Now the interested student of history and the visiting tourist will at some point fall on Little Nelson Street.
It’s just yards from Angel Meadow and of course is dominated by the Charter Street Ragged School both of which have been explored extensively and by much better people than me.*
And any way as this is the story of those streets which have been forgotten or lost I will stick with Little Nelson Street, starting with Antony’s picture which captures perfectly the length and width of the street.
The open ground opposite the school was once home to six properties stretching from what was then Charter Street to Ashley Lane and also included the even narrower Holden Street and further eighteen houses some of which were back to back and most consisted of just two rooms.
Added to this Holden Street also gave access to four enclosed courts. Sadly so far none of the residents of any of these small streets have come to light. They were unworthy of inclusion in the street directories and the census records for 1851 were so damaged that there is little to see.
Which is all the more galling given that underneath our building which was constructed in the 1860s was Bone Street with its six back to back homes. It survived into the late 19th century but was lost when the Ragged school was extended in 1900.
Its entrance will have been roughly where the two blue painted doors are positioned. Judging by the maps it will have been even narrower than Little Nelson Street and I doubt that much air or light penetrated to lift the gloom.
Its neighbour Holden Street also fared no better. First it lost its name becoming just an extension of Bone Street sometime after 1893 and disappearing completely along with all the properties running back from the south side of Little Nelson Street down to Mincing Street in the mid 20th century.
I can’t be sure when that happened by 1958 the spot was cleared and already a car park.
We might still be lucky and come across some records of the area.
Only yesterday I was looking at the rate book entries for Charter Street in the 1850s as well as the census returns for the same streets comparing them with the returns for 1911.
All of which means that the secrets of Little Nelson Street, Bone Street and Holden Street will soone be revealed.
Location; Angel Meadow
Pictures; Little Nelson Street, 2016, from the collection of Antony Mills, and in 1964, Kay, 01391, 01389, courtesy of Manchester Libraries, Information and Archives, Manchester City Council, http://images.manchester.gov.uk/index.php?session=pass and Little Nelson Street in 1885 from Adshead’s map of Manchester, courtesy of Digital Archives Association, http://digitalarchives.co.uk/
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| Little Nelson Street, 2016 |
And any way as this is the story of those streets which have been forgotten or lost I will stick with Little Nelson Street, starting with Antony’s picture which captures perfectly the length and width of the street.
The open ground opposite the school was once home to six properties stretching from what was then Charter Street to Ashley Lane and also included the even narrower Holden Street and further eighteen houses some of which were back to back and most consisted of just two rooms.
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| Little Nelson Street, 1851 |
Which is all the more galling given that underneath our building which was constructed in the 1860s was Bone Street with its six back to back homes. It survived into the late 19th century but was lost when the Ragged school was extended in 1900.
 |
| Little Nelson Street, 1964 |
Its neighbour Holden Street also fared no better. First it lost its name becoming just an extension of Bone Street sometime after 1893 and disappearing completely along with all the properties running back from the south side of Little Nelson Street down to Mincing Street in the mid 20th century.
I can’t be sure when that happened by 1958 the spot was cleared and already a car park.
 |
| Houlden Street/Bone Street, on the right, 1964 |
Only yesterday I was looking at the rate book entries for Charter Street in the 1850s as well as the census returns for the same streets comparing them with the returns for 1911.
All of which means that the secrets of Little Nelson Street, Bone Street and Holden Street will soone be revealed.
Location; Angel Meadow
Pictures; Little Nelson Street, 2016, from the collection of Antony Mills, and in 1964, Kay, 01391, 01389, courtesy of Manchester Libraries, Information and Archives, Manchester City Council, http://images.manchester.gov.uk/index.php?session=pass and Little Nelson Street in 1885 from Adshead’s map of Manchester, courtesy of Digital Archives Association, http://digitalarchives.co.uk/
My great great grandparents lived at 5 Little Nelson Street in 1882.The address is listed as being their home on the record for the christening of their daughter.
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