Libraries gave us power… Paul Hanley on the Portico Library.
Chetham’s is the oldest, Central is the biggest, but the Portico is Manchester’s cultiest library. With its buzzer entry system and tucked-away location, it feels almost secret. But changes are on the way. Regular Cult contributor Paul Hanley takes up the story. Photos by Katherine Macfarlane and Julie Hanley.
With a bit of luck, one of Manchester’s hidden gems will soon become a lot less hidden. If everything goes to plan, by March 2030 the wonderful Portico Library will reclaim the whole of the building at 57 Mosely Street - at present it primarily occupies the first floor. If you’ve ever visited - and you really should have - you’ll know what a fantastic space the Portico is already, so the prospect of it reclaiming its former glory is thrilling.
The Portico has been one of my favourite places in Manchester ever since my brother Harry, who was a member, first introduced me to it. Though he’s no longer with us, I still like to imagine him sitting in the reading room like Mycroft Holmes perusing the latest periodicals. I launched my first book there, hosted by another Manchester treasure, the late great CP Lee. I also volunteered there for short while, so I’ve obviously followed the reunification story with interest, and things really are beginning to happen. The project recently received £6.4million from the National Lottery Heritage fund, taking the fund’s entire contribution to over £7 million. But the project needs 12 million quid in total, so fundraising is continuing. If you fancy getting your hand in your pocket, I’m sure they’d be delighted.
When the work’s completed all three floors of the building will be part of the Portico for the first time in over a century, and the reunited and refurbished library will feature new exhibition and performance spaces. There are also plans for a Northern bookshop, which will showcase and celebrate writers and publishers from across the region. This last initiative is particularly exciting for me, and the rest of Cult Manchester I’d imagine. It’s certainly something Manchester has needed for a long time.
When it first opened its doors back in 1806, the Portico was a newsroom‑cum‑library for local businessmen, funded by some 400 wealthy subscribers. These subscribers were all men, of course, but as long as you were male enough it didn’t matter which side of the political spectrum you were on. Liberal abolitionists happily rubbed shoulders with sons of empire whose vast wealth had depended on the slave trade. In fact, Nathaniel Heywood, who laid the building’s foundation stone, was part of a family that was responsible for the transportation of an estimated 42,000 people, 6,000 of whom died before reaching the Americas.
The Portico also had room for members from both sides of the Peterloo Massacre, including the charming Hugh Hornby Birley, who lead the fatal charge of the Manchester and Salford Yeomanry; and Sir George Philips, who was so horrified by the charge that he helped found the Manchester Guardian newspaper so that such atrocities could not go unreported again.
Its halcyon chambers were also the perfect place for prominent scientists and educators to excitedly discuss the future of Manchester, the ‘first modern city’, with leading politicians and industrialists. Many notable writers, including Charles Dickens, crossed its threshold, and the first secretary of the Portico was Peter Mark Roget. (I’m sure there must be a better word than ‘secretary’. I’ll have to look it up somewhere.)
The longest serving chair of the Portico was the Reverend William Gaskell. Though he couldn’t wangle a membership for his wife, Elizabeth, he was at least able to let her see some of the new and exciting works that frequently arrived at the library. In a note to her publisher, bemoaning the fact that she had to wait three months until the men of the library were done with the quarterlies, she wondered what could be done. ‘I think I shall go in for women’s rights,’ she decided. She did, of course, go on to be one of Manchester’s most prominent writers, and with North and South became one of the first novelists to give a voice to the poor and disenfranchised. She also regularly used Manc expressions like ‘mither’ and ‘nesh’ in her works, so she’s alright in my book.
Of course, any collection built on money amassed from the British Empire’s colonial expansion will reflect the mores of its time, and these days the library doesn’t shy away from confronting this uncomfortable truth. Signs warn visitors that attitudes expressed in some of the works may be shocking to modern sensibilities, and there have been several exhibitions devoted to the library’s links to the slave trade.
Reuniting the Portico will also mean that the library can once again use the hugely impressive front entrance which gives it its name. At the moment, passing through those ionic columns will take you into The Bank public house. It’s a decent boozer, if we’re being honest, but then Manchester isn’t exactly short of those. Saying that, Manchester isn’t doing too badly for world famous libraries either. Luckily the Portico is more than able to hold its own against the John Rylands, Chetham’s and Central libraries.
The Bank’s website will tell you, ironically, that the building is ‘one of the most culturally and historically important buildings in Manchester’. Which is true enough, but at the moment, it’s difficult to fully appreciate this while visiting the library, because it’s on the first floor and you enter through a small doorway at the side of the building. So, while this initiative is massively important for the library, it’s also hugely significant for culture in Manchester - as chief librarian and CEO Thom Keep says, the Portico is ‘a library that belongs to the whole city’, and following its extensive facelift, the Portico will remain free to enter.
The iconic Manchester music venue the Band on the Wall, which started trading just three years before the Portico opened its doors, underwent a similar reinvigoration in 2009. It now stands as a beacon of what a live venue can be: celebrating its extensive history, of course, but also providing a platform for new artists and constantly looking to the future. Thanks to this brilliant initiative the Portico will soon be able to do the same for Northern writers and writing, no mither.
More about Paul and his books here.
