The present buildings extend about forty yards beyond the Salutation, on the Wolverhampton road. We now turn up Lionel-street, leaving St. Paul's, and about three new erected houses, on the right[1]; pass close to New-Hall, leaving it on the left, to the top of Great Charles-street, along Easy-hill: we now leave the Wharf to the right, down Suffolk-street, in which are seventy houses, leaving two infant streets also to the right, in which are about twelve houses each: up to Holloway-head, thence to Windmill-hill, Bow-street, Brick-kiln-lane, down to Lady-well, along Pudding-brook, to the Moat, Lloyd's Slitting-mill, Digbeth, over Deritend bridge, thence to the right, for Cheapside; cross the top of Bradford-street, return by the Bridge to Floodgate-street, Park-street, Bartholomew's-chapel, Grosvenor-street, Nova scotia-street, Woodcock-lane, Aston-street, Lancaster-street, Walmer-lane, Price's-street, Bath-street, to the bottom of Snow-hill.
[1] The above was written in May 1780, and the three houses are now, March 14, 1781, multiplied into fifty-five.
The circle I have described is about five miles, in which is much ground to be filled up. There are also beyond this crooked line, five clumps of houses belonging to Birmingham, which may be deemed hamlets.
At the Sand-pits upon the Dudley-road, about three furlongs from the buildings, are fourteen houses.
Four furlongs from the Navigation-office, upon the road to Hales-owen, are twenty-nine.
One furlong from Exeter row, towards the hand, are thirty-four.
Upon Camp-hill, 130 yards from the junction of the Warwick and Coventry roads, which is the extremity of the present buildings, are thirty-one.
And two furlongs from the town, in Walmer-lane, are seventeen more.
I shall comprize, in one view, the state of Birmingham in eight different periods of time. And though some are imaginary, perhaps they are not far from real.
| Streets. | Houses. | Souls. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| In the time of the ancient Britons, | 80 | 400 | |
| A.D. 750, | 8 | 600 | 3000 |
| 1066, | 9 | 700 | 3500 |
| 1650, | 15 | 900 | 5472 |
| 1700, | 28 | 2504 | 15032 |
| 1731, | 51 | 3717 | 23286 |
| 1741, | 54 | 4114 | 24660 |
| 1780, | 125 | 8382 | 50295 |