Ancoats
Ancoats is the district just east of Manchester city centre that grew up around steam-powered cotton mills in the late eighteenth century and is often described as the world's first industrial suburb. Mills such as Murrays' Mills, along the Rochdale Canal, are among the oldest surviving steam-powered cotton mills anywhere.
In practice
In the nineteenth century Ancoats was crowded with mills and workers' housing, home to large Irish and Italian communities - the area was once known as Manchester's Little Italy. As the mills closed in the twentieth century it fell into decline. From the early 2000s the mills were restored as flats and offices, new buildings filled the gaps, and the neighbouring New Islington development added a marina and park. Ancoats is now known for its restaurants, bakeries and canal-side flats.
Why it matters to newcomers
Ancoats is one of the most popular places for professionals to live within walking distance of the centre, which shows in the rents. The canal towpaths and Cutting Room Square are its public spaces, and many of the city's most talked-about restaurants are here.
Related
- Cottonopolis - the industry that built Ancoats
- Northern Quarter - its livelier neighbour to the west
- Ginnel - the passages between its old terraces
Source: Science and Industry Museum.