(m08742) Cross Lane is repeatedly mentioned by interviewees who took part in the ‘monkey run’. “That would mostly be on Sunday nights, when there was nothing to do…” Lancashire Fusiliers Drill Hall, Cross Lane, Salford, 1900. “On street corners… there used to be a lot of groups here there or on the monkey run, what they call the monkey run, walking up Cross Lane… along Broad Street and down Stock Lane and Eccles New Road home” The interviewer asks her how boys and girls would meet each other. talks about going dancing in the Empress Ballroom with one of her friends and how she started courting when she was 17. and others talk about courting in the Eccles New Road area. (m77200) This public house features in a number of interviews about Salford and the dock area. Ship Inn, corner of Cross Lane and Eccles New Road. Andrew Davies’ book, ‘Leisure, Gender and Poverty’, notes that ‘monkey parade’ is more commonly used in the 1920s and the areas in Salford included Regent Road, Eccles New Road, Cross Lane, Ellor Street, The Crescent, Low Broughton Road and Littleton Road. Keen to see if this was just a Salford ritual I turned to Google and found similar terms, ‘monkey walk’ or ‘monkey parade’, were cropping up in different sources. recalls making clothes and walking with her friend and cousin. “Oh yes, you always saved your clothes for Sunday…” I wonder if this parading was just as much about clothes and fashion as it was about going out and being seen and meeting members of the opposite sex.

talks about the times of the ‘monkey walk’. It seems that this ritual had its own set of rules from times to who made the first move. (m08094) This group of women are older than our interviewees, but they may have known about the ‘monkey walks’. S share their experiences on the ‘monkey parade’. recalls going on these walks from a young age. After a long week at work who doesn’t want to do that? The term refers to young people dressing up, going out and having fun with friends. Were these derogatory and racist references to growing communities?Īfter listening to the interviews my fears were completely unfounded. Ports and docks were places that men from across the globe could secure employment and where new immigrants arrived looking to start new lives. Were these two factors connected? I also worried that the phrases might be references to race. I wondered if this was related to actual monkeys? I know Salford had a thriving docklands area and I have read a number of stories and anecdotes relating to animals at sea. Example of a summary sheet from the Manchester Studies Oral History Collection. One phrase that repeatedly cropped up is ‘monkey run’ or ‘monkey walk’. One of my first tasks is to read any summaries or transcripts from the interviews to see if there are any potential sensitivities or issues relating to data protection. As this is a place I know little about I am looking forward to learning more about the history of this area from its residents. The latest batch of interviews from the Manchester Studies oral history collection that I am currently cataloguing relate to the Salford area.

England library monkey