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All the United Kingdom England Manchester Boardman’s Entry
Boardman’s Entry is permanently closed.

This entry remains in the Atlas as a record of its history, but it is no longer accessible to visitors.

Boardman’s Entry

A tiny, hidden alleyway dedicated to the father of meteorology.

Manchester, England

Added By
Gareth Hacking
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Boardman’s Entry   Gareth Hacking / Atlas Obscura User
Boardman’s Entry   Gareth Hacking / Atlas Obscura User
Boardman’s Entry.   Gareth Hacking / Atlas Obscura User
Boardman’s Entry from King Street.   Gareth Hacking / Atlas Obscura User
The entry on South King Street.   Map data ©2016 Google
  SEANETTA / Atlas Obscura User
  SEANETTA / Atlas Obscura User
Painted black. September 2024   DMStephenson / Atlas Obscura User
  SEANETTA / Atlas Obscura User
  rbenn250 / Atlas Obscura User
  SEANETTA / Atlas Obscura User
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About

Just off Manchester's busiest shopping street, you’ll find Boardman’s Entry, a short passageway that features four metal umbrella tops hanging overhead. A strange sight you’ll agree, with no signage nearby to explain their presence.

But these curious umbrellas are not just random public art — they’re in fact an unusual tribute to one of Manchester’s most famous sons. 

Born in 1766, John Dalton is famous for both devising atomic theory and for his research into color blindness. So why the umbrellas? Another of Dalton’s lifelong interests was the study of the weather.

From the age of 21, Dalton kept detailed metrological records, generally making entries three times a day. He was interested in the relationship between mathematics and meteorology, and invented a number of tools to measure humidity, atmospheric pressure, temperature, and so on. Dalton's diligence resulted in 200,000 entries over the next 57 years of his life. In fact, his last recorded words were a weather report for the Manchester Guardian in 1844: "60, 71, 30.18, SW 1, Little Rain."

Nearby are Dalton Entry and Mulberry Passage, both of which are also dedicated to the Manchester scientist, though neither of them so uniquely decorated. Boardman's Entry features the three hanging umbrellas, as well as engravings of beakers and other scientific equipment, two crossed umbrellas on the King Street entrance, and three faces (presumably modeled after Dalton) on the South King Street entrance.

The entrance on King Street is to one side of King Street Grooming, opposite Old Exchange (St Ann's Passage). Only the metal artwork has been removed from the passage,  the other engravings are clearly visible. 

Related Tags

Alleyways Science Weather

Know Before You Go

Boardman's Entry is opposite St. Ann's Passage, and runs between King Street and South King Street.

Community Contributors

Added By

Gareth Hacking

Edited By

Molly McBride Jacobson, jooniur, SEANETTA, rbenn250...

  • Molly McBride Jacobson
  • jooniur
  • SEANETTA
  • rbenn250
  • DMStephenson

Published

August 17, 2016

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Sources
  • http://www.theskyliner.org/boardmans-entry-and-other-alleyways/
  • http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1256/wea.202.02/pdf
  • http://biography.yourdictionary.com/john-dalton
Boardman’s Entry
27 King Street
Manchester, England
United Kingdom
53.4812, -2.24604
Get Directions

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