The Manchester Art Museum, also known as the Horsfall Museum or Ancoats Museum, was an

art museum An art museum or art gallery is a building or space for the display of art, usually from the museum's own collection. It might be in public or private ownership and may be accessible to all or have restrictions in place. Although primarily con ...

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

, England, from 1877 until 1953. It was begun as an educational venture in 1877 by

Thomas Coglan Horsfall Thomas Coglan Horsfall (1841–1932) was a noted philanthropist, town planner, writer and founder of the Manchester Art Museum in Ancoats Hall (also known as the ''Horsfall Museum'' or ''Ancoats Museum''). Life Horsfall was the son of William ...

, who had been inspired by

John Ruskin John Ruskin (8 February 1819 20 January 1900) was an English writer, philosopher, art critic and polymath of the Victorian era. He wrote on subjects as varied as geology, architecture, myth, ornithology, literature, education, botany and pol ...

to provide education and inspiration to the working classes. The museum moved in 1886 to Ancoats Hall. The collection included a wide range of items including paintings, engravings, photographs, reproductions, antiquities, ceramics, glass, metalwork, natural history specimens, and images of Manchester. In keeping with Horsfall's moral views, no nudes were displayed at the gallery.Wilson, Shelagh, "The Highest Art for the lowest People: The Whitechapel and Other Philanthropic Art Galleries, 1877-1901", ''Governing Cultures'', Ashgate, 2000, pp.172-86. A room in the gallery was furnished by

William Morris William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was a British textile designer, poet, artist, novelist, architectural conservationist, printer, translator and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts Movement. He ...

as an example of aesthetic design. According to historian Shelagh Wilson, the gallery was popular as a respectable alternative attraction to pubs and music halls, but by the early 20th century it was unable to compete with new forms of popular entertainment. When a cinema opened nearby, attendance dropped dramatically. In 1918 the museum was taken over by the city. It closed in 1953 and its contents were absorbed into the collection of Manchester City Art Gallery.Manchester City Galleries – History of the Collection
/ref>Harrison, M. (1993). Art and Social Regeneration: The Ancoats Art Museum. ''Manchester Regional History Review'', 4, 63-72.

References

{{authority control Art museums established in 1877 1877 establishments in England 1953 disestablishments in England Art museums and galleries in Manchester Defunct museums in England Manchester Art Gallery