In the later decades of the 19th century Birmingham was arguably the most progressive place to live in Britain.

The town - it became a city in 1889 - embraced civic improvement, the council taking over the supply of water and gas and opening an art gallery and a school of art.

The large numbers who arrived from Birmingham by the railway to spend a day in Sutton Park were welcomed by the shopkeepers and publicans of the town and many Birmingham manufacturers also began to settle in Sutton - but relations between the town and its gigantic neighbour were at times uneasy.

This unease manifested itself in resistance to a plan in 1864-5 by Birmingham Waterworks Company to sink a shaft in Sutton Park and draw water from its streams.

Population

Birmingham was already provided with forty million gallons of water a week by the company from the river Tame and brooks in Aston and Witton, but its population was steadily growing and Sutton Park offered an excellent source of pure water.

The water company sought an act of parliament to extend its activities beyond Birmingham.

There was strong opposition in Sutton, with claims that the plan would 'turn the park into an arid desert -like the deserts of Africa.'

At the committee stage of the bill in the House of Lords a barrister engaged by the corporation argued that the plan would do great injury to the park.

The committee was persuaded that this would be the case, and the clause to draw water from Sutton Park was struck out of the bill.

This success was not repeated when it came to the supply of gas. Initially this was supplied in Sutton by a local company, but there were many complaints.

There was a great leakage of gas and, in winter, the gas works struggled to maintain a sufficient supply for street lights and for domestic users.

In 1877 Birmingham began supplying gas to the south side of Sutton.

It was an indication of what was to come.

With the gas company struggling, the town council began to discuss taking over the supply itself, including Birmingham's operations.

In truth a town as.small as Sutton would never be able to make gas as cheaply as Birmingham.

In 1892 Sutton town council bowed to the inevitable and Birmingham began providing gas for the whole town.

Birmingham 1889: One Year in a Victorian City and Recollections of Victorian Birmingham by Stephen Roberts can be ordered fromAmazon, both priced at £4.99.

Associate Professor
Stephen Roberts