When Central Ref opened in 1934

History comes in lots of different ways including a handkerchief.

Just 87 years ago 250,000 of these were issued to Manchester school children to commemorate the opening of Central Ref in 1934.

Location; Manchester

Picture; from the collection of Linda Rigby

On Beech Road …….. not long ago

It is a scene of Beech Road which will be familiar to many and was not that long ago.

I can’t now remember the exact date I took the picture, but it will be some time in the early 2000s, which is a lesson always to date photographs.

But this one I didn’t, but it will be in the region of seventeen years ago and perhaps a bit less.

And as you would expect almost all the shops have changed and most no longer sell anything other than food and booze.

Muriel and Richard’s is an estate agent, the deli is the Spanish tapas bar and stretching up the road only the clothes shop and Etchells are now trading.

Even the Nose has closed.

I could now state the obvious and reflect on the bar culture, bit won’t and instead I shall invite stories of the buildings in the picture.

And to start off I will offer up two, which are the red fronted building was Diamond Dogs opened by Martha and Atlanta in what had been Bryan the Books place, and next door was the Mr Jackson’s barber shop which was once taken over by a TV company who blew out the shop front during a scene in the show they were filming.

And Diamond Dogs has helped fasten the date because Martha reminded me she and Aalanta opened the cafe in 2002.


Location; Chorlton

Picture; Beech Road, circa 2002s, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

It's all in the windows ……….

One day in the Ref.

Location; Central Reference Library, St Peter's Square, Manchester

Picture; It's all in the windows, 2023, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

What’s that secret …… beyond that arch? …..

My association with Central Ref stretches back 54 years and across that half century and more I have always pondered on those steps through that archway and just where they led to.

Now, I know it will be an office of sorts, filled with filing cabinets, lockers and the odd table.

But when the hours hung heavy and the promised break through from an old document was not forth coming I would ponder on what Narnia like scene would be revealed behind that wooden door.

To be very accurate this is not the staircase in what was the Archive and Local History Library, that was further on, and for most of my time in the Library I inhabited the vast Social Science Library with its echo and circular message on the power of knowledge.

Of course, I could just ask those I know who worked there.

But wouldn’t that be too easy?*

Location; Central Ref

Pictures; that staircase, 2023, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

*But I can not stay silent for Helen was moved to offer up "Yes they were both just offices.  The one at the end of the Local Studies dept. I knew well.  I think they are now just storage rooms, as there's not much wiring into them, for computers, and phones".  

So no Narnia surprises then.

Salford says thank you to the Discharged Sailors, Soldiers & Airman, 1920

Now somewhere there will be a record of the day Salford Corporation hosted the Civic Reception for the Discharged Sailors, Soldiers & Airman.

It was held on Saturday October 9th 1920 in Belle Vue Gardens.

I would like to know how many attended, what was said and above all what people thought of the event.

I have trawled the Manchester Guardian with no success and will now have to wade through the files of the Salford and Manchester local papers at Central Ref.

And no sooner had the story gone live, than Maureen Swanwick commented that

"The Reception was a success according to the Salford Reporter. It said 5,000 attended and a further 3,500 invites were sent out and  because of the large numbers, it was over 3 Saturdays".

To which I can add this little gem from the Manchester Evening News, dated, October 6th, 1920, passed to me by Paul Sherlock.

Location; Salford

Picture; the Salford Corporation invitation, 1920

Sharing the history of the Horse and Jockey ….. with heaps of friends

 So, I can think of no where better to launch a book on a pub than in a pub.

And last night 40 people spent an enjoyable night in the Horse and Jockey to celebrate our new book on the history of the Horse and Jockey.

Our host Iain provided the wine and some nibbles, Peter introduced the book and Andrew talked about the history of the pub, and the old village.

We were joined by the Manchester poet Lindy Newns who read one of her stories and the event finished with a series of questions about the book, Chorlton’s past and that out rageous Sam Wilton who stole the village green.

Leaving me just to thank Iain, his staff,  the brewery and all those who turned up.

The  book is available at www.pubbooks.co.uk or the old-fashioned way on 07521 557888 or from Chorlton Bookshop, and costs £4.99.

Location; the Horse and Jockey on the Green

Pictures; the launch in the pub, 2024, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

On Shooters Hill ………………… with We Anchor in Hope

Now I have no memory of the pub We Anchor in Hope.

But then when I roamed over the woods and down Shooter’s Hill and on to Welling, I was still well under the age when “dirty beer” was an attraction.

Still I am very pleased that Brian sent this picture over this morning, because it captures perfectly this stretch of the old road as I remember it.

The picture postcard is undated, but I am guessing we will be sometime in the late 1940s into the following decade and a bit.

That said there will be an expert on London buses who will be able to offer up chapter and verse on the date this one plied its route.

As to the pub, here too I am out of my comfort zone and a trawl of my limited London directories has yet to turn up any information.

Still, I am pleased to say it is still there today and is part of the Green King chain which manages many of the pubs I have researched and written about.

There will be those who are sniffy about such chains, advancing ever the cause of the independent brewery or landlord.

Which just leaves me to thank Brian,  appeal for more information, and point out before someone does that We Anchor in Hope is actually at 320 Bellgrove Road, Welling, DA16 3 RW

And to add this is  a fine shot of the old road climbing west.

And quick as a flash, Brian having read the story of his picture postcard, added a link to a bit more background.

But as ever I shall not lift someone else's research and instead just point you to the link.**


Location Welling

Picture; Shooters Hill, Welling, Kent, date unknown, from the collection of Brian Norbury

* We Anchor in Hope,  https://www.greeneking-pubs.co.uk/pubs/kent/we-anchor-in-hope/

**We Anchor in Hope, Belle Grove Road, East Wickham, Welling, https://pubwiki.co.uk/KentPubs/EastWickham/AnchorinHope.shtml

Stories from the Horse and Jockey ….. tonight in the pub on the Green

When you have a pub that first opened its doors in 1793 in a building which was still new when Henry VIII walked up the aisle with Anne Boleyn there are going to be heaps of stories.

The forgotten pub sign, 2024

And many of those stories feature in our new book on The Horse and Jockey in the series Chorlton Pubs The Stories Behind the Doors.*

The Horse and Jockey circa 1900

It came out earlier this year and today I can announce that the launch of the book will be on Thursday July 25th at 8pm in the pub and coincides with a recent redecoration and refurbishment of the place.

The interior has been repainted and repapered along with bits you don't see, like rewiring, and new pumps which you can see.

For me one of the crowning features is the collection of framed photographs and Peter's paintings which are taken from our book. 

The rediscovered chimney breast, 2024

And it was during the refurb that one of the former pub signs was rediscovered.  

It has quite correctly been reinstalled as a talking point and the manager Iain hopes it will spark a memory of when it stood outside.

Dining in the restaurant, 2024

Nor is that the only forgotten secret to reappear because back in 2010 a chimney breast and an internal wattle and daub wall were uncovered which will have not seen the light of day for at least two centuries.

To these forgotten bits of the Jockey’s past can be added a varied collection of stories from Samuel Wilton who stole the village green from the community in the early 19th century to the inquest held in the pub to investigate the murder of Francis Deaken in 1847.

Outside the Horse and Jockey, 1936

And added to these is the arrest of young Samuel Warburton at 7 am in the morning outside the pub having a pint and recovering from his participation in an illegal prize fight out on the meadows in the July of the following year**.

I could go on but for the details of these and other stories you will have to buy the book which will be on sale on the night.

The launch will follow our earlier ones and along with a brief few words from the authors we are hoping for performances from two Manchester poets, along with the usual mix of good conversation.

The event is free, is always fun and of course allows you to explore the newly redecorated pub and relax with a drink.

Leaving me just to thank Iain and his assistant Anna for being our hosts on the night.

You can order the book at www.pubbooks.co.uk  or the old-fashioned way on 07521 557888 or from Chorlton Bookshop

In the dinning room, 2024

All for the price of a pint.

Location; The Horse & Jockey, the Inn on Green, Chorlton

Pictures; cover of Chorlton Pubs The Stories Behind the Doors The Horse & Jockey, designed by Peter Topping, pictures of the newly refurbished Horse & Jockey, 2024, from the collection of Andrew Simpson, and the pub in 1900 courtesy of Carolyn Willitts, and  A 'gang' of 'teenagers' outside the Horse and Jockey circa 1936 courtesy of Yvonne Richardson

* Chorlton Pubs The Stories Behind the Doors, Andrew Simpson, and Peter Topping, 2024

**Every Chorlton pub should have its own book, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/2024/02/every-chorlton-pub-should-have-its-own.html

Stories from Deansgate Castlefield ….no. 1 introducing the book

Deansgate Castlefield metro stop is the place where history tumbles out in all directions

Heaps of towers, 2023

You know you are arriving at somewhere special when the views of identical new residential properties give way to something much older and more interesting.

It begins with that network of waterways which make up the Castlefield Canal Basin, interspersed with the tall lattice structures that imitate medieval castle walls and takes in some fine 18th century warehouses, along with the spire of the old Congregational Chapel and that growing number of tower blocks which seemingly reach up to scrape the sky.

On arriving, 2022

And on arriving at Castlefield Deansgate just a minute’s walk away is the bold edifice of Deansgate Railway Station which as everyone knows and some constantly reiterate is really Knott Mill Railway Station gateway to Salford and beyond.

But for those whose interests are elsewhere beside the entrance to Deansgate/Knot Mill is the Atlas Bar which has its own claim to a bit of history, having opened in 1999 boasts that it serves 570 different gins from around the world.

Nor is it alone for just across the road there is Deansgate Locks, while nestling in the canal basin can be found Dukes 92, and the even longer established Barca Bar all of which are part of the renaissance of the area which has gone from a busy but grubby work a day corner of the city to an elegant residential and leisure centre.

Atlas, 2023

And not to out change Castlefield, in 1982 it became an “Urban Heritage Park” which is an unofficial designation for an inner-city area regarded as worthy of preservation because of its architectural and historic interest.

Fort in the sun, 2022

It was here that the Romans established one of their forts as part of the “pacification” of northern Britain.

The network of military establishments connected the big legionary bases of Chester and York, and like many of these forts it attracted a settlement which grew up outside its walls.  

Here could be found metal workers, bar owners, merchants and anyone attracted to the Roman army which offered a degree of safety and a ready market for pretty much everything your average Roman soldier might want.

Alas only a fragment of the original fort still exists, but a series of archaeological digs in the 1970s uncovered finds from the civilian settlement.

In turn the presence of that fort led to a City Council project to recreate two sections of wall and a gateway.  The construction was undertaken by apprentices from the Direct Works Department and included laying out a series of ditches which were the first line of defence.

Water, unlight and bridges, 2003

All of these are there to see along with part of the civilian village running from one of the walls by Beaufort Road out towards Liverpool Road, while the remaining section at Duke Street offers up views down in to Castlefield Bowl and one of the arms of the canal basin.

A rally at the Castlefield Bowl, 2024

The Bowl is a popular venue for a live entertainment and has a capacity for 8,000 and as well as music events is used for political rallies.

Canal Basin, 2003

I could go on but that would be to reveal all the stories from our second book in the series The History of Greater Manchester by Tram.*

The idea of telling the story of Greater Manchester by using the tram network has a lot going for it. 

You can catch a tram from the city centre and go south, east, north, and west and along the way each of the 99 stops will have a story to tell, and being the tram, you can just jump off, explore this little pocket of history and move on. 

Or skip to the end destinations and discover interesting historical things about Didsbury, Ashton-Under-Lyne, Rochdale, Oldham, Salford and bits of Trafford, Altrincham and Bury.

The first in the series …. Trafford Bar to East Didsbury was published earlier in the year and the next Cornbrook to Exchange Square will be out in August.

They are available from Chorlton Bookshop, and from us at www.pubbooks.co.uk, price £4.99

Location Deansgate Castlefield

Pictures; Castlefield and Knott Mill, 2003-2024, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

*A History of Greater Manchester by Tram, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search/label/A%20new%20book%20on%20the%20History%20of%20Greater%20Manchester%20by%20Tram

Walking through the lost Hulme and Moss Side

 Now I have been a great fan of Roger Shelley’s photographs for over a decade, ever since he shared a collection of pictures he took of a group of young lads playing in the near ruin of Hough End Hall nearly 60 years ago.

The attention to detail and his ability to capture the moment are skills I wish I had.

And so, I was very pleased when he posted another group of images he took during the house clearances in Hulme and Moss Side.

The pictures are a mix of street scenes, and the people he encountered, including kids at play, men and women at work and the ever present piles of rubble as the grand plan advanced and centuries old houses disappeared under the impact of the wrecking ball.

Like the work of Shirley Baker* his pictures don’t dwell on sentimentality and don’t make judgments of the wholesale clearances of communities.

They just record what he saw.

I don't have exact locations for the images, but some can be traced through the odd street name or feature.

And with his permission I will be working my way through the portfolio, fastening on images which tell their own stories.

Location; Hulme and Moss Side in the 1960s and 70s

Pictures;  from the collection of Roger Shelley, https://www.flickr.com/photos/photoroger/

*Baker, Shirley, Without a Trace, Manchester and Salford in the 1960s, 2018

Buying a Chorlton house in 1968 …… never throw away the estate agent’s letters

I say letters but I really mean those property sheets which are still the go to when wanting to buy a house.

Of course, today those details are more likely to be found on the internet and the savvy house hunter will first have gone on those sites specializing in house prices on a specific road, judging the popularity of the location and comparing prices with elsewhere.

But back in the day it was a matter of collecting the property sheets and sifting through them

And if you saved the  details of the ones you bought you have in time a history book, offering up the cost of a house, its size, and number of bedrooms, long with things like central heating, the provision of a garage and how big the garden was.

I last bought a house in the 1980s, but of the three, only one already had central heating and all of them were woefully supplied with power points when I moved in, although they did have a telephone connection.

But the mere fact that central heating and a telephone line were issues only 40 or so years ago shows the expectations we now demand of a house.

All of which is an introduction to these property details which my friends Ann and Howard sent over to me.

Their first house in Chorlton was in 1968 on Devonshire Road, and then a littler on St Webrughs’s.

And the rest I leave you to pour over and make of what you will.

Location; Chorlton

Pictures; property details of Devonshire Road, 1968 and St Werburghs’s Road, 1970s, from the collection of Ann and Howard Love

What fate for our Lady?

 I am looking at the mosaic of “Our Lady of Good Counsel” on Stockton Road.

Our Lady, 2024

It is to the left of the entrance to the former Convent school extension and now has an uncertain future.  

The main school was in Carlton House on High Lane.  

The house dates back to the 1860s and has an interesting story all of which I have written about.*

In the early 20th century it was taken over by the Sisters of the Christian Retreat , and there will be many who remember attending the school before it in turn became the Islamic High School for Girls.

But with the removal of the Islamic High School to Fielden Park the site is up for development.  There is a planning application in from Cube Homes who propose to build “22 high quality, energy efficient and sustainable new homes comprising 14 four bedroom townhouses, 6 two-bedroom apartments, and the retention and refurbishment of Carlton House, which will be converted into 2 homes”.**

Convent of the Sisters of the Christian Retreat, 1959

The details of the proposed development are available on Manchester’s Planning Portal, which reveals that the school extension on Stockton Road will be demolished in favour of two “dwelling houses” along with a much larger development occupying High Lane and running down Acres Road.***

So I wonder the fate of Our Lady.  I couldn’t see any reference to it in the planning proposals, but maybe I missed them.

The Sisters of the Christian Retreat still exist, and St John’s is just round the corner.

In the face of its possible destruction some will mutter so what, but it is a little bit of our history.  Just how much of our past is unclear.  The extension post dates 1956 and looks to be 60s/70s build, that said there will be someone who remembers it being constructed and might have press cuttings of the unveiling of the mosaic.

A tree, some fruit and Our Lady, 2024

We shall see,

Location; Stockton Road

Pictures; Our Lady, 2024 from the collection of Andrew Simpson and Convent of the Sisters of the Christian Retreat, 1959, A.E. Landers, m17917, courtesy of Manchester Libraries, Information and Archives, Manchester City Council, http://images.manchester.gov

*Carlton House, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search?q=Carlton+House

**Cube Homes High Lane Consultation, https://www.cubehomeshighlaneconsultation.co.uk/?fbclid=IwAR0RpY4WJSNMpEm-cSD6fIFNrQfHjnh9M1Dhccez1k9WCISxdPBYZTNpfyA

***Manchester Planning Portal, 37994/FO/2023. Erection of 12 no. 2.5 storey dwellinghouses; a pair of three storey semi-detached dwellinghouses; a three storey building comprising 6 no. apartments; the retention and change of use of the existing mansion house together with the erection of a two storey side extension to form 2 no. dwellinghouses; creation of vehicular access points, associated landscaping, car parking and boundary treatment following the demolition of the other existing buildings and structures. https://pa.manchester.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=documents&keyVal=S0IQG9BCMGC00

The pub sign …. a question …. and an invite to a heap of stories …. July 25th in the Horse and Jockey at 8pm

Your starter is to suggest a date when this pub sign hung outside the Horse and Jockey.

Who can date the sign?

It now has pride of place in the newly redecorated pub and the manager Iain hopes it will spark a memory.

The restaurant, 2024

As will the stories which will  feature during the launch of our new book The Horse and Jockey in the series Chorlton Pubs The Stories Behind the Doors, Andrew Simpson, and Peter Topping, 2024.

The sign was discovered upstairs in a corner of one of the store rooms.

Nor is that the only forgotten secret to reappear because back in 2010 a chimney breast and an internal wattle and daub wall were uncovered which will have not seen the light of day for at least two centuries.

The rediscovered chimney, 2024

To these forgotten bits of the Jockey’s past can be added a varied collection of stories from Samuel Wilton who stole the village green from the community in the early 19th century to the inquest held in the pub to investigate the murder of Francis Deaken in 1847.

Outside the Jockey circa 1900

And added to these is the arrest of young Samuel Warburton at 7 am in the morning outside the pub having a pint and recovering from his participation in an illegal prize fight out on the meadows in the July of the following year**.

I could go on but for the details of these and other stories you will have to buy the book which will be on sale on the night.

The launch will follow our earlier ones and along with a brief few words from the authors we are hoping for performances from two Manchester poets, along with the usual mix of good conversation.

The event is free, is always fun and of course allows you to explore the newly redecorated pub and relax with a drink.

Leaving me just to thank Iain and his assistant Anna for being our hosts on the night.

You can order the book at www.pubbooks.co.uk email or the old-fashioned way on 07521 557888 or from Chorlton Bookshop

Location; The Horse and Jockey

Pictures; The Horse and Jockey, 2024 from the collection of Andrew Simpson and in 1900, courtesy of Caroline Willetts

That lost Manchester

Now it is easy to forget those acres of close packed terraced houses, much of which was swept away by the clearance plans of the middle decades of the last century.

Of course, plenty still exist, but for all those who lived in the ones that no longer exist, here are two from the collection.

Invariably there was a shop on one corner with a pub, or church hall another.


Location; across Manchester

Pictures; Manchester, 1969, Courtesy of Manchester Archives+ Town Hall Photographers' Collection,
https://www.flickr.com/photos/manchesterarchiveplus/albums/72157684413651581?fbclid=IwAR35NR9v6lzJfkiSsHgHdQyL2CCuQUHuCuVr8xnd403q534MNgY5g1nAZfY, 

History in the making ……one to do today …..

Stories from Cornbrook ….. no.2 the sad demise of the Railway

The Railway was a pub whose history and sad lingering demise pretty much sums up the end of the old Cornbrook.

The Railway, 2003

For many commuters it was that forlorn set of half demolished walls which could been seen from passing trams, and which over the years shrank in size till it became just an empty overgrown plot of weeds.

Once and there are those who remember drinking there it was a seven roomed property spread over three floors facing on to Cornbrook and Dover Road.

It may be that the tallest part of the pub was an addition for a building which dates back to the early 1870s.

The records show that it was dispensing beer and cheer by 1871 and judging by its rateable value was slightly larger than its neighbouring beer shop a few doors away.

The Railway, 1958

We can track its owners and its landlords through the late 19th century and for almost all of that time the tenancy was held by Henry and Ann Hodgkinson, who were there from 1874 through until 1895.

Sad left overs, 2018

They are an interesting family and reflect that flow of population around the country.

So, Henry had been born in Derbyshire and his father was an agricultural labourer while Ann came from Warwickshire.  They were married in the small mill town of Ashton-Under-Lyne, were running the Angel Inn in 1871 on Market Street in Ashton, and three years later were on Cornbrook Road.

The records show that Henry died in 1874 and Ann continued to run the beer shop for the next 20 years.

History has recorded very little of her presence in Cornbrook, but for a while the remnants of the pub offered up glimpses of its interior and here we are indebted to Andy Robertson who over the last two decades made regular trips photographing the Railway’s slow slide into waste ground.

Bits, 2018

Undeterred by the debris he encountered he has built up a collection of images of both the outside and the inside, including the remains of a door, several doorknobs and the fire place and chimney breast of one of the downstairs rooms.

Inside, 2018

It was a piece of urban archaeology which he continued to record until the site was finally cleared and now offers up the promise of yet another development and more new residents.

I doubt that there will ever be a plaque or information board acknowledging the story of the Railway and more especially that of the Hodgkinson family, but the interested traveller can uncover a bit of the story of Cornbrook just a few minutes’ walk from the tram stop entrance.

The first is the Trafford Arch which stands on the site of the “Kkovah works which was a “five storey factory built in 1871 in the elegant Venetian style” 

The Plaque, 2018

According to plaque at the foot of the memorial arch “Kkovah was a brand name for confectionary, lemon curd and jelly”. There is more but where would the fun be if we revealed the full story with its tales of disasters new enterprises and the coming of the Bridgewater Way. 

Almost gone, 2018

I could say more but these and heaps more stories will  feature in the new book being written on The History of Greater Manchester by Tram which will explore that section of the network from Cornbrook via Deansgate Castlefield and onto Exchange Square.*

The first Trafford Bar to East Didsbury was published earlier in the year and is already proving a popular read.

It is available from Chorlton Bookshop, and from us at www.pubbooks.co.uk, price £4.99*

Location; Cornbrook

Metro stop entrance, 2024

Pictures; Bits of Cornbrook, 2024, from the collection of Andrew Simpson, and All that was left of the Railway, 2003-2018, courtesy of Andy Robertson, and the Railway, 1958, E Stanley, m 50339, courtesy of Manchester Libraries, Information and Archives, Manchester City Council, http://images.manchester.gov.uk/index.php?session=pass

*A new book on the History of Greater Manchester By Tram, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search/label/A%20new%20book%20on%20the%20History%20of%20Greater%20Manchester%20by%20Tram