Street Farm

Street Farm, Church Road, in the 1930s, faced Street Cottages. Originally holding 140 acres, extending to Hole Lane and Bristol Road, it dated from around 1700, and lasted till 1958. The YMCA building (opened 1961) now occupies the site.

Street Cottages, on Church Road, seen here in 1934, were until their demolition in 1964 Northfield's finest group of nailers' houses. There were similar rows in Harborne and Bartley Green, most of which have now gone, though some individual houses survive. Northfield's best remaining row is on Church Hill, sensitively restored in keeping with their eighteenth-century origin.

1903 map Street Cottages under Farm

In 1851 Street Farm is listed as being in the yield of Hay-with-Middleton and having 140 acres. It belonged to a William Newey who employed lour labourers. In the nineteenth century each parish was sub-divided into yields making it easier to assess the output of cultivation for the purpose of taxation. In 1881 the farm still consisted of 140 acres and a Thomas Drakeley lived there with his wife and family. He too employed four men. Farmers living at Street Farm on Bunbury Road since then have included Miss Wilson, 'Billy' Field and Mr Blunn. Mrs Wyeth recalls fetching fresh eggs from the farm when she was a child and being taken round the back to see the hens. The photograph was taken c. 1957 and the farm was demolished in 1958. (M. Banton)