Having photographed the arterial roads of Manchester in 2014, I have resolved to return to the task in 2024.
Some things seem to have changed, some things seem to have stayed the same.
Manchester Arterial 2024 – A664
Pleasant Street Harpurhey – Manchester
Pleasant Street Harpurhey M9 5XZ
Walking along Rochdale Road yesterday, I was suddenly arrested by the Pleasant Street street sign.
Having already been suddenly arrested last week, by the Bland Close street sign.
With my expectations defined by the above definition, I ventured along the street in search of happy satisfaction.
Coincidentally – The 18th century entrepreneur Josiah Wedgwood pioneered many of the marketing strategies used today, including the satisfaction or you money back guarantee, on the entire range of his pottery products. The money-back guarantee was also a major tool of early US mail order sales pioneers in the United States such as Richard Sears and Powel Crosley Jr. to win the confidence of consumers.
It is also a top tune by Harold Melvin and the Bluenotes!
In 1958 the street looked just like this:
Photo – L Kaye
Whilst ten tears later it looked just like this:
Photos – LH Price
Manchester Local Image Collection
However at someone between 1968 and 2024 the housing had been cleared away – also missing in action is the Golden Lion pub adjoining Pleasant Street on Rochdale Road.
The Golden Lion was a proper old pub on the very busy rochdale road in the Harpurhey area of Manchester. Once inside there was a decent lounge and a basic bar i had a drink in the lounge and this was quite a comfy room.
This pub was a Whitbread tied house and there were two real ales on the bar I had a drink of Chesters bitter and this was a nice drink the other beer was Chesters mild. I thought this was quite a nice pub but sadly this pub has now been pulled down in the name of progress.
Alan Winfield – 1992
So here we are here today – yesterday has long gone and tomorrow never knows no how.
What’s left to see?
Manchester Hand Car Wash
Manchester Tyres
Pleasant Street Allotments
The allotments have had issues with fly tipping back in 2021.
There is now a lockable barrier in place on the cobbled cul-de-sac.
Photo – Howard Bristol
It is understood that the heaps of rubbish, including bin bags full of waste and unwanted wood and cardboard, have been growing in recent weeks.
Howard Bristol, the Secretary of the Pleasant Street allotments committee, said the situation has been ongoing for some time but has worsened since the removal of nearby CCTV cameras.
He told the Evening News that the road has been – piling high with rubbish, and that the area also had issues with the woodland behind the allotments being used for drug dealing during summer.
Pat Karney, councillor for Harpurhey tweeted about the flytipping on Sunday, calling it – unbelievable and disgraceful.
He added that those responsible should be – locked up in Strangeways for a long time, before adding that the council will – get it cleared.
How pleasant is/was Pleasant Street?
Google says wait until there are trees are in leaf and the sun shines in the bright blue sky.
Eastford Square Collyhurst – William Mitchell
It was 2016 when I first stopped to snap and blog – the shops, homes and William Mitchell concrete sculpture.
By then the missing housing block was already missing.
Returning in 2018 the shops are now shut and the homes stand empty.
In 2019 there’s still nobody home, but the totem is in place.
In 2020 the undergrowth has grown over the square.
It’s 2021 and stasis is the order of the day.
Fast forward to 2023 and the shops and homes are finally demolished – the totem still still in place.
The base has been dug out and the sculpture awaits removal to the adjacent flats.
I was told that one estimate for the job was £120,000 – given its weight and location over railway tunnels.
So as of today today 26th February 2024 – ain’t nothing shaking but the weeds twixt the flags.
Oldham Road Pubs – Manchester
This is Oldham Road Manchester – this also Memory Lane.
Walking from the city centre to Failsworth I noted the absence of public houses, some long since demolished, some now serving other purposes – very few open selling beer.
Many of the breweries no longer trading.
Much of this the consequence of changing economic circumstances, the decline in manufacturing and subsequent serious absence in regular drinkers.
I encountered a similar situation on Hyde Road.
Where possible I have linked back to Pubs of Manchester Blogspot and the Brewery History Society.
There may well be errors and omissions which I am happy to correct – have a look let me know.
Bee Hive Inn – Chesters Brewery
Bird In Hand – latterly Ace of Diamonds on the 2nd April 2010 the Ace of Diamonds burnt down.
Birmingham Tavern – Wilsons Brewery
City Arms – Groves and Whitnalls
Cloggers Arms – Wilsons
The Copenhagen – Wilsons
Crown & Kettle – Wilsons though now a free house.
I do remember the huge Winston Churchill relief in the Room and R100 Airship wooden panelling in the lounge. Also of note were the ornate plater work ceilings and pendulous lighting, much damaged as the pub awaited restoration.
Duke of York – Wilsons Free House
Foresters Arms – Wilsons
Old Pack Horse – Wilsons
Royal Oak Hotel – Wilsons
The Swan – Wilsons
Three Crowns – Wilsons
The Victoria – Wilsons
Wosons House?
Woodman Hotel – Wilsons
All photographs from the Manchester Local Image Collection.
Bland Close And Brown Street – Failsworth
What’s in a name?
Is there such a thing as nominative determinism when it comes to streets?
The naming of Bland Close as Bland Close seems to me to be an act of municipal cruelty, compounded by the addition of the adjoining Brown Street.
Having previously visited Blank Street in Ancoats I was eager to find out.
Statistically there are no anomalous details, which indicates any discernible difference between the streets and the surrounding area.
On a February morning the streets were well behaved and consisted of a typical mix of nineteenth century terraces and postwar semis, the residents chatty and welcoming, whilst they went about their business.
There are different causes that can make a street name controversial:
- A person, organisation or event who or which was once honoured with a street name is subsequently thought to not or no longer deserve one, for example because that person later turned out to be a criminal.
- A group of street names – for example in a residential area, is deemed to be unrepresentative for the population of that place, region or country because some demographics are overrepresented and others underrepresented, for example, because a disproportionate number of streets are named after men, and few after women.
Research has found that if you live on Pear Tree Lane your property is more likely to attract potential buyers and a higher price, than those living in a similar property on Crotch Lane.
What are the guidelines for street naming?
- The exclusion or inclusion of certain numbers for cultural or religious reasons
- The use of building names without numbers
- New building or street names should not begin with The
- The use of street names which include numbers that can confuse, for example – 20 Seven Foot Lane sounds the same as 27 Foot Lane
- The use of the names of deceased people in the adoption of any street names. The reason for choosing a person’s name should be established in the council’s policy
- The use of the name of a living person – it’s not recommended
- The adoption of historic connotations by developers – guidance on this should be provided by the council to all developers through close liaison with local historic societies.
- The use of national or local historic figures or events
- The use of a name with Royal connotations – the Lord Chamberlain’s office must be contacted if a name has any reference to the Royal family or if the word ‘Royal’ is suggested.
- The use of names and their combination with numbers that could be considered rude, obscene, and racist or contravene any aspect of the council’s equal opportunities policies
- The use of names and their combination with numbers that could be easily vandalised or changed into any of the above, for example – Canal Turn
- The use of names that can cause spelling or pronunciation problems
- The use of names that can be construed to be used for advertising or commercial gain
- The use of names would lead to variations in the use of punctuation as these can confuse or result in early demands for a change of address from occupiers.
So in summary the name Bland does not in my opinion represent the close’s appearance and may in fact detract from the value of the property and possibly the perception of the area.
Let’s take a look – see what you think.
A Short Walk Along The Weaver
Along with my almost lifelong friend Mr Tim Rushton – I took a trip along a short stretch of the River Weaver, walking from east to west.
River Weaver – rising on the boundary between the counties of Shropshire and Cheshire and then flowing 45 miles north to reach the Irish Sea estuary of the River Mersey to the west of Runcorn.
Below Winsford, the course of the river has been altered several times, by the construction of cuts and locks, to enable small ships to trade on it. The river formerly joined the River Mersey at Weston Marsh, but since the construction of the Manchester Ship Canal, begun in 1887, it has flowed into the canal, from where surplus water enters the Mersey by the Weaver sluices, just upstream of the junction. The tidal river section below Frodsham has been bypassed by the Weston Canal since 1810 and is no longer navigable, as Frodsham Lock is derelict.
Railway viaduct over River Weaver and adjoining land by A Rendel Engineer and Thomas Brassey, contractor 1848-1850 – for Birkenhead Lancs & Cheshire Junction Railway Co.
Red sandstone, brown brick and cast iron, two segmental-arched iron spans of circa thirty metres over river; two round arches on west bank and twenty one on east bank. Piers to iron spans are rusticated tooled ashlar; the other spans have rusticated voussoirs, pier faces and quoins and rock-faced spandrels with brick reveals, cornice to iron-span piers, plainer imposts to others.
Top of central pier to river modified to take mid C20 concrete track bed.
Weaver Viaduct is one of the outstanding features of M56 and its design was approved by the Royal Fine Arts Commission. The three-quarter mile of elevated motorway and approach embankments over the River Weaver and Weaver Navigation Canal opened on 21 February 1971.
Design was by Husband and Co of Sheffield – acting for Department of Environment, who also supervised the project. The contractor was Christiani Shand with a tender price of £3,146,387 in March 1968.
Work began in April 1968 – the eventual cost was put at £3.5 million.
Thirty two 125-foot concrete 100-tonne beams were put into place in July 1970; the concrete beams were made by Matthews & Mumby of Windmill Lane Denton.
High-Voltage Frodsham Substation – Rock Savage power station
Rock Savage Power Station is an 800 MWe gas-fired power station.
It was opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 31 July 1998, and owned by InterGen, a company that is now jointly owned by Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and China Huaneng Group, it cost £375m.
It sponsors the Runcorn Jets baseball club, the Highfield Male Voice Choir and the Weston Angling Club.
The name comes from the nearby ruined Elizabethan mansion – Rocksavage.
Koura Global – leader in the development, manufacture, and supply of fluoro products and technologies, opened a new HFA 152a production facility at their Runcorn site in the UK.
Chiesi, the international research-focused pharmaceuticals and healthcare group, signed a commercial agreement to use the new low carbon footprint medical propellant for inhalation product development and clinical trials in 2019.
Britain from Above 1948
Ineos Chemical Complex formerly ICI Rocksavage Works on the banks of the River Mersey River Weaver and Manchester Ship Canal in Runcorn formerly ICI works of Rocksavage and Castner Kelner Works which produced fluorcarbons such as aerosol propellants dry cleaning solvents and chlorine UK January 2007
Frodsham Wind Farm is one of England’s largest onshore generating stations, and the largest in the Cheshire region, with an installed capacity of more than 50 MW. Construction of the wind farm began in March 2015 and became fully operational in February 2017.
Tapton Hall – Sheffield
Shore Lane Sheffield S10 3BU
The Masonic Hall has an extension of 1967 by Hadfield Cawkson Davidson & Partners
The Masonic Hall has an extension of 1967 has a concrete mural by William Mitchell.
Symbolising the turmoil and chaos of the outside world, contrasting with the order of the Masonic Temple – a Freemason told me so.
I thought to propose the idea that this may well be a false dichotomy – then thought I’d better not.
These are the constituent panels.
These are the details.
Having been asked to speak to the Sheffield University Alumni Women’s Group – on the subject of Modernist Sheffield, I had easy access to the interior space.
I was ever so excited to discover these decorative panels on the stairway – I assume that they are also the work of William Mitchell.
Nobody knew.
The Masonic Hall is now a venue in addition to being a Masonic Hall.
It was once the home of steel magnate Edward Vickers.
Vickers was a successful miller who invested his money in the railway industry. In 1828 he garnered control of his father-in-law’s steel foundry business, formerly Naylor & Sanderson, and renamed it Naylor Vickers & Co. He went on to be Alderman and the Mayor of Sheffield and was the first President of the Sheffield Chamber of Commerce before he died in 1897.
Bury Unitarian Church
1 Bank Street Bury Lancashire BL9 0DN
The new Bury Unitarian Church was designed and constructed by local architects James T Ratcliffe.
An interesting article was published at the time in Sacred Suburbs Portfolio, in which the church design was described as:
A well detailed, functional, yet flexible building.
The church was opened in 1974, with a service of dedication on Saturday, 9th March. The total cost, including furnishings, was £85,000 – It is now valued at about £1.5 million. The Churchwarden and Chairman of Trustees, at that time, was Bernard Haughton, who had succeeded Alex Rogers; he was to serve the Church in those capacities for the next 25 years. He was succeeded by Barbara Ashworth, our immediate past Warden. During this time, notwithstanding persistent problems with water leakage through its flat roof, the church continued to thrive and develop.
Enhancements have been made to improve the comfort and amenities of the building throughout the period with, for example, the installation of an improved heating – system, a sound – enhancement system in the church, and disabled access facilities including a lift to the upper floor. Through the efforts of Barbara Ashworth – past Church Warden, the proliferation of bequests, legacies and trusts which were complicating and restricting church-finances has been rationalised and the financial structure streamlined. Part of the land at Holebottom has been sold for development, and part has been upgraded as a public amenity.
The current congregation is still one of the best supported Unitarian Churches in the country and remains enthusiastic and committed to the Unitarian faith. There are many social groups including The Women’s League, The Men’s Fellowship, The Luncheon Club the Book Club and most recently, our Camera Club; coffee is served every Saturday morning – a session which welcomes members of the public to the church, some of whom have subsequently become church-members. Frequent social activities are organised by The Efforts Committee and are well-supported by the congregation and their friends and raise money in support of the activities of the church snd local charities.
The People Praising by Elizabeth Mulchinock is a 12 foot high original sculpture at the front of the church which represents the family of the church.
Bury Interchange
Bury Interchange is a transport hub opened in 1980, it is the northern terminus of the Manchester Metrolink’s Bury Line, which prior to 1992 was a heavy-rail line.
It also incorporates a bus station.
Bury Interchange replaced the bus termini scattered around Bury town centre, notably around Kay Gardens.
Under construction – January 1979
1980 – before the trams.
Class 504 units at the interchange in 1983.
2015 – Allen Williams
Bury Interchange was opened by British Rail in March 1980, integrating a new bus station with the northern terminus of the Bury-to-Manchester heavy railway line, a new short spur line was constructed to connect the new station.
Bury Bolton Street – Ben Brooksbank
The railway had originally run into Bury Bolton Street which was further away from the town centre, and was closed by British Rail on the same day that Bury Interchange opened.
An £80m transformation is coming to the Bury Interchange, which will see step-free access at the Metrolink, a “vertical circulation core” to better connect the Metrolink with the bus facility, and an integrated travel hub with spaces for cycle storage.
The work is much-needed, explained Transport for Greater Manchester’s Alan Lowe, he said that the interchange was built in the 1980s and very much is of its time.
It’s not what we need for our customers need.
The new Bury Interchange project is expected to complete at the end of the decade.
However as of February 2024 – it look like this.
Bury Bolton Street is now operated by the East Lancs Railway.
There are failed plans to reinstate the Bury to Rochdale railway as a Metrolink line.
Bury Knowsley Street railway station.
The line and station were closed on 5 October 1970 as part of continuing cutbacks in British Rail services and the line west to Bolton subsequently dismantled.
Modern Mooch 