Thursday 9 October 2014

A Portland Street favourite - Watts' Warehouse


On of my favourite sights in the city is Watts' Warehouse (now the Britannia Hotel) on Portland Street. When the wheel (round) windows are lit up at night it looks like a fairy tale, by day this side view looks solid and yet creative- this side view always reminds me of Paris' Notre Dame.
Wikipedia states:

It opened in 1856 as a textile warehouse for the wholesale drapery business of S & J Watts, and was the largest single-occupancy textile warehouse in Manchester.  

 The sandstone ashlar warehouse was built by local architects Travis & Mangnall from 1851-56 at a cost of £100,000. It typifies the extravagant confidence of many Mancunian warehouses of this period, but the Watts Warehouse is notable for its peculiarly eclectic design. 

 Designed in the form of a Venetian palazzo, the building has five storeys, each decorated in a different style – Italian Renaissance, Elizabethan, French Renaissance and Flemish – and roof pavilions featuring large Gothic wheel windows.
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5 comments:

  1. Birdman9 October 2014 at 12:36

    This is an exciting building. It grabs the eye.

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  2. Mr T9 October 2014 at 13:03

    It's a shame when they don't replace the bulbs that have blown....it gives the place a rather forlorn air. Mind you, who'd want to be the caretaker getting out the stepladder each time ones goes!

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  3. William Kendall9 October 2014 at 16:59

    It's quite an impressive building!

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  4. RedPat9 October 2014 at 18:47

    The old factory buildings were built with such flair!

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  5. Pat Tillett9 October 2014 at 19:39

    The style in which they build warehouse buildings now is so bland. Nothing but a big box. These old ones are beautiful and certainly part of history.

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