The Pankhurst Centre, 60–62 Nelson Street,

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 ...

, is a pair of Victorian villas, of which No. 62 was the home of Emmeline Pankhurst and her daughters Sylvia, Christabel and AdelaHartwell 2001, p 320 and the birthplace of the suffragette movement in 1903.

Description

The Pankhurst's villas now form a centre that is a

women-only space A women-only space is an area where only women (and in some cases children) are allowed, thus providing a place where they do not have to interact with men. Historically and globally, many cultures had, and many still have, some form of female sec ...

which creates a unique environment for women to learn together, work on projects and socialise. 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 10 June 1974. Part of the centre is a museum, The Pankhurst Parlour, which has become a memorial to the suffragette movement. Its

Edwardian The Edwardian era or Edwardian period of British history spanned the reign of King Edward VII, 1901 to 1910 and is sometimes extended to the start of the First World War. The death of Queen Victoria in January 1901 marked the end of the Victori ...

style furnishings evoke the home of Mrs Pankhurst and her daughters. It is the only museum dedicated to telling the story of women's fight for the right to vote. The

Women's Social and Political Union The Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) was a women-only political movement and leading militant organisation campaigning for women's suffrage in the United Kingdom from 1903 to 1918. Known from 1906 as the suffragettes, its membership an ...

was founded in the parlour of Emmeline Pankhurst's home in October 1903. The Pankhurst Centre is run by volunteers and receives no public funding, relying solely on donations. The Representation of the People Act 1918 gave the vote to all men aged 21 and over and women aged 30 and over who met certain property qualifications. In its centenary year calls were made to fund the Pankhurst Centre to make it a major museum that tells the story of women's suffrage and the women's rights movement.

History

62 Nelson Street was the home of Emmeline Pankhurst at the time she founded the Women's Social and Political Union in 1903. She moved there after the death of her husband,

Richard Pankhurst Richard Marsden Pankhurst (1834 – 5 July 1898) was an English barrister and socialist who was a strong supporter of women's rights. Early life Richard Pankhurst was the son of Henry Francis Pankhurst (1806–1873) and Margaret Marsden (1 ...

in 1898. The site became a grade II* listed building in 1974. In 1978, there was an application submitted to demolish the building, sparking a notable protest to keep the building as a museum and centre committed to women's issues. The Parlour was the first room in the Pankhurst Centre to be redecorated and was the centre of attraction when

Barbara Castle Barbara Anne Castle, Baroness Castle of Blackburn, (''née'' Betts; 6 October 1910 – 3 May 2002), was a British Labour Party politician who was a Member of Parliament from 1945 to 1979, making her one of the longest-serving female MPs in Bri ...

and

Helen Pankhurst Helen Pankhurst (born 1964) is a British women's rights activist, scholar and writer. She is currently CARE International's senior advisor working in the UK and Ethiopia. She is the great-granddaughter of Emmeline Pankhurst and granddau ...

opened the centre on 10 October 1987. The Pankhurst Centre suffered a break-in on 1 October 2019. Since then, donations have been made to repair the damage, including £10000 from The Cooperative Group. The centre reopened on the 29th of August, 2021 after a major redevelopment project in the two galleries and the parlour during 2020.

Pankhurst Centre Garden

In 2018, a newly designed garden, designed by Janet Leigh (a garden designer based in Stockport), was opened at the Pankhurst Centre in September 2018. The garden to mark the centenary of Votes for Women, and acknowledges the work of suffragettes. The garden was funded by an outsourcing campaign, with over 500 people contributing over £24,000 in 2017. The garden also provides a relaxation space for the women and children residents of Manchester Women's Aid.

References

External links

Pankhurst Trust
- official site
Background information on the Centrewww.pankhurstmuseum.com/
- museum site Pankhurst-centre-mri-car-park

{{coord, 53, 27, 47.25, N, 2, 13, 39, W, type:landmark, display=title Organisations based in Manchester Houses in Manchester Grade II* listed buildings in Manchester Museums in Manchester Women's museums in the United Kingdom History museums in Greater Manchester Historic house museums in Greater Manchester Women-only spaces Emmeline Pankhurst

Description

History

Pankhurst Centre Garden

See also

References

Further reading

External links