The Old Wellington
The Old Wellington
4 Cathedral Gates
MANCHESTER
M3 1SW
Tel: +44 (0)161 830 1440
Dating back to 1550, The Old Wellington pub is a Grade Two listed building which is reputed to be one of Manchester’s oldest buildings.
The Old Wellington has watched as the face of Manchester has changed over the last 500 years. The pub has played host to the people who founded the city’s first bank, its cotton industry, and built its first quay, providing trading links with the world. The inventor of phonetic shorthand also lived here and other inhabitants founded churches and hospitals.
The Old Wellington was originally situated in The Shambles, which was, for centuries, an important market area. The earliest reference to a building on the site appears in 1328 although detailed analysis has put the actual date of construction of the current building circa 1550. Originally built by the Ratcliffe’s of Ordsall, the most famous occupants were the Byrom family, whose fortunes were founded on a highly successful drapery business. John Byrom born in the house was famed as inventing a system of phonetic shorthand, the forerunner of Pitman’s shorthand.
The Old Wellington has stood the test of time, surviving wars, a terrorist bomb and city redevelopment. This last redevelopment activity saw the building painstakingly dismantled, relocated 100 metres and identically reassembled. The Old Wellington reopened in its current location, gateway to the city’s medieval quarter, late in 1999.
Ales and Malts
An extensive wine list is available, plus Bass and Boddington’s beers.
Food
The Old Wellington is famed for its Wellington Hot Pot and Beef Wellington, alongside a range of other delicious meals, which are made using traditional recipes and local produce.