Manchester – May 2017: On Friday 5th May and Sunday 7th May 2017 we stopped in Manchester for a couple of short walks around the centre of the city on our way to and from an event in Rochdale. I had lived in Manchester from 1963-70 but hadn’t really looked at the city since I left.
One major change since the 1970s had been the opening up of the canals, including those which run through the centre of the city. These had played a large part in the industrial revolution which had really established the city and on the Friday we went for a walk along the Rochdale Canal from close to Piccadilly Station where our train had left us and along to the Bridgewater Canal – the first canal in Britain which did not follow the path of an existing river, and the second ‘modern’ canal in our industrial revolution. It opened on 17th July 1761 to bring coal from the Duke of Bridgewater’s mines at Worley to the then rapidly expanding cotton town of Manchester.
On My London Diary you can read more about our walk and our return to the centre of Manchester which we had hoped to make beside the River Irwell, but had to detour where paths were closed.
It was perhaps this walk which decided us to return the following year to stay in Manchester for a few days and see more of the city.
We had less time on our way home on Sunday and spent an hour at the highly recommended People’s History Museum but I did take a few more pictures as we walked to the station.
More pictures on My London Diary at Manchester.
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