Stockport is a town in Greater Manchester, England, located
seven miles from Manchester city centre. It overlooks the River Mersey and is
the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport. The town lies
on elevated ground, and shares a common territory with the City of Manchester.
It has a population of more than 136,000, and the main language spoken is
English.
Originally, Stokeport, the town has a long history dating
back to the medieval period. In the 16th century, Stockport, like
many other places in Britain, experienced an industrial revolution. The town
became known for its cotton manufacturing and expanded rapidly as a result. By
1769, as many two thousand people were employed in the market. As well cotton
processing, Stockport also came to be known for other industries including
leatherware, trimmings and blockmaking.
From the 20th century, Stockport was no longer
reliant on cotton and instead came to depend on the making of hats. The hatting
industry was big in Stockport, and led to the opening of a cultural institution
in its name called the national museum of hatting.
Today, Stockport boasts various shops, parks, museums and
theatres. Its town centre has many well-known high-street stores, along with a
leisure centre offering an Olympic sized swimming pool, bowling alley and
health complex. Popular sites include Staircase House, the Avro Heritage Museum
and Robinsons Brewery. Other attractions worth visiting are the Stockport Air
Raid Shelters, Reddish Vale Farm and Etherow Country Park.
Stockport is reachable via train, bus and car. The town
forms part of the M60 motorway, which runs to London, and also connects to the
A6 road. Stockport Railway station is the town’s main train station and
connects to Manchester via the West Coast Main Line. There are also Virgin
Trains in operation at the station which head to Central London. Stockport bus
station is the principal terminus and provides frequent services to and from
the town. The closest airport to Stockport is Machester airport, at roughly 11
miles away.
Complete your trip to Stockport with a stay in a SilverDoor
serviced apartment.
