Off the Beaten Track Ordsall Hall Salford

Earlier this week I attended my first Blogger meet up hosted by North West Bloggers. The venue was Ordsall Hall Salford. This is an impressive Historic House in the middle of a built up urban area.

The Hall has a meeting room that can be used and is a fabulous venue. 

From the front it looks majestic with sympathetic grounds and a car parking area. Walk around the rear to gain entrance and Wow! it truly has the X Factor. As a proud Mancunian I love to promote the best there is to be found here, reviewing restuarants is my favourite activity.

Ordsall Hall

It was first mentioned in records as early as 1177. Possibly just an area of land, the first house was probably built around 1251. That fact alone is amazing – that it has stood the test of time. Ownership passed through several families and the building and land was expanded and the grounds developed.

If you are a lover of the history of this area there is a virtual who’s who of the well known and written about landowners of Manchester and Cheshire in the history of Ordsall Hall. An extract from the Hall’s website states “The Radclyffe family had been connected with the Hall for over 300 years and their family history tells of inter-marriages and feuds with other local families such as the Booths, Leghs and de Traffords. Some sat in Parliament as Knights of the Shire, and Sir Alexander (d. 1549) was High Sheriff of Lancashire on five occasions. Most were knighted for services in battle and took part in Court life: for instance, Margaret Radclyffe (d. 1599) became the favourite lady-in-waiting to Queen Elizabeth and was seen at Court in a white dress as a gift from her twin brother Alexander as a symbol of the Queen’s purity. It was said to have cost £180 (which is equal to £31,000 in today’s money!)”

The Hall and grounds has been the site for many things from being a home to the affluent of the area, to Working Men’s Club to a Clergy Training Centre. 

Ordsall Hall was purchased by Salford Corporation from the Executors of the Baron Egerton of Tatton in 1959 and, following major restoration work, was finally opened to the public in April 1972 as a period house and local history museum.

An expensive restoration project from 2009 – 2011 has made it into the magnificent period house and museum that it is today to be enjoyed by future generations.

Things to do at Ordsall Hall

There are so many activities that take place at the hall – from an informal knit and natter weekly group for locals, to Educational visits for schools, guided tours and craft sessions.

It is also a Wedding Venue, and if I was in the market for a wedding I could not think of a better location.

There are so many interactive props and items on display to enable visitors to really get a feel of what life was like for its residents and visitors of past era’s.

I have driven past Ordsall Hall so many times in my life without ever thinking of paying a visit. This week I only went in as I mentioned earlier in the post because it was the venue for a local Bloggers meet up. However, now I have had a taste of what is inside this fabulous House I will be back again and again to learn more and I intend to take one of the guided tours. I feel ashamed that as someone who has worked for many years in Salford and born to a Salford woman I should have taken more notice of this venue – described on a display banner as The Pride of Salford.

The meeting room was fabulous – bright with lots of natural light. Tea, coffee and water was on offer, there is plenty of power points and a large desk for everyone to sit round and enable work and sharing of ideas. There was even a vase of cheery daffodils on the table! A lovely little touch. For food there is a lovely little cafe to purchase food from. I can recommend a slice of The Persian Love cake – fabulously soft sponge with a hint of cardamon.

It is off the beaten track but it is very close to many other attractions and easily accessible by tram. Other popular attractions that it is close to are:

Media City – home of TV studios and the famous Blue Peter garden – 7 minutes by car, 26 minutes on foot. 

Old Trafford – Home of Manchester United – 6 mins by car, 30 minutes on foot.

Lancashire Cricket Club – 5 minutes by car, 26 minutes on foot.

Salford Quays – the dock area and Lowry Outlet Shopping Centre. – 4 minutes by car 22 minutes on foot.

If you are planning to visit one of these more well known tourist areas in the future I highly recommend that you also take a short detour to Ordsall Hall – you will be more than pleasantly surprised at the fabulous work done here by Salford leisure.

Thanks for reading – if you’ve visited the Hall what did you do there? What would you recommend to do?