Manchester cotton warehouses

In the mid-19th century, warehouses were mostly built of brick with sandstone dressings and steps to the front door.

The most successful traders built their own warehouses and many speculative developments offered suites and offices for those who needed smaller premises.

[3] Some warehouses displayed finished goods for the home trade such as fashion items.

[4] The Behrens family were prominent in the banking and social life of the city's German community.

Manchester became a railway hub, and goods for the home market and export left the city by train.

The London Warehouse at Piccadilly was one of four built by the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway in about 1865 to service its station.

It was built of brick with stone detailing and had cast-iron columns with wrought-iron beams.

[3] The square mile of "warehouse city" has been described as the finest example of a Victorian commercial centre in the United Kingdom.