47 Selwyn Road, Edgbaston

The family of Noel and Molly Downing lived at three addresses in Edgbaston and Harborne from 1919 to 1945. For about eleven years, 1919 to 1930, they lived at 16 Woodbourne Road.

However, the Downing malting business was in increasingly tight straits and the investment income of the family was also in decline following the Wall Street crash, so much so that the family downsized to a much smaller house in nearby Fitzroy Avenue

47 Selwyn Road, Edgbaston, c. 1937

47 Selwyn Road, Edgbaston, c. 1937

Finally, in 1935 the family moved to 47 Selwyn Road where they remained until 1945. It is in the garden of this property that the majority of the photographs of the Downing family at home are taken.

The houses in Woodbourne Road and Selwyn Road still stand today.

Pamela Downing aged about 15 made two sketches of the interior of 47 Selwyn Road that have survived. Some pieces of furniture, objects and paintings that are still in the family possession can be seen.

Drawing Room by Pamela Downing, c. 1935

Drawing Room by Pamela Downing, c. 1935

Drawing Room by Pamela Downing, c. 1935

Drawing Room by Pamela Downing, c. 1935

Sources and Notes

  • The sale particulars of 16 Woodbourne Road for 2016 are here. This gives an idea of the size of the property and contrasts with the seemingly semi-detached house in Fitzroy Avenue