From a few Anglo-Saxon hamlets set in a mostly agricultural landscape, to the industrial revolution of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, West Bromwich gradually developed into one of the most successful and prosperous towns in the Black Country. The resultant vast and diverse array of privately owned shops, together with innumerable and wide-ranging leisure activities evoke fond memories of a bygone age in present-day residents. Moments in the life of West Bromwich born Hollywood actress Madeleine Carroll are also recalled in a photographic tribute to her film career and hitherto little-known humanitarian work.

Relive those golden memories in this second selection of old West Bromwich photographs compiled by local author and historian Terry Price, who takes another nostalgic look at shops, street scenes, schooldays and social activities in all parts of the borough during the last century. Almost 400 photographs, the majority coming from private unpublished collections, combined with the author’s informative captions, are sure to delight long-established residents and newcomers alike.