Places

Langley Baths opened in 1937. It was here in 1949 that the original ‘Made in Oldbury Exhibition of local Industrial Effort’ was held.

Langley Park was established in 1886 by local industrialist Arthur Albright. The park lodge (pictured in this Christmas card by Langley Local History Society) was the home of the park keeper.

Barnford Hill Park, 29 acres given to the district council by W. A. Albright in 1915.

The Blue Billies were landmarks for decades; large mounds of mining and chemical waste blue-grey in colour from contamination, with two pools of noxious liquids.

Birchley Island sits next to junction two of the M5 motorway, with over 92,000 motorists passing each day.

Whimsey Bridge, a name given when the canals were first cut, late in the 18th century, was once a hive of activity with canal barges delivering raw materials from the factories and brickyards.

Rainfall from the Rowley Hills fed water into the pool, which then was culverted to feed Rotten Park Reservoir. A haven for wildlife, the pools are partly covered by an elevated section of the motorway.

First constructed in 1837, the canal once served the collieries on the Rowley Hills, and Pratt’s Brickyard, as well as the factories and maltings in Langley.

Jack Judge House opened in 2011, housing a new library for the town.

In 1980, retail giant Sainsbury opened one of its first SavaCentre hypermarkets in the town centre. Originally with 65,000 square feet of shop floor, today its boasts 75,000 square feet.