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St. Peter's Church -  Harborne

The registers are now divided between - Birmingham, Sandwell and Bromsgrove districts

Kings Norton - 6 miles (S.S.W.) from Birmingham, still retains some of its earlier 'village' character particularly around 'The Green'. A number of buildings of historic interest surround the Green, in particular St Nicolas Church and the Saracen's Head. The church dates back to the 13th century and has an impressive and unusual crocketed spire that is a landmark visible for several miles. St Nicolas Church is a larger church than the neighbouring Norman church in Northfield and shows us that Kings Norton was the richer parish.

Until the 19th century Kings Norton was a rural area with a number of Mills on the River Rea, grinding local corn. A cattle market where local farmers brought their cattle, driving them along the local lanes, was on the corner of Wharf Road and Pershore Road South. The construction of the canals and railway was the start of changes in the area. The Worcester and Birmingham and Stratford canals meet in the Lifford area of Kings Norton, and it was here that factories were established. Two of the earliest were a paper mill and chemical works. This industrial area is now known as Kings Norton Business Centre and has undergone extensive rebuilding and modernisation. Through this same area the railway was built in 1840, bringing more people from the centre of Birmingham to live and/or work in Kings Norton. A railway station was built close to the industrial area and close to Cotteridge. The railway has been upgraded in recent years and is now a busy commuter stop on the cross-city line, Redditch to Lichfield. Many well-known firms are situated in the Kings Norton Area, the most notable being Triplex Safety Glass.

Harborne parish became part of King's Norton Union following the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834.

Harborne, or Harborn, is a pleasant rural village, picturesquely situated about four miles SW of Birmingham. It has many neat houses, and its parish contains about 4000 acres of land, forming that southern tongue of Offlow Hundred, which is nearly encompassed by Warwickshire, Worcestershire and Salop. The populous iron and glass manufacturing village and district of Smethwick forms the northern division of the parish.

The population of Harborne parish (including Smethwick chapelry) was as follows

1801 -- 2275
1821 -- 3350
1831 -- 4227
1841 -- 6657
  1851 -- 10729

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