A history of Didsbury in just 20 objects ... number 17 ……. always beware the Mersey

The story of Didsbury in just twenty objects, chosen at random and delivered in a paragraph or more.

The Mersey has been both a gift to Didsbury and at times a threat.

On the upside it has provided a natural barrier in more unsettled times, driven the mills along its banks, and provided water.

But it remains a powerful and at times a dangerous force, that can breach the defences and flood large parts of the neighbouring land.

Location Didsbury February 1930

Picture; Didsbury February 1930

A history of Didsbury in just 20 objects ... number 13 ……. messing about on the water ….

The story of Didsbury in just twenty objects, chosen at random and delivered in a paragraph or more.

I shouldn’t really be surprised that there was a time when the Mersey was a huge attraction for anyone wanting to mess about on the water.

The Didsbury Rowing Club was formed in 1850, and its most successful period was from 1866 to
1878 when it took part in many principal regattas.

However, after 1878, interest waned and the club was wound up in January 1885 with the sale of all its boats.

But in 1903, the club was revived and was so successful that by 1909, a new clubhouse had to be built to accommodate a membership
of over 100.

The new boathouse opened on 28 August 1909, which attracted a large number of
spectators who watched the thirty-four races that ran over six hours.

And in recognition of that I have broken the rule and featured two pictures
Location; The River Mersey

Pictures; The River Mersey, dates unknown

Stories from a Didsbury picture ….. no 5 …. always respect the River Mersey

This will be the last of the short series featuring a picture from Andrew and a story from me.

Didsbury floods, 2021

I began the short run after Andrew offered up five images, each of which linked the present with Didsbury’s past.

I had no idea where each story would take me, and over the course of the week, the stories have ranged from Withington Hospital, the first occupants of Knight Road, and the TransPennine Trail, with a sideways glance at defribialtors, the history of a much loved fishmongers, and  Didsbury’s own railway station.

And I end with “The flood basin from the gardens of the University Vice Chancellor’s house Broomhurst”, which is a salutary reminder of the power of the River Mersey and its importance to the township.  

Didsbury Floods, 1930

Over the centuries the river has been both a gift and at times a threat.  

On the upside the Mersey has provided a natural barrier in more unsettled times, driven the mills along its banks and provided supplies of water.  

But it remains a formidable and at times a dangerous force that can breach the defences and flood large parts of the neighbouring land. 

Today the flood prevention schemes allow for excess water to be released into catchment basins.

But as the recent floods have demonstrated, even with such schemes, homes can still be in danger.

Andrew is the Labour Councillor for Didsbury East on Manchester City Council please contact me at cllr.a.simcock@manchester.gov.uk

Location; Didsbury

Picture; “The flood basin from the gardens of the University Vice Chancellor’s house Broomhurst”, 2021, from the collection of Andrew Simpson, and Didsbury, 1930

Walking by the Mersey in 1958 ………

Now, on this I will need help.

I am looking at two pictures of the Mersey sent to me by Dave Kennedy, yesterday evening, who added, “Hi Andrew, with the current situation on the Mersey.  I came across a couple of photos in my dad’s archive, in the background is the old sluice building at Jackson’s Boat. The cut is a lot narrower,  dates from around 1958”.

I have known Dave for years and I remain impressed with his photographs  and those of his Dad’s, many of which are of Chorlton and Stretford.*

The two pictures are a wonderful collection of period detail, from the clothes worn by Dave and his sister, to the scenes of the river and the surrounding land.

Like Dave I wore a balaclava and was made to keep my shoes equally shinny. But of course, it is the river that draws you in, along with the high earth banks, which do seem to have risen in height since 1958.

The banks stretch back into the centuries and were added to by successive generations of farmers because the river has always been unpredictable and prone to flash floods, many of which arrived with little warning.

Our own local historian, Thomas Ellwood writing in the 1880s and drawing on the memories of locals stretching back through the 19th century and beyond described the devastation caused by the rising waters, including the destruction of the first stone weir in the 1840.

These and subsequent stories and pictures have appeared on the blog over the years,  and Dave’s two photographs are a welcome addition.**

I think the first is looking north with the stone aqueduct and Chorltonville in the distance. Today the scene has been altered with the planting of large numbers of trees and bushes, but the aqueduct is still there, although back in 1958 the pumping station has yet to be built.

So, while the 1958 OS shows that aqueduct, the modern building is missing.

And that brings me to the second picture which Dave places “at the old sluice building at Jackson’s Boat”.

Try as I can, I can’t visualize the scene today.  I think we are looking north again, and the chimney stack belongs to the laundry on Crossland Road, with Chorlton falling away into the background, but I am wondering whether we are further west where the river takes a bend.

Back in 1958 the maps shows a sluice gate and a building on the Chorlton side, directly in front of the filter beds.

For those less interested in the semantics of the flood prevention architecture, there are those fascinating scenes of what the meadows on either side of the river liked like 63 years ago …. along with what the well dressed kids wore.

Location; the Mersey, 1958

Picture; the Mersey, 1958, from the collection of Dave Kennedy

*The Photographs of Jack Kennendy, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search/label/Photographs%20of%20Jack%20Kennedy

**The River Mersey, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search?q=river+mersey