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Then and Now: Chorlton-cum-Hardy

THEN: The stylish station building

On the left, all the hallmarks of Victorian and Edwardian style. Above, a dreary, characterless, modern car park.

As late as the 1880s, Chorlton still boasted many of these timbered buildings which somehow characterised the elegance of the times.

The liveried horse and cart waiting for the well-dressed man in the top hat, probably a rail passenger, echoes a slower pace of life.

The building in the background is Chorlton-cum-Hardy railway station which gives a clue as to how its relative distance from central Manchester enabled the area to avoid the excessive industrialisation of other inner city districts and maintain its distinct character.

NOW: The building has gone

Although many of the large houses have now changed in appearance, most can still be found - converted into flats and apartments for the area's large student population, attracted by the extensive range of shops and dominated by an all-too-familiar site - a car park serving a supermarket.

The archive photograph is part of a collection chronicling the changing face of Manchester during the past 250 years on an easy-to-use computer at Manchester Central Library.

What memories do you have of Chorlton?

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