Adventures in the east .... across three centuries ....from Holt Town to New Cross

The thing about adventures is that they should be spontaneous with only a limited idea of where to go.

Tram spots and the adventure start, Chorlton, 2025

The downside is that you will have not given much thought to what you might want to eat and drink as the day wears on.

Aged 10 and with the whole of London at our fingertips, supplies were usually limited to a bottle of lemonade, which could be supplemented by a hollowed out round loaf of bread, which might be filled with a bag of chips, if we were lucky to find a chippy.

At Central Ref with the library staff, 2025

During the long walk or train ride, you ate the inside of the loaf which later provided the perfect receptacle for the chips, or crisps. It was and remained the perfect adventure meal.

And now aged 75 after decades of work and bringing up the kids the adventures are back although the gigantic chip sandwich is a thing of the past.

All of which is an introduction to the  jaunt across the eastern side of the city through Holt Town, and New Islington which filled my Wednesday.

We had been in Central Ref delivering our latest book to the library’s bookshop. 

It is the third in that popular series telling the story of Greater Manchester By Tram, which explore all ninety-nine metro stops across the eight tram routes.*

Each book is a mix of original paintings, period pictures and stories of the area around each stop, cost £4.99 and are available from Chorlton Bookshop, Waterstones on Deansgate, Central Reference Library, and from us at www.pubbooks.co.uk

Ancoats Mill, 2025

And having discharged that task and with the sun shinning and a full day ahead we jumped the tram at St Peter’s Square and headed out east to the Etihad Stadium.

It was inspired partly to explore the route of the next book but more to look up the place on the edge of Man City’s ground where I had lived for a magical year back in 1973.**

This was Butterworth Street flanked by Grey Mare Lane on one side and Mill Street in the shadow of the recently closed Bradford Colliery in the heart of what was still industrial Manchester.

It was a forlorn quest which I knew was fruitless given the redevelopment of the area and sure enough all that was left was the remnant of Rhyl Street which once gave off on to Butterworth Street from Mill Street and now was buried under Alan Turing Way with our apartment and my memories.

And that same message of what redevelopment means stuck with me as we travelled back via the tram to Holt Town, and onto New Islington.

Holt Town was developed at the end of the 18th century and quickly became a workhouse for the city with plenty of textile mills, gas works, and rows of terraced housing.***

That wooden figure, 2025

In turn bits were redeveloped in the middle decades of the last century and there is promise of a new redevelopment.

Forlorn and forgotten spot, 2025

At present the new social housing sits beside the former mills amongst open spaces and closed pubs. 

And here and there are those small businesses like the car wash firm on the corner of Beswick Street.

There will be plenty of stories like that of the forlorn wooden statue just off the main road, which I vaguely remember fronted a small modern row of shops. They have gone but the surrounding posh red brick walls have also survived, although they are steadily being overtaken by bushes, long grass and trees.

Equally sad looking is the nearby Ancoats Mill which will have its own story, and these I think will be the core of the chapter on Holt Town in that new book which will also include Piccadilly Gardens, Piccadilly Railway Station, and the Etihad Stadium.

For more research we walked into New Islington and found a place to sit and watch the boats on the canal while sipping coffee and indulging in a couple of pastries.

I talked about including New Cross on the corner of Oldham Road and Great Ancoats Street which was a popular meeting place of dissent in the 18th and early 19th centuries along with accounts of the Ashton and Rochdale Canals.

And here we met up with two tourists down from Middlesborough, discussed what might go into the other chapters and marvelled at the transition of the area.

Of course, had we taken a slight diversion we would have come across Tony’s Fish and Chip shop on Piercey Street which would have allowed me to recreate that bread and chippy meal of my youth.

Down to New Islington and the city centre, 2025

But somethings are best left in the past.

Location; Holt Town and beyond

Pictures; different bits of Holt Town, 2025,  from the collection of Andrew Simpson

*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

**Travels through the 1970’s …… via Grey Mare Lane ..... Bradford Colliery and some fireman's flats, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/2025/04/travels-through-1970s-via-grey-mare.html

***Holt Town, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search/label/Holt%20Town