Tapestry Themes #5: Nature, Parks & Rivers
Theme Five: Nature, Parks & Rivers
This group has been researching our amazing public & green spaces in Greater Manchester.
The team discovered that the city of Manchester has 144 parks, but they didn't stop there- from the beautiful areas surrounding Rochdale to Bolton's Moses Gate County Park in which you can see herons in the wild, the group has found a whole host of amazing places we can't wait to represent in stitch!
We are so lucky to have such incredible natural spaces in Greater Manchester!
The team found out lots about Moses Gate Country Park in Bolton, which has an interesting history:
'At 750 acres this is Bolton’s largest nature reserve... During the 19th century Moses Gate was home to Farnworth Paper Mills, and under Thomas Bonsor Crompton, it became one of the biggest paper producers in the whole country. At this time the river was so dirty from heavy industry that the water couldn’t be used for paper making and, as a result, ‘Crompton’s Lodges’ were built. Nowadays these lodges support a wide range of waterfowl including mute swan, tufted duck, great-crested grebe and even water rail.' (Wildlife Trust)
Alexandra Park in Whalley Range is another fascinating place the group researched:
'Alexandra Park was restored with National Lottery money in 2013/4 based on the 1869 design by Alexander Hennell and was opened to the public in 1870. It is home to the Manchester Caribbean Carnival (started in 1971 and still ongoing annually) and other large events.
First built in the early 20th century it was rebuilt in 1970 on the centenary of the park. It had a Speaker’s Corner and hosted rallies including 60,000 for the Independent Labour Party in 1892. There was a large Rock Against Racism concert in 1970 preceded by an Anti Nazi League march.' (Black History)
There are so many green spaces in Greater Manchester and we wish we could include all of them! We are so impressed by how much research this group was able to do,