The not so jolly green giant
LONG before North Sea gas was heard of, or the Kremlin could hold us to ransom for ‘natural’ gas from Russia, Stockport made its own.
Town gas made from coal was the staple of industry for upwards of 50 mills, many of which had their own gas retorts for distilling tar, oil and gas, by burning the black stuff, to store in their own gasholders.
The Stockport Gas Light Company brought the first service pipes to the doors of customers in 1820, only five years after the battle of Waterloo, and Petersgate Bridge was the first to be illuminated with gaslights.
Stockport was blessed with many local coal mines - at Bredbury, Poynton and Hazel Grove. Also canals and the railway eventually brought coal from Lancashire pits.
Stockport Corporation cashed in by taking over the gas company and in 1849 they had 1,530 customers. A gasworks at Heaton Lane was superseded by an expanded plant at Millgate on the former site of Portwood reservoir.
In the 1870s the ‘Green Giant’ gasometer was built, a rigid structure almost 250ft high, which dominated the Portwood skyline until 1988.
Another small gas company at Lower Fold, Marple Bridge was taken over by Marple Council in 1887, but Andrews’ Mills at Compstall con- tinued to supply the village and part of Ludworth with privately manufactured gas until the 1920s, a situation duplicated all over the country.
Of course burning coal has its drawbacks. The price of old tech coalbased manufacture was a filthy environment with soot coating everything and acid rain turning even stone black.
Technology can now ensure the combustion of coal and production of its many useful by-products without the harmful side effects.
There is still plenty of coal under Stockport not of the best quality it has to be said. However all the sensible people have agreed that the ‘cleanest’ and ‘safest’ form of future energy is very expensive nuclear, which merely produces deadly radioactive waste which must be stored for thousands of years. Not our problem then? »●Stories about local heritage are in Stockport Heritage Magazine on sale at newsagents, Co-ops, WH Smiths, Waterstones, bookshops at £2.80 and cheaper online at stockport heritagemagazine.co.uk