35-39, WARSTONE LANE

This is a terrace of shops and workshops, originally built around 1850. It was altered in the late 19th century and again in the late 20th century. The buildings are constructed of red brick with stone dressings, though the frontages of numbers 35 to 38 are now rendered. They have ridge and gable stacks and a Welsh slate roof.

The terrace follows an L-shaped layout, fronting onto both Warstone Lane and Vittoria Street, with a shared passage providing access to small rear yards. The Warstone Lane elevation has nine bays, with three storeys and four ground floor shop fronts, each with doorways and display windows. Number 39 has four smaller display windows on the right-hand side. The ground floor windows of numbers 35 and 38 have been replaced in recent times, while two of the inner windows retain original details, including stall risers, brackets, and fascias. Windows at number 39 have decorative surrounds, flat lintels with projecting keyblocks, and sills with large block brackets. The first-floor windows consist of tripartite sash windows, with six panes to six of the left-hand bays. Bay 7 has a 20th-century window, while bays 8 and 9 have original six-over-six pane sashes beneath curved lintels with bracketed cornices. The upper floor windows are shallow three-over-three pane sashes, except for bay 7, which again has a 20th-century window. A deep, bracketed eaves cornice runs along the top of the building. The entrance at the corner is splayed and has a decorative, curved surround with a scrolled keystone above a flat head. Modern metal doors have been installed. Above the entrance is an inset painted ashlar plaque inscribed 'NORTHAMPTON PARADE'. The Vittoria Street side has triple display windows, a single window that was formerly a sash, and a semi-circular arch-headed passage doorway. Above this doorway are three six-over-six pane sashes. A later workshop window, with a transomed four-light design, is located on the upper floor, alongside a small six-over-six pane sash.

The terrace was initially built as a row of three-storeyed houses, and a map from around 1855 shows the original layout with rear yards and outbuildings. Sales particulars from 1870 describe the buildings as 'substantial and newly-erected dwelling houses,' many including a shop at the back, along with a private yard and outbuildings. According to an Ordnance Survey map from 1889, number 39 was a post office. The terrace is part of a group that includes numbers 97 and 99 Vittoria Street. The buildings represent a terrace of dwellings from around 1840, which were quickly adapted for commercial and industrial use, reflecting the dynamic development of a specialist manufacturing district of Birmingham. This district is now recognized for its international significance.