THEN & NOW SALFORD CATHEDRAL

Welcome to Then and Now, where each week we compare images of Manchester streets, landmarks and buildings from bygone days with how they look today

OUR main image this week shows Salford Cathedral in March 1946. Horse carts still mingle with motor cars a year after the end of the war.

The Cathedral Church of St John the Evangelist, built between 1844 and 1848, is the seat of the Roman Catholic Bishop of Salford.

It was the first cruciform church to be built in England since the Reformation. The cathedral’s spire, the tallest in

Lancashire, was based on St Mary Magdalene’s church in Newark-on-Trent.

St John’s Church, as it was first known, became a cathedral in 1852 following the foundation of the Diocese of Salford in 1850. It was one of the first four Catholic cathedrals in England and Wales.

Built in the Neo-Gothic style, the cathedral was modelled on a number of medieval buildings. The south front and nave resemble

Howden

Minster in Yorkshire while the choir echoes Selby Abbey, also in Yorkshire.

The total cost of building the cathedral was £18,000, of which £2,000 was donated by local businessmen Daniel Lee and John Leeming. Both are commemorated in chantries at the east end of the choir.

The spectacular stained glass east window depicts the Roman Catholic history of Christianity in England from St Augustine to the restoration of the Catholic hierarchy in 1850.

Our modern image shows a view of Salford Cathedral framed by the Sycamore Seed sculpture by Andrew McKeown in St Phillip’s Square.

● Many more images from Then and Now are featured in The Changing Face of Manchester published to mark the 150th anniversary of the M.E.N. It’s on sale at £14.99 including postage and packing. Order your copy online at inostalgia.co.uk or ring the order hotline on 01928 503 777.