The Linotype Machinery company was established in Manchester by a group of British people to exploit an American invention of a printing machine which enabled type to be set by the use of a keyboard similar to that of a typewriter. In the 1890s the company decided to develop a large industrial operation at Broadheath in Altrincham.
The industrial complex known as Trafford Park was one of the first and one of the largest in Europe. It is inextricably linked to the two canals that surround it, the Bridgewater Canal to the south and the Manchester Ship Canal to the north and it is probably true to say that that everyone in the Greater Manchester area was either employed in one of the factories or knew someone that did. Statistics of employees are staggering when compared to modern figures and the support industries that backed up the park such as transport facilities for goods and people, along with living accommodation and public services also provided many more jobs.
Click here to view our Trafford Photographic Collection catalogue: Trafford Catalogue
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