Victoria Street

Today's photo shows the view looking down Victoria Street, from its junction with William Street, in Ashton's West End.

Victoria Street was built, unsurprisingly, in the early years of Queen Victoria's reign, around 170 years ago. It was a straight and broad street lined mostly with small terraced houses. Those houses were demolished during a slum clearance programme and have since been replaced by modern houses with gardens. The road has been made narrower to create more areas of greenery. The only building in this part of Victoria Street that dates back to Victorian times is the Trafalgar Inn on the right of the photo.

In the far distance you can see the steeple of St Stephen's Church at Guide Bridge.

See Google Street View of this location.

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"Victoria Street" is a contribution to ABC Wednesday. For more "V" posts from around the world please follow this link.

ABC Wednesday: Guzzlin Goose

Today's post for ABC Wednesday is G for "Guzzlin Goose" and shows the pub of that name on Bentinck Street.

The Guzzlin Goose pub is not, in my opinion, one of Ashton's better-looking buildings, although it looks very smart after its recent re-paint, which has emphasised its simple design typical of a lot of 1960s architecture.

The pub was previously called the Happy Shepherd and was originally opened in 1861. It was re-built on the same site in the 1960s when the area between Katherine Street and Brook Street was being re-developed. For most of its life it had been a beerhouse (licensed to sell beers but not wines and spirits) and only received a full licence in 1966.

See Google Street View of this location.

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"Guzzlin Goose" is a contribution to ABC Wednesday. For more "G" posts from around the world please follow this link.

ABC Wednesday: The Friendship

Today's post for ABC Wednesday is F for "The Friendship" and shows the building that was many years was a pub of that name.

The Friendship was at the western end of Old Street, on the corner of Henry Square. It was opened in 1827 and expanded into the building at the back, which became the original Schofield's Brewery. The brewery later moved to a larger site on Bentinck Street and was eventually incorporated into Robinson's Brewery.

The building has been empty for several years but it occupies a prime location in the St Petersfield re-development and will shortly be converted into offices. It is a pity that it could not be sustained as a pub, but at least the splendid building will be retained.

See Google Street View of this location.

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"The Friendship" is a contribution to ABC Wednesday. For more "F" posts from around the world please follow this link.

Not the Church Inn

This is not the Church Inn at Hurst Cross. It used to be, but no longer. Like several other former pubs in Ashton, it has been converted into a convenience store.

The building originally opened as a pub around 1850 and it is not difficult to see why it was named the Church Inn. It stood just a few yards from St John's Church on Kings Road, or Lower King Street, as it was called at that time.

At least the building survives and has been put to new use, unlike the Miners' Refuge pub almost opposite, which was simply demolished a few years ago.

See Google Street View of this location which at the time of posting, still shows the Church Inn as a pub..

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"Not the Church Inn" is my contribution to this week's "My World" feature. Please check out the other blogs participating in this week's My World.

Prince of Orange

The Prince of Orange pub is a prominent landmark in the centre of Ashton, standing on Wellington Road almost opposite the railway station and near the bus station and council offices.

The pub dates from around 1817 although it was completely re-built in 1926 after it was taken over by Robinsons brewery. Its Tudor-style timbered gables were a popular feature on pubs built between the wars (such as the Broadoak Hotel).

The Prince of Orange pub could well have been named after William, Prince of Orange, who would have been well known in Britain, leading a Dutch government in exile, and who died a few years before the pub was built.

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See Google Street View of this location.

"Prince of Orange" is my contribution to this week's "My World" feature. Please check out the other blogs participating in this week's My World.

ABC Wednesday: Wellington

Today's post for ABC Wednesday is W for "Wellington". The photo shows the Wellington Inn on Oldham Road.

"Wait a minute!" I hear you cry. "You've put the wrong photograph in - that's not a pub!" Ah, but it used to be the Wellington Inn. However, when no-one could be found to continue to run it as a pub, it was sold to Tesco, who have converted it into one of their local "Tesco Express" shops.

A few months ago I reported on the opening of a Tesco Express on Mossley Road, Tesco's first shop in Ashton for many years.

The pub originally opened, in 1850, as the "Waterloo" but the name was changed a few years later, after the death of the Duke of Wellington. It was one of four pubs in Ashton to bear that name!

I am sure there are many who will mourn the passing of yet another pub, but I have to say that I am pleased with what Tesco have done to the building. It has been smartly refurbished with much of its character being retained. Even the signage has been toned down. I would much rather see this old building looked after and given a new lease of life than see a decaying, boarded-up empty pub.

See Google Street View of this location which, at the time this post is published, still shows what the building was like as a pub.

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"Wellington" is a contribution to ABC Wednesday. For more "W" posts from around the world please follow this link.

ABC Wednesday: VR

Today's post for ABC Wednesday is V for "V R". These letters can be seen on this old post box outside the Old Ball Inn in Ashton.

The letters V R, each side of a crown, stand for "Victoria Regina" and indicate that this post box was placed here during the reign of Queen Victoria, one of just two such boxes that survive in Ashton.

The photo below shows the Old Ball in, at the junction of Broadoak Road, Smallshaw Lane and Henrietta Street, with the post box on the wall.



I should just point out, for the benefit of overseas visitors, that this is not the kind of mailbox where mail addressed to the inn is left, but a public posting box, where people post their letters and someone in a Royal Mail van comes along each day and collects the mail, to be taken to the sorting office for onward delivery.

The white plate on the box shows that the last collection from the box is 5.00 pm on Monday to Friday and 11.00 am on Saturday.

The Old Ball Inn was opened in 1835, two years before Victoria became queen, so the post box was clearly a later addition. The system of a universal flat-rate postage price for delivery anywhere within the UK was introduced in 1840, so it is possible that the post box was installed at about that time.

See Google Street View of this location.

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"V R" is a contribution to ABC Wednesday. For more "V" posts from around the world please follow this link.

ABC Wednesday: Odd Whim

Today's post for ABC Wednesday is O for "Odd Whim". The plain-looking cream-coloured building is the former "Odd Whim" public house, just off Mossley Road.

The odd whim in question was that of John Wroe, known as Prophet John Wroe, the founder of the Christian Israelite Church.

It was Mr Wroe's notion that Ashton under Lyne was the New Jerusalem, where the chosen would gather at the Apocalypse. His plan was to build a wall around the town, with four gatehouses. This building, built in 1825, was to have been one of these gatehouses. Another of these gatehouses, which stood on Manchester Road, was demolished to make way for the motorway.

In 1831, Mr Wroe fled from Ashton following a scandal that involved seven virgins. He ended up in Australia, where the Christian Israelite Church is still active.

In 1837 the building became the Odd Whim pub, and many extensions were built over the years. When nearby Stamford Park was opened in the 1870s, the pub was re-named Stamford Park Hotel. The name was returned to "The Odd Whim" in 1971. When the pub eventually closed, the extensions were demolished but the original building was retained and converted into apartments.

See Google Street View of this location.

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"Odd Whim" is a contribution to ABC Wednesday. For more "O" posts from around the world please follow this link.

Please leave a comment below and please rate this photo using the 5 star system below. The highest-ranking photos will be considered for the Photo of the Year at the end of 2012!

Prince of Orange

Today's view of the world of Ashton under Lyne shows the Prince of Orange pub on the corner of Warrington Street and Wellington Road, in Ashton.

A public house by that name has existed in this location since before 1817. However, a quick look at the building's architecture will tell you that the building is more modern than that. Indeed, it was rebuilt in 1926, after the pub was taken over by Robinson's Brewery. Its design features mock-Tudor timbered gables, which were fashionable in that period.

The Prince of Orange pub is near Ashton Railway Station that was featured here last week.

See Google Street View of this location.

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"Prince of Orange" is my contribution to this week's "My World" feature. Please check out the other blogs participating in this week's My World.

Snow Angel

Today's view of the world of Ashton under Lyne shows you a Snow Angel, or rather, an Angel in the Snow. However, this is no angel shape made in the snow by someone lying on the ground, but Ashton's Angel Hotel on a snowy day!

Yesterday began with an unexpected thin covering of snow, which quickly disappeared from the town centre although, away from the roads, the white covering lingered on through the day. Today saw a thaw and most of the snow has now gone, except on the higher ground.

The Angel Hotel, seen here in more detail, was built in 1868, but this replaced an earlier inn nearby. To the left is St Michael's Square, built on the site of Ashton's original Market Place and the heart of the old town. In the background, silhouetted against the low winter sun, is the Parish Church of St Michael and All Angels.

See Google Street View of this location.

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"Snow Angel" is my contribution to this week's "My World" feature. Please check out the other blogs participating in this week's My World.

Bowling Green

Today's photo from the world of Ashton under Lyne shows the Bowling Green at the bottom of Penny Meadow.

If you were expecting to see a bowling green like this one in Stamford Park or this one at King George's Playing Fields, then I am sorry to disappoint you. This particular Bowling Green is a pub in the centre of Ashton, close to the Market Hall. It stands on the corner of Penny Meadow and Market Street.

It is one of Ashton's oldest pubs, dating from at least 1792. Like many of Ashton's pubs, it has had a few changes of name. It was originally the Hare and Hounds, then the Bridge End, although there is no bridge nearby. By 1803 it had become the Bowling Green, a name it has kept ever since. Oddly, I can find no evidence that there was ever a bowling green here although it is possible that one existed in 1803 before the Penny Meadow area was built up.

As well as having had several changes of name, while the pub has remained in the same spot for 220 years, it has had several changes of address in that time - Marland Square, The Pingot, Cowhill Lane, Katherine Street and, finally, Penny Meadow.

See Google Street View of this location.

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"Bowling Green" is my contribution to this week's "My World" feature. Please check out the other blogs participating in this week's My World.

The Hillgate

Today's glimpse at the world of Ashton under Lyne shows the Hillgate pub in the Hurst Brook area of Ashton.

The Hillgate stands on Pot Hill, which was once Hillgate Street, a densely-packed area of Victorian terraced housing. Apart from 4 houses on Union Road, the pub was the only building left standing when the area was re-developed in the 1960s.

It is a splendid brick building with stone banding, constructed in 1899. It replaced an earlier pub on the site called the Old Original Colliers Arms, which was build some time before 1812. The name reflects the history of small-scale coal mining that had taken place in the area. The re-built pub was still known as the Colliers until 1973. The building was sold recently and appears to be no longer a pub.

See Google Street View of this location.

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"The Hillgate" is my contribution to this week's "My World" feature. Please check out the other blogs participating in this week's My World.



I apologise to regular followers of this blog that I am currently not able to post images as frequently as normal.

White Horse

Today's glimpse at the world of Ashton under Lyne shows the White Horse pub at Cockbrook.

The White Horse opened in 1868 as a beer house but its licence was upgraded to allow it to sell wine four years later. It didn't get a full licence (i.e. to sell spirits as well) until 1956.

It would be an unremarkable building if it were not for the splendid glazed tiles that embellish the lower storey.

See Google Street View of this location.



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"White Horse" is my contribution to this week's "My World" feature. Please check out the other blogs participating in this week's My World.

I apologise to regular followers of this blog that I have not been able to post many images in recent weeks.

Hartshead Inn

Today's Sky Watch image shows the Hartshead Inn, situated off Mossley Road in Ashton, with Hartshead Pike on the skyline in the background. The pointed tower which sits atop the pike is echoed by the picture on the pub sign. The tower and the chimney both draw the eye to the cloudscape above.

For most of its life the building was known as Tongue Bottom Farm and this name is inscribed on the stone mill wheel seen below the sign. The original Hartshead Inn, on Lees Road, was always known as The Red House and changed its name to just that. Tongue Bottom Farm was converted into a pub with large dining areas and it is a popular place for Ashtonians to drive up to for a meal.

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See Google Street View of this location.

Sky Watch is a regular weekly feature on this photo blog. It links with websites all over the world with the general theme each week of looking upwards. Please take the opportunity to visit some of these other sites. I hope some new visitors have found their way here today, watching the skies!

Volunteer Inn

"V" is for "Volunteer Inn" and today's photo shows the door of Ashton's former Volunteer Inn. The Volunteer Inn stood on Old Street, opposite the Armoury, which was a drill hall for the volunteer regiment, which is how the pub got its name.

The pub has now closed and is used as the offices of a funeral director. The Armoury is now home to Ashton's Territorial Army. However, the glazed door of the pub, showing the words "Volunteer Inn" has been re-located in the mess bar inside the Armoury building.

A photo of the former Volunteer Inn featured as a "V" post a year ago.

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"Volunteer Inn" is a contribution to ABC Wednesday. For more "V" posts from around the world please follow this link.
Please leave a comment below.

Oddfellows Arms

"O" is for "Oddfellows Arms" and today's photo shows the pub of that name on the corner of Kings Road and Alderley Street in the Hurst Knoll area of Ashton.

The pub opened in 1827 as the Banksmans Arms but changed its name to the Oddfellows ten years later. It originally occupied half of the building but later expanded into the two neighbouring houses.

The Oddfellows was (and still is) a Friendly Society, a sort of pre-runner to the welfare state, offering social benefits to members. Local Oddfellows societies often held their meetings in pubs so that would seem to be the likely reason for the change of name. There was another Oddfellows Arms in Ashton, on Kenyon Street, as well as the Oddfellows Hall on the corner of Booth Street and Stamford Street.

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See Google Street View of this location.

"Oddfellows Arms" is a contribution to ABC Wednesday. For more "O" posts from around the world please follow this link.
Please leave a comment below.

Ye Olde Vaults

"Y" is for "Ye Olde Vaults" and today's photo shows a pub in Ashton town centre that once bore that name. It is situated on Old Street which was the original road from Manchester running through the town.

The first written records of a pub on this site are from 1808 when it was known as Heap's Vaults and Robert Heap was granted a full licence for the premises. However, it is thought to have existed, perhaps as a beer house, from around 1791. The pub seems to have been rebuilt or substantially altered in 1860, as shown by the date stone above the ground floor windows. The Heap family ran the pub for 109 years until 1900, when Walter Newton took over and changed the name to Ye Olde Vaults. (Some sources say "Ye Old Vaults" but in old photographs the sign shows the word "Olde".)

In recent years the pub has been re-named again to "Chambers" and the board outside advertised "Good cheap beer all year. Thursdays all drinks £2, Doubles add £1, 7pm - close." However, when this photo was taken, the pub was "between landlords".

Just below the roof, flaking black paint reveals that the brewery Tetley Walker were at one time the owners.

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See Birds Eye View of this location. See Google Street View of this location before the replica was sited here.

"Ye Olde Vaults" is a contribution to ABC Wednesday. For more "Y" posts from around the world please follow this link.
Please leave a comment below.

Corporation Arms

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This is the third week in a row that the "My World" image is of a building on Stockport Road, but today's is at the completely opposite end of the road from the previous two!

Today's photo shows the Corporation Arms and the road junction at Guide Bridge. The pub was opened in 1850 and was a beer house until it was fully licensed in 1857.

The road junction marks the boundary between Ashton and Audenshaw. The wall to the left of the pub is actually the parapet to the canal bridge which gives its name to this district. The same wall can be seen from the Ashton Canal in the first photo on this page, with the pub on the left of the picture.

This is a very busy road junction so it was remarkable that I was able to capture a moment when the road was empty!

"Corporation Arms" is my contribution to this week's "My World" feature. Please check out the other blogs participating in this week's My World.


See Bird's Eye View of this location.

See Google Street View of this location.

Volunteer Inn

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"V" is for "Volunteer Inn" and today's photo shows, er... well, it shows Kenworthy's Funeral Services on Old Street in Ashton.

This might seem a surprising choice of location to photograph a "V" post, until you know that the building was originally the Volunteer Inn.

The pub itself was originally housed in a building dating from the 18th century, but was re-built in its present form in 1887. It is across the road from The Armoury, the drill hall for the volunteer regiment, seen here, and this gave rise to the pub's name.

It was only ever licensed as a beerhouse (i.e. not able to sell wines and spirits). It closed in 1956. The licensing officer had described it as "unattractive" and commented that it did little trade and was only used by Territorial Army soldiers. It was also noted that there were 39 licensed premises within a quarter of a mile!

The building became two shops and more recently a funeral directors. It was for sale when the photo was taken a few weeks ago.

See Birds Eye View of this location.

See Google Street View of this location.

"Volunteer Inn" is a contribution to ABC Wednesday. For more "V" posts from around the world please follow this link.

The Tontine

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"T" is for "Tontine" and today's photo shows the Tontine Hotel in Ashton.

The Tontine was built in 1837 on Penny Meadow (which was at that time part of Katherine Street) not far from the Market Hall.

A tontine is a scheme for raising money in which a group of investors form a trust and each pays in a share of the capital for a scheme (in this case, the building of the hotel). Each member receives a share of any profits every year. As each member dies, his share is divided between the remaining members. The last surviving member would become sole owner and the trust would be wound up.

This survivor may have been Robert Newton, as he took ownership in 1861. It seems likely that he gave his name to Newton Street, which runs along the side of the hotel.

See Birds Eye View of this location.

See Google Street View of this location.

"The Tontine" is a contribution to ABC Wednesday. For more "T" posts from around the world please follow this link.