Thomas Worthington was born in 1826, the son of a Salford cottom merchant active in the Unitarian Church.  He was articled as an architect to Henry Bowman and set up his own practice in Manchester in 1849.  His work is of particular interest to me because I went to school in Ardwick a stone's throw away from his Nicholl's Hospital and I remember that ominous black building that seemed to loom over 1950s Hyde Road.  Today it can be seen in all its colourful glory having gone through a variety of different educational personalities.  Worthington competed for the design of Manchester Town Hall loosing out to Waterhouse but he left behind some of Manchester's finest gothic buildings.

Worthington's influence can be seen throughout the city in buildings created by other architects.  One excellent example is the Gas Offices in Salford.