New Futures for Birmingham`s Historic Buildings

From Cabinets to Coffins

Posted July 14th, 2014 by Sarah Hayes with 3 Comments

  Possibly Newman Brothers’ first coffin-furniture catalogue, circa 1894. Familiar with brass since 1882, they continued to use this material in their new business venture producing coffin furniture from 1894 onwards. © Newman Brothers at The Coffin Works.  One of the most common questions ...

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The Coffin Works: Keep Calm and Carry On – A Conservator’s Perspective

Posted June 29th, 2014 by Sarah Hayes with 2 Comments

My name is Deborah Magnoler and I’m a conservator, currently working on the Coffin Works’ project. The Newman Brothers’ Coffin Fittings Works in Fleet Street will open to the public in October 2014. While the factory is being refurbished, the whole of ...

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Newman Brothers’ Placement: Valia Goula

Posted June 22nd, 2014 by Sarah Hayes with 1 Comment

Hi, My name is Valia, I come from Greece and I have studied History and Archaeology at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. Currently, I am studying for my MA in Heritage Management at the University of Birmingham and I have ...

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Newman Brothers’ Placement

Posted June 15th, 2014 by Sarah Hayes with 1 Comment

Hi, my name is Steven and I’m a Heritage Management MA student at the Ironbridge Institute, currently working with Birmingham Conservation Trust on Birmingham’s latest, eagerly anticipated heritage attraction, the Newman Brothers Coffin Works. Within this blog I hope to bring to ...

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Volunteers’ Week

Posted June 1st, 2014 by Sarah Hayes with 3 Comments

The research team have been getting to know the likes of ‘Mr Salt’ and other Newman Brothers’ employees through the many documents discovered in the company archive. Tomorrow marks the start of Volunteers’ Week, which gives us the opportunity at The Coffin Works ...

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Help us bring Newman Brothers back to life. Get involved!

Posted May 30th, 2014 by Suzanne Carter with No Comments

Now that our Volunteer and Operations Manager Marie is in post the recruitment drive is on for volunteers to join our team at Newman Brothers, at the Coffin Works, when we open in October. (Yes, unfortunately due to a delay in the ...

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Listed Derelict Building to be refurbished in the Jewellery Quarter: The Standard Works

Posted April 24th, 2014 by Suzanne Carter with 12 Comments

Glasshouse College is breathing life back into a derelict building in the Jewellery Quarter. The Standard Works in Vittoria Street, built in 1879 and grade II listed, has stood empty for the last two decades.  The charity is setting up a specialist further ...

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A Family Connection

Posted April 20th, 2014 by Sarah Hayes with No Comments

Late 19th-century map showing Fleet Street. Caroline’s daughter, also called Caroline, lived briefly at number 3 Fleet Street in 1891, located near the corner of Newhall Street. Just a stone’s throw away, she may well have seen the construction of Newman Brothers, ...

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In the shade of an old cypress tree

Posted April 1st, 2014 by Julie Webb with No Comments

I am undertaking various background research projects on the history of Newman Brothers as part of the Coffin Works research group.  At our last meeting it was proposed that visitors to the new Coffin Works museum will be transported back in time ...

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The Coffin Works ‘Hard Hat’ tour

Posted March 23rd, 2014 by Joe Turner with 3 Comments

Along with a handful of other Birmingham Conservation Trust volunteers, trustees and members – including former BCT Director Elizabeth Perkins, who started the project over a decade ago – yesterday I had the privilege of a ‘hard hat’ tour of the work ...

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