Grey Man, Great Moor Street

This picture shows the Bolton One complex being constructed in March 2011. In the foreground the entrance to the site marks the last evidence of the former extension of Derby Street. The Grey Man was situated on the right-hand corner of this junction. From around 1979 until Bolton One was built in 2010-12 Derby Street ran down to a cul-de-sac just past the Derby Street Girls School; prior to that it ran down to meet Crook Street at the junction with Deane Road.

Photo copyright Lost Pubs Of Bolton.

The Grey Man was situated on Great Moor Street at its junction with Derby Street.

These days Great Moor Street ends at the junction with Blackhorse Street but up until the construction of the Trinity Street extension in the late-seventies it ran all the way up to the junction with Derby Street near to what is now Bolton One (see picture above).

The Grey Man was a Magees beerhouse and was built in the late-nineteenth century. Old maps from 1891 show the building in situ.

In 1962 it received a full drinks licence and could therefore serve wines and spirits as well as beer. By then it was owned by Greenall Whitley who had taken over Magees in 1958. However, in preparation for the construction of the by-pass it closed in 1972 and was demolished that same year. [1]

Bolton.org published a number of photos courtesy of Dennis Jackson showing the Grey Man shortly before it closed. [2] The first picture shows the pub’s last landlady Annie Ridings along with her husband. Although the Grey Man dated from Victorian times the building looks more like a building from the 1930s.

The second picture shows a view from the top of the pub looking up Derby Street. 

Finally, a view taken from the grass outside the then Bolton Institute Of Technology of the Grey Man being demolished. The building to the left is the Derby Street School for Girls.

Finally, here is a view of the Bolton Institute Of Technology and surrounding area taken in 1972. The Grey Man can be seen on the right-hand side of the photo situated at the junction of Great Moor Street and Derby Street.

[1] Pubs Of Bolton 1800-2000, by Gordon Readyhough. Published by Neil Richardson (2000).

[2] Bolton.org.uk. Retrieved 7 April 2014.