Burnage District of Manchester

Burnage
Districts & Suburbs of Manchester

Burnage was described at the end of the nineteenth century by George Bernard Shaw as the prettiest village in Manchester. The district managed to avoid the worst excesses of industrialisation and by the beginning of the 19th century it had successfully established a cottage industry in hand weaving. Many of the original weavers cottages still survive today and parts of Burnage Lane still have a positive "village" feel.

The name Burnage is probably a corruption of "Brown Hedge" from the old brown stone walls or "hedges" which were common there in medieval times. Located south of the city centre it is bounded by Heaton Norris, Levenshulme and Didsbury and includes Ladybarn and Green End. Burnage Lane still marks the path of the old road south to Cheshire. It was incorporated into the City of Manchester in 1904. It was in Burnage that city father and entrepreneur John Watts built Burnage Hall in 1840. Watts' father had built the famous Watts Warehouse in city centre Portland Street (now the Britannia Hotel). Burnage Hall was demolished in 1911.

Mauldeth Hall in Green End had for more than 20 years been the dwelling of the Bishop of Manchester, before his move to Higher Broughton.

Notable local celebrities include the writer Frances Hodgson Burnett, who wrote "Little Lord Fauntleroy", who spent most of her early childhood in Burnage, and musicians Liam and Noel Gallagher who founded "Oasis" rock group - they were born in Burnage and their mother still has a house in the village.

1906 saw plans to build a so-called "garden suburb" in the district. Burnage Garden Village, as it was called, saw the building of many new semi-detached houses as well as open recreational spaces, including lawns, gardens, a bowling green, tennis courts, allotments and a childrens' playground.

The 1920s saw the construction of Kingsway (the A34) and the building of the Kingsway Housing Estate and building has continued apace since then - only parts of Burnage Lane still survive as original weavers' cottages.

Return to: Suburban Districts of Manchester

See also:

• Map of City Boundaries in 1838
• Map of City Boundaries in 1938
• Map of City Boundaries in 2002
• Gazetteer of Greater Manchester Place Names

NOTE:
We have made reference to several sources in compiling this web page, but must make special mention of the Breedon Books' "Illustrated History of Manchester's Suburbs" by Glynis Cooper, of which we made particular use. Information about this book can be found on our Books About Manchester webpage.