Ordsall, Lancashire

Ordsall
Lancashire
Ordsall Hall
Location
Grid reference:	SJ815975
Location:	53°28’26"N, 2°16’41"W
Data
Population:	14,194  (2011)
Post town:	Salford
Postcode:	M5
Local Government
Council:	Salford
Parliamentary constituency:	Salford and Eccles

Ordsall is an old Lancashire town which has become no more than an inner-city area of Salford. The population at the 2011 census was counted at 14,194.

Ordsall is found chiefly to the south of the A57 road and close to the River Irwell. It is bounded to the south by Salford Quays and the Manchester Ship Canal, south of which lies Stretford.

Ordsall was the birthplace of the bush roller chain. Therre is though a pre-industrial grand hosue: Ordsall Hall. As of 2007, the area has been subjected to an extensive urban regeneration scheme.

History

The name Ordsall has Old English origins being the personal name Ord halh, meaning a corner or nook. This, indeed, describes the position of the manor of Ordsall, for its boundary on the south side is a large bend in the River Irwell which later became the site of the docks for the Manchester Ship Canal. Ordsall first appears in records in 1177 when 'Ordeshala' paid two marks towards an aid, a feudal due or tax.

The antiquarian and geologist, Samuel Hibbert-Ware gave a different etymology for the name, stating that 'ord' is a Saxon word for 'primeval' or 'very old' and 'hal' means 'den' - hence the name 'Ordeshal' could mean 'very old den'. His reasoning for this was the location in the area of the cave known as 'Woden's Den'. This is not an explanation much accepted.

Woden's Den

Woden's Den in 1780 as sketched by Thomas Barret

Before the River Irwell was deepened to make it navigable there was an ancient paved ford at Ordsall known as 'Woden's Ford' and nearby, in a lane leading to Ordsall Hall, was a cave known as 'Woden's Den'. The cave was of great interest to 19th Century Antiquarians but their constant trespassing to view the site prompted the landowner to completely destroy it early in the century, and no trace of the feature remains. However, the cave was described and sketched by Thomas Barret in about 1780:

Worden's or Woden's Ford is a paved causeway across the River Irwell from Hulme-field, where Medlock loses itself in the aforesaid river, to the opposite bank, but now lost to every observer since Irwell was made navigable. Woden's Den is the spot I wish to throw light upon, although obscured by darkness, perhaps of many ages. Tradition supposes it to have been the den or woody habitation of the priest or priests of Woden, the much esteemed war deity of the idol Saxons...What might be the extent, or bounds, of this supposed idol temple, or place of sacrifices, we know not; but certainly it was once of a much larger extent. What remains of its height is now about 6 feet, and the length of the whole, as it now appears is about 22 yards. At the South, and near the great tree, as may be seen by referring to the drawing, is a hole about 3 feet wide, much resembling an oven, and near the middle is another excavation, not so deep in the rock as the former, at the northern extremity. The margin of the rock, just above the surface of the Earth, is ornamented with a sort of regular Gothic tracery, and gently curves into a cavity of about double the size of the aforesaid recesses. The range of the rock is all along shaded with overhanging bushes, which much obscure the same from the notice of passengers. Admitting the above to be in a devoted place for pagan superstitions in the Saxon times, it again presents itself under the character of a place dedicated to the retirement and devotion of a professor of Christianity. On one part of the rock much labour has been distilled into ornamenting it with root characters, which have been called runic, but which plainly appear upon closer examination, to have the letters J.H.S. the Latin initials of Jesus the saviour of men in rude church text. The above letters show themselves in three or four places, and, in one part, the letters appear about 3 feet longer a-piece. Some few shields ornamented with crosses may be seen in different places wrought upon the rock. Near the south end are the faint remains of a shield with the like of a sword handle near it. At what period of time a change of worship happened here I cannot say, but many places devoted to heathen worship were afterwards dedicated to Christianity.

Hibbert was convinced that the cave was a temple to Odin, saying in his book History of the foundations in Manchester of Christ's College, Chetham's Hospital and the Free Grammar School (1830), "There can be little question but that in this recess the sacrifices, divination and compacts appertaining to worship of the hero of the Edda were regularly practised". He postulated that, as this part of the Irwell was subject to regular flooding, travellers would have made offerings to Odin, the protector of travellers, before attempting the crossing. He also said that there were strong grounds to suppose that Cluniac monks of Lenton Priory, who had a cell called "St Leonards" at nearby Kersal, converted the cave into a Christian hermitage and served as guides to the crossing at Woden's Ford and the surrounding marshes in order to supplant the earlier pagan practices.

Regeneration project

By the 1990s, Ordsall was one of the most deprived parts of South Lancashire, with some of the highest crime rates. In April 1994, The Independent newspaper reported that the area had unemployment above 20% (around twice the national average) and that arson and car crime were a regular occurrence. In July 1992, a riot in the area saw local gangs fire gunshots at police and fire crews.

As of 2007, the area is undergoing urban regeneration under a joint venture agreement between Salford City Council and property developer LPC Living. The "Heart of Ordsall" framework, agreed in 2005, means that over the next five years extensive environmental and infrastructure improvements will be made to the Ordsall estate at a cost of around £150 million.

The regeneration is very much community led and has already delivered a new £6.5 million primary school and children's centre. The school accommodates 315 pupils and also incorporates an 83 place children's centre providing education, health, social care and day care facilities for the local community. A dedicated street sweeper, designed by local children, cleans around Ordsall three times a week in addition to the council services as a result of local concern over litter.

The intension has been to create between 800 and 1,000 new homes for local families and first-time buyers, a new community hub for all Ordsall and Salford Quays and improvements to Ordsall Park and plans for other play areas and small open spaces.

Churches

• Church of England: St Clement's Church: the parish church of Ordsall, opened in 1877 and now a Grade II listed building.

• Roman Catholc: St Joseph's Church, opened on Sunday 20 April 1902. The building was severely damaged during the Manchester Blitz of Christmas 1940. The interior has been largely reconstructed and modernised since then.

Ordsall Hall's Great Hall

Sights about the town

Ordsall Hall is a Tudor mansion that was for over 300 years the home of the Radclyffe family. In more recent times it has been a working men's club and a school for clergy, the forerunner of the Manchester Theological College, amongst other uses. Like many old buildings, Ordsall Hall has attracted a haunting legend, this time a "White Lady", who is said to have thrown herself off the balcony overlooking the Great Hall.

Salford Lads Club (which is featured on the inside cover of the album The Queen Is Dead by the pop band the Smiths) is on the corner of St Ignatius Walk and Coronation Street.

Outside links

• www.salford.gov.uk - Ordsall housing regeneration
• www.newordsall.com - LPC Living's Ordsall Regeneration