Withington

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Withington
Withington village centre viewed from Wilmslow Road
Withington shown within Greater Manchester
Area	2.7 sq mi (7 km²)
Population	14,134 (2001 Census)
- Density	5,218/sq mi (2,015/km²)
OS grid reference	SJ848929
- London	160 mi (256 km) SE
Metropolitan borough	City of Manchester
Metropolitan county	Greater Manchester
Region	North West
Constituent country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	MANCHESTER
Postcode district	M20
Dialling code	0161
Police	Greater Manchester
Fire	Greater Manchester
Ambulance	North West
European Parliament	North West England
UK Parliament	Manchester Withington
List of places: UK • England • Greater Manchester

Coordinates: 53°25′59″N 2°13′44″W / 53.433, -2.229

Withington is a suburban area of the City of Manchester, in North West England. It lies 4 miles (6.4 km) south of Manchester City Centre, about 0.4 miles (0.6 km) south of Fallowfield, 0.5 miles (0.8 km) north-east of Didsbury, and 1 mile (1.6 km) east of Chorlton-cum-Hardy, near the centre-to-south edges of the Greater Manchester Urban Area; in the Manchester Withington parliamentary constituency. Withington is a dormitory village consisting of a resident population slightly over 14,000 people.

In the early 13th century, Withington occupied a feudal estate that included the townships of Withington, Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Moss Side, Rusholme, Burnage, Denton and Haughton, ruled by the Hathersage, Longford and Tatton families,^[1] and within the historic county boundaries of Lancashire.^[2]

Withington was largely rural until the mid-nineteenth century, in which it experienced rapid socioeconomic development and urbanisation due to the Industrial Revolution, and Manchester's growing level of industrialisation. Introduced into the inner boundaries of Manchester in 1904,^[3][2] Withington was integrated into the city forty-five years after it gained city status.

Today, Withington comprises a mixture of families, university students and "young professionals" — often themselves former students.^[4] This is in a large part due to its education links—particularly the close proximity to the University of Manchester, which has the largest student population in the United Kingdom, and Manchester Metropolitan University. As a consequence, Withington is predominantly an area of mixed affluence. It is also a centre for clincal excellence with the one of the largest cancer treatment centres in Europe—Christie Hospital—and Withington Community Hospital.

Contents 1 History 2 Governance 3 Demography 4 Economy 5 Geography 6 Landmarks 7 Transport 8 Education 9 Sports 10 Notable people 11 See also 12 References 13 External links

[edit] History

See also: History of Manchester

The first recorded description of Withington dates from 1186, calling the area a willow-copse farmstead, and giving rise to the Anglo-Saxon name Wīðign-tūn, with withy meaning "willow branch used for bundling".^[5] In the early 13th century, the Manor of Withington covered a wide area including Withington, Didsbury, Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Moss Side, Rusholme, Burnage, Denton and Haughton. The first Lord of the Manor of Withington is thought to have been William, son of Wulfrith de Withington.^[6]

Withington was one of the townships of the ancient parish of Manchester in the Salford Hundred of Lancashire, and a sub-manor of the Manor of Manchester. In the 13th century, Robert Grelle (sometimes Grelley),^[7] Lord of the Manchester Manor, granted free warren in Withington to Matthew de Hathersage (or Haversage), son of William, in exchange for one knight's fee.^[6] Little is known of the Hathersage family, except that they descended to the Longford family, and are connected with the manors of Hathersage and Longford, both in Derbyshire.^[8] The lordship of Withington remained in the Hathersage/Longford family for over 300 years.^[8]

At the end of the 16th century, Nicholas Longford sold Withington to the Mosley's (originally Moseley), an influential and Anglo-Irish family of wool merchants who subsequently became wealthy landowners in Staffordshire.^[8] Nicholas Mosley later became Lord of the Manor of Manchester. Hough End Hall was built by Sir Nicholas Mosley in 1596 as the new Withington Manor–the original medieval manor was situated south-east of the modern junction of Mauldeth Road and Princess Road, which was surrounded by a moat. In 1750 it was demolished to make way for a farm building, but some of the moat was left. An 1845 Ordnance Survey map shows it as "Withington Old Hall", and it later came to be known as "Chorlton's Farm" or "Old Hall Farm". Today, the site is occupied by Eddisbury Avenue and no trace remains of the old manor.^[9] In the early 18th century, the Withington Manor was once again sold, this time to the Egertons of Tatton.^{[citation needed]}

Withington as town developed around Wilmslow Road, a Turnpike Road, administered by the Manchester to Wilmslow Turnpike Trust which was the only direct route between Manchester and Wilmslow at the time. Farming still dominated the area, although there is evidence in maps of a substantial cotton house on Cotton Lane, which later appears to become Withington Hall. Some historians dispute the cotton house as there is little record of it, and claim "Cotton Lane" comes from land in the area which was a co-township owned land by Withington, Didsbury and Burnage, a relic of the mediaeval open field system. This area was the old town centre however, showing some significance, although the only relic of this significance is the small flower display on the corner of Wilmslow Road and Cotton Lane.

The trade, and subsequent thoroughfare on Wilmslow Road, increased steadily as the city of Manchester flourished in the 1800s. The popularity of Turnpike roads subsequently became increasingly unpopular, and were abolised completely in 1881. Wilmslow Road as a Turnpike road would have been abolished as soon as 1861, had the Manchester to Wilmslow Turnpike Trust not agreed to build a new turnpike road to Northenden, named Palatine Road. Cheaper transport in and out of Manchester became an important factor in the growth of the area. In 1880 Withington built a tramway along Wilmslow Road and Palatine Road to meet the newly opened West Didsbury and Withington Railway Station, ran by Midland Railway. The horse trams ran until 1 December 1902 when the first electric trams came in to operation. The Withington and West Didsbury Station ran a service to Manchester Central Station until its closure in 1967.

Withington Parish Church was opened in 1841, and many other chapels and churches proliferated, including Methodist, Presbyterian and Roman Catholic. Withington has also been home to Spanish and Portuguese Sephardi Jews, with synagogues opening in the late 19th century.

A large aerodrome was built in 1917/18 on the westerly edge of Withington, to the southwest of the junction of Mauldeth Road and Princess Road, on what is now the site of Houghend Playing Fields. The official name was Alexandra Park Aerodrome, but it was also variously referred to as 'Withington' and 'Didsbury'. Closure came in autumn 1924 when Lord Egerton of Tatton would not agree to the site's continued use for flying. The large hangars were then demolished and Princess Road extended southwards through the eastern edge of the site.

On 28 April 1910, French pilot Louis Paulhan landed his Farman biplane in Barcicroft Fields, Pytha Fold Farm, on the borders of Withington, Burnage and Didsbury, at the end of the first powered flight from London to Manchester, with one short overnight stop at Lichfield. Paulhan beat the British contender, Claude Grahame-White, winning a £10,000 prize offered by the Daily Mail.^[10] Two special trains were chartered to Burnage Station to take spectators to the landing. Paulhan's progress was followed throughout by a special train carrying his wife, Henri Farman and his mechanics. A house in Paulhan Road, is marked by a blue plaque to commemorate his achievement.

[edit] Governance

Withington was anciently a township within the parish of Manchester and Hundred of Salford. Under the feudal system, Withington had been governed by its own court leet, and this tradition continued well into the 19th century.^{[citation needed]} The court used to meet at the Red Lion public house on Wilmslow Road until 1841.^{[citation needed]} Following the Public Health Act 1875, Withington Town Hall was built in 1881 on Lapwing Lane, which was originally built to house Withington Local Board of Health, then later resided by the Withington Urban District Council, under the Local Government Act 1894. In 1904, Withington formally became part of the City of Manchester.^[11][2]

Manchester Withington is a Parliamentary Constituency which encompasses Withington village, Chorlton-cum-Hardy and Didsbury (East and West). Manchester Withington became the first constituency in the City of Manchester since 1929 to elect a Liberal (Democrat) MP upon John Leech's gain in the 2005 General Election, when the constituency also experienced the largest swing of that election, taking the previously 11,524 majority Labour safe seat by 667 votes - a swing of 17%.^[12] This was possibly attributable to the constituency's large student population.^[13] The previous encumbent of the seat, Keith Bradley, had held the seat for Labour for 18 years; Lucy Powell was chosen as the successor candidate to Keith Bradley in March 2007,^[14] to try to regain the seat at the next general election.^[15] Historically, Withington was a much larger area than today. Since the district was absorbed into the City of Manchester in 1904, the three city wards of Didsbury, Fallowfield, and Withington took on their own identities and are now seen as distinct areas.

Today, the name Withington tends to refer to the areas roughly defined by the modern council wards of Withington and Old Moat, although fluctuating local government boundaries sometimes make these distinctions unclear.^{[citation needed]} Withington ward is currently represented on Manchester City Council by three Liberal Democrat councillors: Alison Firth, Audrey Jones (notable as the first Liberal Democrat Lord Mayor in Manchester) and Simon Wheale.

[edit] Demography

Withington compared[16][17]
UK Census 2001	Withington	Manchester	England
Total population	14,134	392,819	49,138,831
Foreign born	11%	10%	6%
Over 75 years old	5%	6%	8%
Unemployed	44%	9%	5%

According to the 2001 census

• White British - 74.13%
• White Irish - 5.05%
• White Other - 3.60%
• Mixed Race - 3.25%
• Black - 2.34%
• Asian - 9.76%
• Chinese or Other - 1.86%

[edit] Economy

See also: Economy of Manchester

[edit] Geography

Further information: Geography of Greater Manchester

Neighbouring towns, villages and places.

North-West: Whalley Range North: Fallowfield North-East: Fallowfield West: Chorlton-cum-Hardy Withington East: Burnage South-West: West Didsbury, Northenden South: Didsbury South-East: Heaton Mersey

At °′″N, °′″W (53.433, -2.229), Withington is located immediately below the midpoint of the Greater Manchester Urban Area, 4 miles (6.4 km) south of Manchester City Centre.

[edit] Landmarks

Withington today retains some grade II listed buildings, including

• Hough End Hall (1596), Nell Lane, Chorlton-cum-Hardy - Withington Manor
• the Red Lion Inn (17th century)
• Manchester and County Bank (1890), Wilmslow Road - now a National Westminster Bank
• St Paul's Parish Church, Wilmslow Road (1841)
• The White Lion Public House, Wilmslow Road (1841)
• The Victoria public house.

Other places of historical interest in Withington include:

• Christie Hospital - founded in 1892, the hospital moved to Withington in 1932. It is one of the largest cancer research and treatment centres in Europe. Christie's pioneered the therapeutic use of X-Rays in 1901, and in 1944 the world's first clinical drug trial was carried out here.

• The Scala Cinema (1912), Wilmslow Road - this was the oldest cinema in Manchester. Later renamed Cine City, it is now demolished and the site is awaiting redevelopment.
• The Water Trough (1876), now on Copson Street - a stone drinking trough for horses, inscribed with an Old Testament passage: "that ye may drink, both ye and your cattle, and your beasts." (II Kings III:17).
• The Old Forge, Wilmslow Road (1881) - now private flats
• Milestone, Wilmslow Road - outside the fire station, inscribed "8¼ miles to Wilmslow / 4 miles to Manchester to centre of St. Anns"
• Withington Library (1927), Wilmslow Road, designed by Henry Price
• Withington Methodist Church, Wilmslow Road (1865)
• St Cuthbert's Roman Catholic Church, Wilmslow Road (1881)

[edit] Transport

See also: Transport in Manchester

The village does not have a named or direct railway station—instead it has rail links on the eastern edges, served by Mauldeth Road railway station. However, the village does have excellent bus links into the Manchester City Centre because of its position on the Oxford Road corridor which is served by buses very frequently, and has been said by some analysts, to be the busiest in Europe.^[18] Under the Metrolink plans for expansion, a tram line following the former train-track from Chorlton-cum-Hardy to Stockport was due to run though the south end of Withington (near the West Didsbury border)^[19] however these plans have been shelved, for the time being at least. It is thought they were rejected by the government due to escalating costs.^[20] New plans were drawn up in 2007, with at least some of the money required for the construction of the line planned to come from the proposed Manchester Congestion Charge,^[21] which was initially not expected to be put into operation until 2010,^[22] but this has been delayed further, possibly to 2012.

[edit] Education

Further information: List of schools in Greater Manchester

Withington Girls' School was established in 1890 and provides private education for girls aged 7 to 18. Notable alumni include Judith Chalmers and Amrita Mishra.

In the 1930s, the Manchester Grammar School moved to new premises in Fallowfield, from its original position near the site of the present Manchester Cathedral. Although seen to be in Fallowfield, its location could be argued to be within the boundaries of the Withington locality. The school has been attended by actors such as Sir Ben Kingsley and Robert Powell, cricketer Michael Atherton, and writer and broadcaster Martin Sixsmith.

Withington is served by the following local primary schools:

• Ladybarn Primary School
• St Cuthbert's Roman Catholic Primary School
• St Paul's Church Of England Primary School
• Mauldeth Road County Primary School
• St Kentigern's Roman Catholic Primary School, Fallowfield
• Old Moat School Withington

[edit] Sports

See also: List of football clubs in England

[edit] Notable people

Withington is one of the few areas in the City of Manchester where its most notable residents are thought to have been a result of the city's main industries.^[23] Academy Award-winning actor Robert Donat, was born in Withington in 1905, making his most acclaimed starring in the 1939 film, Goodbye, Mr. Chips. Dame Kathleen Ollerenshaw who was a Conservative councillor for Rusholme for 26 years and a post-graduate of the University of Oxford, was born here in 1912.^[24] Ernest Rutherford, who pioneered the orbital theory of the atom through his discovery of Rutherford scattering off the nucleus with his gold foil experiment, once lived in the village between 1898–1910.^[24] Richard Madeley and his wife, Judy Finnigan, once lived on Old Broadway during the 1990s.^[24] Actor John Mahoney, who became known for his role in Frasier, lived here until 1959.

[edit] See also

• Grade II* listed buildings in Greater Manchester
• Manchester (ancient parish)

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Withington Ward Councillors

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