Manchester Cathedral Steps

The Cathedral Steps were wooden staircases that descended from street level on Victoria Street in Manchester, to arched brick landing stages built into the embankment of the River Irwell, and finally to floating moored platforms. The purpose of the steps was to allow fare-paying passengers access to Steam packet riverboats which provided tours of the River and also travel to other towns in the area, including Barton, Lymm, and Liverpool.Citation
publisher =Environment Agency, APEM Ltd
title = Urban River Regeneration in Manchester - Transforming the 'Dark River Irwell'
year = 2005
url = http://www.merseybasin.org.uk/page.asp?page=1&pagesize=5&confirmed=1&id=2837&docid=190
accessdate = 2007-07-19] The steps were so named due to their close proximity to Manchester Cathedral.

History

In the Victorian era passenger trips along the river Irwell were very popular. "Sailings to Pomona Gardens were very popular with courting couples, who liked to watch the Eel-catchers, admire views of Trafford Park Woodlands, and gaze at the peaceful farms and orchards. But the increasing smells from the river stopped it all." [cite book
last =
first =
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Greater Manchester: 125 Years Images from the Manchester Evening News
publisher = The Breendon Books
date = 1993
location =
pages = 21
url =
doi =
id =
isbn = 1873626673] The Rivers Pollution Prevention Act 1876 was designed to solve this problem, but it was largely ineffective. It did however lay the groundwork for the more draconian legislation which followed.

Following the opening of the Manchester Ship Canal in 1894, in 1895 at least one flight of steps [ [http://www.images.manchester.gov.uk/Display.php?irn=23648&QueryPage=%2F Steam Packet landing stage 1895, the sign says 'Docks, Barton, Latcford (short for Latchford, Warrington), Lymm, Liverpool'] ] cite book
last = Makepeace
first = Chris
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Manchester as it was, volume III
publisher = Hendon Publishing Co.
date = 1974
location =
pages =
url =
doi =
id =
isbn = n/a] was opened by the Manchester Ship Canal Company, who actively encouraged passenger traffic. The company purchased several steamers, two of which are known to have used the landing stages, the "Shandon" and the "Eagle". [ [http://www.simplonpc.co.uk/NorthWestUK.html#anchor1199263 Manchester Ship Canal Excursion Steamers] ] The boats could carry 900 and 1,100 passengers respectively. During the first half of 1897 more than 200,000 passengers were carried on trips around Manchester Docks with holiday seasons being the most popular periods. Competition for passengers was fierce and there were at least two staircases down to the river, operated by different companies. Ferries would occasionally carry musicians to entertain the passengers. [cite book
last = Waghorn
first = Tom
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = The Making of Manchester
publisher = Hendon Publishing Co.
date = 1999
location =
pages =
url = http://www.owg.org.uk/profiles/tomwaghorn/index.html
doi =
id =
isbn = 0953741508] The steps do not appear to have remained in business for long, suffering problems with flooding, and subsequently closing in 1906.

During the Second World War, the stages and the tunnels surrounding them were converted into air-raid shelters. [ [http://www.images.manchester.gov.uk/Display.php?irn=69618&QueryPage=%2F Air raid shelter 1940] ] [ [http://www.images.manchester.gov.uk/Display.php?irn=69622&QueryPage=%2F Main corridor of air raid shelter 1940] ] [ [http://www.images.manchester.gov.uk/Display.php?irn=69620&QueryPage=%2F Entrance steps to shelter 1940] ]

The steps and landing stages have been closed to the public for many years. In 1935 less elaborate steps were in place, [ [http://www.images.manchester.gov.uk/Display.php?irn=27404&QueryPage=%2F|1935 image showing steps] ] and some of them remained until 1971. [ [http://www.images.manchester.gov.uk/Display.php?irn=63363&QueryPage=%2F 1971 Image showing wooden steps still in place] ] In photographs taken in 1972, the arches are seen to be barred, some covered with metal grilles. [cite book
last = Makepeace
first = Chris
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Manchester as it was, volume I
publisher = Hendon Publishing Co.
date = 1972
location =
pages =
url =
doi =
id =
isbn = n/a] As of 2007, none of the steps remain, and the original Victorian railings along the embankment have been replaced with a stone wall and new railings.

The stages are visible from the three surrounding bridges, and the northwest shore of the river. The arches are now bricked up with small ventilation apertures left in place.

Tunnels

It is believed by some that the landing stages once provided access, via tunnels, to the Georgian streets which reportedly still exist below the modern city, streets that the Victorians covered with the present street level. There have also been persistent rumours of tunnels extending from the landing stages to various parts of the city [ [http://www.aidan.co.uk/forums/manchester-local-history/29-underground-manchester.html Rumours of underground streets] ] . While photographs on the Manchester Council website do appear to show tunnels with cobbled foot surfaces, there is as yet no real evidence to suggest such a network beyond the scope of the original landing stages. The nearby tunnel at Walker's Croft apparently is used only for storage underneath Victoria station.

In his book "Underground Manchester; secrets of the city revealed", Keith Warrender quotes from the recollections of a Manchester City News writer published in 1923 about the arches (know as Victoria Arches), sixty years previously; see cite book | last =Warrender | first = Keith | title =Underground Manchester; secrets of the city revealed | publisher = Willow Publishing| date = 2007| location = Altrincham| pages =38-45|isbn = 978-0-94636-41-0]

I became acquainted with those arches in the sixties, for my father, a master joiner and builder, had a workshop there. Two approaches thereto were provided, one by a flight of steps near the Cateaton Street side of the old churchyard, and the other at the corner of Victoria Street and Fennel Street. The arches were lofty and spacious, and had previously been used as a copper and iron works, in connection with which was a tall chimney by the cathedral steps. Part of the chimney was damaged by lightning and the upper part was taken down in 1872. I believe the lower part remained until the old buildings at that point were demolished, not many years ago.

He then goes on to quote another letter from the "Manchester Evening News" in 1960 which says;

At the time I knew it well, 1898, one or two of the arches were used as a battery station by Manchester Electricity Department and two or three others as meter testing and storage departments. Also there was the first testing station for the department where the prototypes of all apparatus used by electricity users in the city were tested. The tunnel was bricked up, about level with the end of Fennel Street. From its gradient it would reach approximately water level at the Irk at the bottom of Hunt's Bank, and the other end would reach street level at St Mary's Gate. The roadway was one cart track wide. The entrance was in Victoria Street alongside the door to a tobacconist's shop near Cathedral Yard.

The arches were used as an air raid shelter during World War II. The conversion, which included additional brick blast walls, took three months at a cost of £10,150 and provided shelter for 1619 people. The cobbled surfaces shown in some of the pictures on the Manchester City Council website show the same network of tunnels before their conversion to air raid shelters. The land covered by the arches included a street, which led at the west end to a wooden bridge over the River Irk. The old road was covered over in an improvement scheme, which began in 1833.

The stages also connected with the public toilets that used to be in front of the Cathedral. While now disused and closed to the public in 1967, Manchester Central Library maps demonstrate their proximity to the landing stages on the river, and both stage and toilets are accessible from one-another. Explorers have accessed the landing stages and documented their current condition, including taking photographs. The male toilets, previously accessible from the front of the Cathedral, are apparently situated within arch 9. The female toilets were in the next arch alongFact|date=July 2007, although they have reportedly been removed in their entirety. Both toilets apparently had private offices at the western ends (closest to the river), against the embankment wall. The female toilets were accessed from a fenced pathway from street level.There was an underground entrance to the stages from the premises of Thomas Cook & Son, which stood on the corner of Victoria Bridge. Evidence of the building was reportedly found inside one of the stages, in the form of fire damaged timber purlins - albeit in very poor condition. It has been suggested that the landing stages might be reopened to the public as a tourist attraction.

Gallery

References

External links

* [http://www.images.manchester.gov.uk/ Manchester Council Image Database - search for River Irwell or Victoria Arches]
* [http://www.pittdixon.go-plus.net/irwell/irwell.htm Passenger Steamers on the River Irwell]
* [http://www.darkplaces.co.uk/phpBB2/album_screensize_image_page.php?pic_id=7382 Images of the landing stages]
* [http://www.francisfrith.com/pageloader.asp?page=/search/photos/viewphoto.asp&neg=33691&townid=M21&collectionid=10&start=1 Image of Packet Steamer at Barton]
* [http://books.google.com/books?id=xZLH3NScGSMC&pg=PA80&dq=salford+station&lr=&as_brr=3&sig=ACfU3U1-84sTDS_WRoPRk88fp8-2vCgdcA#PPA74,M1 Image of Thomas Cook office]
* [http://www.urbanassault.t83.net/#/cathedralsteps/4529090442/ Exploring Cathedral Steps, WWII Air Raid Shelters]