Lane and Alley (the partnership that never was)

For over a century the Lane/Alley partnership has formed a cornerstone of Manchester’s architectural history, a fundamental truth beyond doubt, still quoted by numerous sources.  And yet there has still to be found any contemporary evidence for the existence of such a partnership. (See Clare Hartwell - Making Manchester, p.33). Significantly, the contract notices inviting tenders for building work - the classified advertisements that appeared in the Manchester Guardian - were always published by Richard Lane in his sole name. This continued throughout the 1840's, realistically the only time that a partnership between the two men could have existed.

Peter Alley was born in 1811. Thus, when Richard Lane commenced his architectural practice in Manchester in 1822 he was but ten years old. In 1833 he was recorded as attending classes at the Mechanics Institution and even in 1840 would have been under thirty. Directory entries indicate that by 1850 Peter B Alley had commenced practice on his own account with offices in Cross Street, later moving to Prince’s Court, off Market Street, Manchester. In 1855 he took Alfred Darbyshire as an articled pupil at Prince’s Court and it was in this office that the work was ‘prosaic but lucrative,’ including the design of monumental cotton mills at Narva, Estonia. Despite claims to the contrary, Alfred Darbyshire never in fact worked in the Chapel Walks office of Richard Lane.

Thus the supposed partnership between Lane and Alley noted by Alfred Darbyshire in his book, “An Architect’s Experiences,” published in 1897, relates to events of half a century before; events which were outside Darbyshire’s personal experience. The source of his information (or mis-information) must therefore be assumed to be Peter B Alley.  Although the claim that Alfred Waterhouse had been a pupil of P B Alley rather than Richard Lane was withdrawn in the Manchester press a few days after publication of Darbyshire’s book, and was not included in Alley’s subsequent Manchester Guardian obituary, numerous biographical entries for Alfred Waterhouse still continue to maintain that he was articled to Lane and Alley.

The alternative, (and perhaps more plausible), version of events is revealed in two letters hidden in the correspondence columns of the Manchester City News. Published in January 1898, immediately following the publication of “An Architect’s Experiences,” these indicate that while P B Alley was employed as an assistant by Richard Lane during the 1840's, he never became Lane’s partner. The first letter, by John Lowe, Richard Lane’s pupil and eventual successor, reads as follows:

Sir - Permit me to correct an error which appeared in the paragraph relative to Mr Darbyshire's new book “An Architect's Experiences” which appeared in the Manchester City News of Saturday last. As it mentions Mr P B Alley (now residing at Southport) I may state that Mr Alley was in 1844 an assistant in Mr Richard Lane's offices and shortly afterwards started practice in Manchester with whom Mr Alfred Darbyshire was a pupil. Mr Alfred Waterhouse (now RA) and the late Mr Popplewell Pullan FRIBA together with myself were contemporary pupils in the office of Mr Richard Lane, architect. A few years afterwards Mr R Lane retired from business and it was purchased and carried on by myself for upwards of twenty-two years at the same offices in Chapel Walks, Manchester, until the erection of the now existing Guardian Assurance Building. JOHN LOWE.  15 January 1898

A letter published the following week, signed “Set Square,” generally supported Lowe’s recollection of events but was in parts obscurely phrased, as follows:

Sir, - Mr Lowe's letter in your last issue is partially true and partly (unintentionally doubtless) misleading. As one who knows, I may say that it was not "shortly" but many years afterwards (certainly nine at least) that Mr P B Alley started individual practice at Prince's Court. The other statements in your editorial notes are substantially correct. I am unwilling to take up valuable time and space over a matter so purely personal, but in this particular instance it seems desirable that the details should be, once for all.  SET SQUARE, Manchester.

However, one mystery remains - who was “Set Square,” if not Peter Bradshaw Alley?