Shudehill

 

Saturday evening and the streets were thronged with people out for a night's entertainment.  Thousands of youngsters, courting couples, even complete families, all seeking enjoyment at the end of a week's work. Shudehill was lined with market stalls, sideshows and street performers. Bargains were to be had towards midnight when unsold produce was offered. The vast Smithfield Market had been open since six that morning as had all of the pubs round about.

Shudehill was for long, the home to many of Manchester's markets:  The Hen Market, The Apple Market, The Potato Market.  As the city grew, so the markets expanded and stalls were to found selling every nature of produce. In 1822 it was given the name Smithfield.   In the mid 19th century glazed, iron framed halls were built covering an area of four and a half acres. 

Next to the Hen  Market was Ye Olde Rover's Return, built in 1306. Not always a public house, it had  originally been a manor house for the Wythin Grave family. 

                  The Hen Market and Rover's return in 1915

Shudehill was an ancient highway which until the 1820's was still on the edge of the countryside.  16th century Bradshaw Hall had extensive grounds and even a large orchard. Very soon however, the rapidly expanding city absorbed all of this open country.

The Libraries Of Manchester

 

 

  Few people realise the importance of Manchester's historic libraries. The collections exceed a total of two milllion volumes and a significant number of ancient works are of worldwide importance. The buildings themselves are among Manchester's greatest treasures.

Chetham's Library

The oldest library is Chetham's which has been a free public library since 1653, the oldest in Britain. The collection contains over 100,000 books, the majority published before the mid 19th century

The Chethams complex includes one of Manchester's oldest buildings dating from 1422. Built as a manor house, this became a priest's hostel, being alongside the Collegiate Church, now Manchester Cathedral. During the Civil War, it served first as a gunpowder factory and later a prison.

Sir Humphrey Chetham 1580 - 1653 was a successful cotton merchant. He had been educated at Manchester Free Grammar School which was then sited between the later Chetham's Hospital and the Church. He was offered a knighthood in 1631 due to his great wealth and was fined for refusing the honour. He was not able to refuse the post of High Sheriff of Lancashire in 1635 nor of General Treasurer in 1643. He feared that on his death, his wealth might be taken by the Crown and for this reason he bequested money for the establishment of Chetham's Hospital which was to support 40 poor boys and Chetham's Library together with funds for the purchase of books. 24 feoffees or trustees were appointed to manage and stock the library and their aim was to rival the university libraries of Oxford and Cambridge. The building was extended during the Victorian era as was the Grammar School, the latter moving to it's present site in Fallowfield in the 1930's. The books were originally chained although that practice ended in the mid 18th century.

Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels were frequent visitors to Chetham's and a reference book and bench seat mark the spot where they used to meet.

Chetham's Library is open Monday to Friday and visitors are welcome. An appointment must be made in order to read any of the collection.

Further information : http://www.chethams.org.uk/index.html

                        Reading Room at Chetham's Library

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A Secret Tunnel Under Deansgate

When workmen demolished old houses in Cumberland Street in 1911, they came across an underground passage.  The Manchester City News reported that they found a tunnel with an arched roof, built of brick, wide and high enough to allow a horse and cart to travel along it. The men found that it extended for about 70 yards before being blocked by a brick wall.  A pedestrian route through the Spinningfields development now follows the line of Cumberland Street, close to John Ryland's Library.

                                                         The Cumberland Street site.
 
The Deansgate Tunnel has never been fully documented or surveyed and evidence of its existance and extent is based upon rare glimpses and hearsay. Its age is unknown but it is assumed to be between 200 and 300 years old. Its purpose is unknown. There are even suggestions that it might be Roman in origin.
The tunnel is believed to start near the northern end of Deansgate, close to the Cathedral and to follow the line of the road southwards as far as Knott Mill. Here the tunnel turns westwards towards Old Trafford.

Manchester's First Airport

A DeHavilland Moth is pictured at Wythenshaw Airport in 1929.

This aeroplane, a DH 60x model, registered G-EBZU was built in 1928. It was operated by Northern Air Lines until crashing at Irlam in October 1932. Northern Air Lines operated a number of aircraft from this field. These 2 seater Moths could be chartered for a shilling per mile.

This photograph appears to be an advertising opportunity for both BP and Northern Air Lines.

 The Moth and its many vairiants were built in the 1920s and 30s. They were operated mostly by flying clubs although many were sold as military trainers and large numbers were exported. The Moth was the most popular aircraft of its day and was produced in large numbers. The Gipsy Moth sold almost 9000 aircraft. When introduced in 1925, the Moth sold for a price of £650.

Mr Tatton, squire of Wythenshaw Hall had in 1926 sold much of his estate to Manchester Corporation for future housing. This was farming country which had been owned by the Tatton family since the 14th centruy. Realising that Manchester would need an airport, the Corporation reserved four fields for that purpose, removed trees and hedges and levelled the ground. Wythenshawe was Manchester’s first municipal airport and opened in April 1929. It was also known locally as Rackheath Aerodrome for it occupied the site of Rackheath Farm. A barn became an aircraft hangar capable of housing just one small aeroplane. and the farmhouse served as the administrative building. As an aid to navigation, a large white circle enclosing the letters M/C was painted on the grass. There was neither lighting nor radio equipment. The airfield was only a temporary arrangement until Barton Airport opened in January 1930 and served only general aviation. Wythenshawe saw its last flight in June of that year. The site was eventually absorbed into the new housing estate which was intended to be a "garden city" and grew to house 100,000 people, the largest public housing development in Europe.

A Desirable Address In Manchester

 

   
Mosley Street was laid out in the 1780’s and named after the lords of the manor. The area had been entirely residential and very fashionable. Here lived Manchester’s greatest merchants and businessmen. Hugh Birley was a cotton spinner and manufacturer of rubber goods. S. L. Behrens was the founder of the firm of shipping merchants and Nathan Meyer Rothschild was of the banking family.

In 1827 Henry Charles Lacy converted a house at the corner of Mosley Street and Market Street into an hotel and allowed rooms in the building to be used for warehousing. A rash of house conversions and warehouse building followed over the next decade as property values soared. One house was sold in 1832 for eight thousand guineas, twice its’ vaue of only five years earlier. By the end of the thirties, Mosley Street consisted almost entirely of warehouses, the former resident having moved to the new suburbs such as Victoria Park and Didsbury.

Victoria Park was opened in 1837. An area of 140 acres had been obtained by a company of gentlemen in order to build villas which would be let for between £100 and £250 per annum. The notable architect, Richard Lane was engaged to design the park, laying out roadways, boundaries and landscaping and designing the gate lodges. The park had its’ own tollgates, walls and police.

In Good Company - Southern Cemetery, Chorlton cum Hardy

Sir Matt Busby and Lawrence Stephen Lowry need no introduction, neither perhaps does Sir John Alcock. These are among the famous names to be discovered on the graves of Southern Cemetery in Manchester.

In 1872 40 hectares of land were purchased by Manchester Corporation for £38340. The City Surveyor J. G. Lynde was responsible for designing the layout and manchester architect H. J. Paull designed the chapels and other buildings. Roman Catholics, Nonconformists Jewish and Anglican denominations each had their own chapels and designated burial areas. In 1926 a further 36 hectares was purchased making this the largest cemetery in Britain and second largest in Europe.

An Artful Trick

The other day, as one of the coaches which plies between Buxton and Manchester was ascending the hill near Taxal, the coachman was accosted by an Irish woman with a child in her arms, requesting him to "give her a ride". He replied, "that the proprietors employed him to receive fares, not to give rides." upon which she, pretending to find her pocket among the folds of her ragged dress said, "Sure and have you change for a sovereign?". The coachman, elated with the prospect of receiving his short fare, ordered her to get on and he would furnish the change at Buxton. On arrival at the destination, the woman alighted and was proceeding apace without producing the coloured material, when the coachman, in a stentorian voice exclaimed, "Hallo, you have not paid your fare."  "Fare do you mean, sir, sure and I have only a penny in my pocket." "Then why did you ask me for change?" replied the coachman. "Sure and it was the change that I wanted; the devil of a sovereign had I." The coachman, much chagrined at the loss of his anticipated fare, at the request of a passenger, allowed the woman for her craft, to proceed on her journey.

The Blackburn Standard 3rd December 1845

Industrial Archaeology of Greater Manchester

This book by Robina McNeil and Michael Nevell is an excellent guide to the many historical sites throughout Greater Manchester. Divided into the 10 local authority areas, almost 400 locations are listed, many accompanied by photographs and maps. This publication is well worth delving into especially when planning a day out in the region.
A pdf version is available for download by following this link: https://industrial-archaeology.org/…/2000-Industrial-Archae…

Don't miss this superb video "Celebrating Ardwick 1930s -1960s" just released by the Ardwick Green Histories Project. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5hvfrzeMug  You may even recognise one of our members towards the end.

The pubs of Manchester

This website will take you on a tour of hundreds of Manchester's pubs, many long since forgotten. Many entries are well illustrated with a brief history. There is a good list of useful links to related sites.

You will come across pub names such as the Engineers and Filecutters Arms,  the Greengrocers Arms and the Isonomy Inn, all three close together in Ancoats and the Bundle of Sticks in Boundary Street East. Visit the City's medieval pubs, most long demolished and read about some of the characters who ran or frequented these hostelries.

Learn also about some of the breweries that have long since gone our of business. Kay's of Ardwick, Cronshaw's of Hulme and Groves and Whitnall for exampe.

http://pubs-of-manchester.blogspot.com/

The Band On The Wall, an Historical Archive

One of Manchester's premier music venues, The Band On The Wall has operated as a jazz club since the mid 1970's. This was formerly a public house, The George and Dragon , Swan Street. The pub first opened its doors in 1803 although the building has undergone many changes since then.  As far back as the 1930's the pub boasted a stage on which musicians regularly performed and it was at that time the nickname "Band On The Wall" was first coined.  The adjoining building, now the venue's cafe bar "Picturehouse" has been in the same ownership as the pub since the early 20th century, if not longer. It has had many roles since it was built in 1865 including conversion to a picture house in 1915.

The George & Dragon as a Wilson's house.

The Band On The Wall website has a superb archive. This documents the meticulously researched history of the building and adjoining Picturehouse.

Early days as a music venue

Swan Street is in one of Manchester's oldest districts, an area with a fascinating history.  The archive tells the story of the neighbourhood. Smithfield Market, Little Italy, Ancoats and New Cross all feature as do violent gangs such as the Scuttlers. The music heritage of Manchester is a strong feature of this archive; "Broadsides", cheap song sheets were printed in the area and the Ancoats Brotherhood was founded by Charles Rowley to bring serious music to the streets.

Smithfield Market

This website is highly recommended, it makes fascinating reading. If jazz music is also to your taste then there is even more of interest.  http://bandonthewall.org/archive/

My Life in Print