St George’s area originally formed the civic heart of the township of Little Bolton. For many years the River Croal acted as a physical barrier between Great Bolton and Little Bolton. Each settlement, essentially market townships, grew and were serviced by their own respective civic and religious buildings. At the time of the cotton boom, Bolton, with its locational advantages, quickly became an important centre for the mill industries. The Town of Bolton was formed by the merger, in 1837, of the two former townships. The valley side location of Little Bolton, which developed from 1790, was never really suited to accommodate the development of mill buildings, which are more visible in the rest of the borough. This goes some way to explaining the predominance of civic and church buildings in Little Bolton. Indeed the area has the greatest concentration of Georgian buildings in Bolton.
St George’s Conservation Area
St George’s Conservation Area was designated in 1970 and reflects an area of special architectural and historic interest following the route of St George’s Road and St George’s Street.
Little Bolton THI
The St George’s Conservation Area, which includes many of the key surviving buildings of Little Bolton, is currently the subject of the Little Bolton Townscape Heritage Initiative (THI). The THI is a Lottery Fund grant-giving programme for the repair and regeneration of the historic environment in towns and cities in the UK. The programme is primarily aimed at filling the conservation deficit that often arises during the development of historic buildings. Bolton’s THI programme is managed on behalf of the Heritage Lottery Fund by Bolton Council. A common fund of £1.6 million was established in 2008 which included funds from the Heritage Lottery Fund and Bolton Council. Eligible grant funded works include external building repairs, internal works to bring buildings back into use, reinstatement of original architectural detail and works to the streetscape and public realm.
Deliverable THI Projects
The initial work undertaken to secure the THI for Bolton identified a number of eligible projects including Little Bolton Town Hall, St Georges Church, 44-80 St Georges Terraces, Bridge Street, Bark Street East, Bow St and public realm improvements. The following projects are currently identified as priorities for action.
44-80 St Georges Terrace Ltd
This terrace of 19 two-storey properties was built in 1820 and the complete terrace is Grade II listed. Each property is made up from a common plan, reversed at the midpoint from where the terrace steps up in line with the gentle slope from east to west. Historical photos show this as a grand cobbled street and which would have been one of the most prestigious addresses in Bolton. Over time many architectural features have been lost or unsympathetically reinstated.
Work commenced on the terrace in February 2009, and focused on external structural repairs and the reinstatement of lost architectural features which were part of the original design of the terrace. Work was completed at the end of 2009, and the streetscape of St Georges Road has been significantly enhanced allowing the street to reclaim its “des res” status. Particular effort has been made to use local materials and expertise where possible including locally quarried stone for the boundary walls, Bolton manufactured railings, Bolton door and window joinery front door, and fan lights.
Pickard Finlason Partnership were the conservation architects and contract administrators and Corporate Developments Ltd were the contractors for St Georges Terrace.
Bark Street East
The properties on Bark Street East are not listed buildings, however they do form a near consistent group of two-storey townhouses with typical Georgian features. Surviving details include door cases, fanlights, flat-headed windows, slate roofs and cast iron guttering. The owners of the properties will submit a comprehensive THI application to Bolton Council in March 2010.
Little Bolton Town Hall
Little Bolton Town Hall is identified in the Little Bolton THI as a critical project. This critical status is based on the architectural and heritage merit of the building as well as the significant regeneration opportunity presented by bringing this vacant building back into use. The council is actively bringing about the conservation-led regeneration of the historic ‘Little Bolton' area of Bolton town centre, focused on St. George's Conservation Area.
Public Realm
Significant improvements to the public realm in the area have been carried out as part of the THI. Public realm improvements have sent out a positive message to local businesses and residents and have also served to draw attention to the Georgian historic importance of the area. Sympathetic street lighting features and the historic reinstatement of pavings and kerbs have been undertaken.