It’s the little bits of history that can be fun ……… the Chorlton mystery

In the great sweep of titanic history, the Vicars Road field won’t count as a big mystery, but it does fascinate me.

Chorlton Nursery, 2022

For those who like plants or supporting a local business Chorlton Nursery is one of those places you go to for flowers, and shrubs, as well as herbs, and those crawly plants.*

I have been going there over the years and occasionally wondered about its history.

It  is situated on that plot of land off Vicars Road, down a small path which could be the route to any one of a hundred different adventures.

The Tennis Courts, 1933-4

The 1933/34 OS map shows it as a tennis court, with what looks like a club house.  

Twenty years later the building is still there but there is no reference to  tennis, which  according to Chorlton Nursery  "became a market garden during the Second World War when private tennis courts were dug up for the Dig for Victory campaign. It has remained a working nursery ever since".

But I bet there is still some history to find.

Given that it is surrounded by houses the tennis court may date from when the houses were built, either as an after thought to fill in an odd pocket of land or was the deliberate intention of the developers.  

There was a similar set of courts were laid out when Chorltonville was built and were about developing a community spirit.

The name of the club may  may lie in the street directories from the 1920s, and of course from the memories of people who played on the courts or lived in the surrounding houses.

I suppose I could ask the owners of Chorlton Nursery who might know more, but where would the fun be in that?

No …… I shall await further research and in the meantime hope someone comes up with a memory of playing there and perhaps even a set of pictures.

And perhaps even a set of the club's minutes, rules and competition results, which really would be fun..

Location; Vicars Road

Pictures; the entrance to Chorlton Nursery, and detail of Vicars Road from the 1933/34 OS map of Manchester & Salford

*Chorlton Nursery, www.chorltonnursery.com