
16. Henry Cave, and the 'Lady' Autocar of 1899, by Damien Kimberley
17. The Lion Bicycle Company of Coventry & Wolverhampton 1877-1882, by Damien Kimberley
18. The Beech on Wheels, by Derek Robinson and forum member Foxcote
19. Phil Silvers Archival Museum, by Paul Maddocks
20. Transport Museum pt.3 - Creating the Blitz Experience, by Paul Maddocks
21. What links a Spitfire's landing gear to a baby buggy? by Paul Maddocks
22. The sound that almost killed my Dad in the War!, by Paul Maddocks
23. D-Day and Monty's Staff Car, by Paul Maddocks
24. Transport Museum pt.2 - New Hales Street Entrance in 1985, by Paul Maddocks
25. Transport Museum pt.1 - How the Queen's 1977 visit sowed the seed, by Paul Maddocks
26. What links R2D2 to a Coventry Hydrogen/Electric cab company? by Paul Maddocks
27. Transport Museum pt.6 - The Royal Cars, by Paul Maddocks
28. Transport Museum pt.5 - The 1987 F.A. Cup Winners' Sky Blue Bus, by Paul Maddocks
29. The Tapestry and its Hidden Secret, by Paul Maddocks
30. Transport Museum pt.4 - Coventry's Land Speed Record Cars, by Paul Maddocks
31. Whitefriars Gatehouse and Toy Museum, by Paul Maddocks
32. WW1 and Wyley of Charterhouse, by Paul Maddocks
33. Miss Bashford, a Teacher's Tale, by Simon Shaw
34. Motor Panels (Coventry) Ltd, by Damien Kimberley
35. Not Forgotten, the 1939 IRA bomb attack, by Simon Shaw
36. Let's talk about Rex, by Damien Kimberley
37. Coventry, the Silk Trade and the Horsfall family, by Ian West
38. The Saint Joseph the Worker parish in Coventry, by Terence Richards - Part 1
39. The Saint Joseph the Worker parish in Coventry, by Terence Richards - Part 2
40. The Saint Joseph the Worker parish in Coventry, by Terence Richards - Part 3
41. A brief history of Saint Osburg's, in pictures, by Damien Kimberley
42. The First Tudor Feast, by Richard Ball
43. 1930s Austin's Monthly Magazine articles, by John Bailey Shelton MBE
44. Plan for the City Centre - The Architect and Building News, 21st March 1941
 

1930s Austin's Monthly Magazine articles, by John Bailey Shelton MBE

as originally published in Austin's Monthly Magazine from November 1832 to June 1939

Compiled and transcribed by R. W. Orland, 2005

I'm sincerely grateful to the Shelton family for their kind permission and encouragement to publish these works.

J. B. Shelton's post-war book A Night in Little Park Street can be viewed here (in PDF format).

Contents

Display ALL articles

Date:Subjects covered:

1932

NovGosford Gate
DecCo-op Site, West Orchard

1933

JanWest Orchard, Bridge etc.
FebBroadgate Excavations
MarBroadgate Excavations
AprBroadgate Excavations
MayBlack Bull Inn, Pepper Lane
JunBlack Bull Inn
JulCox Street - River Excavations
AugCox Street - River Excavations
SepCox Street - River Excavations
OctCox Street - River Excavations
NovCox Street - River Excavations
DecPark Side Excavations

1934

JanPark Side Excavations
FebBurges Excavations
MarBenedictine Site Excavations
AprBenedictine Site Excavations
MayBenedictine Site Excavations
JunBenedictine Site Excavations
JulCoventry Castle
AugBenedictine Site, Palmer Lane Guest House
SepBenedictine Site, Wooden Bridge
OctAntiquities Exhibition at the Drill Hall
NovWell Street Excavations
DecPriory Pool & Mills

1935

JanPriory Pool & DIstrict
FebNew Buildings, Tower Foundations
MarCity Wall, Cook Street Gate, Plumb House
AprPriory Tower
MayPriory Tower, Gulson Road, Round Tower, New Gate Foundations
JunBroad Well, Burges Ford, Palmer Lane
JulWhite Friars
AugMeeting House, Smithford Street
SepMeeting House, Smithford Street
OctMeeting House, Smithford Street, St. John's Hospital Excavations
NovSt. John's Hospital, Barracks Square, Black Bull Inn
DecBarracks Square, Black Bull Inn

1936

JanBarracks Square, Black Bull Inn
FebButcher Row
MarButcher Row
AprButcher Row
MayButcher Row
JunOwen Owen's Site
JulOwen Owen's Site
AugOwen Owen's Site
SepOwen Owen's Site
OctTrinity Street
NovTrinity Street
DecTrinity Street

1937

JanBenedictine Museum
FebPool Meadow to Priory Street
MarPool Meadow to Priory Street
AprPool Meadow to Priory Street Excavations
MayBull Ring, Pottery Kiln, Hippodrome
JunHippodrome, Rex Cinema
JulBablake Excavations
AugCow Lane Site Excavations

1938

MayRex Site, Trinity Street
JulBroadgate Excavations
SepBablake Excavations, Co-op Site, West Orchard
OctTrinity Street, Bull Ring
NovSt. Mary's Cathedral Site, Bull Ring
DecSt. Mary's Cathedral Site, Bull Ring

1939

JanPost Office Excavations
FebSt. Mary's Cathedral Site
MarArt Gallery and Museum
AprArt Gallery and Museum
MayArt Gallery and Museum
JunBablake Excavations

Owen Owen's Site

August 1936

EXCAVATIONS IN THE CROSS

Only a small portion of the quarry yet remains to be finished, and one interesting place will be excavated later in the month, and should it reveal any article I will report in next month's Magazine. Trinity Street has been commenced, and a new Broadgate is in the making. All old cellars are being filled in, while some of the stone walls are being demolished. In one wall of a cellar a mason's mark in the form of a cross was found; this in now in my yard, and differs from any other cross used as a mason's mark yet found. The deep cellar mentioned in the June issue of the Magazine has been broken into, but excavations did not reveal anything of importance, so its use still remains a mystery.

A number of brick and stone cellars run as far back as the tramlines under Broadgate, and they are being packed with solid material. Tiers of concrete are being made in each cellar by building a temporary brick open square from the solid, and pouring in the concrete. When finished, these will support strong girders, such as old tramlines, etc.

The sewers are being made, and at the bottom end of Trinity Street, at one time the Priors Pool, quite a lot of articles have been unearthed, such as pottery and leather; along with the base of a 14th century pinched base pot a very interesting piece of iron was discovered - this was a ring that carried the prop of a cart when not in use, showing the same method used to-day was used at least 600 years ago. From the north end to within a few yards of Ironmonger Row is made-up ground, so no old material is coming to light. Just at the south side of the boundary of the Pool (Smithfield Market) the piles of a cattle shed were found; this was part of a shed mentioned two years ago when I reported finding a skinner's knife, a butcher's knife, and a portion of a large vessel of the 14th century.

In Butcher Row and the Bull Ring the sewer on the east side is being made, and quite a lot of stone foundations are to be seen, one wall being 2-ft. 6-ins. in thickness, and the cellar floor made from the solid rock. In the centre of this cellar one part had been dug out, and human remains revealed.

When the floor-beams were taken of the cellar of the old half-timbered house on the right hand corner turning from Butcher Row into Priory Row, where the Rev. Bryan lived (who built the house in 1649), a very fine archway was discovered, showing how far the old Cathedral extended towards Holy Trinity Church, What this archway was for it is difficult to say; it may have been part of a tomb; quite a large part of the cellar was made of massive stonework.

The old 14th to 16th century crypt belonging to the Guest House has created great interest of late, when thousands of people trespassed over the dangerous ground to see the top being removed. Sewers are to be made through it.

Last month I reported Beauchamp tiles being found there, and now Mr. Chatwin informs me that one tile bears the Catesby coat of arms. Long before the Gunpowder Plot days the Catesby family were great people in this district and strange though it seems, we believe Catesby Lane joined the north end of Palmer Lane only 100 yards from this crypt. The groinwork with the massive stones on which it rested are to be rebuilt in an outdoor museum.


 
 
 
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