Cocker Hill, Stalybridge

Guest post by Alan Mellor

It’s always great to hear of amazing things in the past. What never ceases to amaze me, though, is how the past tends to become the present. I write this in spring 2010 as a resident of Cocker Hill. There isn’t a church here anymore, and so no fantastic stories of 3,000 people gathered to see vicars at each others throats. There is the odd horse – the odd sheep grazing on the Churchyard, even – but no liveried huntsmen at funerals. Weaver’s cottages but no weavers. Pub visitors (ahem) but no pubs.

Massive change, perhaps as you might expect in quarter of a millennium of change and adjustment.

The weavers now live in China, and we buy their wares from Tesco. The pubs are still around, of course, just a little further away. Whilst not a major communications route by road, Cocker Hill – by virtue of its proximity to the telephone exchange – has probably the fastest broadband internet communications around. As such, perhaps it is no surprise to find it is home to an outpost of internet technology company http://www.yuuguu.com

Many things are the same. The cobbles are still here. A sense of local pride and neighbourly decency is here. But I think the similarities go even deeper.

Just as in 1750, when Cocker Hill was home to what were then the hi-tech industries of the day (steam power, textiles, precision instrument manufacturers) – it still is. Within walking distance are no less than two media companies ( www.greekblokeproductions.com and www.cockerhillmedia.net) and company specialising in Actor’s showreels (www.simplyshowreels.co.uk).

Perhaps there is something about the view from our windows that encourages looking up and dreaming positive dreams. Perhaps the area simply attracts – as it always has done – hard-working, creative people. I don’t know.

But I do know that Cocker Hill – both the street and the area – has been home to many interesting, challenging, creative people this last 250 years.

It looks well set to continue!

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