Black Country High Street Series

We are a Black Country Small Business

This series of maps is personally important. The Black Country is our home. Our culture is in the actual landscape around us. This land was not found like this it was made by the men women and children of our families just a few generations ago.

Why we do this

The Little Orchard Workshop seeks to play its part in keeping the memories of the past alive. Prompting a conversation, recalling a half forgotten memory, or restoring a little pride in younger generations for their unique history.



CNC-carved wooden map panel of Tipton High Street, derived on an 1892 historical map, framed wall art.
CNC-carved wooden map of Brierley Hill High Street, based on an 1892 historical map, framed wall art. A2 Size. CNC-carved wooden map of Brierley Hill High Street, based on an 1892 historical map, framed wall art. A2 Sze.

Brierley Hill

Brierley Hill was a closely worked district of furnaces, forges, nail shops, and later glasshouses. The ground was cut by pits and spoil, and industry reached into every part of the town. Daily life followed the hours of labour. The population was practical and self-reliant, sustained by regular work, learned skill, and a shared acceptance of demanding conditions.

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CNC-carved wooden map panel of Tipton High Street, derived on an 1892 historical map, framed wall art. CNC carved wooden map of Tipton area recreated from a historical map of 1891 Framed on the all of a nice house.

Tipton

Tipton’s centre operates within a tightly packed industrial landscape, shaped by canals, yards, and workshops. The streets show little ornament, yet function with reliability and purpose. Life here is ordered by effort, and the town’s continuity rests on the steadiness of its people, whose strength lies in repetition endured without complaint.

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CNC-carved wooden map of Cradley Heath High Street based on a 1901 historical map, framed wall art. Carved wooden map of Cradley Heath, based on an 1892 historical map, framed wall art. In a a living room with a sofa.

Cradley Heath

Cradley Heath was chiefly occupied with chain making, much of it done in yard and home forges. Labour was severe and continuous, and the work fell to women as well as men. Industry and domestic life were closely joined. The people showed endurance and quiet pride, valuing independence, skill, and the dignity of earning by their own labour.

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CNC-carved into a hardwood panel of a map of Dudley High Street, based on an 1892 historical map, framed wall art. CNC wall art of Dudley High Street displayed in a middle class family home with a Miniature Pincher dog.

Dudley

Dudley lay amid pits, furnaces, and lime workings. Coal and iron were worked without pause. Smoke hung over the town. The streets served trade and supply for labouring people who endured hard conditions with steadiness, drawing their living from the ground beneath them.

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Amblecote High Street carved on a hardwood panel by CNC machine A2 size

Amblecote

Amblecote’s centre runs close to furnaces and glasshouses, its scale modest but intensely focused. Daily movement follows narrow paths between home and workshop, governed by routine. The town persists through quiet competence, its people demonstrating endurance through skill, repetition, and a collective acceptance of demanding conditions.

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CNC-carved wooden map of Halesowen High Street, based on an 1892 historical map, framed wall art. A carved wooden panel art work of Halesowen High Street displayed in a family home.

Halesowen

Halesowen’s centre combines agriculture, nail-making, and small industry, lending it a mixed and grounded character. Streets feel less compressed, though still shaped by labour. The town’s strength lies in versatility, sustained by people accustomed to balancing field, forge, and household with resilience and self-reliance.

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