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This article is about the area of Manchester. For the related Parliamentary Constituency, see Manchester Withington (UK Parliament constituency).
For other places with the same name, see Withington (disambiguation).
Withington
Withington village centre viewed from Wilmslow Road
Area2.7 sq mi (7.0 km2)
Population14,134 (2001 Census)
• DensityTemplate:Pop density mi2 to km2
OS grid referenceSJ848929
• London160 miles (257 km) SE
Metropolitan borough
Metropolitan county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townMANCHESTER
Postcode districtM20
Dialling code0161
PoliceGreater Manchester
FireGreater Manchester
AmbulanceNorth West
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Greater Manchester

Withington is a suburban area of the City of Manchester, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies 4 miles (6.4 km) south of Manchester city centre, about 0.4 miles (0.6 km) south of Fallowfield, 0.5 miles (0.8 km) north-east of Didsbury, and 1 mile (1.6 km) east of Chorlton-cum-Hardy, near the centre-to-south edges of the Greater Manchester Urban Area; in the Manchester Withington parliamentary constituency. Withington is a dormitory village consisting of a resident population slightly over 14,000 people.

In the early 13th century, Withington occupied a feudal estate that included the townships of Withington, Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Moss Side, Rusholme, Burnage, Denton and Haughton, held by the Hathersage, Longford and Tatton families,[1] and within the Manor of Manchester and Hundred of Salford in historic county boundaries of Lancashire.[2]

Withington was largely rural until the mid-nineteenth century, in which it experienced rapid socioeconomic development and urbanisation due to the Industrial Revolution, and Manchester's growing level of industrialisation. Introduced into the inner boundaries of Manchester in 1904,[2][3] Withington was integrated into the city forty-five years after it gained city status.

Today, the residents of Withington comprise a mixture of families, university students and "young professionals"—often themselves former students.[4] This is in a large part due to its education links—particularly the proximity to the University of Manchester, which has the largest student population in the United Kingdom [citation needed], and Manchester Metropolitan University. As a consequence, Withington is predominantly an area of mixed affluence. It is also a centre for clinical excellence with one of the largest cancer treatment centres in Europe—Christie Hospital—and Withington Community Hospital.

History

See also: History of Manchester

Middle Ages

In Anglo-Saxon times the area was sparsely settled by Mercians and Danes and Didsbury may have been established in King Edward the Elder's reign as a fortification against the Danes. Following the Norman Conquest the lands of south Lancashire were granted to Roger of Poitou and by the early 13th century the Manor of Withington appears to be a sub-manor of the Manor of Manchester.[5] The first recorded description of Withington dates from 1186 [citation needed], calling the area a willow-copse farmstead, and giving rise to the Anglo-Saxon name Wīðign-tūn, with withy meaning "willow branch used for bundling".[6] In the early 13th century, the Manor of Withington covered a wide area including Withington, Didsbury, Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Moss Side, Rusholme, Burnage, Denton and Haughton. The first Lord of the Manor of Withington is thought to have been William, son of Wulfrith de Withington.[1]

The 17th century Red Lion pub, meeting place of the Court Leet[7]

Withington was one of the townships of the ancient parish of Manchester in the Salford Hundred of Lancashire, and a sub-manor of the Manor of Manchester. In the 13th century, Robert Grelle (sometimes Grelley),[8] Lord of the Manchester Manor, granted free warren in Withington to Matthew de Hathersage (or Haversage), son of William, in exchange for one knight's fee.[1] Little is known of the Hathersage family, except that they descended to the Longford family, and are connected with the manors of Hathersage and Longford, both in Derbyshire.[9] The lordship of Withington remained in the Hathersage/Longford family for over 300 years.[9]

Tudor, Stuart and Georgian Periods

At the end of the 16th century, Nicholas Longford sold Withington to the Mosleys (originally 'Moseley'), an influential Anglo-Irish family of wool merchants who subsequently became wealthy landowners in Staffordshire:[9] Nicholas Mosley later became Lord of the Manor of Manchester. Hough End Hall was built by Sir Nicholas Mosley in 1596 as the new Withington Manor—the original medieval manor was situated south-east of the modern junction of Mauldeth Road and Princess Road, which was surrounded by a moat. In 1750 it was demolished to make way for a farm building, but some of the moat was left. An Ordnance Survey map of 1845 shows it as "Withington Old Hall", and it later came to be known as "Chorlton's Farm" or "Old Hall Farm". Today, the site is occupied by Eddisbury Avenue and no trace remains of the old manor.[10] There are still today some remnants of this moat underneath Old Moat Primary School, on Old Moat Lane. In the early 18th century, the Withington Manor was once again sold, this time to the Egertons of Tatton.[11]

Withington as a village developed around Wilmslow Road, a Turnpike Road, administered by the Manchester to Wilmslow Turnpike Trust which was the only direct route between Manchester and Wilmslow at the time. Farming still dominated the area, although there is evidence in maps of a substantial cotton house on Cotton Lane, which later appears to become Withington Hall. Some historians dispute the cotton house as there is little record of it, and claim "Cotton Lane" comes from land in the area which was jointly held by the townships of Withington, Didsbury and Burnage (a relic of the medieval open field system). This area was the old village centre however, although the only relic of its former importance is the small flower display on the corner of Wilmslow Road and Cotton Lane.

Victorian and later periods

Withington Milestone

The trade in Withington, and consequent traffic on Wilmslow Road, increased steadily as the city of Manchester flourished in the early 19th century. Turnpike roads subsequently became increasingly unpopular, and were abolished completely in 1881. Wilmslow Road as a turnpike road would have been abolished as soon as 1861 had the Manchester to Wilmslow Turnpike Trust not agreed to build a new turnpike road to Northenden, named Palatine Road. Cheaper transport in and out of Manchester became an important factor in the growth of the area. In 1880 a tramway was built along Wilmslow Road and Palatine Road to the newly opened Withington and West Didsbury railway station, run by the Midland Railway. The horse trams ran until 1 December 1902 when the first electric trams came in to operation. The train service from Withington and West Didsbury station to Manchester Central Station operated until Didsbury station closed in 1961.

Withington's Parish Church of St Paul was built in 1841, and many other chapels and churches proliferated, including Methodist, Presbyterian and Roman Catholic. (The architects of St Paul's Church were Hayley & Brown and it was extended in 1864.)[12] Withington has also been home to Spanish and Portuguese Sephardi Jews: synagogues opened in the late 19th century.[citation needed]

Aviation

A large aerodrome was built in 1917/18 on the westerly edge of Withington, to the southwest of the junction of Mauldeth Road and Princess Road, on what is now the site of Houghend Playing Fields. The official name was Alexandra Park Aerodrome, but it was also variously referred to as 'Withington' and 'Didsbury'. Closure came in autumn 1924 when Lord Egerton of Tatton would not agree to the site's continued use for flying. The large hangars were then demolished and Princess Road extended southwards through the eastern edge of the site.[13]

On 28 April 1910, French pilot Louis Paulhan landed his Farman biplane in Barcicroft Fields, Pytha Fold Farm, on the borders of Withington, Burnage and Didsbury, at the end of the first powered flight from London to Manchester, with a six-hour overnight stop near Lichfield, Staffordshire. Paulhan beat the British contender, Claude Grahame-White, winning a £10,000 prize offered by the Daily Mail.[14] Two special trains were chartered to Burnage Station to take spectators to the landing. Paulhan's progress was followed throughout by a special train carrying his wife, Henri Farman and his mechanics. A house in Paulhan Road is marked by a blue plaque to commemorate his achievement.

Governance

The Grade II listed former Withington Town Hall in the Albert Park conservation area

Withington was anciently a township within the parish of Manchester and Hundred of Salford. Under the feudal system, Withington had been governed by its own court leet, and this tradition continued well into the 19th century.[citation needed] The court used to meet at the Red Lion public house on Wilmslow Road until 1841.[citation needed] Following the Public Health Act 1875, Withington Town Hall was built in 1881 on Lapwing Lane, originally to house Withington Local Board of Health, then later occupied by the Withington Urban District Council, under the Local Government Act 1894. In 1904, Withington formally became part of the City of Manchester.[2][3] The old Town Hall building has been converted into private apartments with new-build apartments to the south (back) and east (side).

Manchester Withington is a Parliamentary Constituency which encompasses Withington village, Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Burnage and Didsbury (East and West). Manchester Withington became the first constituency in the City of Manchester since 1929 to elect a Liberal (Democrat) MP upon John Leech's gain in the 2005 General Election, when the constituency also experienced the largest swing of that election, taking the previously 11,524 majority Labour safe seat by 667 votes – a swing of 17%.[15] This was possibly attributable to the constituency's large student population.[16] The previous incumbent of the seat, Keith Bradley, had held the seat for Labour for 18 years; Lucy Powell was chosen as the successor candidate to Keith Bradley in March 2007,[17] to try to regain the seat at the next general election.[18] However, Leech retained the seat for the Liberal Democrats at the 2010 General Election, with 44.6% of the vote (an increase of 2.4% over 2005); Powell came second with 40.5% of the vote (a decrease of 0.4%).[19]

Historically, Withington was a much larger area than today. Since the district was absorbed into the City of Manchester in 1904, the three city wards of Didsbury, Fallowfield, and Withington took on their own identities and are now seen as distinct areas. The Conservative party could once regard this area as a heartland for them, with its largely middle class population and relatively suburban image. The 'flight of the middle classes' to rural Cheshire, however, led to many of Withington's larger homes being sold off for student flats. This resulted in a changing socio-economic structure that would ultimately favour Labour and more recently, the Liberal-Democrats

Today, the name Withington tends to refer to the areas roughly defined by the modern council wards of Withington and Old Moat, although fluctuating local government boundaries sometimes make these distinctions unclear.[citation needed] Withington ward is currently represented on Manchester City Council by three councillors: Brendon Jones and Simon Wheale (both Liberal Democrat), and Chris Paul (Labour and Co-operative Party)[20].

Demography

Withington compared[21][22]
UK Census 2001 Withington Manchester England
Total population 14,134 392,819 49,138,831
Foreign born 11% 10% 6%
Over 75 years old 5% 6% 8%
Unemployed 44% 9% 5%

According to the 2001 census

  • White British - 74.13%
  • White Irish - 5.05%
  • White Other - 3.60%
  • Mixed Race - 3.25%
  • Black - 2.34%
  • Asian - 9.76%
  • Chinese or Other - 1.86%

Economy

See also: Economy of Manchester

Geography

Further information: [[:Geography of Greater Manchester]]

At 53°25′59″N 2°13′44″W / 53.433°N 2.229°W / 53.433; -2.229, Withington is located immediately below the midpoint of the Greater Manchester Urban Area, 4 miles (6.4 km) south of Manchester city centre.

Landmarks

The White Lion pub
The Water Trough (1876), Copson Street, Withington

Withington today retains some grade II listed buildings, including

  • Hough End Hall (1596), Nell Lane, Chorlton-cum-Hardy - Withington Manor house.
  • Manchester and County Bank (1890), Wilmslow Road - now a National Westminster Bank.
  • St Paul's Parish Church, Wilmslow Road (1841).
  • The Red Lion Inn (17th century).
  • The Victoria public house.
  • The White Lion Public House, Wilmslow Road (1841), now closed and undergoing redevelopment.

Other places of historical interest in Withington include:

  • Christie Hospital - founded in 1892, the hospital moved to Withington in 1932. It is one of the largest cancer research and treatment centres in Europe. Christie's pioneered the therapeutic use of X-Rays in 1901, and in 1944 the world's first clinical drug trial was carried out here.
Cine City prior to demolition
  • The Scala Cinema (1912–2008), Wilmslow Road - this was the oldest cinema in Manchester. Later renamed Cine City, it is now demolished and the site is awaiting redevelopment.
  • Milestone, Wilmslow Road - outside the fire station, inscribed "8¼ miles to Wilmslow / 4 miles to Manchester to centre of St. Anns"
  • The Old Forge, Wilmslow Road (1881) - now private flats.
  • St Cuthbert's Roman Catholic Church, Wilmslow Road (1881).
  • The Water Trough (1876), now on Copson Street - a stone drinking trough for horses, inscribed with an Old Testament passage: "that ye may drink, both ye and your cattle, and your beasts." (II Kings III:17).
  • Withington Library (1927), Wilmslow Road, designed by Henry Price.
  • Withington Methodist Church, Wilmslow Road (1865).

Transport

See also: Transport in Manchester
The Wilmslow Road bus corridor
Metrolink line extensions

Withington has bus links into the Manchester city centre because of its position on the Wilmslow Road bus corridor which is served by buses very frequently and has been said by some analysts to be the busiest in Europe.[23]

Withington village does not currently have a named or direct railway station—the nearest rail link is Mauldeth Road railway station, located to the east in Ladybarn. The old Withington and West Didsbury railway station on Palatine Road, run by the Midland Railway, closed in 1967 during the Beeching Axe.

As part of the expansion project for the Metrolink system, it is planned to re-open the old Midland railway line for light rail operation. Under the proposals, Metrolink trams will run from Manchester City Centre through Chorlton to East Didsbury, with new tram stops at Withington, Burton Road and the re-opened West Didsbury station serving the Withington area.[24]

The proposed Metrolink extension has had several false starts. Building a light rail link through Withington was first proposed in the early 1980s[25] but funding was not secured until the 21st century. The project was then put on hold due to escalating costs;[26] new funding was sought through the Manchester Congestion Charge,[27] but this was rejected in a public referendum in 2008. The project was revived in May 2009 with a new funding package from local and national government, and construction work has begun on the Chorlton line.[28]

Education

Further information: [[:List of schools in Greater Manchester]]

Withington Girls' School was established in 1890 and provides private education for girls aged 7 to 18. Notable alumni include Judith Chalmers.

In the 1930s, the Manchester Grammar School moved to new premises in Fallowfield, from its original position near the site of the present Manchester Cathedral. Although seen to be in Fallowfield, its location could be argued[weasel words] to be within the boundaries of the Withington locality. The school has been attended by actors such as Sir Ben Kingsley and Robert Powell, cricketer Michael Atherton, and writer and broadcaster Martin Sixsmith.

Withington is served by the following local primary schools:

Police service

Withington is covered by the South Manchester Division of Greater Manchester Police. The local Neighbourhood Policing Team is the Didsbury Neighbourhood Policing Team, which covers Didsbury, Old Moat, Withington and Burnage and is led by Inspector Dave Nutsey. Didsbury Police Station is situated in the centre of Didsbury village on Wilmslow Road.

Sports

See also: List of football clubs in England

Notable people

Withington is one of the few areas in the City of Manchester where its most notable residents are thought to have been a result of the city's main industries.[29]

Lindsay Bury, a footballer who helped the Old Etonians win the FA Cup in 1879 and made two appearances for England in the 1870s was born in Withington on 9 July 1857.

Academy Award-winning actor Robert Donat, was born in Withington in 1905, making his most acclaimed starring in the 1939 film Goodbye, Mr. Chips. The film critic C. A. Lejeune was born here in 1897. In 1911, the Austrian philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein was known to have lodgings at 104 (now 154) Palatine Road while he was a student at the Victoria University of Manchester.[30]

Dame Kathleen Ollerenshaw who was a Conservative councillor for Rusholme for 26 years and a post-graduate of the University of Oxford, was born here in 1912.[31] Ernest Rutherford, who pioneered the orbital theory of the atom, lived in the village between 1898 and 1910.[31]

Actor John Mahoney, who became known for his role in Frasier, lived here until 1959. Richard Madeley and his wife, Judy Finnigan, lived on Old Broadway during the 1990s.[31]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Sussex, Gay; Helm, Peter (1988). Looking Back at Withington and Didsbury. Willow. p. 45. ISBN 0-946361-25-8.
  2. ^ a b c "Greater Manchester Gazetteer". Greater Manchester County Record Office. Place Names T to W. Retrieved 16 March 2008.
  3. ^ a b "Withington history". Unknown. 2001. Retrieved 2008-03-16.
  4. ^ "Withington, Manchester, UK". BBC Editorial. 2005-06-06. Retrieved 2008-03-17.
  5. ^ France and Woodall (1976) pp. 3 ff.
  6. ^ Cooper, Glynis (2005). The Wharncliffe Companion to Manchester. Wharncliffe books. p. 168. ISBN 1-903425-74-3.
  7. ^ Sussex, Gay; Helm, Peter (1988). Looking Back at Withington and Didsbury. Willow. p. 3. ISBN 0-946361-25-8.
  8. ^ "Townships - Heaton Norris". British History. 2007. Retrieved 2008-03-17.
  9. ^ a b c "Township - Withington". British History. 2007. Retrieved 2008-03-17.
  10. ^ France & Woodall (1976). A New History of Didsbury. E. J. Morten, Didsbury. p. 203. ISBN 0-85972-035-7.
  11. ^ Lloyd, John M. (1972) The township of Chorlton-cum-Hardy. Didsbury, Manchester: E. J. Morten; pp. 109–110
  12. ^ Pevsner, Nikolaus (1969). Lancashire. The buildings of England. Harmondsworth: Penguin. p. 319. ISBN 0-14-071036-1.
  13. ^ Scholefield, R. A. (2004). Manchester's Early Airfields - an extended chapter in: Moving Manchester. Lancashire & Cheshire Antiquarian Society. pp. 216–219. ISSN 0950-4699.
  14. ^ "London to Manchester". Skypark. 2007. Retrieved 2008-03-17.
  15. ^ "Class of 2005". The Guardian. 10 October 2005. Retrieved 2008-03-23.
  16. ^ Cowling, David (7 May 2005). "Who Deserted Labour?". BBC News. Retrieved 2008-03-23.
  17. ^ Colburn, Mark (1 April 2007). "Lucy Powell Wins Mcr Withington Selection". labourhome.org. Retrieved 2008-03-25. [dead link‍]
  18. ^ "Building our majority" (doc). Labour Party (Hazel Blears). June 2007. Retrieved 2008-03-26.
  19. ^ Manchester Withington UK Polling
  20. ^ "Councillors - Manchester City Council". Manchester City Council. Retrieved 2011-05-09.
  21. ^ "Data collected for Withington by HM Government in the 2001 census". Neighbourhood Statistics. 2001. Retrieved 2008-03-17. [dead link‍]
  22. ^ United Kingdom Census 2001 (2001). "Greater Manchester (Health Authority)". neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 2008-05-17. Retrieved 2008-03-17.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  23. ^ O'Rourke, Aidan (2006-10-26). ""Busiest bus corridor"". EyeOnManchester. Retrieved 2008-03-17.
  24. ^ Williams, Tony (2007-05-30). "Manchester to Chorlton and East Didsbury" (HTTP). Light Transit Association. Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  25. ^ Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive (1984), Light Rapid Transit in Greater Manchester, GMPTE - publicity brochure
  26. ^ Cronshaw, Andy (22 July 2004). "Fight for Metrolink will go on" (HTTP). South Manchester Reporter. Retrieved 2008-03-17.
  27. ^ Towle, Nick (3 May 2007). "Bigger bang plan" (HTTP). South Manchester Reporter. Retrieved 2007-10-04.
  28. ^ "Metrolink: back on track?". BBC Manchester. 2009-05-13. Retrieved 2009-05-17.
  29. ^ Williams, Gwyn (1973). The Withington Report. Withington Association?. Estimate - 500. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |nopp= ignored (|no-pp= suggested) (help)
  30. ^ McGuinness, Brian (2005). Young Ludwig: Wittgenstein's Life, 1889-1921. Oxford University Press. p. 71. ISBN 978-0-19-927994-4. {{cite book}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  31. ^ a b c "Did-you-know's for Withington". Unknown. 2007. Retrieved 2008-03-17.[dead link‍]
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