Hope Mill on Pollard Street, in the district of Ancoats, Manchester, England, is a cotton mill dating from 1824. A steam-driven mill, its engines were constructed by the Birmingham firm of Boulton and Watt. Derelict by the mid-20th century, the building was redeveloped in 2001 and now houses a range of creative industries, including the Hope Mill Theatre. Hope Mill is a Grade II* listed building.

Hope Mill
TypeCotton mill
LocationAncoats, Manchester, England
Coordinates53°28′59″N 2°12′59″E / 53.4831°N 2.2164°E / 53.4831; 2.2164
Built1824
Governing bodyHope Mill Partnership LLP
Listed Building – Grade II*
Official nameHope Mill, Manchester
Designated6 June 1994
Reference no.1246950
Hope Mill is located in Greater Manchester
Hope Mill
Location of Hope Mill in Greater Manchester

History and description

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By the early 19th century, Manchester had become one of the world's great textile-producing cities. Its population rose from 75,000 in 1801, to over 300,000 fifty years later.[1] The inner-city area of Ancoats became the main centre for factories and mills; largely open fields in the 1780s, "it became one of the most intensely developed industrial centres in the world".[2] The Prussian court architect, Karl Friedrich Schinkel, visiting in 1824, wrote, "since the war 400 large new factories for cotton spinning have been built, several of them the size of the Royal Palace in Berlin".[1] Hope Mill was built in 1824 for Joseph Clarke & Sons, textile spinners and fustian weavers.[3] A steam-driven mill, its engines were supplied by Boulton and Watt.[4]

By the mid-20th century, the building was derelict. In 2001, it was bought and refurbished by a private partnership and now houses a range of creative industries,[5] including the Hope Mill Theatre.[6]

The seven-storey building is constructed from red brick and to a rectangular plan.[3] Hope Mill was designated a Grade II* listed building in 1994.

References

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  1. ^ a b Hartwell, Hyde & Pevsner 2004, p. 258.
  2. ^ Hartwell, Hyde & Pevsner 2004, p. 376.
  3. ^ a b Historic England. "Hope Mill, Manchester (Grade II*) (1246950)". National Heritage List for England.
  4. ^ "Hope Mill: History". Hope Mill Partnership. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
  5. ^ "Hope Mill:Tenants". Hope Mill Partnership. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
  6. ^ "Hope Mill Theatre". Hope Mill Theatre Company. Retrieved 10 May 2021.

Sources

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  • Hartwell, Clare; Hyde, Matthew; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2004). Lancashire: Manchester and the South East. The Buildings of England. New Haven, CT; London: Yale University Press. ISBN 0-300-10583-5.