Elford calling – unusual historic property near Lichfield to go under the hammer
Until the 1950s, repeater stations were crucial to the UK’s telephone system, receiving and retransmitting signals to ensure call quality did not drop over long distances.
Now the repeater station at Elford near Lichfield has been put up for auction and will appear in the next online sale to be held by auction house Pugh, part of Eddisons, on 4 December - with a £10,000 guide price.
A brick-built, single-storey building, the tiny former repeater station has a floorspace of 151 sq ft and stands on an 850 sq ft site. Auctioneers say the unusual property may have development potential, subject to a buyer gaining the necessary planning consent.
“Telephone repeater stations are always popular lots at auction because they’re something of a rarity and their appeal lies in their importance in the history of communications technology in this country, as well as their development potential,” said Pugh director Ed Feather.
“There have been some fantastic sales results for telephone repeater station buildings over the years and they can be really sought after by investors. Part of the attraction is that they are often in rural locations with excellent access routes.
“That’s the case here too - Elford is a really lovely village with facilities such as a primary school, pub and cricket club, and it’s close to Tamworth and Lichfield, with Birmingham only 20 miles away. We’re expecting a lot of interest in this small but unusual lot.”
The next Pugh auction, which includes the former telephone repeater station at Elford, has over 100 properties and plots of land up for sale. It has new lots added daily and will be held on 4 December at pugh-auctions.com.
