Neglected and forgotten ……. the men from St Andrew’s in Ancoats

I am profoundly saddened at the fate of the war memorial to the 70 men of St Andrew’s

Church in Ancoats, which is in a sorry state.

It was erected in 1921 am along with a tablet which was located inside the church records commemorates the men who fought in the Great War.

The inscription on the cross read, "To the glory of God and in perpetual memory of the Churchmen of this Parish and Congregation who gave their lives in the War, 1914-18, this Cross and the Tablet in the Church are erected by their fellow-churchmen", but the words are now illegible, and as yet I have no idea of the fate of the stone tablet.

The church closed in 1958 and was demolished in 1961, and some where there may be a record of where it went, which I shall go looking for.

As for the cross it is in a perilous state, after sixty years of neglect.  It leans slightly to one side, has lost a bit of the head on its east facing side, and is surrounded by undergrowth and litter.

I can not think that just a few years after that great outpouring of interest in the Great War, which came with a plethora of commemorations, this war memorial stands in such a terrible state, or that its fate is so uncertain.

All of which just leaves me the task of looking for the 70 names on the tablet and trying to bring them out of the shadows.

I have started with an Alfred Pickering who in 1915 was living at 13 Teer Street.  The street is still there off the Ashton New Road , but the houses have long gone.

So far I haven’t been able to locate him for certain on the census return, but I do have this from the National Roll of Honour, which records that he enlisted in 1915 and survived the war.

There are also references to an Alfred Pickering in the Manchester City Battalions Book of Honour, which records that five men with that name were employed by Manchester Corporation Tramways Department, the Co-operative Wholesale Society, Richard Goodiar Ltd of 8 Mosley Street, Charles Macintosh and Co Ltd, and Peter Spencer and Sons.

Not much I know but a start.

Leaving me just to thank Angela Wallwork of Amato Products who took the pictures of the cross on Friday.

Amato Products supply food and other products to restaurants across Greater Manchester and beyond and their warehouse faces on to the site of the demolished church on St Andrew’s Square.

I would also want to thank Anthony Lee, Senior Project Manager (Heritage Management), Salford Archaeology, School of Science, Engineering & Environment, whose Heritage Report on the site of St Andrew's Church prompted the story.****

And that is it while I go looking for the men of St Andrew’s Church …. There are more stories about St Andrew’s Square, and its neighbour Homer Street along with the history of Ancoats.****

But just as I posted the story, Martin H. Prestwich, commented that a tablet commemorating men from the Second World War was removed to the Manchester Miracle Centre, formerly All Souls Church, corner of Every Street and Harding Street, which he writes, is recorded on the "Imperial War Museum website,  https://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/15901"

That said this host building looks equally empty and I fear the worst.

But Cllr Sam Wheeler of Manchester City council who is one of the three elected representatives for the area, has seen the story and is looking in to what can be done for the cross.  Which is a fine outcome.

Location; St Andrew’s Square, Ancoats,

Picture; the wall memorial St Andrew’s Square, Ancoats, 2021, courtesy of Angela Wallwork, the National Roll of Honour, and the memorial tablet, 1931, courtesy of  Anthony Lee

* St Andrew’s Church Centenary Commemorative booklet, 1931 Manchester Archives & Local History Library, 283.4273.M341

** Amato Products Ltd, https://amatoproducts.co.uk/ and to order, info@amatoproducts.co.uk

***Heritage Report, St Andrew’s Church, Lee, Anthony, Report No.SA/2019/12

**** Ancoats, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search/label/Ancoats