Collyhurst
Districts & Suburbs of Manchester

COLLYHURST
The name Collyhurst originally meant "wooded hill". The hill is actually largely made up of red sandstone, hence the area is known as Red Bank. Stone quarried at Red bank was used to construct the Roman fort at Castlefield, as well as several bridges over the River Irwell and the Collegiate Church at Manchester, later to become Manchester Cathedral. Collyhurst existed as a grazing or pasture land at the time of the Norman Invasion of 1066, and remained largely rural up to the early 19th century. A burial ground for plague victims was also located at Collyhurst Clough. The district was incorporated into Manchester in 1885.

In medieval times Collyhurst Common was a popular place for archery practice (every young man was obliged by law to maintain bow and arrow skills for use in time of war).

The every present Mosley family had a house in the district in the 17th century and Sir Nicholas Mosley, Lord of the Manor of Manchester, for a time lived at Collyhurst Hall. By the mid 19th century the Hall had been demolished and a church stood on the site.

By the mid-19th century, Collyhurst had begun to expand rapidly as coal was discovered nearby and houses were constructed to house the coal workers at the newly created St George's Colliery. A chemical works had also come into being on Collyhurst Clough. Both air and water were resultantly poisoned by dust and chemical effluent, it was a most unhealthy place to live and work and life expectancy was very low for working people. Ironically, the worst squalor was to be found at Angel Meadow, which had been a pleasant leafy suburb in earlier times.

Corn Mills, Brick Making Works, a Paper Mill, Rope Works and several Dye Factories also existed alongside the River Tib so that by the late 19th century Collyhurst was very heavily industrialised. Later, the railways came and several new blue brick viaducts cut swathes across the Irk Valley - most still stand today, largely derelict except for one main line to Yorkshire and the revolutionary hyperactive Metrolink Rapid Transit System carried across the valley by another.

On a more domestic level, the resident population has gradually and consistently declined during the post-Second World War years, and a train ride over one of its viaducts reveals many derelict and abandoned Victorian terraces beneath. New housing initiatives have been made and there are pleasant modern houses at the top of the hill, but Collyhurst is still scarred by its industrial past. Red Bank is largely set aside for the railways and for light industry.

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.