A WALK INTO ROCHDALE'S PAST The Walk, in Rochdale Town Centre, was built as a prestigious row of shops by the Vavasour family around 1824 when they were in residence opposite (now the closed Lloyds bank building). They built it as a walkway to the River Roch, sometimes known as lovers walk as young couples used to do their courting along the river in the town centre. There are plans to have a bridge across the river from the end of the walk when the river is re-opened, hopefully later this year. If you look above the shops along The Walk you will see four shields erected in 1987 of once famous Rochdale families. The shields of the Royds, the Byrons, the Vavasours and the Kemps and are fixed to Victorian wrought iron lamp holders at each end of The Walk. Kelsall and Kemp's woollen mills once stretched from The Butts along Smith Street. The Royds started its own bank on The Butts. Legend has it that Lord Byron, the poet, visited the Manor House near the town centre, and John Vavasour built the block which now forms The Walk. These days The Walk is home to a range of diverse shops and businesses, a few of whom are featured in the next couple of pages.
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