Tripe Colony

Tripe colony was one of the most sought after areas in Manchester for families to live. From the early 1900s through to its demolition in 1994. The name Tripe colony came into being because John Pendlebury; the gentleman who built it was at the time a tripe merchant. One of the streets was named after the Pendlebury family. John had seven sons and three daughters.

He started his tripe works in Simpson Street, Bradford, Manchester and went on to open shops in Ashton New Road, Bradford; Ashton Old Road, Openshaw; two shops on Stretford Road, Hulme; Hyde Road, Ardwick; Oldham Street Manchester town centre and two shops on Queens Road.

John Pendlebury had houses built, that were far better than the ones that already existed. They were made from Accrington brick, which was a lovely reddish colour and very smooth. He included hot and cold running water, bathrooms and inside toilets! I can assure you that if you lived in one of these houses in those days it was like living in Buckingham Palace!

I had a bath in front of the fire in the living room. As you can guess, we weren’t posh!
Alf Almond
photos from Harold Foulkes