Jonathan Schofield reveals an excellent idea at the Science and Industry Museum
This is fabulous news. Manchester city centre has numerous excellent hotels often in fine old buildings, this goes for aparthotels too. But there are desperately few characterful smaller properties to stay in within the city core.
This is now, in part at least, being remedied with a coalition between the Science and Industry Museum and the Landmark Trust. These august institutions have buddied up to restore the 1808 Grade I listed house on the corner of Liverpool Road and Water Street as a ‘new holiday property’.
The house will open for holidays and for free open days in 2024. It will sleep eight people.
The site is strategically important for Manchester’s visitor economy in future
This is what the museum is saying. ‘(This) will be the first time the historic building will be accessible to the public and enjoyed as a residence for 100 years. (The) partnership will enable the first Landmark Trust property in the region and a key milestone in the Science and Industry Museum’s plans to restore its globally significant industrial heritage site which will enable visitors to experience every part of the museum’s seven-acre footprint.’
Here’s the background.
‘The house was built in 1808 for John Rothwell, a partner in a nearby dyeworks. It pre-dates and is adjoined to the museum’s Grade I listed 1830 Station. Liverpool Road Station was the Manchester terminus of the world’s first steam-powered, inter-city railway designed to carry both passengers and goods and its 1830 Station is the oldest surviving passenger railway station in the world.
‘The house provided accommodation for the Station Agent at Liverpool Road Station before being converted for shop use in the mid twentieth century. Unsuitable for a museum gallery use due to its size and layout as a former residential house, it has been used as offices since the Science and Industry Museum first opened on the site from 1983, when the shop frontage was removed, and a replica of the historic doorway reinstated.’
This is part of a whole reworking of the site under the fine direction of Sally MacDonald who says: “We are delighted the Landmark Trust will be bringing their expertise in sensitively restoring incredible heritage buildings to enable the Station Agent’s House to be experienced by the public for the first time. It's our aim to bring into use every part of the museum’s site along with the conservation and re-opening of the Power Hall with its much loved historic engines and locomotives, current repair work on the 1830 Station and plans for new galleries and outdoor experiences in the coming years, we are so pleased to be working with the Landmark Trust to lead on crucial work to this building as part of our plans to create a more sustainable museum and reveal new spaces and perspectives for visitors to enjoy.”
The architects will be Wiles & Maguire. Landmark's plans looks fabulous. They 'will preserve the building’s external appearance and internally create two accessible ground floor bedrooms and an accessible bathroom. A lift to the first floor will take guests to a more open living area. There will be two further bedrooms on the second floor, which will also provide access to the historic passenger platform.'
The idea is to respect both Georgian building as constructed while taking into consideration the various alterations over the years. A proper library is included as a standard Landmark asset.
There's still a little way to go in terms of funding but the project is definitely going ahead.
As the press message says.
"'The Station Agent’s House will be the Landmark Trust’s first property in the region. To enable the repair and conversion works, the charity is seeking to fundraise a final £118,000. This follows early support from generous donors and use of its precious legacy income, such is the significance of the building. On completion The Station Agent’s House will join Landmark’s collection of 200 historic buildings available to everyone for extraordinary holidays.'
People can help with this by donating here. There's some interesting factoids on the Landmark website including that it costs £23 to replace a decayed brick and £60 to replace 'a length' of traditional iron guttering.
Indeed, that could be 2023's perfect gift for a heritage-adoring loved one: a length of traditional iron guttering contributing to the restoration of a Manchester landmark. Something like that.
The site is strategically important for Manchester’s visitor economy. It lies adjacent to Factory International which opens this summer in time for Manchester International Festival 2023. Factory International will front splendid landscaping on the River Irwell, revealing the Grade I listed Stephenson Viaduct yards from the Station Master's house.
Meanwhile the house sits on the museum estate and over the road from where Salboy/Domus will soon start work to restore the Commercial Hotel, the world's oldest surviving railway hotel.
The whole area is part of the Castlefield and St John's district of the city centre, in many ways Manchester's most charming central area. Initiatives such as this can only add to the charm. Bring it on.
This site is strategically important for Manchester’s visitor economy. It lies adjacent to Factory International which opens this summer in time for Manchester International Festival 2023. Factory International will front splendid landscaping on the River Irwell, revealing the Grade I listed Stephenson Viaduct yards from the Station Master's house.
Meanwhile the house sits on the museum estate and over the road from where Salboy/Domus will soon start work to restore the Commercial Hotel, the world's oldest surviving railway hotel.
The whole area is part of the Castlefield and St John's district of the city centre, in many ways Manchester's most charming central area. Initiatives such as this can only add to the charm. Bring it on.
Jonathan Schofield is the editor of Manchester Confidential. He has written several books which include elements of this story and also runs tours in Castlefield.
You can follow Jonathan on Twitter and Instagram on @JonathSchofield.
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