"June 4, 1772 (and not before as mentioned by mistake) at St. Philip's Church in this town, Mr. Thomas Smallwood, an eminent wine merchant, to Miss Harris, a young lady of distinguished accomplishments, with a fortune of £1,500."
Masshouse Lane.—Takes its name from the Roman Catholic Church (or Mass House, as such edifices were then called) erected in 1687, and dedicated to St. Mary Magdalen and St. Francis. The foundation stone was laid March 23, in the above year, and on 16th August, 1688, the first stone of a Franciscan Convent was laid adjoining to the Church, which latter was consecrated Sept. 4. The Church was 95ft long by 33ft. wide, and towards the building of it and the Convent, James II. gave 125 "tuns of timber," which were sold for £180; Sir John Gage gave timber valued at £140; the Dowager Queen Catherine gave £10 15s.; and a Mrs. Anne Gregg, £250. This would appear to have been the first place of worship put up here by the Romish Church since the time of Henry VIII., and it was not allowed to stand long, for the Church and what part of the Convent was built (in the words of the Franciscan priest who laid the first stone) "was first defaced, and most of it burrent within to near ye vallue of 400lb., by ye Lord Dellamer's order upon ye 26 of November, 1688, and ye day sevennight following ye rabble of Birmingham begon to pul ye Church and Convent down, and saesed not until they had pulled up ye fundations. They sold ye materials, of which many houses and parts of houses are built in ye town of Birmingham, ye townsmen of ye better sort not resisting ye rabble, but quietly permitting, if not prompting them to doe itt." The poor priests found shelter at Harborne, where there is another Masshouse Lane, their "Masshouse" being a little further on in Pritchett's Lane, where for nearly a century the double work of conducting a school and ministering to their scattered Catholic flock was carried on, the next local place of worship built here being "St. Peters's Chapel," off Broad Street, erected about 1786. It is believed that St. Bartholomew's Church covers the site of the short-lived "Mass House."
Masonic.—That the Freemasons are many among us is proved by the number of their Lodges, but the writer has no record throwing light on their past local history, though mention is found now and then in old newspapers of their taking part in the ceremonies attending the erection of more than one of our public buildings. Of their local acts of benevolence they sayeth naught, though, as is well-known, their charity is never found wanting. The three Masonic charitable institutions which are supported by the voluntary contributions of the craft during 1883 realised a total income of £55,994 14s. 3d. Of this sum the boys' school received £24,895 7s. 1d.; the Benevolent Institution, £18,449 6s.; and the girls' school, £12,650 1s. 2d. The largest total attained previous to 1883 was in 1880, when the sum amounted to £49,763. The boys' school, which is now at the head of the list, is boarding, housing clothing, and educating 221 boys; the Benevolent Institution, the second on the list, is granting annuities of £40 each to 172 men and £32 each to 167 widows; and the girls' school houses, boards, clothes, and educates 239 girls, between the ages of seven and sixteen. The boys leave school at fifteen. During the year £8,675 has been granted to 334 cases of distress from the Fund of Benevolence, which is composed of 4s. a year taken from every London Mason's subscription to his lodge and 2s. a year from every country Mason's subscription. The local lodges meet as follows:—At the Masonic Hall, New Street: St. Paul's Lodge, No. 43; the Faithful Lodge, No. 473; the Howe Lodge, No. 587; the Howe R.A. Chapter; the Howe Mark Master's Lodge; the Howe Preceptory of Knight Templars; the Temperance Lodge, No. 739; the Leigh Lodge, No. 887; the Bedford Lodge, No. 925; the Bedford R.A. Chapter; the Grosvenor Lodge, No. 938; the Grosvenor R.A. Chapter; the Elkington Lodge, No 1,016; the Elkington R.A. Chapter; the Fletcher Lodge, No. 1,031; the Fletcher R.A. Chapter; the Lodge of Emulation, No. 1,163; the Forward Lodge, No. 1,180; the Lodge of Charity, No. 1,551; and the Alma Mater Lodge, No. 1,644. At the Masonic Hall, Severn Street: The Athol Lodge, No. 74; the Athol R.A. Chapter; the Athol Mark Master's Lodge; and the Lodge of Israel, No. 1,474. At the Great Western Hotel: The Lodge of Light, No. 468; the R.A. Chapter of Fortitude; and the Vernon Chapter of S.P.R.C. of H.R.D.M., No. 5. At the Holte Hotel, Aston: The Holte Lodge, No. 1,246.
Matches.—Baker's are best, the maker says. Lucifer matches were the invention of a young German patriot, named Kammerer, who beguiled his time in prison (in 1832) with chemical experiments, though a North of England apothecary, Walker, lays claim to the invention. They were first made in Birmingham in 1852, but they have not, as yet, completely driven the old-fashioned, and now-despised tinder-box out of the world, as many of the latter are still manufactured in this town for sundry foreign parts.
Mecca.—The late Mr. J.H. Chamberlain, shortly before his death, said that he looked upon Birmingham, "perhaps with a foolish pride," as the Holy City, the Mecca of England; where life was fuller of possibilities of utility—happier, broader, wiser, and a thousand times better than it was in any other town in the United Kingdom.
Mechanical Engineers.—The Institution of Mechanical Engineers was organised in this town, in October 1847, but its headquarters were removed to London, in 1877.
Mechanics' Institute.—The proposal to form a local institution of a popular nature, for the encouragement of learning among our workers, like unto others which had been established in several large places elsewhere, was published in June, 1825, and several meetings were held before December 27, when officers were chosen, and entry made of nearly 200 members, to start with, the subscription being 5/-per quarter. The formal opening took place March 21, 1826, the members assembling in Mount Zion Chapel, to hear an address from Mr. B. Cook, the vice-president. The class-rooms, library, and reading-rooms, were at the school attached to the Old Meeting House, and here the Institution, so far as the conduct of classes, and the imparting of knowledge went, thrived and prospered. Financially, however, though at one time there were nearly 500 members, it was never successful, possibly through lack of assistance that might have been expected from the manufacturers and large employers, for, hide it as we may, with a few honourable exceptions, that class, fifty years ago, preferred strong men to wise ones, and rather set their banks against opening the doors of knowledge to their workpeople, or their children. It was a dozen years before the Institution was able to remove to a home of its own in Newhall Street, but it rapidly got into a hopeless state of debt. To lessen this incubus, and provide funds for some needed alterations, the committee decided to hold an exhibition of "manufactures, the fine arts, and objects illustrative of experimental philosophy, &c." The exhibition was opened Dec. 19, 1839, and in all ways was a splendid success, a fairly-large sum of money being realised. Unfortunately, a second exhibition was held in the following years, when all the profits of the former were not only lost, but so heavy an addition made to the debt, that it may be said to have ruined the institution completely. Creditors took possession of the premises in January, 1842, and in June operations were suspended, and, notwithstanding several attempts to revive the institution, it died out altogether. As the only popular educational establishment open to the young men of the time, it did good work, many of its pupils having made their mark in the paths of literature, art, and science.
Medical Associations.—According to the "Medical Register" there are 35 physicians and 210 surgeons resident in the borough, and there are rather more than 300 chemists and druggists. According to a summary of the census tables, the medical profession "and their subordinates" number in Birmingham and Aston 940, of whom 376 are males and 564 females. In 1834, at Worcester, under the presidency of Dr. Johnson, of this town, the Provincial Medical and Surgical Association was formed for encouraging scientific research, improving the practice of medicine, and generally looking after the interests of the profession. In 1856 the name was changed to The British Medical Association, with head offices in London, but prior to that branches had been established in various large towns, the Birmingham and Midland Counties' branch being foremost, holding its first meeting at Dee's Hotel, in December, 1854. The society has now about 9,000 members, with a reserve fund of £10,000; in the local branch there are 359 members, who subscribe about £150 per annum. —The Birmingham Medical Institute was launched Feb. 5, 1876, but the question of admitting homeopathists as members was nearly the upsetting of the craft at the first meeting; thanks to the sails being trimmed with a little common sense, however, the difficulty was tided over. The opening of the Institute in Edmund Street took place December 17, 1880. The cost of the building was about £6,000, and the purposes to which it is applied are the providing accommodation for meetings of the profession and the housing of the valuable medical library of over 6,000 books. As something worthy of note, it may be mentioned that the Institute was opened free from debt, the whole cost being previously subscribed.
Memorials and Monuments.—See "[Statues]," &c.
Men of Worth.—The "Toy-shop of the World," the home of workers, free from the blue blood of titled families, and having but few reapers of "unearned increment," is hardly the place to look for "men of worth or value" in a monetary point of view, but we have not been without them. A writer in Gazette, September 1, 1828, reckoned up 120 inhabitants who were each worth over £10,000 each; 50 worth over £20,000; 16 worth over £50,000; 9 worth over £100,000; 3 worth over £200,000; 2 worth over £300,000 each, and 1 worth over £400,000. Taking certain Income Tax Returns and other information for his basis another man of figures in 1878 made calculations showing that there were then among us some 800 persons worth more than £5,000 each, 200 worth over £10,000, 50 worth over £20,000, 35 worth over £50,000, 26 worth over £100,000, 12 worth over £250,000, 5 worth over £500,000, and 2 worth over or near £1,000,000 each.