Stockport is a town in Greater Manchester, England, located seven miles from Manchester city centre. It overlooks the River Mersey and is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport. The town lies on elevated ground, and shares a common territory with the City of Manchester. It has a population of more than 136,000, and the main language spoken is English.
Originally, Stokeport, the town has a long history dating back to the medieval period. In the 16th century, Stockport, like many other places in Britain, experienced an industrial revolution. The town became known for its cotton manufacturing and expanded rapidly as a result. By 1769, as many two thousand people were employed in the market. As well cotton processing, Stockport also came to be known for other industries including leatherware, trimmings and blockmaking.
From the 20th century, Stockport was no longer reliant on cotton and instead came to depend on the making of hats. The hatting industry was big in Stockport, and led to the opening of a cultural institution in its name called the national museum of hatting.
Today, Stockport boasts various shops, parks, museums and theatres. Its town centre has many well-known high-street stores, along with a leisure centre offering an Olympic sized swimming pool, bowling alley and health complex. Popular sites include Staircase House, the Avro Heritage Museum and Robinsons Brewery. Other attractions worth visiting are the Stockport Air Raid Shelters, Reddish Vale Farm and Etherow Country Park.
Stockport is reachable via train, bus and car. The town forms part of the M60 motorway, which runs to London, and also connects to the A6 road. Stockport Railway station is the town’s main train station and connects to Manchester via the West Coast Main Line. There are also Virgin Trains in operation at the station which head to Central London. Stockport bus station is the principal terminus and provides frequent services to and from the town. The closest airport to Stockport is Machester airport, at roughly 11 miles away.
Complete your trip to Stockport with a stay in a SilverDoor serviced apartment.
