Manchester Design

Manchester was exceptionally grey, misty and damp this morning so we didn't venture far from our destination.  The TYM was a bit more settled today but there are some very scary aspects to his life now that horrify me quite honestly.  I pray for his safety and that he can be moved closer to home soon and have the opportunity to start again in a new institution of incarceration (The word is awful, but seems to be the word commonly used) where he might form more positive relationships with his fellow inmates.

I find myself fascinated by the architecture of these Victorian Design buildings - so ornate.  Beauty in functionality.

“The 234 foot high, minaret-like, chimney of Strangeways Prison, which was used for heating and ventilation, is a prominent feature of the north Manchester skyline  The prison was built on the site of the Strangeways Park and Gardens adopting the name.  A plaque in the entrance commemorates the official opening on the 25th of June 1868.
   
The architect was Alfred Waterhouse who went on to design the Manchester Town Hall and the wonderful Natural History Museum in South Kensington.  The prison was built in a radial design with wings ranging out from a dodecagonal central hall accommodating 1000 prisoners.”


I have added an extra which is a family gravestone in Peel Green Cemetery in Eccles which we visited on our way home today.  My Dad was born in Eccles and we visited regularly when I was a child.  We usually visited the cemetery as part of our trek.  At that time, this would have been the grave of my Dad's Uncle Bill who died a few weeks after my Mom and Dad got married.  Later on, in 1972, the wonderful lady who was my Great Great Auntie Jessie was buried in the same grave.  I can't work out the relationship between Jessie and William.  I think they were aunt and nephew.  Jessie often used to look after me and play with me when I was little and we were all living with my grandparents in Birmingham.  She made a fantastic rice pudding and used to amaze me with her stories of the family growing up in Eccles and her thirteen sisters.  Next time I go, I will take some cleaning stuff to try to smarten the gravestone up a bit.  I was very pleased that I remembered whereabouts it was.