Stop Press : Janet Allan M.B.E.
The Heritage Lottery Bid has been submitted We will hear if we have been successful early in June Meanwhile, the fund -raising goes on!
Next Special Event
The Moorland Cottage
2pm, Saturday 5 May, 2012
The Gaskells' House M13 9LW
A costumed reading of Robin Allan’s adaptation of the Gaskell short story, performed by Delia Corrie, Charles Foster and four drama students from the School of Theatre at Manchester Metropolitan University Tickets, including tea and cakes £10. To book see events page.
Latest News
After the recent theft of all the lead from the roof of the newly restored exterior of the house, we have been heartened by the public response £5000 was raised in a matter of days, and this helped considerably towards the cost of the temporary felt roof, which was £7000. The cost of the new permanent roof-which will NOT be lead, will have to be added to our Heritage Fund Lottery Bid.
The Heritage Lottery Fund Bid
The time is coming, ever closer, when we will submit our bid to The Heritage Lottery Fund for the money to complete restoration of the Gaskells’ House. The sum required to do the work has risen to £2.6M and so we need to raise at least £550,000 in match funding. We have £220, 000 already but we urgently need to raise the remaining £330,000 as soon as possible. ANY contribution, no matter how small, would be very welcome Of course, as we always say, if you happen to know a friendly millionaire, do feel free to ask his-or her-help!
Cheques payable to the "Friends of Plymouth Grove” can be sent to
Janet Allan, 10 Dale Road, New Mills, High Peak, SK22 4NW
The House is Open!
The house is open on the First Sunday of the Month 12-4p.m, until further notice. Come and see the newly restored exterior. It is no longer “The Pink House but is back to its original stone colour. Inside we have our book-shop, in William Gaskell’s study, selling new Gaskell-related books and a wide variety of second-hand books. There are talks, display, tours and refreshments, with delicious home-made cakes. As a recent visitor commented “Fantastic cakes. Tea in a china cup with a matching saucer. The most literary tea shop in Manchester.”
Group Visits
We also welcome groups, by arrangement and are able to offer various catering options. Contact Janet Allan, address below.
Keep up to date with our various events, by looking on the events page and also follow us on face book; Elizabeth Gaskell and her Manchester Home
Introduction
The writer Elizabeth Gaskell (1810-65) lived in this Manchester house from 1850, and it is here that all but the first of her books were written. 84 Plymouth Grove is a detached Regency-style villa, which originally stood in the leafy outskirts of Manchester, ‘quite outside the smoke’. Elizabeth and William Gaskell and their four daughters loved its generous atmosphere, its spacious rooms and its walled garden. Many guests enjoyed their hospitality, including Charlotte Bronte, Charles Dickens, John Ruskin and Harriet Beecher Stowe, When Elizabeth died William and their two unmarried daughters lived on in the house until the death of last survivor, Meta Gaskell, in 1913.
Elizabeth Gaskell’s books
Cranford, is the most popular of her books and has never been out of print, and was televised in 2007. Mary Barton, is a tale of Manchester in the hungry forties, her Life of Charlotte Brontë is the first biography of modern times, Ruth deals with illegitimacy, North and South about the old and new values in an industrial age, Cousin Phillis set in the Cheshire countryside and her last work, Wives and Daughters, which was successfully televised in 1999. She also wrote many vivid letters. Her books are all available today, in many different editions.
To celebrate the Gaskell bi-centenary Naxos Audio Books are adding to their Gaskell titles. The complete recording of Cranford is already available. Wives and Daughters will follow in March and Cousin Phillis in May. Listen to a sample on their website. You can order on line or by post. www.naxosaudiobooks.com
84 Plymouth Grove today
The first phase of the restoration has been completed. Authentic lime plaster has replaced the 1960s cement render, and the damaged capitals have been copied and replaced. The windows and shutters, most of which have survived since 1838, have been repaired by skilled joiners in pitch pine and sapele wood.
For the first time it has been possible to investigate fully some parts of the building. We discovered dry rot in the roof, and more in the cellar. This has been treated. The huge stone pediment at the top of the building was teetering on a single row of bricks and some timbers, but is now secure.
Discoveries – The beautiful flagged floors of the ground floor hall, hidden under 1970s carpeting, are now revealed. At a higher level, you can glimpse the remains of the old servants’ quarters, overlaid by the university’s alterations in the 1970s.
Good News
We are delighted to announce the award of a grant of £150,000 by the Heritage Lottery Fund. This is a First Stage Grant to enable us to draw up plans for the eventual complete restoration of the building. If these plans are passed, by the H.L.F. we will then receive the remainder of the £1M lottery grant towards the full £2M cost The work goes on to raise the other £1M!!
Join the Friends of Plymouth Grove
We need help with the house, with our plans for the future. You will get news of progress and special events. To become a Friend and help with a donation click here to download a form in Adobe pdf format. Print it off, fill it in and send it to us. Help us do something special!
The Gaskell Society
Although a completely separate organisation, the Friends of Plymouth Grove maintains close links with the Gaskell Society; indeed many are members of both associations. Founded in Knutsford in 1985, after events to celebrate the 175th anniversary of Elizabeth Gaskell's birth, the society has become a world-wide organisation, with members in the United States, Japan and in most European countries. Regular meetings take place in Knutsford, Manchester, London, York and the South West. As well as the biennial conference there are visits to places associated with Elizabeth Gaskell, in Britain and Europe. The Society aims to promote and encourage the study and appreciation of the work and life of Elizabeth Gaskell.
Knutsford
Elizabeth Gaskell spent most of her childhood in Knutsford, which appears as Cranford in her most famous book and Hollingford in Wives and Daughters. There are still many buildings and landmarks associated with her in the town, inluding the parish church in which she was married, and the three hundred year old Brook Street Unitarian Chapel where she was buried, along side her husband, William, and their two unmarried daughters.
Poets' Corner - Westminster Abbey
On September 25th over 200 members of the Gaskell Society and the Friends of Plymouth Grove gathered in Westminster Abbey for the dedication of a window panel to Elizabeth Gaskell. The ceremony was conducted by The Very Reverend John Hall, Dean of Westminster and after the opening prayer, Elizabeth Williams, Chairwoman of the Gaskell Society and Trustee of the Manchester Historic Buildings Trust, read a passage from Scripture, followed by an address by Jenny Uglow, Gaskell’s biographer. The Dean then dedicated the window and Sarah Prince laid a wreath of lilies beneath the window. Final Prayers and the Blessing closed the ceremony. Everyone then proceeded to Westminster School for a celebratory drink and an entertaining reading from Gaskell’s letters by Miriam Margolyes, a fitting end to a wonderful occasion.
Sad News
Soon after the happy events in London we heard the sad news of the deaths of two very good friends of 84 Plymouth Grove, Rosemary Dabbs and Joan Leach.
Rosemary Dabbs
Rosemary, Patron of the Manchester Historic Buildings Trust, was the great-great-granddaughter of Elizabeth Gaskell and was immensely proud of her heritage. A quiet demeanour belied an indomitable spirit and despite being in poor health, twice this year she made the journey up to Manchester from her home in Devon. In May she came to the opening of the Portico Exhibition and a few weeks later for the opening of the John Rylands Exhibition. She had been due to attend the dedication ceremony in Westminster Abbey, but unfortunately she became too ill. However, she insisted that her son Tim, daughter Sarah and the family should be there, to represent her. She was delighted that Sarah was able to take her place and lay the wreath under the window. On 28 September, just three days after the ceremony, Rosemary died peacefully in her sleep.
Joan Leach MBE
Joan was the founder and Honorary Secretary of the Gaskell Society, local historian and noted Knutsford celebrity. Much of the credit for the increasing appreciation of Elizabeth Gaskell and her work is due to Joan, who had worked tirelessly over the years since she founded the society. When the Manchester Historic Buildings Trust purchased the Gaskells’ House, Joan worked equally enthusiastically to help raise its profile and the funds for its eventual restoration
On the 30 September , the day after she had celebrated the Elizabeth Gaskell bi-centenary at Brook St Chapel, Knutsford, Joan passed away suddenly, but peacefully.
The Trustees and the Friends of Plymouth Grove would like to express their appreciation for all the help and support received from both these ladies for the Gaskells’ House project. They will be sadly missed.
Manchester Historic Buildings Trust
Company Number 3578992
Charity Number 1080606
The Heritage Lottery Bid has been submitted We will hear if we have been successful early in June Meanwhile, the fund -raising goes on!
Next Special Event
The Moorland Cottage
2pm, Saturday 5 May, 2012
The Gaskells' House M13 9LW
A costumed reading of Robin Allan’s adaptation of the Gaskell short story, performed by Delia Corrie, Charles Foster and four drama students from the School of Theatre at Manchester Metropolitan University Tickets, including tea and cakes £10. To book see events page.
Latest News
After the recent theft of all the lead from the roof of the newly restored exterior of the house, we have been heartened by the public response £5000 was raised in a matter of days, and this helped considerably towards the cost of the temporary felt roof, which was £7000. The cost of the new permanent roof-which will NOT be lead, will have to be added to our Heritage Fund Lottery Bid.
The Heritage Lottery Fund Bid
The time is coming, ever closer, when we will submit our bid to The Heritage Lottery Fund for the money to complete restoration of the Gaskells’ House. The sum required to do the work has risen to £2.6M and so we need to raise at least £550,000 in match funding. We have £220, 000 already but we urgently need to raise the remaining £330,000 as soon as possible. ANY contribution, no matter how small, would be very welcome Of course, as we always say, if you happen to know a friendly millionaire, do feel free to ask his-or her-help!
Cheques payable to the "Friends of Plymouth Grove” can be sent to
Janet Allan, 10 Dale Road, New Mills, High Peak, SK22 4NW
The House is Open!
The house is open on the First Sunday of the Month 12-4p.m, until further notice. Come and see the newly restored exterior. It is no longer “The Pink House but is back to its original stone colour. Inside we have our book-shop, in William Gaskell’s study, selling new Gaskell-related books and a wide variety of second-hand books. There are talks, display, tours and refreshments, with delicious home-made cakes. As a recent visitor commented “Fantastic cakes. Tea in a china cup with a matching saucer. The most literary tea shop in Manchester.”
Group Visits
We also welcome groups, by arrangement and are able to offer various catering options. Contact Janet Allan, address below.
Keep up to date with our various events, by looking on the events page and also follow us on face book; Elizabeth Gaskell and her Manchester Home
Introduction
The writer Elizabeth Gaskell (1810-65) lived in this Manchester house from 1850, and it is here that all but the first of her books were written. 84 Plymouth Grove is a detached Regency-style villa, which originally stood in the leafy outskirts of Manchester, ‘quite outside the smoke’. Elizabeth and William Gaskell and their four daughters loved its generous atmosphere, its spacious rooms and its walled garden. Many guests enjoyed their hospitality, including Charlotte Bronte, Charles Dickens, John Ruskin and Harriet Beecher Stowe, When Elizabeth died William and their two unmarried daughters lived on in the house until the death of last survivor, Meta Gaskell, in 1913.
Elizabeth Gaskell’s books
Cranford, is the most popular of her books and has never been out of print, and was televised in 2007. Mary Barton, is a tale of Manchester in the hungry forties, her Life of Charlotte Brontë is the first biography of modern times, Ruth deals with illegitimacy, North and South about the old and new values in an industrial age, Cousin Phillis set in the Cheshire countryside and her last work, Wives and Daughters, which was successfully televised in 1999. She also wrote many vivid letters. Her books are all available today, in many different editions.
To celebrate the Gaskell bi-centenary Naxos Audio Books are adding to their Gaskell titles. The complete recording of Cranford is already available. Wives and Daughters will follow in March and Cousin Phillis in May. Listen to a sample on their website. You can order on line or by post. www.naxosaudiobooks.com
84 Plymouth Grove today
The first phase of the restoration has been completed. Authentic lime plaster has replaced the 1960s cement render, and the damaged capitals have been copied and replaced. The windows and shutters, most of which have survived since 1838, have been repaired by skilled joiners in pitch pine and sapele wood.
For the first time it has been possible to investigate fully some parts of the building. We discovered dry rot in the roof, and more in the cellar. This has been treated. The huge stone pediment at the top of the building was teetering on a single row of bricks and some timbers, but is now secure.
Discoveries – The beautiful flagged floors of the ground floor hall, hidden under 1970s carpeting, are now revealed. At a higher level, you can glimpse the remains of the old servants’ quarters, overlaid by the university’s alterations in the 1970s.
Good News
We are delighted to announce the award of a grant of £150,000 by the Heritage Lottery Fund. This is a First Stage Grant to enable us to draw up plans for the eventual complete restoration of the building. If these plans are passed, by the H.L.F. we will then receive the remainder of the £1M lottery grant towards the full £2M cost The work goes on to raise the other £1M!!
Join the Friends of Plymouth Grove
We need help with the house, with our plans for the future. You will get news of progress and special events. To become a Friend and help with a donation click here to download a form in Adobe pdf format. Print it off, fill it in and send it to us. Help us do something special!
The Gaskell Society
Although a completely separate organisation, the Friends of Plymouth Grove maintains close links with the Gaskell Society; indeed many are members of both associations. Founded in Knutsford in 1985, after events to celebrate the 175th anniversary of Elizabeth Gaskell's birth, the society has become a world-wide organisation, with members in the United States, Japan and in most European countries. Regular meetings take place in Knutsford, Manchester, London, York and the South West. As well as the biennial conference there are visits to places associated with Elizabeth Gaskell, in Britain and Europe. The Society aims to promote and encourage the study and appreciation of the work and life of Elizabeth Gaskell.
Knutsford
Elizabeth Gaskell spent most of her childhood in Knutsford, which appears as Cranford in her most famous book and Hollingford in Wives and Daughters. There are still many buildings and landmarks associated with her in the town, inluding the parish church in which she was married, and the three hundred year old Brook Street Unitarian Chapel where she was buried, along side her husband, William, and their two unmarried daughters.
Poets' Corner - Westminster Abbey
On September 25th over 200 members of the Gaskell Society and the Friends of Plymouth Grove gathered in Westminster Abbey for the dedication of a window panel to Elizabeth Gaskell. The ceremony was conducted by The Very Reverend John Hall, Dean of Westminster and after the opening prayer, Elizabeth Williams, Chairwoman of the Gaskell Society and Trustee of the Manchester Historic Buildings Trust, read a passage from Scripture, followed by an address by Jenny Uglow, Gaskell’s biographer. The Dean then dedicated the window and Sarah Prince laid a wreath of lilies beneath the window. Final Prayers and the Blessing closed the ceremony. Everyone then proceeded to Westminster School for a celebratory drink and an entertaining reading from Gaskell’s letters by Miriam Margolyes, a fitting end to a wonderful occasion.
Sad News
Soon after the happy events in London we heard the sad news of the deaths of two very good friends of 84 Plymouth Grove, Rosemary Dabbs and Joan Leach.
Rosemary Dabbs
Rosemary, Patron of the Manchester Historic Buildings Trust, was the great-great-granddaughter of Elizabeth Gaskell and was immensely proud of her heritage. A quiet demeanour belied an indomitable spirit and despite being in poor health, twice this year she made the journey up to Manchester from her home in Devon. In May she came to the opening of the Portico Exhibition and a few weeks later for the opening of the John Rylands Exhibition. She had been due to attend the dedication ceremony in Westminster Abbey, but unfortunately she became too ill. However, she insisted that her son Tim, daughter Sarah and the family should be there, to represent her. She was delighted that Sarah was able to take her place and lay the wreath under the window. On 28 September, just three days after the ceremony, Rosemary died peacefully in her sleep.
Joan Leach MBE
Joan was the founder and Honorary Secretary of the Gaskell Society, local historian and noted Knutsford celebrity. Much of the credit for the increasing appreciation of Elizabeth Gaskell and her work is due to Joan, who had worked tirelessly over the years since she founded the society. When the Manchester Historic Buildings Trust purchased the Gaskells’ House, Joan worked equally enthusiastically to help raise its profile and the funds for its eventual restoration
On the 30 September , the day after she had celebrated the Elizabeth Gaskell bi-centenary at Brook St Chapel, Knutsford, Joan passed away suddenly, but peacefully.
The Trustees and the Friends of Plymouth Grove would like to express their appreciation for all the help and support received from both these ladies for the Gaskells’ House project. They will be sadly missed.
Manchester Historic Buildings Trust
Company Number 3578992
Charity Number 1080606
Chairman: Janet Allan
10 Dale Road, New Mills, High Peak, Derbyshire SK22 4NW
Telephone/fax 01663 744233
Email: chairman@elizabethgaskellhouse.org
A number of images appearing on the website are courtesy of English Heritage
and are marked EH
Photographs of the Elizabeth Gaskell Memorial window at Westminster Abbey are copyright: Dean and Chapter of Westminster/Picture Partnership.
84 Plymouth Grove
William Gaskell
The Dining Room 1897
Last updated 20/04/2012
For general enquiries click below
The stairs (EH)
Gaskell by Samuel Lawrence, 1854
Plaque from 84 Plymouth Grove
The newly plastered exterior
The restored front
Poet's Corner - Westminster Abbey
The window panel
Sarah Prince, Gaskell's great-great-great-granddaughter laying a wreath beneath Elizabeth's window.
Rosemary Dabbs & Joan Leach
