A decade of change and contrast, the 1970s saw communities across the Black Country, Staffordshire and the surrounding areas remain rooted in industry, close-knit neighbourhoods and bustling high streets, even as towns and estates adapted to redevelopment, changing economies and new ways of living.
From busy shopping scenes and Silver Jubilee celebrations to demolition sites, modern housing schemes and everyday moments, these images capture a period of transition, resilience and community spirit that helped shape the region's identity.
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21. Chase Road, Brownhills, 1975
A striking scene of change on Chase Road, Brownhills in July 1975, where construction vehicles move in as a building is stripped back during demolition. The front windows have already been torn out, while a workman walks past with a cigarette in his mouth, capturing an everyday moment amid the noise, dust and disruption of redevelopment in the mid-1970s. | Express & Star archive
22. Lansbury Drive, Broomhill, Cannock, 1975
1975: A familiar Cannock street scene in Lansbury Drive, Broomhill, where ex-miner Mick Jarocki and his son Mike are pictured outside their home. The houses, built in the 1950s for mining families, were among 85,000 properties owned by the National Coal Board across Cannock and Rugeley due to be sold off at up to half market value, with tenants given first refusal in a major shift in local housing ownership. | Express & Star archive
23. Bolton Court, Ocker Hill, 1976
'Life promises to be even livelier around Bolton Court, Ocker Hill, Tipton, now that a new purpose-built tenants association club is almost complete... "We are hoping to provide much more entertainment in the way of shows and dances for our members now we have the facilities," said Mrs Jan Turner, secretary of the association.' April 1976. | Express & Star archive
24. Mount Pleasant, Kingswinford, 1976
A neighbourhood dispute unfolds in Mount Pleasant, Kingswinford, in August 1976, as Dudley Council workmen remove sloping kerbstones from the rear of actress Pat Stone’s garden. Mrs Stone maintained she had paid for the kerbstones herself and argued the council had no right to take them away, despite the land belonging to a Stourbridge building firm. The photograph captures her visibly unhappy as the work is carried out, preserving a moment when a local disagreement became front-page news. | Express & Star archive