Curious Traveler

- From a Roman fort, to a Royal Exchange, to the Industrial Age, which became a golden age, on to historic libraries and history making football, Manchester has so much to be curious about.

(upbeat music) - [Announcer] Curious Traveler is made possible by the following.

- [Announcer] For more than 45 years Vacations By Rail has been helping travelers explore the world with a collection of rail journeys and luxury river cruises.

Through awe inspiring nature and cosmopolitan cities, from America's National Parks, to Europe and beyond.

Vacationsbyrail.com.

- [Announcer] At GET we believe travel is more than just getting away, it's about experiencing a destination and iconic sights.

And delving deep into local culture.

Learn more at GETours.com.

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With smarTours we want you to enjoy the fun of travel, while we do the planning for you.

The journey begins at smarTours.com (upbeat music) - This beautiful city in the north of England is known for it's prominent role in the Industrial Age, for it's beautiful variety of different forms of architecture, and of course, for it's football prowess.

So, come on you Reds, or come on you Blues, and let's get curious about Manchester.

(upbeat music) With nicknames like Cottonopolis, the Worker Bee City, the Free Trade City, and the Warehouse City, Manchester is forever known as the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution of the 1800s, which is why, to this day, you will see a ship on the city crest, a cotton bud atop it's city hall, many, many, warehouses, a soaring Royal Exchange, and even an entire museum dedicated to its innovations in railway history.

(train whistle toots) So, here's what I'm curious about in Manchester.

Who splashed around inside Manchester's Water Palace?

What was the reason that football became so popular here?

Where did railway mania begin?

Why does this library look like a Gothic cathedral?

When did all these bees get here, and when did patrons get swept out of this darling old pub?

How did Manchester get it's name, and what does gender have to do with it?

So much to be curious about in Manchester.

(upbeat music) Manchester has plenty of beautiful architecture and Victorian splendor to explore.

But if you really want to get curious about this oh so industrious city, you're going to have to get your hands dirty.

So, we begin our curious exploration into the Worker Bee city.

The Worker what?

(Flight of the Bumblebee) Yep, when you first arrive in Manchester, you will notice some cute little yellow and black striped mascots all over town.

(bees buzzing) It has nothing to do with honey, or flowers, or artisanal hipsters, but in fact a very important clue to Manchester's heritage and history.

Why all the bees?

Well, of course, it all goes back to the Industrial Age again.

When inside those textile factories it was described as being a hive of activity, and the workers of course, described as the worker bees.

So that nickname has been buzzing around Manchester ever since.

The busy bee is even on Manchester's Coat of Arms, busily buzzing around the globe.

And that globe symbolizes the trading power that put Manchester on the map.

And how Manchester became a world leader in trade, is a curious bit of history.

In the early 1800s Manchester was a leader in the Industrial Revolution, but they had one small problem, how to move goods from one place to another.

The solution?

Just build a railway.

On September 15th, 1830 history was made, when a train left Liverpool and arrived here in Manchester.

The first railway to link two major English cities.

This seemingly short trip of only about 30 miles, became the Liverpool and Manchester railway, billed as the first modern railroad.

And this innovation began Britain's railway mania, with dozens more train lines built all over Britain, and later inspired hundreds more around the world.

And here's what's great, you can still stand on the exact spot where that historic train arrived.

How, well, because this spot is now preserved as part of Manchester's Science and Industry Museum.

(melodic music) But before that record breaking railway, there were some rollicking Romans who built a fort on this site and gave us the name Manchester.

Well sort of.

The Romans set up shop in Manchester around 80 A.D., but not just in any spot, the perfect spot.

We are standing where Manchester truly began.

- They come here, and like, as usual with Romans they just know exactly where to put the most perfect location.

So they look around, see that Manchester's in a bowl of hills, and all roads basically lead to this central point.

The hub, of a wheel of hills.

So that's why they come here.

- [Christine] And Manchester became a hub of a different sort too.

A spoke in a wheel of roads, leading out from this fort, connecting to other Roman forts and towns in England.

But as crucial as those roads and this fort were to origins of Manchester.

That is not what makes this spot so curious.

Back in these ancient Roman times, Manchester was called, Mamucium, not Mancenion as once believed.

Which brings us to a funny bit of history.

- Here was a great location.

Where two rivers met, the Medlock and the Irwell, on a slight rise of the hill, which is why the name is very funny, the Roman name, on a slight rise of the hill, and they thought, this is the perfect next step, 'cause the name is very funny.

- So what is, how do you pronounce the name correctly.

- Well, the Victorians who had a strong sense of self, thought the Roman name was Mancenion, so some of those then, and that's in a mural in the town hall, some of them thought, who didn't speak Latin, yes, 'cause we were the first city of industry, so, city of men, masculine, virile, the first city of industry.

We now know, through modern scholarship, that the real Roman name was Mamucium, which means, breast shaped hill.

So instead of the city of men, - Oh like mammary?

- Yeah, yeah, yeah.

So the Anglo Saxons came along and gave us a sex change, from ma'am to man.

- I love that.

So the modern name really should be Mamchester, not Manchester, if you think about it.

But, Manchester stuck, and today a Manchester resident is called a Mancunian.

(playful music) Next in our Manchester history, the city didn't develop around the original fort, instead medieval Manchester developed in a different area, where some very important kitty cats once reigned.

During the Middle Ages, beautiful Manchester Cathedral was built, and next to the Cathedral is it's close, which encloses this beautiful sandstone church complex.

Some of these buildings were used as a priest's college.

(quiet tinkling music) And it is no small miracle that these beautiful buildings have survived.

In fact, this is one of the most complete medieval church complexes in all of England.

And why it has survived so long, is the next chapter of Manchester's history.

A collection of chapters, and books actually.

The precious Chetham's Library.

The oldest public library in the English speaking world.

(doorbell chimes) Chetham's Library was created in the 1650's in the will of Humphrey Chetham, who was a very successful merchant in Manchester.

Chetham's Library's collection includes more than 40 medieval manuscripts, rare books on Middle English Poetry, and incredible, rare, and detailed archival collections on the history of Manchester and the Northwest of England.

And to have a library of this caliber in the 17th century, was hugely important to Manchester.

What kind of a resource was this, for scholars and others, what sort of books were they getting access to, and filling their minds with knowledge that they wouldn't have had, otherwise.

- This is a very, very major resource effectively.

The people of the north west had complained under the reign of Charles the First, and later, that they had no university within easy reach.

Two universities in England, Oxford and Cambridge, three already in Scotland, and they want more.

So people come a long way to get to this place.

- And to get to study in this environment, must have been inspiring.

And visiting it today is like stepping back in time.

As you walk through, you just can't help but notice, you got this gorgeous dark wood, and you've got the white ceiling, with the beams.

Was this already the architecture here when it was being used as part of the church, or what was changed, or... - Not a great deal's changed.

On the first floor they enlarged the windows to get more light in, otherwise we're looking at the roof, walls, and substantially the architecture of the medieval period of the 1420s.

The roof is the original timber because they've done dendrochronology work on it, tree ring dating, and the felling date of a lot of the trees is early 1420s, so it's pretty original.

- Amidst all this serious history, there is one more funny bit of history about why all the books are stored on the second floor.

We're on an upper floor, the books are on an upper floor, for a very important reason.

- That's right.

They have got a ground floor, but they don't put the books there 'cause they're worried about damp, they're worried about mice, rats.

The library kept cats til the 1970s to make sure that they didn't get in charge.

- It's not that they necessarily loved the cats, the cats were to be in charge of the rats.

- Yeah, I think that, not only that, there are holes in the medieval doors down stairs that are cat flaps, so going right back, they keep them around.

- I love it.

(gentle orchestral music) Next, we visit another historic Manchester library, but this one is a wee bit bigger.

The John Rylands Library houses some of the world's finest rare books, and manuscripts.

It was opened on January 1st, 1900, and is named after John Rylands, who was one of Manchester's first multi-millionaires.

Rylands made his fortune during the Industrial Age in the textile industry.

At his home he had a wonderful collection of books in his library, and that collection, after his death, went on to become this library.

But, that history is not what makes this library so curious.

The John Rylands Library is considered one of the finest neo-Gothic buildings in all of Europe.

The library was one of the first buildings in all of Manchester to use electricity.

And those torcheres light the way, beginning at the original entrance hall.

This dramatic statue, called, "Theology Directing the Labors of Science and Art", sets the stage for the church themed style.

That hall leads to this gorgeous staircase, with another torchere, looking straight out of Harry Potter.

From the staircase we go to the historic reading room, again, looking just like a church.

With the library's most magnificent vaulted ceiling, complete with stained glass and a central nave, of sorts, with some curious little niches on each side.

It's the perfect place to study for a very curious reason.

As you can see, along the main aisle, there are all of these wonderful little alcoves, all provided for quiet study.

In fact, the original architects were so smart about providing a quiet study environment, that they built this ground level, 30 feet above ground.

Why did they need to do that?

Well, this was during the Victorian Era, of course, back when we had very noisy horse and carriages, with their noisy feet, on the noisy cobblestone streets.

So our two historic libraries, both John Rylands and Chetham's, are elevated.

One to keep the noise out, and the other to keep the mice out.

(Gothic music) From a temple dedicated to improving the mind, to a temple dedicated to improving the body.

Let's dive on in to a beautiful bit of Manchester history.

At the turn of the 20th century, Manchester was thriving.

So much so, that leisure activities could be enjoyed by all the classes.

And what could be more leisurely than the Victoria Baths, known as Manchester's Water Palace, for a very obvious reason.

This doesn't quite look like your average public pool, does it, not a chance.

When it opened in 1906 the Lord Mayor of Manchester described the Victoria Baths as the most splendid municipal bathing institution in the country, and a water palace, of which, every citizen of Manchester can be proud.

This true water palace, is all decked out in vivid, Art Nouveau ceramic tiles, beautiful wrought iron railings, and intricate stained glass windows, including the famous "Angel of Purity".

Even little fishies swim around under your feet, in these Ancient Greece inspired mosaic floors.

But, there's more here than immediately meets the eye.

Probably like most first time visitors, the first impression I had, when you're outside, oh my goodness, it's so luxurious, and you look a little closer and you see three different entrances.

Male first class, male second class, and then just ladies, just all the ladies.

You know in modern times, it seems a bit strange.

- Well certainly when the baths first opened in 1906, there was that segregation.

And it was dependent on what you could pay, in terms of the males first class, and males second class.

But there was no choice, females went in the females entrance.

And I don't know if you know, the three pools are different sizes.

- [Christine] I noticed that.

- We got the short straw in those days, didn't we.

- As with everything else, everything else.

But of course this was absolutely normal in the Victorian and Edwardian days.

The idea of men and women swimming together would be enough to make a proper lady faint.

Mixed bathing, as it was called, was introduced with great caution in 1914, and soon, men, women, and families, were happily swimming together on Sunday mornings here.

But before that, in 1906, these little changing rooms as cute and feminine as they are, were actually designed for men first class.

Hello.

- Hi.

(laughing) - It's funny that with the grand pool, and the grand elevated ceilings, and the stained glass, these little changing rooms, I think, are my favorite feature.

- Really?

- Yeah.

- They are lots of peoples favorite feature of Victoria Baths.

The tiles are original, the color, you can see from underneath the chipped away paint, it was green in a past life, and it's blue at the moment, but what it started out at, - Who knows.

I really couldn't say, what color it was.

- And what guests would change in to, is just as charming as the changing rooms.

What I think a lot of people find very charming about this era, so it was opened in 1906, talk about the bathing costumes that people would be wearing.

Not exactly like the same bikinis and swim trunks we wear today.

- Well certainly they covered up more of the body than they do today.

- From the pools to the spas, the Turkish baths were very luxurious and very innovative for their time.

There was also one of the very first whirlpools in Britain.

And there's one last area that had an even simpler, but extremely considerate purpose.

That is if you were considerate about the noses of your fellow Mancunian.

So this particular room doesn't seem like there is as much to see, but to me it's one of the more interesting rooms that tells about the history.

So what happened in this room?

- This housed the bathing bath.

So the males first class gentleman would come in here, for their weekly bathe.

- I know this already about history, but we need to be reminded, people only bathed once a week.

- Well, yes, I dare say, it could have been on what you could afford, whether you bathed more regularly.

But I think particularly maybe the less well off people that came to the baths for their bathe, would have been once a week.

- Oh gosh.

- Yes, yes.

- So the luxurious Water Palace also served a very important function for the general public, hygiene.

And to get to submerge into this seemingly never ending source of clean water, must have been a delight.

(upbeat orchestral music) Next, now that we're all cleaned up, time to explore some of Manchester's historic buildings.

Like the Royal Exchange, built in the early 1800s.

Where all that cotton wealth was bought and sold.

It was described as the largest room in all of Europe, for a time.

But there's another Manchester building that has nothing to do with trade, but may have been where traders went at the end of the day.

A very curious pub in Shambles Square.

This is the Old Wellie, or the Old Wellington Inn, one of the oldest buildings here in Manchester.

It was believed to have been built in 1552, and it's half timber style is just absolutely darling.

Connected to it is Sinclair's Oyster Bar, and it has a curious little story attached to it.

It was believed that the pub was only open from 6 P.M. To 8 P.M., and if the patrons didn't get out at exactly eight o'clock, then the landlady would shoo them out with a mop.

But the story gets even more curious.

The Old Wellington and Sinclair's didn't start out in these spots.

After surviving centuries of history, including the Blitz, these precious bits of Manchester history were moved, piece by piece, more than a hundred yards down the road, during the 1990s, when a section of Manchester was being renovated.

(soothing orchestral music) Next from Shambles Square to another square, with a bit more flair and a royal touch.

This is Manchester's beautiful Town Hall with all kinds of wonderful little architectural details, all along its exterior.

My favorite though, is way up at the top, where, instead of a revered leader, of course, here in Manchester, the symbol has to be a cotton bud.

And that cotton bud, the symbol of Manchester's wealth, tops off this grade one listed building.

Less than 3% of England's historic buildings have grade one status.

Manchester's Town Hall stretches the entire length of Albert Square, named for Prince Albert and his memorial statue.

Below that cotton bud are some historical figures you might recognize.

But this guy over the main entrance, you may not recognize.

That's General Agricola.

Who's he?

Well, he would know that his city should be called Mamchester, not Manchester.

Why, well, because he is the Roman General who founded Mamucium.

(playful orchestral music) Our final stop takes us to a spot that's a bit more sleek and modern on the outside, but is full of rugged Manchester history, inside.

(crowd cheering) Mancunians are proud of their history, their heritage, their architecture, and their worker bee spirit.

But there is only one thing that they are truly obsessed with, and that's their football.

I don't think you're even allowed to live in Manchester if you're not a football fan.

So it is fitting that the National Football Museum is here.

This unique museum is inside the uber modern Urbis building.

There are six levels, with all manner of interactive exhibits, a hall of fame, and 2,500 bits of football memorabilia on display at any given time.

And lest ye think that football is only a man's sport, let's not forget that Manchester's true name really should be, Mamchester.

There's all kinds of interesting bits of football history that you can learn here.

Including the history of women's football.

Look what women used to have to wear on the field.

You can see these baggy pants here, you know, to be modest.

And then on the heads, no helmets or anything to protect, but instead a nice little frilly bonnet with a little blue ribbon of course, just to be pretty.

My favorite part of the uniform though, look at these boots, can you imagine running around and kicking a ball wearing these things?

(whistle blowing) So, how did all this football mania start?

How and when English football began is a hotly debated topic.

It is possible that the earliest versions began in China, Japan, or Greece, then moved to Rome.

It is believed that when the Romans invaded Britain, they brought football with them.

Well, that was polite.

But the more modern version of English football is much easier to document, and wouldn't you know it, as with everything else in Manchester, it goes back to that worker bee heritage.

I love, as we're going about town and learning the history, everything really ties to the Industrial Age.

So the football actually came out of that.

Was it the factory workers just needing some entertainment after work, they were playing each other, in an open field?

- True yeah.

Exactly, so the idea was, so back in the days, rugby was even more popular than football, but workers, because in rugby, you had so many, injuries.

Which could stop you to work for a couple months, then you couldn't earn money, so football was the second option, the safest option.

So the workers used to play football to just entertain.

And that was it.

- And to this day, football is the sport of the working class, which is a good thing, here in the proudly busy worker bee city of Manchester.

Dare I ask which team do you root for, or is that not a good question to ask anybody who... - No, proud, proud.

I'm a United fan here, yeah, of course, Red.

- While Manchester City and Manchester United, may forever be battling it out on the pitch, there's one thing they definitely agree on.

If you look closely at each teams logos, both have a ship on it.

A nod to the Manchester City Council Coat of Arms, and its long legacy of trade that made the original City of Industry, what it is today.

(melodic orchestral music) So, from a manly Roman fort with a feminine name, that became the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution, with all its factories and innovations, that got so big that an entire railway had to be built, and its workers became known as worker bees, giving the city its symbol.

And as the wealth grew, the city grew, with beautiful buildings from the royal trading halls, to city halls, to a couple of curious libraries, thanks to those wealthy industrialists.

And businessmen, and worker men, and lovely ladies alike, would enter another beautiful building, a water palace, decked out in Edwardian extravagance and followed Edwardian manners.

Say bye, bye.

- Bye, bye.

And finally another more modern building that is a temple to a true Manchester pastime that sprang out of those worker bee factories and continues to be the vehicle for the pride of this city of industry, whether that pride be painted red or blue, Manchester has so much to be curious about.

Thank you for joining us on our educational journey, and hopefully now, you're even more curious about the who, what, where, why, when, and how of curious Manchester, from Mamucium to Mancunian.

(upbeat orchestral music) - [Announcer] Curious Traveler is made possible by the following.

- [Announcer] For more than 45 years, Vacations by Rail has been helping travelers explore the world with a collection of rail journeys and luxury river cruises.

Through awe inspiring nature, and cosmopolitan cities, from America's National Parks, to Europe and beyond.

Vacationsbyrail.com.

- [Announcer] At GET we believe travel is more than just getting away.

It's about experiencing a destination and iconic sights.

And delving deep into local culture.

Learn more at GETours.com.

- [Announcer] smarTours offers group tours to over 50 must see destinations around the world.

With smarTours we want you to enjoy the fun of travel, while we do the planning for you.

The journey begins at smarTours.com.

- [Christine] Still curious, go to curioustravelerTV.com, and follow us on Facebook @CuriousTravelerTV, on Twitter @CuriousTravTV, and on Instagram @CuriousTravelerTV.

(pencil scratching) (upbeat music)