Ancoats
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Ancoats | |
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  Ancoats shown within Greater Manchester |
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| Metropolitan borough | City of Manchester |
|---|---|
| Metropolitan county | Greater Manchester |
| Region | North West |
| Constituent country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | MANCHESTER |
| Postcode district | [[M postcode area|]] |
| Dial code | 0161 |
| Police | Greater Manchester |
| Fire | Greater Manchester |
| Ambulance | North West |
| European Parliament | North West England |
| List of places: UK • England • Greater Manchester | |
Ancoats is a district of the City of Manchester, in North West England. It is situated adjacent to the Northern Quarter in the northern part of Manchester City Centre.
Ancoats became one of the cradles of the Industrial Revolution and is now often referred to as the World's first industrial suburb.[citation needed] For many years, from the late 18th century onwards, Ancoats was a thriving industrial district. The area suffered accelerating economic decline from the 1930s and depopulation in the years after the second world war, particularly during the slum clearances of the 1960s. Since the 1990s Ancoats' industrial and architectural heritage has been recognised and this, along with its proximity to the city centre, has led to investment and the development of substantial regeneration plans.
For the purpose of local government elections the area is part of the Ancoats and Clayton ward of the city of Manchester.
Contents |
[edit] History
[edit] Medieval
In medieval times Ancoats was a village which formed part of the township of Manchester in the ancient parish of Manchester in the Hundred of Salfordshire in Lancashire. It is believed that its name means ‘Lonely Huts’ or Old Cottages and is first recorded as "Einecot" in 1212. Land in Ancoats was bequeathed in the 14th century by Henry de Ancotes. The village covered the area of land that roughly lies between the River Medlock and the River Irk.
[edit] Industrial Revolution
[edit] Cotton
Survey work for the Rochdale Canal was carried out by James Brindley in 1765. The knowledge that its construction would make the transport of raw materials and finished goods more convenient, gave industrialists the confidence to build their cotton mills. The first mills were built in Ancoats as early as 1790. In 1792 commissioners were established for the improvement of the township of Manchester which included Ancoats. Towards the end of the 18th century steam power was first used to power the cotton mills. Some of the earliest mills of this period were Murray’s Mills, which were established next to the Rochdale canal on Union Street (now Redhill Street) off Great Ancoats Street, by Adam and George Murray in 1798. Later, they became known as Ancoats Mills when they were operated by McConnel & Company Ltd. The streets of Ancoats were also laid out during the latter part of the 18th Century, with little development taking place other than small houses and shops along Great Ancoats Street and Oldham Road. From the opening of the Rochdale Canal in 1804 the development of mills continued on a much larger scale. From then onwards, Ancoats grew rapidly to become an important industrial centre and as a result of this it also became a densely populated area. Streets of back-to-back houses and court dwellings were rapidly built and for the poorest members of the community there were cellar dwellings. The Borough of Manchester was established in 1838 under the Municipal Corporations Act 1835, and included the townships of Manchester, Beswick, Cheetham, Chorlton-on-Medlock and Hulme. By 1851 Ancoats's total population was 53,737.
Mills in Ancoats included, Victoria Mills, Wellington Mill, Brunswick Mill, India Mills, Dolton Mills, Lonsdale Mills, Phoenix Mill, Lloydsfield Mill and Sedgewick Mill, Decker Mill (owned by the Murray brothers), New Mill, Beehive Mill, Little Mill, Paragon Mill, Royal Mill and Pin Mill.
[edit] Foundries
Cotton was not the only industry in the locality, as foundries and engineering factories were required to produce the machinery needed by the mills. The largest of these were those operated by the brothers, John Muir Hetherington and Thomas Ridley Hetherington, which was established in 1830. Eventually the company became known as John Hetherington and Sons Ltd and the principal factory was at Vulcan Works on Pollard Street. The company was also the proprietor of Curtis, Sons & Company, which was established in 1804 and this was at the Phoenix Works, which was on both sides of Chapel Street (now Chapeltown Street). On one side of the street there was a brass and iron works and on the other side there was a machinery factory. Hetherington’s produced a huge range of machinery for the textile industry that included machinery for opening, preparing, spinning and doubling cotton, cotton waste, wool and worsted. Their speciality was a machine called a Combined Opener and Scutcher that was very effective in the cleaning of most types of cotton without damaging the staple or losing serviceable fibre.
[edit] Glass Works
Possibly the least known, but vitally important, industry in Ancoats was the manufacture of flint glass. More than 25 glassworks have been identified in Manchester, all built during the 19th century, and many of these were in Ancoats. Thomas Percival and William Yates established one of these on Union Street (now Redhill Street) in 1844. The works was equipped with two furnaces (later three), an annealing house, workshops, a warehouse and offices. In 1852, Thomas Vickers joined the company and William Yates left in 1862. After this, the company became known as Percival Vickers British and Foreign Flint Glass Works. It made a large range of glassware that included tumblers, wine glasses, decanters, vases, celery vases, salts and cake stands.
[edit] Other Industries
At the top of Stony Brow (later Junction Street and now Jutland Street) there was the multi-storey drysalters factory of Thomas Hassall. It was said that this was the only drysalters in England and it supplied rock salt, moss litter and all kinds of other things. There were also chemical works (especially alum), floor-cloth works and finishing and calendering works that rolled cloth to smooth or glaze it. Ancoats was once the home of the Rolderdotton's Home Brewing Kit Company.
[edit] Later Victorian Period
[edit] Immigration
During the 19th century, due to political and economic circumstances, many Italians left Italy for a more secure life. In particular, they left southern Italy, Lazio and Campagna, and some of these settled in Ancoats. Over the next hundred years they created what became known as ‘Ancoats Little Italy’. They boosted the local economy, pioneered the British ice cream industry, joined in the annual Catholic Whit Walks and survived the difficulties of the Second World War. Large numbers of Irish also settled in Ancoats.
[edit] Religion and Poor Relief
The Methodists were very active in Ancoats at the end of the 19th century - they ran both a men's workhouse and women's night shelter (with coffee tavern). There were tens of pubs, however, of which only five buildings remain and only two of these are still open. The Salvation Army had a presence in Ancoats, with the Star Hall and Crossley Hospital in Pollard Street. Crossley Court, flats belonging to the Salvation Army Housing Association, now stands on the site. Ancoats Hospital was located on Old Mill Street, adjacent to the Ashton Canal. This has been closed to patients for some time, and is currently under residential development.
As can be expected in area's with high levels of Irish and Italian immigration, a large proportion of Ancoats' population is Roman Catholic.
[edit] Early 20th Century
Aircraft were manufactured in Ancoats and this factory was at Brownsfield Mill, which was on the corner of Great Ancoats Street and Binns Place at the point where the Rochdale Canal passes below Great Ancoats Street. Here, A V Roe (Avro) established his factory shortly before 1915. Men from Ancoats serving in the Army in France during the Great War were aware that aeroplanes they saw in action above them had been made in Ancoats.
In 1939, the Daily Express newspaper company opened new premises, which were built in the "functional" style, using new curtain-wall technology identical to that on the company's buildings in Fleet Street and Glasgow.
[edit] Postwar Decline
The substantial economic activity generated by such a concentration of mills was halted by the slump in the cotton industry in the 1930's. Thereafter, the prosperity of the mills declined steadily, and the only new industry to establish itself in Ancoats was newspaper printing. Ancoats, like neighbouring Miles Platting and Collyhurst, became very run down and notorious for deprivation and crime. Cotton spinning ceased in Manchester and other textile related uses were found for the mills: clothes manufacture, machinery repairs and warehouses for imported goods' rag trade. The 1960s witnessed further decline as, during the mass clearance of the area's terraced homes, the population was re-housed in the north and east of the city. The mills, attracting decreasing rents, fell into disrepair. Newspaper printing, one of Ancoats' 20th Century industries, fell victim to changes in technology, with the Daily Express ceasing to be published from its famous black glass building in 1989. The closure of Express Printers was also the start of Ancoats' renewal, as the impact of low investment and increasing unemployment became recognised.
[edit] Regeneration
Ancoats' proximity to the city centre has meant that regeneration (or gentrification) is now taking place on a large scale with housing developments such as 'New Islington'. The part of Ancoats designated as a Conservation Area by Manchester City Council in June 1989, is bounded by Great Ancoats Street, Oldham Road, Kemp Street, Wadeford Close, Jersey Street and the Rochdale Canal. The Ancoats Building Preservation Trust was established in 1995.
[edit] Listed buildings in Ancoats conservation area
- Church of St. Peter, Blossom Street. Designed by Isaac Holden & Son, 1859-60. Grade C.
- Daily Express buildings, Great Ancoats Street. Designed by Sir Owen Williams, 1939. Grade II.
- Royal Mill, Henry Street. Built c.1912. Grade II*.
- Paragon Mill, Jersey Street. Built c.1912. Grade II*.
- Jersey Mill, Jersey Street. Built in 1804. Grade II*.
- Beehive Mill, Jersey Street. Built c.1820 and 1824. Grade II*
- Murray's Mill, Murray Street. Built c.1800. Grade II.
- Crown and Kettle public house, Oldham Road. Built late 19th century. Grade II.
- Victoria Square, Oldham Road. Designed by Spalding & Cross, 1889-1894. Grade II.
- Sedgwick Mill, Redhill Street. Probably designed by Sir William Fairbairn, 1818. Grade II.
- Sedgwick New Mill, Redhill Street. Built c.1858. Grade II.
- Mill to north-west corner of the junction Redhill Street/Bengal Street. Built early 19th century and 1842. Grade II*.
- Murray's Mill (main block), Redhill Street. Built 1798. Grade II*.
[edit] Cultural references
- The district of Ancoats was the setting for several novels by Howard Spring, including "Fame is the Spur"
- Ancoats was also the setting for Isabella Banks' novel, "The Manchester Man".
- Ann Coates is a fictional singer credited with backing vocals on the 1986 single Bigmouth Strikes Again by The Smiths, also included on their album The Queen Is Dead.
[edit] Places of Interest
- The Band on the Wall music venue is located on Swan Street, Ancoats.
- The frog and Bucket comedy club is located at the junction of Oldham Street and Great Ancoats Street.
[edit] Notable residents
- John Henshaw - actor.
- Bernard Manning - controversial comedian.
[edit] References
[edit] External Links
- History of the Italian community in Ancoats
- Ancoats Urban Village Company
- The Ancoats Building Preservation Trust
- Ancoats Commumity Web Site
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