Now I am looking at two pictures of Park Brow Farm which was doing the business of growing food from before the start of the 19th century.
And what makes the two pictures all the more remarkable is that I know one of the sons of the last farmer.
He is Oliver Bailey and his family ran the farm from sometime after 1911 and before that had been on Chorlton Row from the 1760s.*
Over the years Oliver has made available a whole heap of family documents from the contract his ancestor signed with the Egerton’s back in the middle of the 18th century to receipts for night soil from the 1850s, house and farm inventories and lots more.
Added to which he was able to describe in some detail the inside of Hough End Hall before it was much knocked about by a succession of developers in the late 1960s.
And his memories have also opened up the story of Park Brow Farm before it too was developed with that small group of houses to the west of the farm house and the barn conversion.
So I shall start with the farm yard and this photograph from 1938.
Oliver tells me that one of the young lads is his brother and the building behind them with the tall chimney was “used for boiling up p food bought from the UCP,” while the two elephants Mr Bailey hosted when the travelling circus arrived were watered from the wooden pump directly in front of the building.
And given that this was the farm yard, the two downstairs rooms of the building to our left were the kitchen and office, with the living room and dining room facing south onto the garden which backed on to Sandy Lane.
Now I could go on but think I will save the rest for another day, which will include more pictures of the front of the farm house, something on the certificates the farm won and a piece of garden furniture which links the farm to the old Assize Courts in town.
Those intrigued by the idea of hosting two elephants can read the story on blog which will also offer up some fine pictures of the Bailey bulls on the land where Adastral House now stands and can summon up in their imagination an image of the young Oliver driving live stock through Chorlton back to Park Brow from the railway station.
All of which just leaves me to ponder on how rural is the scene of the farm house when this picture was taken in the summer of 1940.
Location; Park Brow Farm, Chorlton-cum-Hardy
Pictures, the farm yard, 1938, m17381, and the farmhouse looking north, 1940, m17388, courtesy of Manchester Libraries, Information and Archives, Manchester City Council, http://images.manchester.gov.uk/index.php?session=pass
*Chorlton Row is now Beech Road
He is Oliver Bailey and his family ran the farm from sometime after 1911 and before that had been on Chorlton Row from the 1760s.*
Over the years Oliver has made available a whole heap of family documents from the contract his ancestor signed with the Egerton’s back in the middle of the 18th century to receipts for night soil from the 1850s, house and farm inventories and lots more.
Added to which he was able to describe in some detail the inside of Hough End Hall before it was much knocked about by a succession of developers in the late 1960s.
So I shall start with the farm yard and this photograph from 1938.
Oliver tells me that one of the young lads is his brother and the building behind them with the tall chimney was “used for boiling up p food bought from the UCP,” while the two elephants Mr Bailey hosted when the travelling circus arrived were watered from the wooden pump directly in front of the building.
And given that this was the farm yard, the two downstairs rooms of the building to our left were the kitchen and office, with the living room and dining room facing south onto the garden which backed on to Sandy Lane.
Those intrigued by the idea of hosting two elephants can read the story on blog which will also offer up some fine pictures of the Bailey bulls on the land where Adastral House now stands and can summon up in their imagination an image of the young Oliver driving live stock through Chorlton back to Park Brow from the railway station.
All of which just leaves me to ponder on how rural is the scene of the farm house when this picture was taken in the summer of 1940.
Location; Park Brow Farm, Chorlton-cum-Hardy
Pictures, the farm yard, 1938, m17381, and the farmhouse looking north, 1940, m17388, courtesy of Manchester Libraries, Information and Archives, Manchester City Council, http://images.manchester.gov.uk/index.php?session=pass
*Chorlton Row is now Beech Road
This is how I remember the farm. I was taken to see ‘the pigs’ as a child although we could smell them when the wind was in the right direction and in turn ai took my own children to see them, quite a treat! We bought eggs from Dora Bailey, Oliver’s mother, and Mr and Mrs Bailey came to my wedding. I think I gave you a photo of her at my wedding in 1961.
ReplyDeleteI knew where it was as soon as I saw the photo. My Mum used to buy eggs from the farm and was often served by Susan(?) Artley who I think was married to a son of Leonard Bailey. I recall they had standard poodles in the house. In later years I was in the same class as Richard Artley, Susan's son, and knew his younger brother Malcolm. Sadly Richard died at around the age of 50, outlived by his Mum. And the smell of the pigs was memorable! I have a vague memory of being invited to a garden party at the house when I was about 5 around 1968.
ReplyDeleteSusan was leonard baileys daughter her older sister was callled Linde. Their brother Robert ran the farm. There were two younger brothers Oliver and Francis. Leonard Bailey had an ovary with peacocks and other unusal birds. The farm labourer was Frank Cappa. The Baileys sold rest corn from Kellogs to other farmers in Cheshire. I spent many hours of my childhood on the farm with Bob Bailey. This was in the 1940 -1950s. I have lived Norway since 1960. Philip Bevan Hayes
DeleteI can also remember the pigs at Bailey's Farm, especially the smell. I visited several times with my mother for meetings of the Most Side Baptist Hockey Club, which Mrs Bailey hosted, and my mother was a very active member. This would be early 60's.
ReplyDeleteWhen Manchester United won the FA Cup in 1963 there was an invitation for Alderman and Lady Bailey to attend the reception at the Town Hall the day after the final. As Alderman Bailey's interest in football was slightly less than zero he gave the invitation to my father and we both went as Alderman and Lady Bailey. The man on the entance to the town hall looked at the invitation,looked at my father and I (almost 13) and waved us both in. Obviously not the first time that this had happened. I was on the back page of the Manchester Evening News Special FA Cup Edition on the Monday with my hand on the Cup. Proud moment!
ReplyDeleteRemember the tractor driver Mike, used to drink in the southern hotel.
ReplyDeleteI knew Mike who worked on the farm, he lived in houghend ave about 4 houses from us
ReplyDeleteThank you Philip ...... Oliver was a great help when l wrote my first book on Chorlton.
ReplyDelete