Houses on this estate were built to house workers from the M&S Cooperative. There was a plan for 40 houses in total and all of the road names are named after types of thorn. The houses on Blackthorn Drive were reserved for managers of the…

Planting trees along the road might seem normal to us now, but at the time it wasn't that common. At the time, some planners thought that providing access to nature in the city was important for people's health and well-being, but they couldn't prove…

As you wander around the circle, think about the trees and the size of the gardens. This was a world away from the back to back houses, dirt and overcrowding in industrial towns. Cul-de-sacs were thought to be excellent at reducing through…

In 1858, Lord Egerton presented a piece of land to build a school for the poor children of Burnage. The school was managed by a board including Lord Egerton, along with the rector and wardens of St Paul’s Church, Withington, which was the Parish…

Shawbrook Villa was built in 1860 by Charles Lings. Charles was a cotton merchant, working in Reddish. There were a number of mills in Reddish, some of which still stand today. At the time of building the house, it’s said that Charles Lings and his…

In the late 1800s, Shawbrook Lodge was owned by a very influential industrialist. Captain W C Bacon had a very successful career as a ship broker – he was involved with the Manchester and Bombay Company which dealt in Indian, Canadian and British…

The farm house of Hyde Fold Farm is still one of the largest houses in the area. Originally it was the home of farmer John Bibby, who lived with his wife Elizabeth and their eight children. In 1861 they had 30 acres of farmland (one acre is about the…

Pearn Lane was named after a man named Sinclair Pearn. Sinclair Pearn’s family had originally lived and worked in Devon on the South Coast. They were mariners, which means they worked on ships. Sinclair’s father, Richard Pearn moved away from Devon…