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Going, going, gone – it was the end of an era for the Goodyear chimney as the Wolverhampton landmark was razed to the ground after 81 years.
More than 1,000 people including former workers turned out for the historic occasion, with many shedding a tear.
Today it emerged that the 150ft stack will not be completely lost forever as people may be able to buy the familiar blue and yellow bricks as souvenirs. The possible sell-off is part of a fund-raising venture for Macmillan Nurses, who care for cancer patients.
The famous chimney was ceremoniously toppled in a controlled explosion at the Stafford Road site yesterday.
Spectators watched as 142,662 bricks and some eight decades years of history came crashing to the ground. Oxley Primary pupil Alisia Tonkin, aged 10, and Goodyear worker Des Raj, 53, were given the privilege of pressing the firing button after winning a guess-the-number-of-bricks competition and a raffle, repectively.
Company spokesman James Bailey said bosses were looking into the possibility of turning the rubble into cash for the charity.
“The chimney was a much-loved landmark,” he said. “Auctioning of a number of the bricks could popular”
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6 Comments
We’re very very sad to see the famous goodyear chimney fall. Both my husband & my dad worked at goodyear for years, it was a part of our lives from when we were born. Such a well-known piece of wolverhampton’s skyline, gone now forever. When the chimney was falling down, we held back tears but it was a very sad moment we wont forget. People started clapping once the chimney was reduced to a pile of smoking rubble, i can not understand why, i think silence would have been more appropriate.
It was disused and hardly pretty. At least now they can get on with creating new businesses and jobs by redeveloping the site.
I’m brummie born & bred I’ll always be proud to say I was a Goodyear worker.Broke my heart been made redundant.Broke my heart reading about the site been cleared and now the final nail has been driven into the Goodyear coffin.May not have been a beautiful sight to everyone but it was to me.
Mould Clean G8 R.I.P. Mate.
I think it should have been left and built around. It was such an icon and a easy landmark to get people to my house!!!
This ranks as one of the saddest days in my life after being proud to admit i worked there for almost 35 years.A local part of history fell to the ground as well as the stack,a black day for wolverhampton.
I no longer live in Wolverhampton but keep in touch with the everyday goings on in the town via your emailed Express & Star.
I was shocked to learn the old Good Year stack had been feld. I’m so sorry things are changing like this icon gone forever and Beatties being sold.
A time of the signs eh?