
Convenor: Andy Scutt
The Local History group is extremely popular and welcomes new members. If you would like any information about the group, please get in touch with Andy by emailing members@salfordu3a.com
Venue and date/time: We meet at 1.30-3.00pm (doors open 1pm) on alternate Wednesdays at Monton Unitarian Church Hall. There is a charge of £1pp to cover room hire and refreshments.


Well-deserved flowers for Barbara Ashe and Chris Whitefoot in July 2022 in recognition of their many years of service to the group

The main focus of the group is the history of the Salford and Manchester region, with occasional forays further afield. All topics are researched and presented by the members of this very popular group.
Past topics have included Haigh Hall, Queen Victoria’s 1851 visit to Worsley, Salford Pals and Joseph Brotherton. Current and previous years’ topics are detailed in the programmes below.
The group has also visited the following historical sites over recent years: Ordsall Hall, Eccles Parish Church, All Saints Church Barton, Chetham’s Library and School, Styal Village and Quarry Bank Mill, the Ellesmere Port Boat Museum, Erddig Hall, the Moravian Settlement in Droylsden, the Avro Museum at Woodford, Bramhall Hall, Saltaire, Liverpool Cathedral and Speke Hall.
Links you may be interested in:
- Cottonopolis – a Greater Manchester u3a network booklet
- Our Salford mills survey
- A gallery of photos from our 2022 trip to the Avro Heritage Museum and Bramall Hall
- Memories from our second trip of 2022 to Saltaire in Yorkshire
- Lots of photos from our great day out to Liverpool in April 2023
Past members of the group have researched and published a variety of books, which are listed below.
- Church St Eccles by Helen Whickham and other group members
- A walk around Barton by Doreen and Eddie Rowbottom
- Industrial History of Eccles by Ronald Britton
- A Chronological History of Eccles by Doreen Rowbottom
- Treasures of Eccles, Past and Present by Doreen Rowbottom
- Pendleton: the Rise and Fall of a Northern Township by Don Lingard
- A Brief History of Travel in Eccles, Barton and Patricroft since 1628 by Mark Child
- Francis Egerton, 1st Earl of Ellesmere by Mark Child
- Places of Worship, Past and Present (Clifton, Swinton and Pendlebury)
by David Roughley
2023 programme
Date | Name | Subject |
---|---|---|
11 Jan | Christmas meal at George’s, Worsley | |
25 Jan | Mark Child | Lord Ellesmere’s sons |
8 Feb | Andy Scutt | ![]() Manchester’s Market Place |
22 Feb | Martin Maynard | ![]() Agecroft Rowing Club |
8 Mar | Fiona Ellis | ![]() Jerome Caminada |
22 Mar | Brian Briggs | ![]() Sailor, Sinner and Saint |
5 Apr | Anne McGarry | ![]() Life in Eccles and Salford 1900-1914 |
19 Apr | Andy Scutt | Spring outing to Liverpool – see gallery |
3 May | Beryl Patten | ![]() Isabel Heywood and the Manchester and Salford Blind Aid Society |
17 May | Rick McGarry | ![]() The workhouse system in Barton-upon-Irwell |
31 May | Marlene and Hazel | ![]() Castle Irwell |
14 Jun | Paul Sherlock | ![]() Early Salford Mayors part 2 |
28 Jun | David Roughley | ![]() Queen Elizabeth II |
12 Jul | Mark Child | ![]() Corn laws, free trade and the Anti-Corn Law League |
26 Jul | Linda Veasey | ![]() Knights, Dukes and Dynasties |
9 Aug | Barbara Ashe | ![]() Ellesmere Park |
23 Aug | George Waterhouse | ![]() Sir William Fairbairn |
6 Sep | Andy Scutt | Autumn outing (date provisional) |
20 Sep | June Lomas | ![]() LS Lowry |
4 Oct | Ivor Smith | ![]() The Scuttlers |
18 Oct | Mary McBride | ![]() Mrs G. Linnaeus Banks and The Manchester Man |
1 Nov | Hugh Jones | ![]() Pendleton Co-operative Industrial Society Limited |
15 Nov | Anne McGarry | ![]() Brenda Dean |
29 Nov | Anita Douglas | ![]() Wakes Weeks |
13 Dec | Sheila Thomas | ![]() Christmas in the local news |




at the Salford Histories Festival, Oct 2022
You may also be interested in:
Our group is one of several members of the Salford Forum of Local History Organisations. You can access their website here for details of all the groups that belong to this forum, including the Eccles and District History Society and the Age UK (Salford) local history group who meet regularly in Swinton.
Anyone wishing to explore the history of our area may be interested in viewing the extensive collection of books, documents, photographs and newspapers at the Salford Local History Library.