The late 1860s was a busy time for Jeffrey Babb of Birmingham, England. On 7th Dec 1867 he realized his dream of being a Tavern Keep, with the purchase of the pub “Queens Head” Wines & Spirits and transfer of the Victuallers’ License from Edwin Chilton.

To help drum up business, he commissioned this “tavern token” designed to fill the seats. These tokens were used to promote local traffic and were essentially a form of a coupon. This one was worth 2 1/2 pence. This was no doubt one of the high points of Jeffrey’s life, owning his own business.

I came across the coin, which has been in the hands of the British Museum since 1870. The entry for it created lots of questions for me, which I naturally went out to solve!

We see on the reverse side of the token that he engaged S.A. Daniell to mint this 2 1/2 pence coin. The date of production is listed as 1867-1869.

The person who took it into the collection likely knew of the tavern’s story, as they knew the dates that J. Babb owned the tavern. But that context was lost over time and is missing from the record and there is only so much information you can get onto a single side of a brass coin. Let’s fill in those blanks now! (Pun Intended!)

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First, we find Mr. Babb’s full name in a business directory for Birmingham from 1868. We see that his full name is Jeffrey Babb and that the tavern is located at 381 Farm St. We also see that the name of the Tavern is Queens Head which helps to decode the rest of what on the front (Obverse) of the coin.

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Looking back at Jeffrey’s history we see that this wasn’t his first time in a Pub. In Jeffrey’s former life he had acted as a Police Officer and ran into some trouble serving a Drunk & Disorderly warrant. During the apprehension a scuffle ensued, and Jeffrey was hit on the head with a soda water bottle, which cut through his right ear. Jeffrey was 23 at the time.

By 1861, Jeffrey had moved on from Police work and was serving as a Groom & a Porter, presumably at a stable. Here we also see his young family just beginning. He would go on to have 6 children. His youngest child Harry was born in West Bromwich, Staffordshire in 1869. Remember that.

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Jeffrey’s life has been a build up to this moment where he is finally his own boss! As I mentioned, this was no doubt the highpoint for him with all the hope and optimism anyone would have at the start of a new endeavor.

The next chapter turns dark as Jeffrey’s hopes and dreams unravel before his eyes. By December 1867 he has 5 children remaining having just lost the youngest at just 3 months old. The family would likely have taken up residence in the upstairs of the building as was the custom.

16 months later, we find Jeffrey in Bankruptcy Court.

Simultaneously, Jeffrey welcomes his 6th child Harry into the family. Having declared bankruptcy, the family would have had to move out from the tavern, and they actually left town. Harry isn’t baptized until June 1872, but by this time the family was back in Birmingham.

By August of 1869, the Queens Head had been cited twice for food service violations and his Victuallers’ License was not renewed by the city, thus dooming his business.

By December, times were so tough for him that he was reduced to theft. Jeffrey was sent to prison for 2 months with hard labor for stealing a scarf from a local merchant.

In March of 1870, Jeffrey’s bankruptcy was completed.

We next find Jeffrey and family in the 1871 Census. He still lists himself as a General Dealer, even though he has lost the tavern. He has managed to move back to Birmingham and has kept the entire family together.

In the 1881 Census, Jeffrey is no longer with his family but is apparently still married to Sarah. She does not have a job at the time. The final mention we have of Jeffrey is this article that serves as a prologue to Jeffrey’s death spiral.

Jeffrey died two years later in Birmingham’s Workhouse, leaving his wife and 5 remaining children behind. The official cause of death was

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The building appears to still stand and somewhat recently was still named The Queens Head. However, it has not been in continuous operation since Jeffrey’s time. It changed hands regularly since its first newspaper mention in 1865 and was liquidated in 1879 for approximately £2,000. But someone had reopened, keeping Jeffrey’s dream alive!

Bing Maps has this undated image that shows the pub was still in operation not too long ago.

However, Google Maps had a very unflattering image dated 2023. Not being sure which was more recent I sent my clandestine operations officer, Cherida (Babb) Coleman to snap a photo of it for me.

My fears were confirmed when the pictures arrived. I already knew this was a neighborhood that a realtor would describe as “transitional”. Meaning it is a combination of run-down buildings that need to be demolished and new housing that is contributing to the urban renewal.

The bar’s exterior has been covered over and painted black. It is currently serving as a restaurant & bar named African Village. I should note that this is a different establishment than the 2023 image from Google Maps when it was named Classy 86. I don’t want to imagine what kind of establishment that was.

My hope for the building is that as the neighborhood transitions from old warehouse buildings to new housing, that someone will once again pick up the mantle and reopen this historic pub. So that The Queens Head can once again rise from the ashes as it has done before.

The Tree

Jeffrey is a member of the Potters of Staffordshire (DNA-09) and leaves a long trail of 120 descendants, many of whom moved to Australia.

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