Oak House Farm to Arden Court ....... another story from Tony Goulding

It is just one of those things that we don't record our most recent history particularly the bits we have all lived through.

So here is a fascinating account of what was once Oak House Farm and is now Arden Court from Tony Goulding.

The history of the piece of land lying between Cundiff Road and Chorlton Brook is very reflective of the development Chorlton-cum-Hardy as a whole.

Four separate phases are discernible in its history throughout the 20th century.
     
At the opening of the century this land was still part of Oak House farm shown as an orchard OS maps of the time.

A use that was further evidenced by the presence of a massive pear tree there when my family moved, in 1970,  into a house on Cundiff Road which backed on to this field.

On at least one occasion I can recall my father selling some of the windfall to one of the grocer’s shops which were at the Barlow Moor Road end of Cundiff Road.

The 1920's & 30'S saw the development of the area into several tennis courts complete with a couple of pavilions according to contemporary maps.

A third phase had been reached by the time of my family’s arrival.

The tennis court had fallen into disuse and the land had reverted to semi-wild scrub, nicely portrayed in this collection of photos of a friend my brother and me playing cricket on it in the early 1970's.

Also at this time the area was acquired by the Multiple Sclerosis Society with a view to the provision of a home for MS sufferers on it.

The plan got as far as Princess Anne ceremoniously laying a foundation stone on I think  March 23 1971.

She visited South Manchester  and amongst other duties were the opening of a new sports facility at Didsbury College and a visit to a Moss Side children's centre

As the route between these two engagements would probably have taken the royal party along Barlow Moor Road, I think it is highly likely that a stop was made along the way to perform the ceremony I witnessed.

And it may be that others can confirm the date.

For some reason this venture was axed and it was not until 1984, when Anchor housing obtained the plot that the final stage of development was reached with the building of Oakhouse Drive and Arden Court retirement homes.

As a final note , and showing that development is a continuous process, the last of the shop units nearby on Cundiff Road was a ladies hairdressers in its last incarnation,  after having been left almost derelict for a number of years, was recently converted into a private residence.

It has thus succumbed to the same fate as the other two shops and the petrol station on the corner with Barlow Moor Road.
 
What further changes will be the next few years bring to this area?

Pictures; from the collection of Tony Goulding