Salford
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Salford | |
| Dirty Old Town | |
|
Salford shown within Greater Manchester | |
| Area | 8.1 sq mi (21 km²) |
|---|---|
| Population | 72,750 (2001 Census) |
| - Density | 8,981/sq mi (3,468/km²) |
| OS grid reference | |
| - London | 164 mi (264 km) SE |
| Metropolitan borough | City of Salford |
| Metropolitan county | Greater Manchester |
| Region | North West |
| Constituent country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | SALFORD |
| Postcode district | M3, M5-M7 |
| Dialling code | 0161 |
| Police | Greater Manchester |
| Fire | Greater Manchester |
| Ambulance | North West |
| UK Parliament | Salford |
| Salford and Eccles | |
| European Parliament | North West England |
| List of places: UK • England • Greater Manchester | |
Salford is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It lies in a meander of the River Irwell, which forms its boundary with the city of Manchester to the east. Together with neighbouring towns to the west, Salford forms the metropolitan district of the City of Salford, which is administered from nearby Swinton. It was granted City status in the United Kingdom in 1926 and has a population of 72,750 and an area of 8.1 square miles (21.0 km²).
Historically a part of Lancashire, Salford's early history is marked by its status as the judicial seat of the ancient hundred of Salfordshire, to which it lends its name. It was granted a charter by Ranulf, 4th Earl of Chester, about 1230 which made Salford a free borough. During the early stages of its growth, Salford was of greater cultural and commercial importance than its neighbour Manchester,[1] though most contemporary sources agree that since the Industrial Revolution this position has been reversed.[2][3]
Salford's popular nickname is Dirty Old Town[citation needed] , after the folk song written about the area by Ewan MacColl. Following the decline of its industrial activities, the city became one of contrasts, with regenerated inner-city areas like Salford Quays next to some of the most socially deprived and violent areas in England.[4]
Salford Cathedral is the centre of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Salford and the city today is a centre of higher education, being the location of the University of Salford.
Contents |
[edit] History
[edit] Toponymy
The name of Salford derives from the Anglo-Saxon Sealhford = "sallow-tree ford", in reference to the shallows or willow (Latin salix) trees that grow alongside the banks of the River Irwell. The city's coat of arms shows three curved blue lines, representing the ford in the river, surrounded by sallow leaves. The ford was about where Victoria Bridge is today.[5]
[edit] Industrial Revolution
Salford was one of the UK's first major industrial towns and gained a greater commercial status during the intial period of the Industrial Revolution. Cloth and silk were made there and the processes of dyeing, fulling and bleaching were carried out. It eventually grew to be one of the greatest cotton towns. As Manchester gained importance, Salford's ancient centre became less vital and the area around Greengate and Salford Bridge now shows no sign of its historic importance to the city.
In 1806, Chapel Street in Salford became the first street in the world to be lit by gas, which was supplied by Phillips and Lee's cotton mill.[6] In 1849 the municipal borough was the first in England to establish a public library, museum and art gallery, preceding the Public Libraries Act of 1850. The opening of the Manchester Ship Canal in 1894 and the construction of Salford Docks also brought employment for almost eighty years. The city became a maritime centre with vast docks constructed along the ship canal. From here, locally-produced goods were shipped all over the world. Salford was granted city status by a Royal Charter of 1926. Another charter of 1967 raised the Royal Salford Technical Institute to the status of university by establishing the University of Salford.
[edit] Decline
Vast areas of the city were re-developed in the 1960s and 1970s, with terraced housing giving way to concrete tower blocks and austere architecture. The docks declined during the same period.
In early 2005, Riga appealed to the European Union to advise people against travelling to Salford after a Latvian man was stabbed in the head in Lower Broughton. However, city councillors have insisted that Salford is a safe place to visit.[7]
[edit] Regeneration
In the last decade the planning mistakes of the 1960s began to be rectified and the city is beginning to benefit from government investment. However the many high-rise blocks that remain are a striking feature of the city. Work is scheduled to begin on the £180 million redevelopment of the Greengate area of Salford in January 2007. The plans include the construction of what will be the two tallest tower blocks in Salford. Plans also include a five-star hotel, a new public square and park, restaurants, cafes and 403 apartments.[8]
Salford now has many tourist attractions, such as Ordsall Hall, the Bridgewater Canal and the Lowry Centre, an award winning art gallery comprising two theatres and three art galleries. The centre is named after the artist L. S. Lowry, who attended Salford School of Art and lived in Pendlebury for 40 years.[9] Many of his paintings of Salford and Manchester mill scenes, populated with small matchstick-like figures, are on display there.[edit] Governance
Salford is represented by three tiers of government, Salford City Council ("local"), UK Parliament ("national"), and European Parliament ("Europe"). Greater Manchester County Council administration was abolished in 1986, and so the city council is effectively a unitary authority.
Salford was anciently part of the Manchester parish of the Salford Hundred, an area much larger than the present-day city of Salford, within the historic county boundaries of Lancashire. It received its town charter from Ranulph de Blundeville, Earl of Chester, in 1230, but it was not recognised as a borough until 1844; the new Salford borough was made up of the township of Salford and part of Broughton. The remainder of Broughton, and Pendlebury, were added in 1853. Salford became a county borough in 1889, and was granted city status in 1926. The borough of Salford was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972, and was replaced by the metropolitan borough of City of Salford, which in 1974 became a part of the metropolitan county of Greater Manchester.[10]
Divisions and suburbs of Salford include Pendleton, Claremont, Langworthy, Broughton, Weaste, Ordsall, Irlams o' th' Height and Seedley.
[edit] Geography
- Further information: Geography of Greater Manchester
The River Irwell valley is the main geographical feature of Salford. The river meanders through the city from the north and forms the boundary with the City of Manchester to the east and Trafford to the south. Flooding has traditionally been a problem and the River Irwell has seen much modification along its course in Salford with some bends being removed, channelisation, and the construction of levees and bank reinforcements.
The original centre of Salford is located around Greengate at a fording point on the river opposite Manchester Cathedral. The city has since grown along the river valley to the north and south and on to higher ground on the valley sides at Irlams o' th' Height and Higher Broughton.
[edit] Demography
- Further information: Demography of Greater Manchester
Salford is for statistical purposes part of the Greater Manchester Urban Area. It is a city of contrasting demographies. Whilst the area immediately adjacent to Manchester city centre, Salford Quays and suburban areas to the far west of the city such as Worsley are relatively affluent (with the main road colloquially known as 'Millionaire's Row'), other parts of the city are some of the most deprived communities in the UK. In August 2005, a survey by Channel 4 television rated the city as the 9th worst place to live in the UK (based on criteria of crime, education, environment, lifestyle and employment).[11]
The city has seen a major rise in construction especially in the Salford Quays area with modern living spaces and office buildings. It also has regional offices for major corporations including IBM, McDonald's, BUPA and Citifinancial.
[edit] Economy
Currently, the inner city's main shopping area is Salford Shopping City, Pendleton – colloquially referred to as 'the Precinct' – close to the University of Salford. However this area suffers from extreme deprivation and is dominated by the central business district of nearby Manchester. This is planned to change in the next few years with the implementation of the Pendleton Area Action Plan and the development of the pedestrianised and boulevarded A6 Corridor. Salford Quays has been shortlisted as the new possible city centre by 2020.
[edit] Transport
The city is linked to other parts of Greater Manchester by the Manchester Metrolink tram system, which runs near the docks area to Langworthy and Eccles.
There are mainline railway stations at Salford Central, Salford Crescent, Swinton, Moorside, Clifton, Eccles, Patricroft, Irlam and Walkden.
In 1824 John Greenwood started the first bus operation from Pendleton to Market Street Manchester.
[edit] Education
The University of Salford was awarded university status in 1967. It is one of four universities in Greater Manchester and has approximately 19,000 students. Salford also has numerous colleges. These include Pendleton College, Eccles College and Salford College which has two main campuses, Worsley Campus and City Campus. All these offer a wide range of courses to suit the large majority of people's needs.
[edit] Sports
Salford has a strong rugby league history with the Salford City Reds who currently play in the National League One. The National League 2 side Swinton Lions are from inside the boundaries of the City of Salford, and are currently playing at Sedgley Park R.U.F.C. in Whitefield. Amateur rugby league teams within the city include Langworthy Reds, Eccles-Salford Roosters and Folly Lane.
Salford is one of the few sizeable cities in the UK not to have a professional soccer team; it does have a non-league club, North West Counties League side Salford City. The nearest professional football team is Manchester United, situated just across the Quays in Trafford.
Salford Victoria F.C. is also a major element in the Salford footballing scene after winning the 2004 National Charter Standard Adult Club of the Year under the guidance of then Club Secretary Chris Brown. Unforunately the club has seen a demise in recent years.
Since Manchester hosted the Commonwealth Games of 2002, Salford Quays has developed into a major international triathlon site.
Speedway racing was staged in the pioneer days of the sport, late 1920s / very early 1930s, at Albion Stadium.
[edit] Health
The main NHS medical facilities are located at Hope Hospital, Claremont near the boundary with Eccles. The former Salford Royal Hospital closed in 1993 and is now converted to private apartments.
[edit] Culture
Salford's first annual film festival held at the Red Cinema in the Lowry Outlet at Salford Quays in 2003 was a huge success. The second, in November 2004 achieved similar results, showcasing some new local talent.
Manchester's award-winning international theatre festival 27/4, takes place each July at the North of England's only fringe theatre venue, Studio Salford at the King's Arms, Bloom Street, Salford, which is also a popular live music venue.
Due to its cheap rent and plentiful supply of redundant mill buildings, Salford is host to a number of artists, including those based at Cow Lane Studios, Kings Arms, Islington Mill and Suite Studio Group. Salford's visual art scene, completely homogeneous with that of Manchester includes publicly owned galleries at The Lowry, Salford City Museum as well as independent spaces such as Bureau. The Salford Symphony Orchestra is an amateur orchestra originally founded in 1947 by Joseph Needham. It was disbanded in 1985, but re-formed in 1995.[12] Mediacity is in the process of construction on the Quays near the Lowry and will house several relocated national departments of the BBC
Salford Cathedral is one of the larger Catholic cathedrals in northern England. It was built between 1844 and 1848, and was listed as a Grade II* building in 1980.[13]
[edit] Twin towns
Salford has four twin towns.[14]
- Image:Flag of France.svg Clermont-Ferrand, a city and commune of France, in the Auvergne région'
- Image:Flag of Germany.svg Lünen, Germany
- Image:Flag of France.svg Saint-Ouen, France
- Image:Flag of France.svg Narbonne, France
[edit] Notable people
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[edit] Born in Salford
[edit] Residents (past and present)
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[edit] Cultural references
Salford has been the location for several films, including East is East and A Taste of Honey, whose final scene features the Barton-upon-Irwell swing bridge. Walter Greenwood's 1933 novel Love on the Dole was set in a fictional area known as Hanky Park, said in the novel to be near Salford, but in reality based on Salford itself.[15] A more modern fictional setting based on Salford is Coronation Street's Weatherfield. Harold Brighouse's play Hobson's Choice is set in 19th century Salford.
Salford is the subject of the folk songs Dirty Old Town written by native Ewan MacColl,[16] and Matchstalk Men & Matchstalk Cats & Dogs (Lowry's Song), a tribute to local artist L S Lowry. Local band Doves released a song on their 2005 album Some Cities called Shadows of Salford. The most famous photograph of Mancunian band The Smiths (taken by photographer Stephen Wright) shows them standing outside the Salford Lads' Club, and was used on their album The Queen Is Dead. None of the longstanding members of the group were actually from the city, although second guitarist Craig Gannon – not shown on the photo – was a Salfordian who joined the group for a brief period.
Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels spent some time in Salford, analysing the plight of the British working class, particularly in The Condition of the Working Class in England in 1844.
The videos for the Timbaland song The Way I Are,[17] and the Justin Timberlake song Lovestoned were shot in Salford,[18] and it is mentioned several times in GTA:San Andreas as well as by the band The Smiths.
Salford was recently featured in the Channel Four programme The Secret Millionare.
[edit] Gallery
LowryCentre.jpg
The Lowry Centre. |
ManchesterShipCanal OwlofDoom.jpg
The Manchester Ship Canal at its Salford end, looking towards Old Trafford. |
Pomona docks today.jpg
Modern office development at Pomona Docks |
Barton Swing Aqueduct.jpg
Barton Swing Aqueduct in the closed position |
NVBuildings.jpg
The development of the 'NV Buildings', modern apartments in Salford Quays (August 2005). |
Mediacityconstruction.jpg
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Salford Quays Manchester.jpg
The view Lowry Footbridge over the Manchester Ship Canal at Salford Quays and Exchange Quay from Imperial War Museum North. |
[edit] References
[edit] Notes
- ^ Frangopulo, N.J (1977). Tradition in Action: The Historical Evolution of the Greater Manchester County. EP Publishing, Wakefield, 135-138.
- ^ Salford. 1911encyclopedia.org (1911). Retrieved on 2007-11-11.
- ^ Salford City Council (December 2006). Salford West Strategic Regeneration Framework and Action Plan (PDF). salford.gov.uk. Retrieved on 2007-11-11.
- ^ Cooper, Salford: An Illustrated History, p. 47
- ^ Cooper, Salford: An Illustrated History, p. 7.
- ^ Cooper, Salford: An Illustrated History, p. 79.
- ^ Latvian plea to blacklist Salford. BBC News (2004-12-17). Retrieved on 2007-11-10.
- ^ Tallest towers approved for city. BBC News. Retrieved on 2007-12-07.
- ^ Cooper, Salford: An Illustrated History, p. 157.
- ^ Anon (2003-07-31). A select gazetteer of local government areas, Greater Manchester County. Greater Manchester County Records Office. Retrieved on 2007-11-11.
- ^ Hull "worst place to live in UK". BBC News (2005-08-10). Retrieved on 2007-11-10.
- ^ The Salford Symphony Orchestra. The Salford Symphony Orchestra. Retrieved on 2007-11-10.
- ^ Cathedral of St John and Attached Cathedral House. Images of England. Retrieved on 2007-11-10.
- ^ Salford's twin towns - salford.gov.uk
- ^ Hopkins, English Fiction in the 1930s: Language, Genre, History, p. 45.
- ^ Cooper, Salford: An Illustrated History, pp. 33&ndash'34.
- ^ Timbaland – The Way I Are. I Like Music. Retrieved on 2007-11-10.
- ^ Bourne, Dianne (2007-05-19). Justin on Manc Mission. Manchester Evening News. Retrieved on 2007-11-10.
[edit] Bibliography
- Cooper, Glynis (2005). Salford: An Illustrated History. The Breedon Books Publishing Company. ISBN 1859834558.
- Hopkins, Chris (2007). English Fiction in the 1930s: Language, Genre, History. Continuum International Publishing Group. ISBN 0826489389.
[edit] External links
- Salford City Radio
- Salford City Council
- Visit Salford
- Wet Earth Colliery, Clifton
- Duke of Bridgewater's Underground Canal at Worsley
- Pictures of "old" Worsley
- Salford & District HomeMaker
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