St. Ann's Square
As you can see on the map below, in the corner formed by Deans Gate (1) and Market Street (2) there was a field (4) called Acres Field where an annual fair was held from the 13th Century until 1823. It was here that St. Ann's Square was created. When the square was set out, it was as a tree lined residential area.
The images above and below are extracts from the Casson and Berry map of Manchester & Salford drawn between 1741 and 1757. They are shown here with the permission of Chetham's Library.
Below you see the square circa 1904. The Royal Exchange building with its 3 huge glass domes is in one of its early forms before the major redevelopment that occured in 1921. Beyond you can get a glimpse of Market Square with the awnings of the shops, that lined the market, in full view.
Today the square features the Royal Exchange at one end
and St Ann's Church at the other.
Between is a predominently retail area.
Each Christmas, in the last few years, it has hosted a German Christmas market.
In the square you will find a statue of Richard Cobden (June 3 ,1804 - April 2 ,1865 ). He was a British manufacturer and Radical and Liberal statesman who, with John Bright, founded of the Anti-Corn Law League . Cobden became a conspicuous figure in Manchester political and intellectual life. He was involved in the foundation of the Manchester Athenaeum and he was the first to address the members. He was a member of the chamber of commerce and was part of the campaign for the incorporation of the city becoming its first aldermen.
Standing near the Market Street end of St Ann's Square is the Boer War Memorial by Hamo Thorneycroft and erected in 1907. It depicts a British soldier protecting a fallen comrade.