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Clayton is a district of
Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
, England, 2.5 miles east of the
city centre A city centre, also known as an urban core, is the Commerce, commercial, Culture, cultural and often the historical, Politics, political, and geographic heart of a city. The term "city centre" is primarily used in British English, and closely e ...
on Ashton New Road.


History

Historically in
Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...
, Clayton takes its name from the Clayton family who owned large parts of land around the area, including Clayton Vale, through which the
River Medlock The River Medlock in Greater Manchester, England rises in east Oldham and flows south and west for to join the River Irwell in Manchester city centre. Sources Rising in the hills that surround Strinesdale just to the eastern side of Oldham M ...
flows, separating Clayton from
Newton Heath Newton Heath is an area of Manchester, England, north-east of Manchester city centre and with a population of 9,883. Historically part of Lancashire, Newton was formerly a farming area, but adopted the factory system following the Industrial ...
. Clayton was under the township of Droylsden until around 1890 when alterations to the Manchester boundary took place. Other towns added to Manchester around this time were
Blackley Blackley is a suburban area of Manchester, in the county of Greater Manchester, England. Historically in Lancashire, it is approximately north of Manchester city centre, on the River Irk. History The hamlet of Blackley was mentioned in the Do ...
, Crumpsall, Moston,
Openshaw Openshaw is a suburb of Manchester, Greater Manchester, England, about three miles east of the Manchester city centre. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Lancashire, Openshaw was incorporated into the city of Manchester in 1890. ...
and
Gorton Gorton is an area of Manchester in Greater Manchester, England. It is to the southeast of Manchester city centre. The population at the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 census was 36,055. Neighbouring areas include Levenshulme and Openshaw. A ...
. In 1894 Clayton became a separate
civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...
, being formed from the part of the parish of Droylsden in the County Borough of Manchester, on 26 March 1896 the parish was abolished to form
North Manchester North Manchester was, from 1896 to 1916 a civil parish within the Poor Law Union of Manchester, in Lancashire, (now Greater Manchester) England. North Manchester was a local government sub-district used for the administration of Poor Law legisl ...
.


Sport

Between 1893 and 1910, Clayton was home to
Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...
, and their precursor club Newton Heath L&YR, after Newton Heath left their North Road ground in the neighbouring district of
Newton Heath Newton Heath is an area of Manchester, England, north-east of Manchester city centre and with a population of 9,883. Historically part of Lancashire, Newton was formerly a farming area, but adopted the factory system following the Industrial ...
. Bank Street had a capacity of 50,000 spectators, and was covered on all four sides. Shortly after Manchester United moved to their present ground, in
Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and is the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,197, it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after W ...
, Bank Street was severely damaged in a storm and the remains were demolished soon after.
Manchester Velodrome Manchester Velodrome is an indoor Olympic-standard cycle-racing track in Manchester, England, which opened in 1994. Part of the National Cycling Centre, the facility has been home to British Cycling since 1994, coinciding with the nation's rise ...
opened at Clayton in September 1994 and a car park serving it was constructed on the site of Manchester United's old stadium.


Clayton Hall

Clayton Hall is a 15th-century hall on Ashton New Road, in
Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
, hidden behind trees in a small park. The Hall is a Grade II*
listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...
, a
scheduled ancient monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage, visu ...
, and is rare example of a medieval
moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch dug around a castle, fortification, building, or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. Moats can be dry or filled with water. In some places, moats evolved into more extensive water d ...
ed site (). It was originally built for the Clayton family, it passed on into the hands of the Byron family (of which the poet
Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824) was an English poet. He is one of the major figures of the Romantic movement, and is regarded as being among the greatest poets of the United Kingdom. Among his best-kno ...
was a member) in 1194. They lived there until they sold it to two London merchants, George and Humphrey Chetham, in 1620. Humphrey Chetham is famous for founding Chetham's School and Library in the centre of Manchester. During the
Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
,
Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gove ...
cavalry were stationed here, before the attack on Manchester. Afterwards, according to legend,
Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English statesman, politician and soldier, widely regarded as one of the most important figures in British history. He came to prominence during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, initially ...
was said to have spent three nights at the Hall. In 1897, the building was acquired by Manchester City Corporation, ensuring its survival.


Clayton today

Philips Park is on the south side of the River Medlock and Philips Park Cemetery is on the north side. The park has the distinction of being Manchester's first public park and Mark Philips, who was the Member of Parliament for Manchester, opened it in 1846. It was the first of its kind in the whole of the then Great Britain and Ireland and it set the standard for many others that soon followed in towns and cities throughout Britain. It was designed to have walks, expansive lakes and glasshouses for exotic plants. It is also famous for its annual tulip festival, which is still held every year. Philips Park Cemetery was opened in 1863. The majority of houses in Clayton are council homes. The first council (or then known as corporation) homes to be built took place around the late 1920s, building near the border of Droylsden (Bristowe Street and South Crescent, followed by North Crescent). Many more homes were to be built afterwards, building on a brick works surrounding Clayton Street, a golf course off what is now Folkestone Road West and East and cricket and football grounds off North Road and Vale Street, now known as Lingfield Road. The building associated with the cricket and football grounds still stands today, now used as a
boxing Boxing is a combat sport and martial art. Taking place in a boxing ring, it involves two people – usually wearing protective equipment, such as boxing glove, protective gloves, hand wraps, and mouthguards – throwing Punch (combat), punch ...
club. Frank Pritchard, who lived in Clayton as young child in the 1920s, recalls in his book East Manchester Remembered: "... Clayton was rather a posh area. Beyond Bank Street one rarely saw children bare-footed, or with their breeches' behind torn and tattered which were common sights in the streets round where I lived." Alderdale Golf Club (now defunct) first appeared in 1907. The club disappeared in the 1920s.“Alderdale Golf Club”
“Golf's Missing Links”.


Church and community

Father Alphonsus is the current
priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...
at St. Willibrord's Church which is part of a new parish, The Parish of the Holy Spirit, along with two other nearby churches, St Bridget's, Bradford and St Anne's, Ancoats. The church had some alterations to its interior in 2006-07, making the back of the church a focal point for various local community assemblies, where various
charity Charity may refer to: Common meanings * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sha ...
fund-raising events are organized. In 2019-2020, there have been further interior improvements, with new gas central heating installed, meaning that the congregation now worships in a warm environment for the first time in decades. The Church of St Cross was built in the 19th century and designed by William Butterfield. Butterfield was known for his budget conscious churches. The building is unique for its patterned brickwork and the richly furnished interior.


See also

* Listed buildings in Manchester-M11 * Bank Street (football ground) * Manchester Clayton (UK Parliament constituency) * John Edward Sutton * Edward Hopkinson *
Shayne Ward Shayne Thomas Ward (born 16 October 1984) is an English singer and actor. He rose to fame as the winner of the second series of ''The X Factor''. His debut single, "That's My Goal", was released in the United Kingdom on 21 December 2005 a ...


References

* 1923
Ordnance Survey The Ordnance Survey (OS) is the national mapping agency for Great Britain. The agency's name indicates its original military purpose (see Artillery, ordnance and surveying), which was to map Scotland in the wake of the Jacobite rising of ...
Map {{Manchester Areas of Manchester Former civil parishes in Greater Manchester