Lancaster House in

Whitworth Street Whitworth Street is a street in Manchester, England. It runs between London Road ( A6) and Oxford Street ( A34). West of Oxford Street it becomes Whitworth Street West, which then goes as far as Deansgate ( A56). It was opened in 1899 and is ...

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

, England, is a former packing and shipping warehouse built between 1905 and 1910 for Lloyd's Packing Warehouses Limited, which had, by merger, become the dominant commercial packing company in early 20th century Manchester. It is in the favoured

Edwardian Baroque Edwardian architecture is a Neo-Baroque architectural style that was popular in the British Empire during the Edwardian era (1901–1910). Architecture up to the year 1914 may also be included in this style. Description Edwardian architecture is ...

style and constructed with a steel frame clad with granite at the base and Accrington red brick and orange terracotta. The back of the building is plain red brick. It is a

Grade II* listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Ir ...

as of 3 October 1974. The building was designed by Harry S. Fairhurst, who had become "the leading expert in the design of these advanced warehouses". Fairhurst was also responsible for Bridgewater House opposite, the neighbouring

India House India House was a student residence that existed between 1905 and 1910 at Cromwell Avenue in Highgate, North London. With the patronage of lawyer Shyamji Krishna Varma, it was opened to promote nationalist views among Indian students in Britai ...

and, perhaps, Asia House, although that building has also been attributed to I.R.E. Birkett. Fairhurst's huge buildings are "steel-framed and built to high-quality fireproof specifications". Lancaster House shares a common plinth and eaves with its neighbour,

and is connected by an ornate two storeys high circular Art Nouveau wrought iron gate with a pendant lamp. The building has since been converted into residential flats and separated into two buildings that are seven storeys tall. The first is located on 71

and the second is located on the adjoining street of 80 Princess Street, Manchester. The corner entrance below currently provides access to a public house named O'Sheas Irish Bar. Lancaster House is part of a conservation area in

Manchester City Centre Manchester City Centre is the central business district of Manchester in Greater Manchester, England situated within the confines of Great Ancoats Street, A6042 Trinity Way, and A57(M) Mancunian Way which collectively form an inner ring road. ...

that reflects the historical importance of the textile industry in the city. The conservation area was designated by Manchester City Council in September 1974, and was bounded by

Oxford Street Oxford Street is a major road in the City of Westminster in the West End of London, running from Tottenham Court Road to Marble Arch via Oxford Circus. It is Europe's busiest shopping street, with around half a million daily visitors, and ...

Portland Street Portland Street is a popular street in Kowloon, Hong Kong. The street is known for its business and retailing skyscraper complex Langham Place, numerous restaurants and its red-light district. Geography Running north-south and parallel to (an ...

, Abingdon Street, Bloom Street, Chorlton Street, Cobourg Street and the Piccadilly to Oxford Road railway viaduct. It was extended in June 1985 to include an area bounded by Whitworth Street, London Road and the above viaduct. The nearest train stations to Lancaster House are Oxford Road Station (0.2 miles) and Manchester Piccadilly Train Station (0.4 miles).

See also

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