'Salford' is a
city within
Greater Manchester, in
North West England. The city's eastern boundary separates Salford from the
City of Manchester.
The
central business districts of the two cities are divided by the
River Irwell. With neighbouring towns Salford forms the
metropolitan borough of the
City of Salford. At the
2001 census the metropolitan borough had a population of
216,103 whilst Salford itself had a population of 72,750. Salford's nickname is "Dirty Old Town" after the famous folk song.
Historically part of
Lancashire, Salford gave its name to the ancient
hundred of Salford (sometimes called ''Salfordshire''). The settlement's early history was marked by the granting of a
charter by Ranulf,
Earl of Chester, about 1230. The charter made Salford a free borough. The old medieval centre of Salford was located next to the
River Irwell, on the opposite bank to Manchester. Old streets such as Greengate and Gravel Lane formed the market area.
Salford today is a centre of
higher education, being the location of the
University of Salford as well as
Salford Cathedral.
History
Toponymy
The name of Salford derives from the
Anglo-Saxon ''Sealhford'' = "
sallow-tree ford", in reference to the
willow (Latin
salix) trees that grow alongside the banks of the
River Irwell that flows through the city. The city's coat of arms shows three curved blue lines, representing the ford in the river, surrounded by sallow leaves.
Industrial Revolution
Salford was one of the UK's first major
industrial towns and gained status at the start 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. Salford was incorporated as a
municipal borough in
1844 under the provisions of the
Municipal Corporations Act 1835. During the
Victorian era new developments, including new municipal buildings appearing along the Crescent, shifted the centre of the town. 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.
Salford skyline
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.
Decline
Vast areas of the city were re-developed in the 1960s and 1970s, with the traditional 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
Broughton. However, local government insist that Salford is a safe place to visit.
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. Salford now has many tourist attractions such as
Ordsall Hall, the
Bridgewater Canal and the
Lowry Centre, an award winning art gallery comprising 2 theatres and 3 art galleries. The centre is named after the artist
L. S. Lowry, many of whose works can be seen there.
Governance
Main articles: City of Salford
In 1974 the
County Borough of the City of Salford (including
Pendleton,
Claremont,
Langworthy,
Broughton,
Weaste,
Ordsall,
Irlams o' th' Height and
Seedley) was incorporated into the metropolitan borough of the City of Salford.
The new metropolitan borough also included the former
municipal boroughs of
Eccles (including
Monton,
Patricroft,
Peel Green,
Winton and
Barton-upon-Irwell) and
Swinton and Pendlebury (including
Clifton) and the former
Urban Districts of
Irlam (including
Cadishead) and
Worsley (including
Walkden and
Little Hulton).
Geography
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 in Salford with some bends being removed, widening of its channel 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.
Demography
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).
[1]
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.
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. There is a shopping precinct at Eccles, with smaller shopping areas at Walkden, Swinton, Boothstown and Little Hulton.
Salford Quays has been shortlisted as the new possible city centre by 2020.
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.
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.
Sports
Salford has a strong
rugby league history and has the
Super League side,
Salford City Reds who are the premier sporting team in the area, although National League 2 side
Swinton Lions are from within the boundaries of the City of Salford, though currently playing at
Sedgley Park R.U.F.C. in the
Whitefield district. 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 of its own, although it does have a non-league side in the form of North West Counties League side
Salford City.
Salford Victoria F.C. is also a major player in the Salford footballing scene after winning the 2004 National
Charter Standard Adult Club of the Year under the leadership of
Chris Brown who was pictured receiving the award from
Sir Trevor Brooking during half-time of an England match at
Old Trafford.
The nearest professional soccer team to Salford is
Manchester United, situated just across the Quays in Trafford, and many Salfordians are avid Manchester United fans and are colloquially referred to as "Salford Reds", not to be confused with the local rugby team of the same name. Some fans of both United and
Man City believe "the Red Devils" represent Salford more than Manchester, despite their name.
Since Manchester hosted the Commonwealth Games of 2002,
Salford Quays has developed into a major international
triathlon site
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.
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 (Salford).
The Salford Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1947.
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.
Twin towns
Salford has four twin towns.
[1]
★
Clermont-Ferrand, a city and
commune of
France, in the
Auvergne ''
région'
★
Lünen,
Germany
★
Saint-Ouen,
France
★
Narbonne,
France
Notable people
Born in Salford
Residents (past and present)
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. It was the setting for Walter Greenwood's 1930's hit play, (later filmed) ''
Love on the Dole'', and
Harold Brighouse's play ''
Hobson's Choice'' is set in 19th century Salford. The fictional setting of
Weatherfield in ''
Coronation Street'' is based on Salford. Salford is mentioned several times in '' as well as by the band
The Smiths.
Salford is the subject of the folk song "
Dirty Old Town" written by native
Ewan MacColl, 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 in 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 video for the
Timbaland song "
The Way I Are" was shot in Salford.
[2]
East is East is set in mid-20th century Salford and other surrounding areas.
Gallery
References
1. Salford's twin towns - salford.gov.uk
2. Salford, "The Way I Are" shooting location
External links
★
Salford City Council
★
Visit Salford
★
Ordsall Hall
★
Wet Earth Colliery, Clifton
★
Duke of Bridgewater's Underground Canal at Worsley
★
Pictures of "old" Worsley
★
Pictures of Salford Quays
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