A colourful corner of Sheffield
From bawdy music halls and theatres to one of Britain’s largest medieval castles, this area has seen a rich and varied history. Set on the banks of two fast-flowing rivers that powered Sheffield’s industrial revolution, the peaceful area that we see today has many a story to tell.
Markets and trade
Markets have been big in this area since as far back as the days of Sheffield Castle. In the 1900s they continued to grow around the new canal basin with the Corn Exchange, housed in an elaborate, now long gone building, and the so-called Rag and Tag Markets sitting on what is now Exchange Street.
Rivers
The shape of this area owes a lot to its proximity to the rivers Don and Sheaf. From the middle ages the Kelham Goyt diverted water for power through the area, creating nearby Kelham Island. Floods devastated this end of the city in 1864 and again in 2007, but that’s less likely to happen today as flood defences and rain gardens capture and soak up rainwater. More and more of the Sheaf was channeled underground into darkness as Castlegate developed in the 19th and 20th centuries. Among the hidden tunnels beneath the city’s streets is a labyrinth known as the Megatron – an impressive feat of Victorian engineering, now home to bats and open occasionally to the intrepid with public tours.
Brewing
Here lies the gateway to Sheffield’s valley of beer. In late Victorian times, ale flowed about as profusely here as the rivers. Sheffield was then home to around 30 breweries, and many were in this corner of town – from Stones at Cannon Brewery to Gilmour’s at Lady’s Bridge and Tennant Brothers at Exchange Brewery. The last of these closed in the 1990s, but a malty aroma has since gradually returned to the streets. Small, independent breweries now dot the area, fermenting the pale ales, blondes and porters that line the bars of local pubs which together make for one of the world’s best ale trails.
The castle
Grey to Green extends into the historic heart of Sheffield. Castlegate is so called because it was once the site of the town’s castle, built by William de Lovetot following the Norman Conquest of 1066. What is now Nursery Street was the castle’s vegetable garden. Exchange Street was its orchard.
Industry
Centuries of industrial heritage stretch along Grey to Green. By the 18th century, saw makers, scissorsmiths, cutlers and forgers clustered near what’s now West Bar, powered by water from the Kelham Goyt. Traces of this past dot the area – crucible shop chimneys, the remains of four historic cementation furnaces – and its street names. Love Street and Love Square are named after tool manufacturers Spear & Love, formed here in 1760 and now called Spear & Jackson. While metalworking has moved away, the area’s other main industry – law and order – is still very much in evidence.
Theatres
Workers in the industrial heart of 19th-century Sheffield didn’t have to go far for entertainment. Streets that by day echoed with the clatter of metalworks, by night filled with the chatter of eager music hall-goers. This hub of working-class culture became known as Little Piccadilly. One particularly popular venue was The Alexandra, an equestrian circus built partly over the River Sheaf. Up to 4,000 people at a time revelled in performances here, often hosted by Pablo Fanque, Britain’s first Black circus proprietor. Most of the music halls and theatres have been lost over the years, either to development or to the fires that were all too common in such heavily-draped, gas-lit and wood-constructed buildings. The former Don Picture House survives, though, behind the cladding on the corner of West Bar and Paradise Street.
Images courtesy of Picture Sheffield.