This is how Deansgate looked in the first decades of the 20th century – EOM reckons it is around 1913.
Edwardian Deansgate is a busy thoroughfare with people, traffic and many shops, including ‘E L Batchelors, show rooms for Mantles and Jackets’, in the Barton Arcade. All the buildings to the left of that sign have been replaced. The curved facade on the corner of St Mary’s Gate belongs to the Victoria Buildings, badly damaged in 1940 and later demolished. Now it’s the site of upmarket apartment block No 1 Deansgate.
Five modern electric trams are making their way south along Deansgate. Not so long ago, trams were horse-drawn, like the carriage on the right, which could be from 100 years previously. Over to the left, near the gas lantern, men are wearing boater hats, as worn by Buster Keaton. They were very popular both before and after WW1. A dark and hazy Manchester Cathedral is visible in the distance through the smoky Manchester air.
It’s amazing what you can see in old photos, and the best place to access old photos of Manchester is the Archives and Local Studies Unit, part of the Central Library.
You can check out the collection now by going to
They have pictures from the 18th century up to recent decades. You can order prints very cheaply, and I recommend the library staff who are totally dedicated and very knowledgeable.
This image, scanned from an original print, was kindly provided by Ed O’Keeffe.
Other local authorities in the Manchester area also maintain image collections. Try Salford, Tameside and Trafford.
Unfortunately I wasn’t around in 1913 to take photos. My collection starts from around 1996. Visit the Manchester category on the aidan.co.uk photo portfolio site.