The Gaskell House This detached Regency
Style villa, number 84 Plymouth Grove, was home to the
family of the author Elizabeth Gaskell. When the
Gaskells lived there the house stood in a leafy suburb
beyond the smokey city centre. Elizabeth and
William Gaskell lived here with their four daughters and
among those to visit the house were Charlotte Bronte,
Charles Dickens, John Ruskin and Harriet Beecher
Stowe.
Elizabeth (1810 - 1865)
wrote a number of important books including:
Cranford, Mary Barton, Life of Charlotte Bronte, North
and South and Wives and Daughters.
  The house can be seen in the map below (coloured brown) which dates from 1844.  Below you can see it in an aerial photograph taken in the 1950s  In the 1960s the
building was saved from demolition. For a number
of years it was owned by the University of Manchester
and the inside was greatly altered to accommodate their
requirements. In 2004 it was acquired by the
Manchester Historic Buildings Trust and their efforts
have now resulted in its restoration. At this time
the building was painted pink.
  When the photograph
below was taken, in April 2010, 84 Plymouth Grove was
swathed in scaffolding, plastic and corrugated steel and
was in the process of restoration after many years of
neglect that had seen it fall into a desperate state of
decay.
  This stage of
restoration was, as you can see from the sign above,
aimed at the exterior of the building.
Unfortunately, after this restoration was completed
thieves stole the lead from the roof. The next
stage of the restoration will take a number of years and
involve the refurbishment of the interior.
Close Window |