Railway Hotel, Pottery Lane

Railway Hotel, Pottery Lane, Gorton. (c) Simon Hall 1963-2016 www.transportfotos.com [1].

The Railway Hotel is pictured above on the corner of Pottery Lane and Jarmain Street in Gorton on the 24th August 1991. Crystal Palace supporter, Simon Hall, and his mates were their way to Maine Road for an early season match, and naturally decided to visit some local(ish) pubs and sample a few ales. When they came across pubs that were architecturally interesting, looked like they were on their last legs, or were already closed, Simon would take a photo.

Railway Hotel, Pottery Lane, West Gorton. (c) D.N. at ManMates Facebook [2].

The old Openshaw Brewery house certainly fell into the latter category of already being closed in 1991. Its classic white tile-cladding, and the grand lettering advertising their fine ales and stout, were somewhat spoiled by the boards up at the windows (Simon's day was also somewhat spoiled by the result; City went top of the league with a 3-2 win). In its last years the pub was a freehouse under Matthew Brown and Thwaites, both of Blackburn. The Railway is shown above, probably a few years previously, courtesy of ManMates, when it was still open.

Jarmain Street, West Gorton. (c) London Gazette [3]. 

The Railway is shown at the archive in 1971, after it had been taken over by Tetley's Brewery of Leeds. The Openshaw Brewery (known as the Victoria Brewery) was close by on the lost Aberavon Street. The Railway stood on the corner of Jarmain Street and Pottery Lane, the former which has also been lost, as the above 1977 extract details. The factory and the railway bridge which carries the line through Ashbury's station, have not changed much since the Railway was demolished without a trace.

Former location of Railway Hotel, Pottery Lane. (c) Google 2016. View Larger Map.

1. Simon Hall 1963-2016 www.transportfotos.com.
2. www.facebook.com/ManMates.co.uk.
3. www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/47368/pages/13818/page.pdf.