Page 13 - Real-Rochdale-07

Taken c1865, 13 of the surviving members of the Rochdale Pioneers

At first the co-op was open for only two nights a week, Manchester-based national hybrid society, The
but within three months, business had grown so much Co-operative Group, in 2007.
that it was open five days a week.
These days, the Rochdale Pioneers Museum is part of
By the 1860s, a new central store was needed, so the Co-operative Heritage Trust, set up in 2007, to
purpose-built premises opened on Toad Lane in 1867, inspire and educate people about the movement.
costing £10,000 to build.
The museum houses artefacts and hosts exhibitions
It housed all the departments under one roof, as well as about the cooperative movement and hosts events and
a boardroom and library. The top floor had a hall which projects for visitors and the community.
could seat 1,500 people. The money used to build the
central store came from the co-op’s profits. Any surplus In 2018, everything came full circle, with the Rochdale
profit was divided between members, just like it is today. Pioneers Museum launching a volunteer-run
co-operative pantry allowing residents to top up on their
By 1900, there were 1,439 different co-operative store cupboard essentials at a reasonable cost.
societies and around two million members.
The Pioneer Pantry is member-owned, meaning
The Pioneers’ original store on Toad Lane, now widely members can vote on how any surplus profits are spent.
regarded as the home of the co-operative movement,
was rented by them until they moved away in 1867. This year, members voted to buy gardening equipment
and now grow fruit and vegetables outside the museum,
It was later purchased by the movement, and opened as a scheme called ‘Incredible Edible: Toad Lane
a museum in 1931, telling the story of how the Allotments’.
co-operative movement developed through self-help to
increase productive employment and overcome poverty. The fresh food is then placed in the pantry for members
to take away. Members have worked together this
In 2019, it was named as one of Historic England’s ten autumn to make chutney and jam using the fruit grown.
historic industrial sites that shaped the country.
As part of the Heritage Lottery funded project ‘Young
The building was extensively restored and refurbished in Roots: Pioneer Places’, the museum has also been
the 1970s, with the front ground floor room replicating working with a group of young people from across
the simplicity of the original store of 1844. The museum Rochdale to explore the town’s co-operative heritage
was closed for two years between 2010 and 2012 for a and retell it in their own voice.
major development project to improve access, add an
education and meeting space and renew the exhibitions. The group is currently working with a videographer to
create a short film showcasing their findings and also
Rochdale Pioneers traded independently until 1991, have a podcast. ‘Pioneer Places’, which can be
with name changes inspired by mergers with downloaded via all major platforms.
neighbouring co-operatives: as Pioneers from 1976, and
Norwest Pioneers from 1982, based in Wythenshawe, Find information about upcoming events at Rochdale
Manchester, by 1991. Pioneers Museum on the museum’s website.

In 1991, then-Norwest Co-operative Society transferred
its engagements to United Co-operatives, which was run www.co-operativeheritage.coop
from Rochdale, before being transferred to the