A brief history of Chorlton-On-Medlock, the area in Manchester where we lived from 1948 to 1955 as an Irish immigrant family
Chorlton-on-Medlock, was originally incorporated into the City of Manchester in 1838. Chorlton derives from the old Viking word for freemen of a town by the River Medlock".
It is bounded by the areas of Rusholme, Moss Side, Ardwick and Hulme. Its area includes the University of Manchester and the Manchester Museum and Whitworth Art Gallery. Until the 19th century it had been a small country village, but the Industrial Revolution and the building of Chorlton Mills catapulted it into the urban industrial landscape. By 1900 its population had multiplied a hundred fold as people flocked in to live in slum houses and work in the new textile factories and mills that abounded within its borders.
Many famous people have lived within its borders: Charles Mackintosh's who was famous for developing fabric waterproofing techniques that were to make his name celebrated the world over. Other notable residents of the district were one-time Prime Minister David Lloyd George, Nuclear physicist Ernest Rutherford and Emily Pankhursts, pioneer of women’s' suffrage, and the novelist Mrs Elizabeth Gaskell.
The slums are now long gone and the area of Chorlton-On-Medlock, is now largely unrecognisable from what it looked like in the 40s, 50s and 60s. The whole area is now occupied by the campuses of the universities of Manchester which has been developing and expanding its presence in the area over the last thirty years.
It is bounded by the areas of Rusholme, Moss Side, Ardwick and Hulme. Its area includes the University of Manchester and the Manchester Museum and Whitworth Art Gallery. Until the 19th century it had been a small country village, but the Industrial Revolution and the building of Chorlton Mills catapulted it into the urban industrial landscape. By 1900 its population had multiplied a hundred fold as people flocked in to live in slum houses and work in the new textile factories and mills that abounded within its borders.
Many famous people have lived within its borders: Charles Mackintosh's who was famous for developing fabric waterproofing techniques that were to make his name celebrated the world over. Other notable residents of the district were one-time Prime Minister David Lloyd George, Nuclear physicist Ernest Rutherford and Emily Pankhursts, pioneer of women’s' suffrage, and the novelist Mrs Elizabeth Gaskell.
The slums are now long gone and the area of Chorlton-On-Medlock, is now largely unrecognisable from what it looked like in the 40s, 50s and 60s. The whole area is now occupied by the campuses of the universities of Manchester which has been developing and expanding its presence in the area over the last thirty years.
Chorlton-on-Medlock
The area of Chorlton-on-Medlock, is of profound importance and relevance in connection with the tracking and recording of the history of the Lawlor family in England. It was the first area in Manchester where my Mother and Father, Rose & Jack Lawlor, took up residence when they arrived in the City from Ireland in 1948.
Chorlton-On-Medlock, at the time we arrived there as an Irish immigrant family, was vastly different in its physical appearance and in many other ways, in comparison to what the area looks like to day. I could immediately see from my own observations that the area was heavily populated by people from different backgrounds who were living on top of each other in what can only be described as an inner city slum.
At the young age of six, my first impressions of Wilton Street, Chorlton-On-Medlock, were very mixed and generally unfavorable. Everything was very different to what I had been used to when living in my beloved homeland, Ireland. The contrast between the environment I now found myself in, in comparison to the small quiet idyllic rural village I had spent my early childhood years in Ireland could not have been greater. I was acutely aware that everything around me was on a far larger and grander scale, most of the houses on Wilton Street, were three stories high and all the streets and road surfaces were covered in granite cobbles and there was many large public buildings and factories, mills, and workshops close to where we lived. Then there was the very noticeable increase in noise coming mainly from the general activities going on in the streets and from the motor traffic and the clanking of the trams running just a few yards away on the busy Oxford Road. In the early days living on Wilton Street, until I got used to the place, over time. then the realisation began to dawn on me that I was not on a holiday, and I began to understand the meaning of the saying “our bridges have been burnt”, which meant for all of us there would no going back! I suffered terribly from a sense of loss and acute homesickness and I was very conscious, even at the young age of six, that something very precious had been taken away from me without any explanation or consideration towards how the situation would affect me.
Even at the age of 71, that I am now, when I think back about these things I can feel twinges of emotion. I believe it is possible that the “dark cloud days” I have suffered from on and off for most of my life are rooted in these early traumatic life experiences.
As I and my two brothers Jackie and Danny and my sister Carmel, began to come to terms with and accept what had happened to us we began to accept our situation because we had no control over it.
We probably felt there was no alternative other than to accept and adapt to our new surroundings and make the best of things. With the prospect of having to attend school looming, and realising I could not change the situation I was in, as described above, I drew on two inherited character traits that I fortunately possessed of courage and perseverance, these together with an Irish fighting sprit enabled me to make the best of things as they stood. Beyond this, is the history of my life and that of the Lawlor family as it evolved following the life changing decision that my parents were forced into making to leave Ireland in, 1948.
Chorlton-On-Medlock, holds an important place in my personal life’s history because it was there I spent six of the childhood formative years of my life. Just as important, Chorlton-On-Medlock, provided us with a base from which we could establish ourselves in our new adopted country and surroundings and with the opportunity to build a new life for ourselves as a family for the future.
Chorlton-On-Medlock, at the time we arrived there as an Irish immigrant family, was vastly different in its physical appearance and in many other ways, in comparison to what the area looks like to day. I could immediately see from my own observations that the area was heavily populated by people from different backgrounds who were living on top of each other in what can only be described as an inner city slum.
At the young age of six, my first impressions of Wilton Street, Chorlton-On-Medlock, were very mixed and generally unfavorable. Everything was very different to what I had been used to when living in my beloved homeland, Ireland. The contrast between the environment I now found myself in, in comparison to the small quiet idyllic rural village I had spent my early childhood years in Ireland could not have been greater. I was acutely aware that everything around me was on a far larger and grander scale, most of the houses on Wilton Street, were three stories high and all the streets and road surfaces were covered in granite cobbles and there was many large public buildings and factories, mills, and workshops close to where we lived. Then there was the very noticeable increase in noise coming mainly from the general activities going on in the streets and from the motor traffic and the clanking of the trams running just a few yards away on the busy Oxford Road. In the early days living on Wilton Street, until I got used to the place, over time. then the realisation began to dawn on me that I was not on a holiday, and I began to understand the meaning of the saying “our bridges have been burnt”, which meant for all of us there would no going back! I suffered terribly from a sense of loss and acute homesickness and I was very conscious, even at the young age of six, that something very precious had been taken away from me without any explanation or consideration towards how the situation would affect me.
Even at the age of 71, that I am now, when I think back about these things I can feel twinges of emotion. I believe it is possible that the “dark cloud days” I have suffered from on and off for most of my life are rooted in these early traumatic life experiences.
As I and my two brothers Jackie and Danny and my sister Carmel, began to come to terms with and accept what had happened to us we began to accept our situation because we had no control over it.
We probably felt there was no alternative other than to accept and adapt to our new surroundings and make the best of things. With the prospect of having to attend school looming, and realising I could not change the situation I was in, as described above, I drew on two inherited character traits that I fortunately possessed of courage and perseverance, these together with an Irish fighting sprit enabled me to make the best of things as they stood. Beyond this, is the history of my life and that of the Lawlor family as it evolved following the life changing decision that my parents were forced into making to leave Ireland in, 1948.
Chorlton-On-Medlock, holds an important place in my personal life’s history because it was there I spent six of the childhood formative years of my life. Just as important, Chorlton-On-Medlock, provided us with a base from which we could establish ourselves in our new adopted country and surroundings and with the opportunity to build a new life for ourselves as a family for the future.
It was a great shock to me to realise that these streets and derelict houses shown in the selection of images below, had now become my playground instead of the beautiful, gardens, fields, rivers and lakes of Virginia.
I have included these images, just to show the very different living environment, that we as a family would now have to get used to in Manchester; in contrast to the idyllic quiet rural area in which I had spent my early childhood in Ireland. All of these streets are located in and around the area of Chorlton-on-Medlock, Manchester.
I have included these images, just to show the very different living environment, that we as a family would now have to get used to in Manchester; in contrast to the idyllic quiet rural area in which I had spent my early childhood in Ireland. All of these streets are located in and around the area of Chorlton-on-Medlock, Manchester.
The Holy Family Infants School
The Holy Family Infants School, was the first school I attended in England. The school was demolished in the fifties and a new Catholic Church the Holy Family now stands on the grounds where it once existed. This image shows the front exterior of the second School I attended, St Agustines / Cavendish Street. Unusually the left side of the school was shared / used by the Church of England Education Authority and right side by the Catholic Education Authority. The image below shows one floor of the interior of the school. There was a hall like this on every one of the three floors, and as classes changed Catholic and Protestant children used to nod and wave to each other as they passed in lines on each side of the halls. The school was demolished around 1960.
This image taken around 1954, shows children from the school in the background, Cavendish Street / Saint Augustine’s, playing games supervised by a teacher. A student from the nearby School of Art continues with her painting apparently unaffected by the noise and distraction the children must of been causing.
The image below shows children playing on a slide in another area of the park close to where the above image / picture was taken. We ourselves used to play on this slide on our way home from School which was located just across the road. The Grosvenor Cinema and the Art School can seen in the background of the image. Most of what is shown in these two images is still there today, at January 2014 and can seen, except for the slide.
The image below shows children playing on a slide in another area of the park close to where the above image / picture was taken. We ourselves used to play on this slide on our way home from School which was located just across the road. The Grosvenor Cinema and the Art School can seen in the background of the image. Most of what is shown in these two images is still there today, at January 2014 and can seen, except for the slide.
Whenever I attempt to express some thoughts and memories about my experiences relating to the mandatory time I was required to attend school, from five to fifteen, my mood nearly always changes for the worst.
In 1948, at the young age of five, having recently arrived in Manchester from Ireland, I commenced school at the Holy Family Infants School, located at Grosvenor Square, All Saints, Manchester. At the age of seven I transferred to St Augustine’s Primary School. My memories of attending these two schools is faint and hazy with nothing much to say about either of them , then things changed, while living on Wilton Street in 1953, I transferred to the Holy Name school located on Dover Street, Chorlton-On-Medlock. I often experience rage whenever think about this school, which I had the misfortune to attend for what felt like a very long two years. I have only, unhappy memories of the place, all of which are associated with grinding tedium rota learning and strong feelings of fear and intimidation, which I would sooner forget than, remember. This I think was due to the very strict, authoritarian attitudes of the teachers, as a result, I learned very little while I experienced and witnessed their daily brutality, indifference and lack of empathy or compassion towards the plight of the young vulnerable, poverty stricken, children in their charge, who had a lot to contend with living in deprived inner city areas and in most instances in extremely poor living conditions.
Some of the teachers I came into contact with at the Holy Name, seemed to enjoy belittling children and frequently using various forms of corporal punishment, even for very minor lapses of behaviour. As a catholic, I was constantly taught about the importance of kindness, consideration and the Christian / Catholic ethic of showing love towards others, etc, but not much of these sentiments were extended to me or came my way during the years I spent at school from those in authority, nor were any of the other catholic schools I attended much better / different. I know I am not alone in expressing my feeling and recording these memories and painful experiences of the brutal and dysfunctional Catholic education system, which then existed, based on the principles of “Jansenism” and probably still does today in some Catholic schools. The happiest day for me about this school is when in connection with our move from Wilton Street to Moss Side in 1955, I left the school behind me.
Some of the teachers I came into contact with at the Holy Name, seemed to enjoy belittling children and frequently using various forms of corporal punishment, even for very minor lapses of behaviour. As a catholic, I was constantly taught about the importance of kindness, consideration and the Christian / Catholic ethic of showing love towards others, etc, but not much of these sentiments were extended to me or came my way during the years I spent at school from those in authority, nor were any of the other catholic schools I attended much better / different. I know I am not alone in expressing my feeling and recording these memories and painful experiences of the brutal and dysfunctional Catholic education system, which then existed, based on the principles of “Jansenism” and probably still does today in some Catholic schools. The happiest day for me about this school is when in connection with our move from Wilton Street to Moss Side in 1955, I left the school behind me.
The above image shows the Holy Family Church, which I attended as a young child. The church stood next door to the Holy Family Infants School. In 1966 the church was demolished and a new church was built on the same site to replace it using money from the government's War Damage Commission.
The imposing building below, stood next to the the Ear Hospital, all Saints. It was demolished in the sixties to make way for the development of Manchester University.
The imposing building below, stood next to the the Ear Hospital, all Saints. It was demolished in the sixties to make way for the development of Manchester University.
Looking over from the Holy Family, school play-ground in 1948, I can clearly remember watching the church shown in the above image being demolished, and later on playing on the stone foundations which were preserved and can still be seen today in the small park, which also still exist virtually unchanged today.
The below image shows Oxford Street, around 1937. The Refuge building can seen in the background, and surprisingly it can seen that they had traffic problems in Manchester even in the thirties. The Regal cinema, which I attended many times as child, can also be clearly seen on the left of the picture / image.
The below image shows Oxford Street, around 1937. The Refuge building can seen in the background, and surprisingly it can seen that they had traffic problems in Manchester even in the thirties. The Regal cinema, which I attended many times as child, can also be clearly seen on the left of the picture / image.
Grosvenor Cinema
This image above shows the Grosvenor Cinema (now a student bar known as The Footage) was taken around 1949. It is located on the corner of Oxford Street and Grosvenor Street. For the reasonable entrance fee of 6d, I and my Brothers and Sisters spent many happy hours watching many films here, in particular the Westerns, Roy Rogers, Science Fiction, Flash Gordon, Batman and various comedy films: the Three Stooges and Mother Riley. The building is still in existence and can be seen to day converted into a pub popular with MMU Students.
The image above, is a winter scene in the same area. The Art School can be seen on the left.
These two images taken around 1958, show the shops near Cavendish Street / St Augustine’s School. The sweet shop in the middle of the block was very popular with the school children.
The shops and pub in the bottom image are on Oxford Road. The pub Auntys Bar was very popular with the Irish working men in the area who not only socialised and drank there, but they also used it as an unofficial labour exchange, commonly known as a "Paddy’s exchange" where information on jobs, wages and conditions were discussed.
The shops and pub in the bottom image are on Oxford Road. The pub Auntys Bar was very popular with the Irish working men in the area who not only socialised and drank there, but they also used it as an unofficial labour exchange, commonly known as a "Paddy’s exchange" where information on jobs, wages and conditions were discussed.
The image above shows the beautifully designed Victorian fountain which was located on the pavement opposite All Saints Churchyard on Oxford Road close to Grosvenor square. We used to play on it on the way home from school and drink water from the cast iron cups, which were attached to the fountain by chains. It was removed from this location in 982, and if it was re-erected I would be interested to know where?
The Public Monument and Sculpture Association website says this about it: In the 1890s. James Jardine, a Manchester cotton manufacturer, left money for the erection of two fountains. Albert Square was considered as a possible site for one of the fountains, replacing an existing one installed to mark the arrival of water, to supply Manchester from the Thirlmere reservoir in the Lake District. It was finally decided two fountains would be installed: one at All Saints, on Oxford Road and the other outside Jardine's cotton mill in Butler Street, Ancoats.
The Public Monument and Sculpture Association website says this about it: In the 1890s. James Jardine, a Manchester cotton manufacturer, left money for the erection of two fountains. Albert Square was considered as a possible site for one of the fountains, replacing an existing one installed to mark the arrival of water, to supply Manchester from the Thirlmere reservoir in the Lake District. It was finally decided two fountains would be installed: one at All Saints, on Oxford Road and the other outside Jardine's cotton mill in Butler Street, Ancoats.
These three images show the devastation caused by the “Pauldens” fire in 1957 which engulfed and completely destroyed the building.
I remember this event vividly because I was close by in the area at the time and could see a large plume of smoke in the distance. On hearing that it was Paulden's burning I was compelled to walk along and have a look. When I got there the fire brigade and police were keeping people well back and so I stood a little way down on Stretford Road. I actually witnessed the wall collapsing, narrowly missing one or two of the firemen. It was the end of an era as Paulden's was the Kendals of the working class, founded in 1865 by Mr Paulden to serve a largely working class area, and when this major store disappeared, it signalled the decline of Stretford Road as a shopping area. In the 1960s the university redevelopments completed the process. Stretford Road, was very popular with the residents of Hulme besides it having a good variety of shops it used to house a number of gents' outfitters. It was at one these shops that I bought my first pair of drainpipe trousers and a bootlace tie and a pink & silver speckled shirt.??? About year after the fire, Pauldens was re-established in Piccadilly and a few years afterwards it changed to the store that is still there now called Debenhams.
I remember this event vividly because I was close by in the area at the time and could see a large plume of smoke in the distance. On hearing that it was Paulden's burning I was compelled to walk along and have a look. When I got there the fire brigade and police were keeping people well back and so I stood a little way down on Stretford Road. I actually witnessed the wall collapsing, narrowly missing one or two of the firemen. It was the end of an era as Paulden's was the Kendals of the working class, founded in 1865 by Mr Paulden to serve a largely working class area, and when this major store disappeared, it signalled the decline of Stretford Road as a shopping area. In the 1960s the university redevelopments completed the process. Stretford Road, was very popular with the residents of Hulme besides it having a good variety of shops it used to house a number of gents' outfitters. It was at one these shops that I bought my first pair of drainpipe trousers and a bootlace tie and a pink & silver speckled shirt.??? About year after the fire, Pauldens was re-established in Piccadilly and a few years afterwards it changed to the store that is still there now called Debenhams.
The below photograph is a lovely treasured picture which was taken on the corner of Wilton Street and Morton Street, right opposite the house we lived at, No 23. It shows me with two of my Brothers Danny and Jackie. It was taken around 1954 /55.
This photograph is of particular importance to me because it is one of only two photographs I had taken as a child under the age of fourteen. It would be nice to know who took the photograph and if there are any others taken of us as children on or in the Wilton Street area. Danny is on the left of the picture, Jackie is in the middle and yes that’s me on the right showing off with one of my treasured possessions a Snake belt.
This photograph is of particular importance to me because it is one of only two photographs I had taken as a child under the age of fourteen. It would be nice to know who took the photograph and if there are any others taken of us as children on or in the Wilton Street area. Danny is on the left of the picture, Jackie is in the middle and yes that’s me on the right showing off with one of my treasured possessions a Snake belt.
Wilton Street, Chorlton-on-Medlock
This above image shows Wilton Street, Chorlton-on-Medlock. We lived at No 23, for six years from 1948 to 1955. This image shows the left side of the street as you look into it from Oxford Road. Six years is a long time in the life of a child and these images are of particular significance to me because they represent the home / area where I spent the formative years of my early childhood living in England after we had emigrated there from Ireland in 1948. It was here that relationships with others outside my immediate family were formed and I learned to survive the hazards and challenges of living in a built up, heavily populated, and dilapidated inner city environment.
The image shown on the previous page and this image above of Wilton Street, was taken in 1958, as most of the area was beginning to be demolished and the residents continued to be relocated to the various over-flow estates in and around Manchester. The image above shows the right hand side of Wilton Street, as you look into it from Oxford Road. I can only guess the identity of the children shown on the street and playing in the ruins of the demolished houses.
It is a pity, that when this image was taken, No 23, the house we lived in, and the house which stood next ours No 25, have already been demolished. Some of the families and names that I remember are: Yvonne and Rita Ali, John Mansfield, David Latham, Peter Hamilton, Walter and Brian Murray, Kenneth Rhanshandra, Marian Owen, and Members of the Curly and Russell families.
Chorlton-On-Medlock, like Hulme, and many other inner city areas had very tight knit communities, and in those days it was quite common to find large families and their extended families living close to each other, in the same street.
The houses on Wilton Street were unusual due to eight or so steps you had to climb to get to the front door. The houses had many rooms including large cellars and attics. When we left Wilton Street, in 1955, the houses had no electricity and the plumbing / domestic facilities consisted of one cold tap supplying a large brown earthenware slop sink. The WC was located outside the small back yard.
It is a pity, that when this image was taken, No 23, the house we lived in, and the house which stood next ours No 25, have already been demolished. Some of the families and names that I remember are: Yvonne and Rita Ali, John Mansfield, David Latham, Peter Hamilton, Walter and Brian Murray, Kenneth Rhanshandra, Marian Owen, and Members of the Curly and Russell families.
Chorlton-On-Medlock, like Hulme, and many other inner city areas had very tight knit communities, and in those days it was quite common to find large families and their extended families living close to each other, in the same street.
The houses on Wilton Street were unusual due to eight or so steps you had to climb to get to the front door. The houses had many rooms including large cellars and attics. When we left Wilton Street, in 1955, the houses had no electricity and the plumbing / domestic facilities consisted of one cold tap supplying a large brown earthenware slop sink. The WC was located outside the small back yard.
Around 1960 marked the year when virtually the whole area of Chorlton-On-Medlock that I and my family knew and called our home from 1948 to1955, would be erased from the map to make way for the expansion of Manchester University.
I visited the area in 1964, when I heard the MCC demolition programme was advancing at a rapid pace. When I arrived there and looked around after gathering my thoughts I took the two photographs below. Faced with the scenes that met me of completely demolished and half demolished houses and bricks and rubbish strewn about. I was greatly shocked and up-set because what I was looking at held a myriad of precious memories; of a childhood years spent interacting with this environment, childhood friends, and the community that existed in these streets which we had left behind in 1955.
The area which we knew and remembered was a beehive of activity, of children laughing and playing in these streets it was now like ghost town except for one two residents the local community had all but vanished; it seemed to me the physical evidence and the history of the areas past was being destroyed.
I visited the area in 1964, when I heard the MCC demolition programme was advancing at a rapid pace. When I arrived there and looked around after gathering my thoughts I took the two photographs below. Faced with the scenes that met me of completely demolished and half demolished houses and bricks and rubbish strewn about. I was greatly shocked and up-set because what I was looking at held a myriad of precious memories; of a childhood years spent interacting with this environment, childhood friends, and the community that existed in these streets which we had left behind in 1955.
The area which we knew and remembered was a beehive of activity, of children laughing and playing in these streets it was now like ghost town except for one two residents the local community had all but vanished; it seemed to me the physical evidence and the history of the areas past was being destroyed.
The above image is of New York Street, with Clifford Street, in the distance, and the Salvation Army Men's Hostel can be seen.
This image to the left, is of Morton Street. This street was directly opposite 23 Wilton Street and it is an important image / picture because it shows the exact spot where my Aunty Tessie and Uncle Michael Furey lived. It was in the house opposite the parked van before they moved out to Wythenshawe and then on to Australia.
This image to the left, is of Morton Street. This street was directly opposite 23 Wilton Street and it is an important image / picture because it shows the exact spot where my Aunty Tessie and Uncle Michael Furey lived. It was in the house opposite the parked van before they moved out to Wythenshawe and then on to Australia.
Booth Hall Children’s Hospital, Moston, North Manchester & St Anne’s Convalescence Home, Blackpool.
As already described previously in this booklet, the living conditions in the houses on Wilton Street, were very poor compared with today’s standards. Houses were damp and inadequately heated, as a result, people especially the children, suffered during the colder months of the year from higher than normal instances of coughs and colds and general chest complaints. In 1952, when I was just ten years of age I caught a cold which developed into pneumonia. I became seriously ill and had to be taken into the above hospital, where it took six weeks for me to recover. Following this, I was sent to Blackpool, for three weeks to convalesce in the home shown in the picture opposite. The home is still there and it has been maintained in excellent condition, as the photograph I took shows.
These are the cinemas we attended as children while living in Chorlton-On-Medlock from 1948 to 1955. All of these four cinemas were located along Oxford Road, within walking distance of our house on Wilton Street.
Going to the flicks was the term I remember we used in those days to announce that we were going to the cinema. The once weekly visit to a cinema was looked upon as a special treat to us as children; as most of us were living in circumstances of poverty and deprivation; these visits to the cinema gave us an opportunity to escape and lose ourselves away from the humdrum of life for a couple hours and experience the excitement, and watch in wonder and awe in the make believe fantasy world of cinematic presentations such as the: Westerns featuring Roy Rogers and his horse Trigger, The Durango Kid the Masked Cowboy hero, Science fiction films featuring Flash Gordon and Bat Man & Robin, and on the lighter side you could have a good laugh at the comedy films featuring the antics of: The Three Stooges, Mother Riley. Laurel & Hardy and the unforgettable Charlie Chaplin. These are the films which after seeing them left an indelible impression on me and memories that have lasted a lifetime: Epics like Quo Vadis, Gone With the Wind, Oklahoma, The Thing, War of The Worlds, King Kong and too many others to mention. Top left, is the Grosvenor cinema. Still there today, but it has been converted into a pub. Top right, is the Roxy; it was demolished in 1970, and the Manchester Aquatics Centre was built on the site, Bottom left is the Theatre Royal, it is still standing, but it is now a Bingo hall and Bottom right the Regal, it is still there but it is now a dance Studio.
Church of the Holy Name of Jesus, Oxford Road
The Church of the Holy Name of Jesus (Holy Name Church) is located on Oxford Road, a few blocks up from Wilton Street; it was built between 1869 and 1871 and designed by Joseph A. Hansom & Son. The tower, was designed by Adrian Gilbert Scott, and erected in 1928 in memory of the rector of the church. The church was granted a grade II listed building status in December 1963.
During the six years I lived in Chorlton-On-Medlock, I attended two Churches the Holy Family Built in 1845, located at Grosvenor Square, All Saints. The one other church I attended was the Holy Name on Oxford Road (Chorlton-on Medlock’s Cathedral) built between 1869 and 1871), a fine example of the work of the architect Joseph Aloysius Hansom; it was here that I made my 1st Communion and Confirmation. Sorry, my thoughts about my Irish Catholic Childhood / can summed in the following few words: fear, guilt, obedience, crushing boredom and palpable relief when I was not required to be any where near the inside of a church. In the 50s and 60s services were conducted in Latin. I remember in particular the awful smell of incense and the dread of having to go to confession on the Friday of every week knowing quite well I would commit the same petty sins on a the following Monday.
Despite what I have written above, I never did denounce entirely my deeply held personal religious believes; on the contrary for most of my life, that is from about the age of fifteen, while I found it a very difficult thing to do in this modern world; I have always tried to live my life in a manner consistent with the precepts and principles of Christianity, as given to us by Christ himself in the New Testament.
During the six years I lived in Chorlton-On-Medlock, I attended two Churches the Holy Family Built in 1845, located at Grosvenor Square, All Saints. The one other church I attended was the Holy Name on Oxford Road (Chorlton-on Medlock’s Cathedral) built between 1869 and 1871), a fine example of the work of the architect Joseph Aloysius Hansom; it was here that I made my 1st Communion and Confirmation. Sorry, my thoughts about my Irish Catholic Childhood / can summed in the following few words: fear, guilt, obedience, crushing boredom and palpable relief when I was not required to be any where near the inside of a church. In the 50s and 60s services were conducted in Latin. I remember in particular the awful smell of incense and the dread of having to go to confession on the Friday of every week knowing quite well I would commit the same petty sins on a the following Monday.
Despite what I have written above, I never did denounce entirely my deeply held personal religious believes; on the contrary for most of my life, that is from about the age of fifteen, while I found it a very difficult thing to do in this modern world; I have always tried to live my life in a manner consistent with the precepts and principles of Christianity, as given to us by Christ himself in the New Testament.
A miscellany of pictures of Chorlton-On-Medlock from the 1940s, 50s and 60s era
These next set off images are all of the streets & roads which were close to where we lived on Wilton Street, Chorlton-On-Medlock.
The six images below are all of Oxford Road. Oxford Road was and still is a main arterial road which runs from the centre of Manchester south towards Wilmslow. The scenes shown in the images below are relevant and significant to us and our history in Manchester; because they were all within a couple of hundred yards of where we lived on Wilton Street, from 1948 to 1955.
Those Buildings shown in the images Top Left & Right and middle left, survived the clearance they can be seen today virtually the same as they are shown in the images. Those in the other three images no longer exist; they were demolished in connection with the expansion of Manchester University.
Those Buildings shown in the images Top Left & Right and middle left, survived the clearance they can be seen today virtually the same as they are shown in the images. Those in the other three images no longer exist; they were demolished in connection with the expansion of Manchester University.
Rumford Street
This is a picture of the Convent of the Little Sisters of the Poor, which was located on Rumford Street; it is significant to us because the Nuns helped us in times of need; through gifts in the form of items of children’s clothing.
This beautiful historical building was demolished as part of the clearance program.
This beautiful historical building was demolished as part of the clearance program.
This image taken on Rumford Street is good example of what a croft looked like. Crofts were patches of waste ground
of which there were many in Chorlton -On-Medlock, where a house once stood, until a German Bomb scored direct hit and blew them away. These patches of spare ground were used as improvised “play areas" by the children in the area.
of which there were many in Chorlton -On-Medlock, where a house once stood, until a German Bomb scored direct hit and blew them away. These patches of spare ground were used as improvised “play areas" by the children in the area.
In these image two young boys; can be seen happily playing a game at the junction of Eldon Street & Rumford Street just few minutes walk from where we lived on Wilton Street. Brunswick Street can be seen in the distance.
All the buildings that can be seen in these images were demolished in connection the expansion of Manchester University.
All the buildings that can be seen in these images were demolished in connection the expansion of Manchester University.
New York Street
This is a picture of New York Street at its junction with Eldon Street. This corner shop and houses were only about a five minute walk from where we lived on Wilton Street. It can seen that these houses are in generally good condition, as were many other houses and buildings in the area, but it didn’t save them from demolition contractors wrecking ball to make way for the expansion of Manchester University
This image is of the same row of houses on New York Street again it can be seen that the houses are in good condition and well kept.
A croft can also be seen, at the end of the row of houses, again the result of a German bomb scoring a direct hit and destroying the house that once stood there.
A croft can also be seen, at the end of the row of houses, again the result of a German bomb scoring a direct hit and destroying the house that once stood there.
In this image taken by myself around 1962, it shows graphically the destruction of the above houses and devastation of the whole area of Chorlton-On-Medlock as the clearance program to make way for the expansion of Manchester University moved forward at an ever increasing pace.
An unusual feature of New York Street was the concrete road surface as most of the road and street surfaces in this area consisted of granite cobles.
An unusual feature of New York Street was the concrete road surface as most of the road and street surfaces in this area consisted of granite cobles.
Brunswick Street
Brunswick Street ran parallel to Wilton Street, from the junction off Oxford Road up to Ardwick Green. This image brings back memories of Sharrocks Dance hall which can be seen in this picture. This dance hall was popular with the large Irish communities living in Chorlton-On- Medlock and the surrounding areas in the 1950s & 60s. I can also clearly remember the Trolley Buses running and switching the overhead electric lines at this exact spot; the conductor used a long bamboo pole with a hook on the end to do this.
As ownership of a television set was beyond the reach of most of us in those days due to cost, we considered ourselves to be very fortunate to own a radio, but because there was no electricity in our house the radio we owned was powered by an accumulator - a heavy, square glass cumbersome thing, filled with acid that needed charging regularly. The shop shown in this picture on Brunswick Street, was where we used to take the accumulator to be re-charged.
This is another view of Brunswick Street looking up towards Ardwick Green. The overhead electric lines can be seen which used to power the Trolley Buses. All the houses and building that can be seen in these images were demolished in connection the expansion of Manchester University.