Churches (138) : All Saints, Wigan

The parish church of All Saints in Wigan, in what is now Greater Manchester, dates from the late 13th century. The lower parts of the tower are a surviving part from this time. The upper part of the tower, including the belfry, was added in the 16th century.

The church was rebuilt in the mid-1800s, the top stage of the tower including the clock, was added in 1861. The church is built from sandstone and is in the Perpendicular style. It has a six-bay nave, two-bay chancel, North and South aisles and a clerestory.

Walking the waterways (24) : Rochdale Canal

The Rochdale Canal links Manchester to Sowerby Bridge in Yorkshire, passing through Rochdale. The canal is a wide canal which opened in stages from 1798, the final branch opening in 1834. The canal was successful and became on the major trunk routes for commerce between Lancashire and Yorkshire. Despite competition from the railways the canal reached it's peak in commercial traffic in 1845.

The canal went into decline as with most waterways in the late 19th and 20th centuries though remained profitable until after the First World War. Most of the canal was closed in 1952 and became unusable in the 1960s, including being cut in two by the M62 motorway. Despite attempts to abandon the canal, work to restore it began in the 1970s. It was not until 2002 that the canal was restored for navigation along it's full length.

Cathedrals (3) : Manchester

Manchester Cathedral has it's origins in a parish church which was built in 1215CE. This was built on the site of an earlier church which existed in the early Norman period, an earlier Saxon church also once stood nearby. The parish church became a collegiate church, which was granted a licence by King Henry V and Pope Martin V, dedicated to St Mary, St Denys and St George in 1421CE. The collegiate church became a cathedral in 1847.

The cathedral has a relatively modern appearance due to extensive reconstruction and modifications in the 1860s including a new tower which was taller than the original. New porches were built replacing the medieval originals and the nave interior was replaced in the 1880s. Further restoration was needed in 1940s following bomb damage during the blitz, damage included the demolition of the original medieval lady chapel, the roof was also badly damaged.

Manchester rails and trams

Of course during the trip to Manchester there was some rail photography, at the two main Manchester railway stations. There was also some travelling on the Metrolink tram. You can see my photos of railways and trams here.

Ashton canal

It is always good to visit a new canal and in my trip to Manchester on Monday I did just that. Manchester (like Birmingham) has plenty of canals but while i had walked the Rochdale and Bridgewater canals already I hadn't been on the Ashton canal. I only walked a short way but still took in two arms, two basins and an aqueduct! You can see my Ashton Canal photos here.

Meeting with Manchester

Yesterday as a pre-birthday treat I went up to Manchester, only the second time I've ever been to this fine city. This time I did more exploring around the centre itself including the excellent cathedral. I also did a bit of a canal walk and travelled on the trams but those will be subjects for later posts. My photos of Manchester can be seen here.

Churches (34) : St James with St Thomas, Poolstock

The Church of St James with St Thomas is in Poolstock, a district of Wigan. Work began on the church in 1863 and it was consecreted three years later. The church (then known as the Church of St James) was funded by local MP and mine and mill owner James Eckersley and built in the centre of a mining village.

The church has a five bay nave with a clerestory, a chancel, a vestry, North and South aisles and a West tower. The church was built from sandstone in the Decorated style. In 1970 the neighbouring church of St Thomas closed and the parishes merged.

Departing Manchester Piccadilly

A Northern service departs.

Walking the Waterways (19) : Leeds & Liverpool

The Leeds & Liverpool Canal stretches across the Pennines (as the name suggests) linking the two great Northern cities. Work began on the canal in 1770 with the aim of linking Yorkshire industrial towns like Leeds and Bradford with a port in the West. The first part of the canal opened in 1773 but work continued for nearly fifty years until the full two hundred kilometre route was open. The canal ran from the centre of Leeds to Liverpool via places like Wigan, Shipley, Keighley and Burnley.

Coal was the most important cargo carried on the canal, from mines inland to Liverpool. Coal continued to be carried on the canal as late as 1972 with other cargoes continuing until the early 1980s. The canal is used for leisure these days of course. A new link to Liverpool's docks was opened in 2009 allowing boats to go as far as the Albert Dock in Liverpool.

Piccadilly

A Transport for Wales train pulls away at Manchester Piccadilly.

Through Wigan

A TPE train passes through Wigan North Western at speed.

Walking in Wigan

I went up to Wigan yesterday. I have been once before but only to change trains on my trip to St Helens last year. This time I wanted to explore the Leeds & Liverpool Canal which passes through the town. The canal in Wigan is very interesting and i explored part of the Leigh branch too. You can see my canal photos from Wigan here.

Waterways of Manchester

Manchester has a lot of waterways just like Birmingham and London, the most famous one is the Ship Canal of course though I haven't visited that yet. Instead I walked parts of the Bridgewater and Rochdale Canals which meet at Castlefield Junction. You can see my Bridgewater Canal photos here and the Rochdale Canal photos here.

Manchester Science & Industry Museum

The Science & Industry Museum in Manchester is part of the Science Museum group along with the main museum in London and the National Railway Museum in York. I visited the Science & Industry Museum yesterday and greatly enjoyed the exhibits, especially the railway and aviation halls. Among the exhibits at the museum include surviving parts of the very first "proper" railway Manchester Liverpool Road (from 1830), an Avro Shackleton and Rocket - maybe the only steam locomotive that can rival Flying Scotsman for fame. You can see my photos from the museum here.

Manchester at last!

I haven't been to Manchester before and as I'm nearly fifty I thought it was high time. After last week's last minute postponement due to the weather I finally made it to the fine city in the North West yesterday. It was worth the wait as Manchester is great and I'm sure to return many times in future. I visited the Museum of Science and Industry, walked two canals and travelled around on the tram a bit too. You can see my rail related photos here. More about the museum and canals later.