Hockley Brook

Hockley Brook is a brook, or stream, in north Birmingham, England. It rises just outside the city, in Smethwick, and runs through Black Patch Park and then through the city's Soho, Hockley and Aston districts, to its confluence with the River Tame, beneath Gravelly Hill Interchange. From there, its waters flow, via the Trent, to the Humber Estuary and the North Sea. At the eastern end, it is known as Aston Brook, giving its name to Aston Brook Street.

Hockley Brook
The brook (right) near its end, with the Birmingham & Fazeley canal alongside.
EtymologyHockley/ Aston
Location
CountryEngland
RegionBirmingham
Physical characteristics
Mouth 
 • location
River Tame
Basin features
ProgressionTrent - Humber - North Sea
Tributaries 
 • rightBoundary Brook (at Black Patch Park)

It previously marked the boundary between Birmingham (then Warwickshire) and Smethwick (then Staffordshire); between the then Staffordshire country villages of Handsworth and Smethwick;[1] and between Birmingham and Aston, before the city absorbed the latter district.

The brook once fed several mills[2] and provided water for Matthew Boulton's Soho Manufactory.[3]

In post-World War II years, it was culverted (buried in pipes) for much of its length.

Local historian and artist Ron "Smudge" Smith titled his 1998 autobiography A Paddle in Hockley Brook.[4]

Features
Point Coordinates
(links to map & photo sources)		 Notes
Source 52.496614°N 1.944522°W / 52.496614; -1.944522 (Source)
Start of main underground section 52.496046°N 1.919417°W / 52.496046; -1.919417 (Start of main underground section)
End of main underground section 52.499775°N 1.872478°W / 52.499775; -1.872478 (End of main underground section)
Confluence with River Tame 52.508184°N 1.860258°W / 52.508184; -1.860258 (Confluence with River Tame)

References
  1. Ted Rudge Brumroamin: Birmingham and Midland Romany Gypsy and Traveller Culture. Birmingham City Council Department of Leisure & Community Services (2003)
  2. "All Saints - WAR ENG". University of Essex. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
  3. "Pubs of Winson Green in Birmingham". Midlands Pubs. Archived from the original on 15 November 2011. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
  4. Smith, Ron (1998). A Paddle in Hockley Brook (4th ed.). Waveney Publ. ISBN 0-9523849-0-6.

52.496046°N 1.919417°W / 52.496046; -1.919417 (Hockley Brook - nominal location)



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