The Victoria University of Manchester has developed from the college founded by John Owens, who in 1846 bequeathed nearly iioo,000 to trustees for an institution in which should be taught "such branches of learning and science as were then or might be hereafter usually taught in English universities." It was opened in 1851 in a house which had formerly been the residence of Cob den. In 1872 a new college building was erected on the south side of the town from designs by Waterhouse. In 188o a university charter was granted, excluding the faculties of theology and medi cine, and providing for the incorporation of University college, Liverpool, and the College of Science, Leeds. The federal insti tution thus created lasted until 1903, when separate universities were formed in the different cities. Manchester university consists of one college—Owens college—in its greatly enlarged form. The buildings include the Whitworth hall (the gift of the legatees of Sir Joseph Whitworth), the Manchester museum and the Christie library, which is a building for the university library given by R. C. Christie who also bequeathed his own collection. Dr. Lee, the first bishop of Manchester, left his library to Owens college, and the legatees of Sir Joseph Whitworth bought and presented E. A. Freeman's books. The library has received other important special collections. The university has received many large gifts but is still urgently in need of help for extensions. Its students now number 2,466 and its teaching staff 268. The Man chester museum, with important collections, is housed in an extension of the university buildings provided through a bequest of Jesse Haworth. Lord Morley, the late chancellor (d. 1923) of the university, bequeathed a large part of his library to Ash burne hall of residence for women students.
There are in Manchester a number of denominational colleges.
Wesleyan, Unitarian, Baptist, etc., and many of the students pre paring for the ministry receive their arts training at the university, the theological degrees of which are open to students irrespective of creed.
Parks.—Manchester is well provided with libraries. The Chetham library contains some rare manu scripts. There is a large collection of matter relating to the history and archaeology of Lancashire and Cheshire. The collections of Broadsides formed by J. 0. Halliwell Phillipps, and the library of John Byrom, should also be named. The Manchester free libraries were founded by Sir John Potter in 1852. There is now a refer ence library containing about 300,00o volumes. The Henry Wat son music library and the Thomas Greenwood library for libra rians were presented to the reference library, and the foreign library was purchased. Affiliated to the reference library are 23 libraries, each of which includes a lending department and reading rooms. The municipal libraries contain in the aggregate over 550,00o volumes. There are also libraries in connection with the Athenaeum, the school of technology, the Portico, the Literary and Philosophical Society, the blind (in Braille type), the Law Library Society and others. The most remarkable of the Man chester libraries is the John Rylands. This includes the famous Althorp collection, of Earl Spencer, and many valuable manu scripts. It was built and richly endowed by Mrs. Rylands.
Manchester possesses numerous literary and scientific associa tions. The number of these societies is large and has greatly in creased of recent years. There are also a large number of textile and other trade associations. Several daily papers are published, and various weekly and other periodicals. The journalism of Man chester takes high rank, the Manchester Guardian being its most important daily paper. The Manchester Academy of Fine Arts holds an annual exhibition in the city art gallery. Manchester
is a favourite place for the holding of exhibitions, etc., both of a local and of a national character. It has a transmitting station of the British Broadcasting Corporation.
There are 74 parks and recreation grounds covering 1,900 acres. The largest of these are Heaton park, Alexandra park, Bog gart Hole Clough, Queen's park, Wythenshawe park (25o ac., presented by E. D. Simon in 1926), Philips park, Platt fields
others. In the parks are playing fields, tennis courts, bowling greens, golf courses as well as lakes, bird sanctuaries, arrange ments for music, etc. In addition the city owns 32 swimming baths with private baths, etc., as well as several public wash houses. A large acreage is laid out as playing fields by the National Playing Fields Association and by private enterprise. The Belle Vue zoological gardens is a favourite place for workingpeople. In 18o' the population was 75,275, and in 1931, 766,333. The population has overflowed into the surrounding districts, and if all that belongs to the urban area of which it is the centre were included, greater Manchester would probably rival London in the number of its inhabitants.
Manchester is the most important centre for the cotton industry in the world (see COTTON and COTTON INDUSTRY). Most of the spinning and the weaving mills, the dyeing, bleaching and finishing workshops are situated in the neighbouring towns and villages, and the city itself is now principally the business and warehousing centre for the industry. Almost as important as the cotton industry is that of engineering for which Manchester claims to be one of the largest centres in the world. The manufacture of heavy and light machinery, weaving and spinning plant, locomotives, stationary engines, motors and commercial vehicles, aeroplanes, electrical machinery of all kinds, etc., is carried on. Again of paramount im portance to Manchester is the chemical and dye industry, so necessary to the textile trade. The manufacture of cotton goods and ready-made clothing, hats and caps, and knitted goods em ploys an enormous number of people. The rubber industry and the manufacture of paper, paper goods, cardboard boxes, book binding, etc., must also be mentioned. Manchester is one of the chief ports for the import of oil, timber, fruit and grain ; and the milling industry is extending rapidly. The port of Manchester (of which the largest docks are in Salford) ranks as the third in Great Britain from the point of view of the value of the mer chandise handled. The area of the docks is 120 ac. with si m. of quayage. Ships drawing 28 ft. of water can reach Manchester, and steamers of 12,500 tons deadweight capacity regularly navigate the canal. The location of Manchester on the south Lancashire coal-fields has had a marked influence upon its prosperity; but for this the rapid expansion of its industries would have been im possible. Manchester occupies a leading position in the English banking world. The Manchester bankers' clearing house returns show an almost unbroken yearly increase, and to-day the business transacted far exceeds that of any provincial centre. Likewise the city has an important stock exchange and holds a position next to that of London in the insurance world. There are also within the city branch offices of the Government Stationery Department and of the public trustee. The commercial institutions of Man chester are too numerous for detailed description ; its chamber of commerce has for nearly a century exercised much influence on the trade of the district and of the nation. Manchester is the headquarters of the Co-operative Wholesale Society, and indeed of the co-operative movement generally.