The Greet Mill Meadow in the Shire Country Park

Another part of the Millstream Way in the Shire Country Park is the Greet Mill Meadow. It goes from Green Road to the Stratford Road in Hall Green (leading to Springfield / Sparkhill). Running alongside the River Cole. At certain points there is stepping stones with waterfalls. Named after the lost Greet Mill of the 13th century, of which no traces remain above ground. Near Sarehole Road.

Greet Mill Meadow in the Shire Country Park

Beyond the ford on Green Road is the Greet Mill Meadow. The path in here runs towards the Stratford Road in Hall Green alongside the River Cole. Sarehole Road is to the east (where Druckers Vienna Patisserie used to be before they went out of business). Tenby Road is to the west. An exit / entrance halfway goes onto Bankside which leads to Tenby Road. Near the Stratford Road you will be able to see Mughal & Azam (had a recent fire so the roof was damaged). That is also near Colgreave Avenue. It was formerly the Sparkhill United Church. Was built as a Congregational church 1932-3 by W H Bidlake. It is Grade II listed.

The Greet Mill Meadow is part of the Millstream Way, which is part of the Cole Valley Walk. It was the site of a 13th century mill called Greet Mill, where the walkway here got it's name from, but it has vanished like it was never even here. The first reference to Greet Mill by name was in 1275. That date might not be when it was founded as that was when Roger Fullard was drowned near Greet Mill. The mill was the property of Greet Manor, which was near the Warwick Road, about three quarters of a mile away downstream. The first miller to be recorded was Henry Heath in 1587. The mill was sold to Matthew Boulton in 1762, who seems like he rebuilt both Sarehole Mill and Greet Mill. Greet Mill went out of use by 1843. It's last years was used for steel rolling. The last miller was John Biscoe, and the mill might have been demolished in the 1850s.

The River Cole was diverted in about 1860. The old bridge on the Stratford Road was replaced by a new stone bridge which opened in 1914. By then Birmingham City Council had taken over the running of the area from the former Yardley Rural District Council in 1911. Greet Mill used to be in the news whenever someone was drowned there a few times in the 1790s.

2009

I first popped into the Greet Mill Meadow in April 2009. The mosiac of a fish seen at the Green Road entrance. In the years since, I've noticed that it is missing a lot of tiles, and could do with repairing (either by the Canal & River Trust or Birmingham City Council).

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A damaged tree from the path. I didn't go too far as wanted to avoid the youths, so turned back and walked up Sarehole Road.

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Before I turned back I saw the first stepping stones for the first time. Too risky to cross at this time as the river level was quite high.

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I re-entered the Greet Mill Meadow at the Stratford Road, and saw this heart shaped mosaic. I think this one has faired better over the years since I first saw it.

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The fingerpost in the Greet Mill Meadow near the Stratford Road Bridge. To the left is the Burbury Brickworks (via the Blackberry Way). Sarehole Mill is to the right.

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The waterfall seen from the Stratford Road bridge which opened in 1914. The water in the River Cole was fast flowing that day.

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Another look at the waterfall. Would be years before I would return to the Greet Mill Meadow for a walk. After this I probably got a no 1 bus to Moseley Village, then a 50 up to Moseley Road Baths (for my first photos of the building).

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2015

In August 2015, I did a complete walk through of the Greet Mill Meadow, I think starting at the Stratford Road and ending at Green Road. Only got photos of the stepping stones at the time. The first stepping stones with a waterfall. I did not cross it. But much calmer than 6 years earlier.

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It is possible to cross over the stepping stones if you want to, just be careful, and don't slip into the River Cole! I think there must be paths in the woodland near Sarehole Road.

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Another look at the second set of stepping stones. Much calmer this time around. I wouldn't return to the Greet Mill Meadow until during the 2020 lockdown.

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2020

The lockdown daily walk in the Greet Mill Meadow was during May 2020, towards the Blackberry Way and Burbury Brickworks Nature Reserve and back. Got more photos in here than ever before! The path was lined on the side by cow parsley and long grass. The route was so busy with families going on their daily walks.

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Part of the River Cole was quite shallow, and it looks like cyclists could ride their bikes through to the other side.

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Partway along the path was a path to the left. This leads to Bankside and Tenby Road.

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Another look at the stepping stones. While we didn't cross the stepping stones, I did see various families crossing them.

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May 2020 was without rain and the River Cole was quite shallow. So it would have been safe to cross the stepping stones, if you wanted to.

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The path continues towards the Stratford Road, as it's lined with all that cow parsley.

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An open field. The path to the left leads to Colgreave Avenue and the car park for Mughal & Azam. The building had a fire months ago, so the roof was covered in a material. They must be devestated by the fire. As it must cost a lot to repair the venue. And they would have to be closed for the duration of the lockdown. Sadly I don't think they will be ready to reopen in July 2020, at least not until the restaurant (ex church) is fully repaired.

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View of the Stratford Road Bridge. Opened in 1914, it allows traffic to go towards the College Arms up Shaftmoor Lane or the Stratford Road in Hall Green. Sparkhill is in the other direction. We were about to cross the road into the Blackberry Way. I even saw a rat here, so litter is a bit of an issue around here.

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Later on the walk back from the Burbury Brickworks and Blackberry Way. Back in the Greet Mill Meadow. View to one of the stepping stones with some ducks in the River Cole.

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One of the stepping stones had people on it earlier, so was able to get a new photo of it on the way back. The River Cole looks so calm and peaceful here. It's hard to tell that there even used to be a mill around here, what with all the trees all over the place. Was also a lost mill pool, that must now be part of the Cole here.

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Another view looking down the River Cole, before heading down the path and back into the Sarehole Mill Recreation Ground.

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I will cover the Blackberry Way and Burbury Brickworks in a separate post.

 

Photos taken by Elliott Brown.

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