Together Trust Archive

Continuing our exploration of the illustrations created for the Manchester and Salford Refuges, we’re putting a spotlight on an image depicting the events of the 1923 Belmont Garden Fete . Some readers may have seen this little cartoon before.

Like many archives across the UK and Ireland, we have been sharing stories and images from the archive on Twitter for Explore Your Archive 2020.

On 2nd April 1896 a group of 173 boys, under the care of the Reverend Robert Wallace and his wife, journeyed aboard the Scotsman from Liverpool to the Marchmont Receiving Home in Belleville, Canada. Of the 173, approximately 70 boys were from the Manchester and Salford Refuges and Homes. It took eight days for the ship to arrive at the port of Halifax, Nova Scotia. On 14th April, Revd. Wallace reported the following: From The Children's Haven ( CH ), May 1896

In 2019, the Together Trust secured a generous grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund to support the charity’s 150th anniversary celebrations and community projects in 2020. As part of this grant we are digitising and making accessible the charity’s annual reports dating from 1870-1919.

It is our delight to announce the release of The Ever Open Door:  150 Years of the Together Trust. Andrew Simpson , Chorlton-based local historian, has delved into the charity's vast archive to bring together the history of the Together Trust. The book covers all aspects of the charity's work and services  –  from emigration and summer camps, to our Bethesda service and Inscape House School. The cover boasts the work of Liz Ackerley Art , who we were proud to commission to create this striking reinterpretation of the  Children's Shelter , breathing new life into one of our former homes. From the bleak Victorian streets of Manchester, whence Leonard Kilbee Shaw and Richard Bramwell Taylor were moved to open a 'Night Refuge for Homeless Boys', to the bright and brilliant Bridge College, this is a story of life changing proportion. Buy your copy now for £14.99 plus postage and packaging. For those who hold a Manchester Library card, w...

Recently, we uncovered the mystery behind the charity’s first logo which was created by Enid Blyton illustrator, Grace Lodge. Discovering this fact prompted the investigation into the illustrations of the charity’s early urban services that graced (excuse the pun) the pages of the early annual reports and charity magazines. An illustration of the early Manchester and Salford Refuges and Homes Some of the above illustrations are the only records we have left of our early buildings. The engraved images are copies of original photographs, some of which still survive in the archive. Looking closely at the only surviving reproduction of the interior of the Mission Hall, the illustrator’s signature, reads ‘LANGTON’. Robert Langton (1825-1900) was a Manchester-based engraver and illustrator from Gravesend, Kent. An Associate of the Manchester Academy of Fine Arts , his most well-known work was The Youth and Childhood of Charles Dickens (1891) which he both authored and illustr...

From 1 February until 24 May 2020 the Together Trust is taking over (a small corner of) The Lowry at Salford Quays! The  150 Artists  exhibition is result of an inspiring project which has seen young people currently supported by the Together Trust delve into the charity's archive to interpret, celebrate, and reflect on the charity and what it means to them, through artwork and other forms of media. The young people who created the content for this exhibition collaborated with 14 artists who were co-commissioned by people supported at our Newbridge service. Funded by Arts Council England, the project has also enabled seven trainee artists to enhance their skills and experience throughout the project. Be sure to check out the amazing artwork, as well as a brief, yet insightful, look into the charity's Manchester and Salford based services of old, at the Circle Bar at  The Lowry , Pier 8, The Quays, Salford, M50 3AZ. Here's a peek at the archive d...

Regular readers will have noticed that the blog has recently undergone a bit of a transformation. If you keep up with the charity via social media or the website you will have seen that the Together Trust has a whole new look, complete with a fresh and colourful new logo  –  just in time to help kick-start our 150th year.  Throughout 2020 we are reflecting on our history, celebrating our achievements and how far we have come (as well as the work we currently do), all whilst looking to the future.

Dear Interested party The charity is now two weeks into its new venture, providing a home for boys in a small building on Quay Street. There are now 16 residents aged 11-16 who enter the refuge each night, have supper, sleep on hammocks, receive breakfast and then leave for the day.  It may be interesting to note the few rules we have established to those who ask for admission: We desire in no case to interfere with the duty of the parent, and therefore consider boys who have parents living in Manchester ineligible, except under very special circumstances. As we propose to help those only who can help themselves, boys who will not do so are not eligible. We were at first reluctant to help boys whom still have parents alive, as it is parents duty to provide for their child. Similarly, we believe boys should understand the importance of contributing to their own wellbeing so we only provide for those who were prepared to work. Despite our strong protestant beliefs, no reference i...

Tomorrow, Saturday 4th January 2020, sees the Together Trust reach the grand old age of 150. The ‘Night Refuge for Homeless Boys’ was opened on the 4th January 1870 at Number 16, Quay Street. On that first night, 10 lads presented themselves for admission:

An often admired image from the Together Trust’s archive is that of a simple pen and ink drawing which depicts a group of children moving out from the shadows into the light. As if moving from the darkest corners of the city, where poverty and hardship were often found, the children move toward salvation (both physically and spiritually) – an artistic representation of the charity’s work in the early twentieth century, when the Boys’ and Girls’ Refuges stood as a beacon of hope, warmth and security to the young people of Manchester and Salford.                    

Last year the Together Trust held a ceremony to commemorate 100 years since the end of World War I. The occasion was marked with the unveiling of a bronze plaque, engraved with the names of those who had fallen whilst serving for their country. All these names were men who had either worked for the charity, or lived in one of its homes when it resided in Manchester. Commemorative plaque, 2018