Club History
A few facts about Agecroft....
Rowing in Salford
There has been rowing in Manchester and Salford since 1823, with more than 15 clubs during the 1860s. Agecroft was formed by the gradual merging of these Irwell based clubs in October 1861, which makes it one of the oldest open membership rowing clubs in the world. The club house was originally in the ground of Agecroft Hall (now the site of a power station), and has moved twice on the same river since it's foundation.
However, the previous Clubhouse at Littleton road is no longer used for rowing, as the river has become impossible for eight's and fours to pass due to the encroachment of weeds and river life following the clean up of the environment. Our new Clubhouse is sited next to the Helly Hansen Watersports Centre at Salford Quays where we offer high level coaching and equipment for those who wish to succeed and we also cater for recreational rowers and novices.
Agecroft Rowing Club and Rowing on the River Irwell from 1840
Like the majority of the country’s “working” waterways, there were professional boatmen/oarsmen on the River Irwell (which separates the cities of Manchester and Salford) since the start of the Industrial Revolution (circa 1750). With the growth in prosperity of these two cities, the gentlemen of that era sought "manly pursuits" on which to spend their leisure time.
Ishmael Lythgoe, founder of Agecroft Rowing Club, said of rowing: “So favorable to the development of the human frame and good fellowship, no pastime can equal rowing for either strengthening the limbs or drawing out those social qualities of the heart”
During the period 1820 – 1870, the Irwell saw an explosion in “Gentlemen Amateur” Rowing clubs. Some were merely a one rowing boat club; others such as Nemesis and Minerva were at the vanguard of the sport. Ishmael Lythgoe, who was a member of Nemesis at that time, displayed foresight in the summer of 1860 when he decided that the green and pleasant surroundings of the river Irwell at Agecroft (6 miles upstream from the City) was where he wanted to row.
Initially there was some resistance from a local landowner to the proposed formation of rowing club. However, this was overcome in the summer of 1861 and Agecroft Rowing Club was formed. The first boathouse, in the grounds of Agecroft Hall, was swept away in the floods of 1866 and a new replacement brick boathouse was built a year later near Douglas Green weir. The club was based there for 70 years and the members also maintained a summer residence called Giants Seat House at Ringley. The original Agecroft Hall structure was bought a businessman named T.C. Williams Jr., dismantled, and shipped across the Atlantic to his home town of Richmond, Virginia where it was rebuilt in 1926 and still today stands overlooking the banks of the James river.
Nemesis 1847 – 1920 (and before that “Clarence Rowing Club”) were one of the main organisers behind the Manchester and Salford regatta 1842 – 1863. At the time, this regatta rivalled Henley Regatta. (Records show the construction of over one mile of boardwalk and seating for 50,000). The Agecroft Regatta is infamously captured in a painting by L.S. Lowry, who grew up in nearby Pendleton.
Nemesis club had to vacate their boathouse at Pomona to make way for The Manchester Ship Canal in 1890 and moved to New Bailey Street Landings, which subsequently became the well known Mark Addy Pub - named after a famous local professional oarsman (1838 – 1890) who was awarded the Albert Medal for saving 50 people from drowning. However, the disruption caused by the new Manchester Ship Canal, pollution, developments along banks of the river and the loss of many members during the First World War, all contributed to the demise of Nemesis, the last surviving rowing club in central Manchester.
Post First World War History
In 1925, another famous Agecroft character, Maurice Rothwell, joined the club. He was to be a member until his death in 1992. He left the Club a substantial legacy which was put into Trust until needed. In 1934, Agecroft agreed to sell their boathouse and moved half a mile upstream to the opposite bank adjacent to Kersal Cell (an old monastery and later home to John Byron the poet). Two years earlier, Agecroft had encouraged the formation of Manchester University Boat Club, and they remained in the old boathouse until the Luftwaffe kindly remodelled the building in December 1940, whereupon they moved back in with Agecroft until their own current Boathouse on the Bridgewater canal was completed in 1963. After the departure of Manchester University Boat Club, Agecroft set about encouraging the eventual formation of Salford University Boat Club in 1965, and the Northern Universities Boat Race in 1972.
About this time, the club started to struggle to find new members. There was little activity on the river, and the sporting and financial future was uncertain. In 1974, the boathouse was sold to Salford University and Agecroft became tenants. This was the Club’s darkest hour. Four years later, some young, enthusiastic members including Steve Hitchen and Kevin Maynard, joined with the aim of rebuilding the club. They inherited a Club with no boathouse, few boats and only 7 active members. Initially, their efforts were directed at increasing equipment, members and re-establishing themselves locally. As the fleet increased, so did the standard and the active numbers. This led to appearances in various TV programmes, including BBC’s “Changes” which helped bring about the development at Salford Quays. The Club’s first eight also rowed Loch Ness, in record time.
1980s Revival
The eighties saw the revival continue – the Club started to win nationally and a very successful women’s section was formed. The boathouse was bought back from Salford University and completely refurbished and extended. In the 11 years, 1985 – 1995 Agecroft won the prestigious North of England Head nine times, winning Tideway’s Jackson Trophy in 1994 with yet another top 20 finish. Several Women’s Henley titles and national medals were also won.
The Club flourished under the leadership of Mike Parsons. However, these successes were at a price. The River Irwell had started to weed up and the top crews went looking for longer and better stretches of water to train on. Although the rowing performances were maintained, the Club lost its roots again as those left behind at the boathouse, drifted away. In 2000, the club realised that something drastic had to be done. The river was unrowable and the boathouse often vandalised. It was agreed that we must find a new home and use Maurice’s legacy to preserve the Club. The only answer was to relocate to Salford Quays, which was the original home of Nemesis, vacated by Ishmael Lythgoe some 140 years previously.
In May that year, following negotiations with the Manchester Ship Canal owners, a temporary tin shed was erected at Salford Quays. This, at last, gave a base back in the heart of Salford, with excellent Motorway links, Metro link and good local transport – plus most importantly, good rowing water and potentially a multi lane rowing course (our next project?).
Salford Quays: Our New Home
The decision was taken to relocate to Salford Quays, knowing that probably, members would be lost. At the time, only 12 men, one woman and three veterans moved to the temporary tin shed. Our worst fears seem to be becoming reality! However, there was no going back.
Links were built with the local community, and new members came from the local gyms. Almost immediately, membership increased and in 2001, the Club had our first novice eight’s win in over 10 years. By the following year, demand meant we were shoehorning 21 boats into our one bay shed. So tight was the racking that on more than one occasion, we could not get all the boats in unless they were carefully put on their preset racks – any variation seemed to lead to a boat left over.
Meantime, our partners, Salford Council were incredibly supportive and were themselves about to build a new £2m Water Sports Centre on the Quays with access to the inner waterways. They agreed to allow Agecroft to build an extension to their new building. Our building was to include a boat store, large gym, bar/kitchen, and changing rooms. The club designed the scheme, obtained planning permission and then started to fund raise – all at our risk. We also considered the longterm position and got Planning Permission for a second boathouse while we were at it – possibly to house Salford and Manchester Universities and visiting crews one day. The scheme cost just under £1m. With sensible foresight, Maurice’s legacy was waiting to help.
The Council’s new Water Sports Centre was their flagship project and designed to a high standard in the shadow of the world famous Lowry Centre. This meant our extension had to blend - with a curved roof, glass and steel cladding to match– but we had to fund one of the highest quality boathouses around. We applied to Sport England for a grant and were shocked to be initially turned down. We heard later that, at the same meeting, Sport England awarded £110m to the ill fated Pickett’s Lock athletics stadium and we were next on the agenda.
With the ARA’s help, we redid our bid. We applied for Project Oarsome and were proud to have been the 50th (and last) club to win PO. We then approached Salford University who agreed to continue their long association with us and made a generous contribution to the funds. Suddenly, we had potential school and university activity to dovetail with ourselves. Sport England awarded us a 60% Grant – the dream was becoming reality! In April 2003, we appointed a Contractor who started on site and went bankrupt six weeks later. Everything stopped whilst we tried to find a solution. Paying more to another contractor was not an option as we had no more money. It looked as if we would have to mothball the site and try to raise more money. The longer we took, the more inflation added to the problem. Denis O’Neill, the club captain stepped in and, with tremendous support from Salford Council, Sport England and the club’s trustees, took over as contractor and delivered our boathouse on time and to budget.
Opening the Boathouse
The boathouse was jointly opened in March 2004 by Denis O'Neill, Steve Hitchen and Kevin Maynard. All three had worked tirelessly over many years to achieve that day. At the end of 2016, Agecroft has over 100 active members. The club has continued to produce good crews and we are regulalry winning national Heads and Regattas. The gym is fully fitted out with 20 ergos, static weight machines, Olympic weights and Cardio machines. Over 100 people attended last annual dinner. We have a British Rowing "GB Start" coach based in our boathouse and this should help raise the overall standards of all NW athletes. Our partnership with the Council has extended to running our successful triathlons together and we are now holding our annual Small Boats Head each Autumn.
We are excited to see what further results our club can produce. Please see our race results pages to keep up to date with our latest news from the riverbank.
About Mark Addy, AM (1838-1890)
Mark Addy was one of Salford's most legendary sons, famed in his lifetime for rescuing no fewer than 50 persons from drowning in the River Irwell. Born at the Parsonage in Blackfriars Street in 1838, as a young lad he assisted his father in the running of his boat hire company, so that, though he could not swim, was no stranger to water. His first rescue was at the age of 13, when he waded in up to his chin to drag a small boy to safety. After 33 rescues over a period of 25 years he was awarded the Albert Medal First Class by Queen Victoria in 1878; he had already been awarded the Bronze and Silver Medals of the Royal Humane Society, as well as the Gold Medal of the Royal Humane Society of the Salford Hundred. As an adult he owned the riverside Boathouse Inn. Eventually he succumbed to the River Irwell, when, after his last rescue he suffered a fatal illness brought on by swallowing the heavily polluted waters and he died on the 9th June 1890. A pub bearing his name exists today on the Salford Bank of the River Irwell, just up stream from the Agecroft club house.
Rowing in Salford
There has been rowing in Manchester and Salford since 1823, with more than 15 clubs during the 1860s. Agecroft was formed by the gradual merging of these Irwell based clubs in October 1861, which makes it one of the oldest open membership rowing clubs in the world. The club house was originally in the ground of Agecroft Hall (now the site of a power station), and has moved twice on the same river since it's foundation.
However, the previous Clubhouse at Littleton road is no longer used for rowing, as the river has become impossible for eight's and fours to pass due to the encroachment of weeds and river life following the clean up of the environment. Our new Clubhouse is sited next to the Helly Hansen Watersports Centre at Salford Quays where we offer high level coaching and equipment for those who wish to succeed and we also cater for recreational rowers and novices.
Agecroft Rowing Club and Rowing on the River Irwell from 1840
Like the majority of the country’s “working” waterways, there were professional boatmen/oarsmen on the River Irwell (which separates the cities of Manchester and Salford) since the start of the Industrial Revolution (circa 1750). With the growth in prosperity of these two cities, the gentlemen of that era sought "manly pursuits" on which to spend their leisure time.
Ishmael Lythgoe, founder of Agecroft Rowing Club, said of rowing: “So favorable to the development of the human frame and good fellowship, no pastime can equal rowing for either strengthening the limbs or drawing out those social qualities of the heart”
During the period 1820 – 1870, the Irwell saw an explosion in “Gentlemen Amateur” Rowing clubs. Some were merely a one rowing boat club; others such as Nemesis and Minerva were at the vanguard of the sport. Ishmael Lythgoe, who was a member of Nemesis at that time, displayed foresight in the summer of 1860 when he decided that the green and pleasant surroundings of the river Irwell at Agecroft (6 miles upstream from the City) was where he wanted to row.
Initially there was some resistance from a local landowner to the proposed formation of rowing club. However, this was overcome in the summer of 1861 and Agecroft Rowing Club was formed. The first boathouse, in the grounds of Agecroft Hall, was swept away in the floods of 1866 and a new replacement brick boathouse was built a year later near Douglas Green weir. The club was based there for 70 years and the members also maintained a summer residence called Giants Seat House at Ringley. The original Agecroft Hall structure was bought a businessman named T.C. Williams Jr., dismantled, and shipped across the Atlantic to his home town of Richmond, Virginia where it was rebuilt in 1926 and still today stands overlooking the banks of the James river.
Nemesis 1847 – 1920 (and before that “Clarence Rowing Club”) were one of the main organisers behind the Manchester and Salford regatta 1842 – 1863. At the time, this regatta rivalled Henley Regatta. (Records show the construction of over one mile of boardwalk and seating for 50,000). The Agecroft Regatta is infamously captured in a painting by L.S. Lowry, who grew up in nearby Pendleton.
Nemesis club had to vacate their boathouse at Pomona to make way for The Manchester Ship Canal in 1890 and moved to New Bailey Street Landings, which subsequently became the well known Mark Addy Pub - named after a famous local professional oarsman (1838 – 1890) who was awarded the Albert Medal for saving 50 people from drowning. However, the disruption caused by the new Manchester Ship Canal, pollution, developments along banks of the river and the loss of many members during the First World War, all contributed to the demise of Nemesis, the last surviving rowing club in central Manchester.
Post First World War History
In 1925, another famous Agecroft character, Maurice Rothwell, joined the club. He was to be a member until his death in 1992. He left the Club a substantial legacy which was put into Trust until needed. In 1934, Agecroft agreed to sell their boathouse and moved half a mile upstream to the opposite bank adjacent to Kersal Cell (an old monastery and later home to John Byron the poet). Two years earlier, Agecroft had encouraged the formation of Manchester University Boat Club, and they remained in the old boathouse until the Luftwaffe kindly remodelled the building in December 1940, whereupon they moved back in with Agecroft until their own current Boathouse on the Bridgewater canal was completed in 1963. After the departure of Manchester University Boat Club, Agecroft set about encouraging the eventual formation of Salford University Boat Club in 1965, and the Northern Universities Boat Race in 1972.
About this time, the club started to struggle to find new members. There was little activity on the river, and the sporting and financial future was uncertain. In 1974, the boathouse was sold to Salford University and Agecroft became tenants. This was the Club’s darkest hour. Four years later, some young, enthusiastic members including Steve Hitchen and Kevin Maynard, joined with the aim of rebuilding the club. They inherited a Club with no boathouse, few boats and only 7 active members. Initially, their efforts were directed at increasing equipment, members and re-establishing themselves locally. As the fleet increased, so did the standard and the active numbers. This led to appearances in various TV programmes, including BBC’s “Changes” which helped bring about the development at Salford Quays. The Club’s first eight also rowed Loch Ness, in record time.
1980s Revival
The eighties saw the revival continue – the Club started to win nationally and a very successful women’s section was formed. The boathouse was bought back from Salford University and completely refurbished and extended. In the 11 years, 1985 – 1995 Agecroft won the prestigious North of England Head nine times, winning Tideway’s Jackson Trophy in 1994 with yet another top 20 finish. Several Women’s Henley titles and national medals were also won.
The Club flourished under the leadership of Mike Parsons. However, these successes were at a price. The River Irwell had started to weed up and the top crews went looking for longer and better stretches of water to train on. Although the rowing performances were maintained, the Club lost its roots again as those left behind at the boathouse, drifted away. In 2000, the club realised that something drastic had to be done. The river was unrowable and the boathouse often vandalised. It was agreed that we must find a new home and use Maurice’s legacy to preserve the Club. The only answer was to relocate to Salford Quays, which was the original home of Nemesis, vacated by Ishmael Lythgoe some 140 years previously.
In May that year, following negotiations with the Manchester Ship Canal owners, a temporary tin shed was erected at Salford Quays. This, at last, gave a base back in the heart of Salford, with excellent Motorway links, Metro link and good local transport – plus most importantly, good rowing water and potentially a multi lane rowing course (our next project?).
Salford Quays: Our New Home
The decision was taken to relocate to Salford Quays, knowing that probably, members would be lost. At the time, only 12 men, one woman and three veterans moved to the temporary tin shed. Our worst fears seem to be becoming reality! However, there was no going back.
Links were built with the local community, and new members came from the local gyms. Almost immediately, membership increased and in 2001, the Club had our first novice eight’s win in over 10 years. By the following year, demand meant we were shoehorning 21 boats into our one bay shed. So tight was the racking that on more than one occasion, we could not get all the boats in unless they were carefully put on their preset racks – any variation seemed to lead to a boat left over.
Meantime, our partners, Salford Council were incredibly supportive and were themselves about to build a new £2m Water Sports Centre on the Quays with access to the inner waterways. They agreed to allow Agecroft to build an extension to their new building. Our building was to include a boat store, large gym, bar/kitchen, and changing rooms. The club designed the scheme, obtained planning permission and then started to fund raise – all at our risk. We also considered the longterm position and got Planning Permission for a second boathouse while we were at it – possibly to house Salford and Manchester Universities and visiting crews one day. The scheme cost just under £1m. With sensible foresight, Maurice’s legacy was waiting to help.
The Council’s new Water Sports Centre was their flagship project and designed to a high standard in the shadow of the world famous Lowry Centre. This meant our extension had to blend - with a curved roof, glass and steel cladding to match– but we had to fund one of the highest quality boathouses around. We applied to Sport England for a grant and were shocked to be initially turned down. We heard later that, at the same meeting, Sport England awarded £110m to the ill fated Pickett’s Lock athletics stadium and we were next on the agenda.
With the ARA’s help, we redid our bid. We applied for Project Oarsome and were proud to have been the 50th (and last) club to win PO. We then approached Salford University who agreed to continue their long association with us and made a generous contribution to the funds. Suddenly, we had potential school and university activity to dovetail with ourselves. Sport England awarded us a 60% Grant – the dream was becoming reality! In April 2003, we appointed a Contractor who started on site and went bankrupt six weeks later. Everything stopped whilst we tried to find a solution. Paying more to another contractor was not an option as we had no more money. It looked as if we would have to mothball the site and try to raise more money. The longer we took, the more inflation added to the problem. Denis O’Neill, the club captain stepped in and, with tremendous support from Salford Council, Sport England and the club’s trustees, took over as contractor and delivered our boathouse on time and to budget.
Opening the Boathouse
The boathouse was jointly opened in March 2004 by Denis O'Neill, Steve Hitchen and Kevin Maynard. All three had worked tirelessly over many years to achieve that day. At the end of 2016, Agecroft has over 100 active members. The club has continued to produce good crews and we are regulalry winning national Heads and Regattas. The gym is fully fitted out with 20 ergos, static weight machines, Olympic weights and Cardio machines. Over 100 people attended last annual dinner. We have a British Rowing "GB Start" coach based in our boathouse and this should help raise the overall standards of all NW athletes. Our partnership with the Council has extended to running our successful triathlons together and we are now holding our annual Small Boats Head each Autumn.
We are excited to see what further results our club can produce. Please see our race results pages to keep up to date with our latest news from the riverbank.
About Mark Addy, AM (1838-1890)
Mark Addy was one of Salford's most legendary sons, famed in his lifetime for rescuing no fewer than 50 persons from drowning in the River Irwell. Born at the Parsonage in Blackfriars Street in 1838, as a young lad he assisted his father in the running of his boat hire company, so that, though he could not swim, was no stranger to water. His first rescue was at the age of 13, when he waded in up to his chin to drag a small boy to safety. After 33 rescues over a period of 25 years he was awarded the Albert Medal First Class by Queen Victoria in 1878; he had already been awarded the Bronze and Silver Medals of the Royal Humane Society, as well as the Gold Medal of the Royal Humane Society of the Salford Hundred. As an adult he owned the riverside Boathouse Inn. Eventually he succumbed to the River Irwell, when, after his last rescue he suffered a fatal illness brought on by swallowing the heavily polluted waters and he died on the 9th June 1890. A pub bearing his name exists today on the Salford Bank of the River Irwell, just up stream from the Agecroft club house.