Terracotta

Terracotta detail from this Grade II listed building in Arts and Crafts Gothic style. The listing states that it was built for C J Company, but I have been unable to find further details.

The use of terracotta ornamentation for walls and pillars was common in the late nineteenth and first quarter of the twentieth century. Much has been replaced or swept away these days, so it was good to find this survivor in Mill Lane, Hyde. There had been more along the block but this was the sole survivor. A look at the wall further along showed that the bricks were from the Black Hill Brick Co Ltd Entwistle Bolton Lancashire but that may not be the source of the decorative pieces.

This building started life as the Higher Grade School, built in 1894 by Henry Lovatt to the design of T. H. Fleeming, who was architect to the School Board. In 1921 it became the Municipal Secondary School and it is clear that the terracotta lettering was altered at this time to show the new designation. From 1945 to 1974 it was the Municipal Grammar School, but this time the lettering was left alone! These days it is used as a campus of Wolverhampton College.

This building has a bit of everything - terracotta pinnacles, gables, dormer, brickwork, and stone lintels and sring courses. A crazy piece of excess; I love it!

This example is probably a wyvern rather than a dragon and is lurking on a rooftop in Macclesfield. This looks to be a fairly recent example rather than one of the Victorian examples which are generally of better quality detail.

Canada House on Chepstow Street, Manchester, was erected 1905-09 to the design of W and G Higginbottom as a textile packing warehouse for H S Booth and others. The cast iron framing is faced in fine buff terracotta with a variety of decoration. The building is listed Grade II.

In 1884 James Eckersley built the first of the Western Mills and by 1899 there were three mills on the site being operated by James Eckersley & Sons. In 1888 the firm was the largest ring spinning business in Britain. Today the remains of the mills are in poor condition and awaiting a rejuvenation scheme. This facade appears to have been completed c1921 and features some nice terracotta details.

The Essence Factory in Old Trafford was completed in 1896 for Duckworth and Co to the design of architects Briggs and Wostenholme of Blackburn. The frontage comprised offices with the manufacturing and warehousing to the rear. After the Duckworth Group was taken over by Cargill in 2003 the premises were soon redundant and became empty by 2007. The Grade II listed building has been publicised for a number of years as a probable base for the Church of Scientology but it currently stands vacant. The terracotta is of high quality and was probably manufactured by Dennis of Ruabon who certainly made the bricks used at the front.

Yates's Wine Lodge on Bradshawgate in Bolton stands out for the terracotta decoration on the frontage. It was built in 1906 and is listed Grade II.

Although Bradford is not noted for its brick and terracotta architecture, the Prudential Buildings onTyrell Street, Ivygate, and Sunbridge Rd, Bradford stands out. Built in 1895 to the design of Manchester architect Alfred Waterhouse, it reflects the house style of the company and is now listed Grade II.

This rather sad looking wedge shaped building is all that is left of the Rochdale Road tenements in Collyhurst. At one time this was a much larger block of flats stretching along Rochdale Road. I suspect that this portion survived as it has business premises on the ground floor whilst the rest did not.

Sevendale House in central Manchester occupies a whole block defined by Dale Street, Lever Street, Stevenson Square and Spear Street. It was built as a warehouse for the drapery company of I J & G Cooper Ltd between 1903 and 1906 to the design of architect John Bowden and is listed grade II.

The Oxford Street / Whitworth Street corner block of the Refuge Building was built to the designs of Alfred Waterhouse in 1891-5. The exterior was Doulton terracotta, whilst the interior features extensive glazed terracotta and tiles from Burmantoft of Leeds. This is the vestibule of the corner entrance into what is now the Palace Hotel.

The Bradford Alhambra Theatre was built in 1913 at a cost of £20,000 to the design of architects Chadwick and Watson, for impresario Francis Laidler, and opened on Wednesday 18 March 1914. Purchased by Bradford City Council in 1964 it now seats 1456. It is listed Grade II.

I haven't seen a garage with faience before, and this example on Doncaster Road, Askern, is a gem. It is good that the modern signing on the frontage replicates the colours, if not quite the font, of the original. The buildings appear to have been erected in the 1920s. From the Doncaster Free Press: Claybourn’s was established by Jack Ernest Claybourn, who was born in Askern in 1893 and was a sergeant mechanic with the Royal Flying Corps during the First World War. He returned to Askern after the war and opened a bicycle and motorcycle repair shop. After he was married in 1922 his father-in-law, Sydney Webster, helped him establish a motor garage on Doncaster Road, Askern. The business thrived and in 1931, moved to premises at the corner of Hall Gate and Waterdale.

With the development of Trafford Park as an industrial estate there was a need for housing and a hotel. The hotel was completed in 1902 and lasted until 2008 by which time it was somewhat isolated and clearly far too big for what custom remained. It now stands empty and water damaged and has been occupied by squatters at some point.

The front of this former bank incorporates a considerable variety of terracotta decoration. I am not sure if this mixture sits too well together as it looks rather randomly added.

The Bell-Edison Telephone Building was completed in 1896 to the design of architect Frederick Martin of the firm Martin & Chamberlain. Whilst fairly plain at ground level, the upper storeys feature a rich variety of terracotta ornamentation.