Manchester's lost estate and the amazing reminders of what once stood there
manchestereveningnews.co.ukUntil just a few years ago, it was simply an unassuming patch of empty grassland in east Manchester. But it was when the latest development work started on turning it in Abbey Hey, Gorton, that clues of the area's fascinating history truly came to life.
Now, the area is home to a £17m, state-of-the-art retirement village with a well-used community café and hair and nail salon which been hailed by residents.
However, the finds that were discovered during excavation work gave a timely reminder of the fascinating history that the site known as Bellamy Court had.
The area first sprung to life in the early 19th century, when a series of three sprawling cotton mills opened in 1825 during the ‘Cottonopolis’ boom - where Manchester became the global centre of textile manufacturing and in turn the world’s first industrial city. READ MORE: Remembering Gorton Tub, east Manchester's lost 'tropical' paradise The mills were bought by legendary Mancunian entrepreneur John Rylands, who would go on to become the city's first multi-millionaire.
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