... past the Floozie, then turn right

In the Autumn of 2015, I started staying in the centre of Birmingham. This started because hotels near the office were full. However, I found the centre with its canals and civic buildings - new and old very much worth exploring and so started staying in the centre quite often.

Postcard of Birmingham, Municipal Buildings and Art Gallery, posted in 1908.

This postcard, from my Dad's old collection, was posted in 1908. It shows the Municipal Buildings and Art Gallery. When emerging from the rather bewildering new Birmingham New Street station, that tower was a welcome sight. Walking towards it would set me on the right road for my hotel.

Ina Taylor's biography of Edith Holden tells us that in 1869:

When Edith was only two, her father was elected to the Town Council, a great honour for someone newly arrived in the town. ...

Arthur Holden's period of service on the Town Council must have been an interesting one; he was working with Joseph Chamberlain during the third term of office as Mayor of Birmingham. ... Joseph Chamberlain and Arthur Holden were members of the Gas Committee during this time."

There must have been times when the area in which Arthur carried out his duties was a building site. Wikipedia tells us that the Municipal buildings shown in the postcard were started ...

... in 1874 when the first stone was laid by the then mayor Joseph Chamberlain. 

The Birmingham Museums blog tells us:

... in 1885 an extension was added. This part of the building, although now known as the Water Hall, was originally used to house offices for the Birmingham Gas Corporation. In 1912 when the Museum Bridge Gallery extension was built it became the Water Hall and remained in use until 1972. For the city’s population it provided an impressive ground floor banking hall for Birmingham Corporation’s public water supply, with Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery on the first floor above.

The Council House with Christmas greeting, 2015

My modern photo shows the Municipal Buildings towering above Birmingham's Christmas Market.

The Floozie aka The River, October 2015.

One day, when asking for directions to the station, a local pointed and told me to "Go that way, past the Floozie, then turn right."

The official name for the Floozie is "The River". The Birmingham News tells us that was unveiled in 1993 and sat in a fountain with a cascade, which led to her being nick named the "Floozie in the Jacuzzi". Sadly the fountain leaked and the Jacuzzi was converted to a garden.  There is talk of restoring the fountain but people have become attached to the attractive garden.