84 Plymouth Grove

Elizabeth Gaskell, in portrait of 1851 by George Richmond

Elizabeth and William, along with their children, Marianne, Margaret Emily "Meta", Florence, and Julia, moved into the house (then numbered 42 Plymouth Grove) in June 1850, after the publication of Elizabeth's first novel, Mary Barton.[14] However, they had lived in Manchester for some time previously as William Gaskell's job of assistant Minister at Cross Street Unitarian Chapel, required the family to move from Knutsford, in neighbouring Cheshire.[15] The family had stayed at two different locations in Manchester, both of which have now been demolished.[15]

84 Plymouth Grove's spacious accommodation concerned Gaskell, who, despite calling the house "a beauty", was concerned about residing in such an expensive house (the rent was £150 per annum) while others lived in poverty.[16] Despite Elizabeth's concerns, the Gaskells were not frugal, with the twenty room house costing half of William's salary in rent.[10] Elizabeth, feeling guilty, justified it by stating, "It is [William] who is to decide on all these things".[17] Until the birth of their children they required only one servant, Betsy, however, at Plymouth Grove much more domestic staff were employed, including a cook, several maids, a handyman for outdoor work, as well as a washerwoman and a seamstress.[17] Elizabeth trained her staff and looked after their welfare whilst they were employed at the house.[17]

Charlotte Brontë, one of the many guests who stayed at 84 Plymouth Grove on various occasions

Charlotte Brontë, who visited the house three times between 1851 and 1854, described it as "a large, cheerful, airy house, quite out of Manchester smoke".[14] The "Manchester smoke", as Brontë described it, was generated from the hundreds of textile factories and cotton mills situated within the inner city, in particular the Ancoats area. In the 1850s there were over 100 mills in Manchester.[18] On one occasion, the meek Brontë even hid behind the curtains in Gaskells' drawing room as she was too shy to meet the other guests.[19]

Barbara Brill, biographer of William Gaskell, stated that "Plymouth Grove could be likened to the activities of a beehive",[17] due to the Gaskells entertaining many guests whilst living at the house. Besides Brontë, visitors to the house during Elizabeth Gaskell's lifetime included Charles Dickens, who, on one occasion in 1852, made an impromptu visit to the house, along with his wife at 10 am, much to the dismay of Elizabeth, who mentioned it to be "far too early".[10] John Ruskin, Harriet Beecher Stowe, American writer Charles Eliot Norton and conductor Charles Hallé also visited Elizabeth Gaskell at Plymouth Grove.[10] Hallé visited the house often, teaching Meta Gaskell how to play the piano.[15]

Gaskell lived at Plymouth Grove with her family until her death 15 years later, in 1865, and all of her later books were written there, including some of her most famous works, such as Cranford and North and South. Gaskell died in Alton, Hampshire, in a house she had just secretly purchased, without informing William.[20] She had planned to entice William into leaving Manchester and retiring there, but she collapsed suddenly in the arms of Meta, and died on 12 November 1865.[20] Her husband, William Gaskell, a Unitarian minister and educationalist, survived Elizabeth by nearly two decades, dying in 1884 of bronchitis.[21] Upon his death, his two surviving unmarried daughters, Meta and Julia, lived in the house (his two other daughters, Marianne and Florence, had both married, though Florence died 3 years prior to William's death).[15] The two sisters continued living at Plymouth Grove and both were involved in various charitable causes throughout their lives. Julia, despite being the youngest, died before Meta, in October 1908, leaving Meta Gaskell alone at 84 Plymouth Grove.[15]

The house, pictured in 1913, the year that the Gaskells' occupancy ended

In 1913 Meta Gaskell, the last of the Gaskells residing at Plymouth Grove, died, ending the family's 63 year occupancy of the villa.[14] Meta was not, however, the last living Gaskell daughter. Marianne Gaskell, the eldest child, married, had three children and lived until 1920.[15] Many suggested that the house become a public museum dedicated to Gaskell and her literary works, with the idea being supported by The Manchester Guardian.

The New York Times stated that the conversion to a museum could be achieved at "small expense", as it could sell some of the land belonging to the house for development.[22] Despite the suggestion, the idea was rejected by the local authority, with The Manchester Guardian quoting them as stating, "The house belonged to one of the ugliest periods of architecture and was of no value beyond its association with the Gaskell family."[10] Hopes of turning 84 Plymouth Grove into a museum were soon extinguished, and the house was simply left there. The University of Manchester purchased the building in 1969, converting it for use by the International Society. The university relinquished the building in 2000.

The house was listed Grade II* on the National Heritage List for England in February 1952.[23]

Brill, Barbara (1984). William Gaskell, 1805–1884: A Portrait. Manchester Literary and Philosophical Publications. ISBN 0-902428-05-5.