We love museums! They can be fun places in which to learn interesting historical facts about a particular place. One of the more interesting museums we've visited was the Greater Manchester Police Museum. Located in the former Newton Street Police Station, this had been home for the Manchester City Police ( and its successors, the Manchester and Salford Police, and finally the Greater Manchester Police) from 1879 until 19179. It had been one of the city's earliest police stations. This hidden gem, with its free admission, was turned into a museum in 1981 and is manned by a volunteer cadre of former police officers. In addition to containing the original Victorian era cells, with its wooden beds and pillows, as well as the original "Charge Office", this museum has exhibits tracing the changes in policing from the late 19th century to the present day. It even includes an 1895 Magistrates Court on the second floor. This was a different, but fun, experience for us.
Exterior view of the Newton Street Police Station, now the Greater Manchester Police Museum.
The original "Charge Office" where prisoners were booked.
Located within the Charge Office was this large rack of "key boxes." Local business owners could hire these boxes and leave the keys to their offices and/or warehouses in case the police needed to gain access during the night.
Next to the Charge Office were the prisoners cells...
With their wooden beds and wooden pillows. Prisoners were allocated one blanket each. There were no windows in the cells. On busy nights, it was not unusual to have up to a dozen prisoners in each cell.
One constable was designated as the "Reserve Man." His duties included fingerprinting the prisoners, cleaning the area, and distributing food to those in the cells.
For younger prisoners (read children), sentences for crimes would be in the form of corporal punishment with these birch switches.
While patrolling the streets, officers would work out of these street corner boxes. Citizens knew that they could report crimes here.
Old photo of the police box on the street.
On display in the museum are the many hats used by police officers over the years.
The 1895 Magistrates Court room on the second floor of the museum. The prisoner's dock is on the left side of the picture.
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