On the start of all things Didsbury .......... the pubs and hotels

Now if  I was a member of the Friends of the Kingsway, I might be a bit miffed at the way its contribution to Didsbury is pretty much over looked.

The Gateway, 1959

And that is a shame because it is the great highway out of the city through Burnage to Parrs Wood and beyond.

It was completed in 1923, with plans to extend it to the city boundary in the 1930 Manchester Road Plan, and eight years later work began to extend it over the River Mersey to the Stockport-Altrincham road at Gatley.**

But such an important development gets scant attention in the two history books of Didsbury, with one offering up just nine references, of which only one stretched to a sentence.***

Added to which, neither mentions those two fine examples of 1930s pubs.

These are the Gateway whose license was approved in 1935, and the Parrs Wood Hotel which pipped it by five years.

The Parrs Wood Hoet, 1959

Now I can understand why, because when Mr Million, Mr France and Mr Woodall undertook their books, both pubs were mere interlopers, which couldn’t compare to the historic and iconic public houses in the village.

That said the Gateway and the Parrs Wood should be celebrated as part of Didsbury’s history.

And to rectify that over sight they will appear in the first chapter of our new book, Manchester Pubs – The Stories Behind the Doors Didsbury, which is the third in the series, after the pubs of the City Centre and Chorlton-cum-Hardy.****

Like all our books, this one will include stories of each pub, original Peter paintings, and heaps more, all laid out as a series of walks.

Leaving me just to make that appeal for pictures, memories or memorabilia, details of which you can leave as a comment on the blog or a message via facebook or twitter

Pictures;The Gateway 1959, M42721, & The Parrs Wood Hotel, 1959, m50211, J. F. Harrs, courtesy of Manchester Libraries, Information and Archives, Manchester City Council, http://images.manchester.gov.uk/index.php?session=pass

*New Roads For Manchester, Nine Schemes Approved, Manchester Guardian March 19, 1930

**Extension of Kingsway, Manchester Guardian, October 14, 1938

***A History of Didsbury, Ivor R. Million, 1969, A New History of Didsbury, E. France & T.F. Woodall, 1976

****  Manchester Pubs- The Stories Behind the Doors, Centre Centre and Manchester Pubs- The Stories Behind the Doors, Chorlton-cum-Hardy are available from www.pubbooks.co.uk and Chorlton Bookshop