Manchester: Mapping the City

Having lived in and around Greater Manchester all my life, I’ve seen the city evolve from buildings so covered in soot and grime that, as a child I really thought they were built black, to the vibrant modern centre it is now. I can remember feeling astonished when the city centre department stores turned out to be white buildings after the clean up and I’d have been amazed in those days to think that the old warehouses would become luxury apartments where people actually wanted to live! So when I saw this book I was really interested to see how Manchester had looked further back in time. It’s a beautiful book, well researched, interesting and not at all “dry” as some academic books can tend to be. I’ve shown it to another person who’s also lived in the region all her life who commented that it’s fascinating but I think it would be equally so to anyone with an interest in how cities evolve, regardless of where they live The only small criticism is that some of the writing on the maps is so tiny that it’s difficult to read. However, this doesn’t detract from it being a book that will become a family heirloom.

I really enjoyed this book. I love maps and history and this book did not disappoint. To see how the city of Manchester developed through the maps with the descriptions of how/why buildings/places were shaped in the way they were, was to me very interesting. It's clear alot of research and work went into this detailed book.

Fantastic book not only do you get the maps you also get city vistas as drawn at the time ! Plenty of info on the rise of the city and how industry changed the landscape of Manchester ! If you live in or around Manchester and are interested in its history this is a very good book to have and read !

The maps are beautifully reproduced, but most importantly the narrative to accompany each map is detailed and fills gaps left by other histories of the City, right up to the present day. A book I will return to many times. Maps are a very good way of illustrating a story.

I use it for local history study

We are Mancunians so this was a must have for my husband and I. We enjoyed it very much.

Lots of interesting facts and nice images too. Bit of a big, heavy oversized book so it doesn't nit snug on my book shelf.

excellent maps and related history