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Manchester in 1948 is an industrial city and port in the North-west of England, famous the world over as "Cottonopolis", the City of Cotton. It is still recovering from the effects of the Second World War: There is food rationing, and much of city centre was destroyed in the blitz of 1940, but there is a strong sense of civic pride. Ambitious reconstruction plans will transform the blackened, Victorian city of the present into a bright metropolis of the future.

The City: In the late forties & fifty years from now
Manchester's buildings, including the Cathedral, the Town Hall, are jet black in colour - the result of decades of exposure to smoke in the atmosphere. There are many vacant sites in the city centre - the blitzed area bounded by Piccadilly, Portland St, York St and Mosley St is currently being used as a car park. Other empty sites include the triangular block at the bottom of Market Street & Deansgate, where the Victoria Buildings used to stand, and the Market Place, off Market St, overlooked by the Shambles.

A city redevelopment plan was drawn up by Manchester Corporation in 1945. Its proposals included a gigantic new railway terminal in Salford to replace the four present stations, and the possible removal of the Town Hall to make way for a larger building. Very little construction work has been carried out so far, and nearly all of Manchester as we see it today dates from pre-war and Victorian times.

The inner city district of Hulme is an expanse of cobbled streets and grimy terraced houses, many of them are fit only for demolition. Chorlton-on-Medlock is also an area of slum housing, though some of the worst districts were demolished before the war and await redevelopment.

Overspill towns are being built in and around Manchester to house people moved out of slum dwellings. The largest of these is Wythenshawe, located ten miles south of the city centre. In contrast to Hulme and Chorlton-on-Medlock, Wythenshawe offers spacious housing, gardens, avenues, parks and greenery.

Colleges and Universities: In the late forties & fifty years from now
Manchester University is situated on Oxford Road, about one mile south of the City Centre. It is surrounded on all sides by the cobbled streets and terraced houses of Hulme & Chorlton-on-Medlock. There are plans to demolish these slum areas and expand the university to form large educational and cultural precinct.

The College of Technology is situated on Whitworth Street, and is housed in the original 1897 building. Here too, there are plans to expand the College into the adoining factory district around Granby Row, home of Vimto. Salford University is two miles west of the city centre, on the Crescent, next to the River Irwell.

Media: In the late forties & fifty years from now
The Manchester Guardian, one of the leading national newspapers, has its head offices in Manchester. The Manchester Evening News has offices on Cross Street, and is one of the principal mouthpieces of the city. Other newspapers include the Manchester Evening Chronicle and the Manchester City News. BBC provides the Home Service, the Light Programme and the Third Programme. The BBC's northern office is on Piccadilly. Television is currently only broadcast in the London area.

Transport: In the late forties & fifty years from now
A fleet of red and cream Manchester Corporation buses provides transport in and around the City of Manchester. The green livery of Salford's buses dominates the scene at Salford bus station, across the Irwell from the Cathedral. Trams are still operating in Manchester but are being phased out. Transport officials hope for an entirely tram-free city by 1949.

Steam trains provide most of the passenger railway services from the city's main railway station: London Road (and adjoining Mayfield Station), Central Station, Exchange Station and Victoria Station (these two stations linked by the longest platform in Europe). The journey by train to London takes approximately four hours, and you can depart from either London Road or Central. There are plans to move London Road Station to the Newton St corner of Piccadilly, and to electrify the lines.

Coach services operate from Lower Mosley St bus station. From Ringway Airport you can fly to London, Belfast, Dublin, the Isle of Man, Paris and Amsterdam. By road, the journey to London takes around six hours. Due to petrol rationing, few people are travelling by motor car at the moment.

Industry In the late forties & fifty years from now
Since the 19th century, Manchester has been a city of engineering, manufacturing and a centre for the cotton industry. The cotton mills of surrounding towns such as Oldham, Rochdale and Bolton, produce fabric for export. Samples are displayed at the Cotton Board's shop in Spring Gardens.

Trafford Park is one of the biggest industrial estates in the country, and houses many famous manufacturing plants including Metro Vickers. Via the Ship Canal, ships come into the Port of Manchester bringing in raw materials. They take finished products to markets all over the world. To the east of the city, there are steelworks and heavy engineering plants, including Crossley, manufacturers of lorries and buses. Aeroplanes are built at the A V Roe's factory in Woodford.

The Lancashire coal mines, including Astley Colliery and Mosley Common, produce coal for the national reconstruction effort. Farms in Cheshire and Lancashire produce food, though many items, such as meat and fruit, are still scarce.

Entertainment & Sport: In the late forties & fifty years from now
Cinemas include the Odeon, Oxford Street, the Tatler News Theatre, the Regal, The Theatre Royal, The Grosvenor and the Roxy, All Saints, The Tower, Ancoats and the Apollo, Ardwick. Theatres include the Central Library Theatre, the university Contact Theatre, The Opera House, the Palace Theatre, Manchester Repertory Theatre Hulme, Salford Royal Hippodrome, the Ardwick Hippodrome, and the Hulme Hippodrome. The Free Trade Hall is currently boarded up and awaiting renovation. The Halle, conducted by Mr John Barbirolli, are giving concert performances at Belle Vue showgrounds, which also offer many attractions to visitors, including a zoo, a funfair and a boating lake. There are dog racing tracks at Belle Vue and at the White City, Old Trafford, which is also the home of Manchester United, and the Lancashire County Cricket Ground. Manchester City's ground is at Maine Road, Moss Side. Horse racing is held at Castle Irwell racecourse, Salford.

Shopping: In the late forties & fifty years from now
The Oldham Street area is the main shopping district in Manchester. C&A, Woolworths and Affleck & Brown's can be found here. Lewis's department store is at the top of Market St, overlooking Piccadilly, and Kendal Milne's can be found on Deansgate. Jeweller's and clothes shops are located around St Anne's Square and King Street. Arcades include the Barton Arcade, between Deansgate & St Anne's Square, and the Lancaster Arcade, near Victoria Station. There is also a wide range of shops and department stores in All Saints, along Oxford Road between Grosvenor St and the Refuge Assurance Building.

Summary: In the late forties & fifty years from now
Manchester in 1948 may not be the most attractive city you might choose to visit, but it has a proud heritage, impressive public buildings, and looks to have an exciting future.