Now yesterday I explored the story of Stockport’s Cattle Market, which I found quite by chance on the 1906 OS map of Cheshire.*
It stood in a pocket of land bordered on one side by Great Portwood Street, and the River Goyt and backed on to the Gas Works.
Today is the retail park, which includes Matalan, Boots, Next and plenty of other High Street names.
But as for the cattle market I found nothing to tell me when it was opened, and when it closed.
Leaving me just to make the appeal, and within hours Bill Sumner came up with the deal.
The area according to one source had been a reservoir with the original cattle market had been sited on Castle Yard which had attracted the interest of the both the Romans and the Normans, both of whom added fortifications to the site.
In the 18th century Sir George Warren as lord of the manor levelled the land and built a circular brick turret, which was later demolished when the land was lowered in 1853 for the cattle market.**
This when it became unfit for purpose led to the move in 1879 to the Portwood site.
Bill also sent over four aerial pictures dating from the 1920s, into the 1940s, which add to the story.
And never one to lift other people’s research, here are the images along with what Bill wrote.***
"This first one shows a mill to the right of St Mary's Church with its chimney hiding Millgate Bridge, the Cattle Market is the open ground on the other side of the river marked with a pink flag, there is a suggestion of some low buildings but the photo fades out.
This is a blow up from Britain from Above -1927 St Mary's Church and the Unicorn Brewery Stockport 1927 EPW 019110.
This one shows St Mary's Church with the Stockport Electric Works (four chimneys) and the now enlarged Mill (1931) looking over the Cattle Market (flagged Pink) to the Gas Works.
Image the Stockport Viaduct and the Town Stockport 1931 EPW036820 England(1931).
I know this area now as the multi-unit shopping area next to Stockport's Asda.
It is now 1946 and the Portwood Gas Works has spread over the entire site with a cooling tower where the Cattle Market used to be and a much-enlarged power station with huge single chimney obscuring St Mary's Church.
Image EAW002109 England(1946) Portwood Gas Works and Environs Stockport 1946.
This view shows St Mary's bottom right with the famous steps (Lowry?) leading down to the Power Station which has taken over that mill completely.
The black objects next to the grey concrete cooling tower are wooden cooling towers with the gas works behind.
Image EAW 002115 ENGLAND (1946) Portwood Gas Works and environs Stockport 1946".
To which, Dave from Marple has added, "I worked for Northwest Gas at the Portwood site from 1975 till the late 80s when the new development took place.
The site of the cattle market had up until the early 80s been occupied by Norweb, the electricity supply company. I have always known it was the site of an earlier cattle market as I recall there being a sign on one of the gates into the site identifying that it had been the site of a cattle market".
Research; Bill Sumner, with a contribution from Dave from Marple.
Pictures; The Cattle Market site, 1927,-1946, 1927 EPW 019110, 1931 EPW036820. 1946 EAW002109, 1946, EAW 002115, and in 1906, from the OS map of Cheshire, 1906, courtesy of Digital Archives Association, http://digitalarchives.co.uk/
*On discovering Stockport’s own Cattle Market, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/2020/06/on-discovering-stockports-own-cattle.html
**Stockport A Pictorial History, Roy West, 2009, & 2013
***Britain From Above, https://britainfromabove.org.uk/
 |
| 1906 |
It stood in a pocket of land bordered on one side by Great Portwood Street, and the River Goyt and backed on to the Gas Works.
Today is the retail park, which includes Matalan, Boots, Next and plenty of other High Street names.
But as for the cattle market I found nothing to tell me when it was opened, and when it closed.
Leaving me just to make the appeal, and within hours Bill Sumner came up with the deal.
The area according to one source had been a reservoir with the original cattle market had been sited on Castle Yard which had attracted the interest of the both the Romans and the Normans, both of whom added fortifications to the site.
In the 18th century Sir George Warren as lord of the manor levelled the land and built a circular brick turret, which was later demolished when the land was lowered in 1853 for the cattle market.**
This when it became unfit for purpose led to the move in 1879 to the Portwood site.
Bill also sent over four aerial pictures dating from the 1920s, into the 1940s, which add to the story.
And never one to lift other people’s research, here are the images along with what Bill wrote.***
 |
| 1927 |
This is a blow up from Britain from Above -1927 St Mary's Church and the Unicorn Brewery Stockport 1927 EPW 019110.
 |
| 1931 |
Image the Stockport Viaduct and the Town Stockport 1931 EPW036820 England(1931).
I know this area now as the multi-unit shopping area next to Stockport's Asda.
 |
| 1946 |
Image EAW002109 England(1946) Portwood Gas Works and Environs Stockport 1946.
 |
| 1946 |
The black objects next to the grey concrete cooling tower are wooden cooling towers with the gas works behind.
Image EAW 002115 ENGLAND (1946) Portwood Gas Works and environs Stockport 1946".
To which, Dave from Marple has added, "I worked for Northwest Gas at the Portwood site from 1975 till the late 80s when the new development took place.
The site of the cattle market had up until the early 80s been occupied by Norweb, the electricity supply company. I have always known it was the site of an earlier cattle market as I recall there being a sign on one of the gates into the site identifying that it had been the site of a cattle market".
Research; Bill Sumner, with a contribution from Dave from Marple.
Pictures; The Cattle Market site, 1927,-1946, 1927 EPW 019110, 1931 EPW036820. 1946 EAW002109, 1946, EAW 002115, and in 1906, from the OS map of Cheshire, 1906, courtesy of Digital Archives Association, http://digitalarchives.co.uk/
*On discovering Stockport’s own Cattle Market, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/2020/06/on-discovering-stockports-own-cattle.html
**Stockport A Pictorial History, Roy West, 2009, & 2013
***Britain From Above, https://britainfromabove.org.uk/
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