ABSTRACT
In 1793, Dalton came from Kendal to Manchester to take up the post o f tutor at New College which stood on land in the south o f the town, sold by the Lord o f the Manor in 1783. The neighbourhood had become a fairly affluent residential district through which ran the aptly named Mosley Street from the Infirm ary to Dawson Street and St Peter’s Church. Some notable buildings were to be erected in the area - the Assembly Rooms, Portico Library, Royal Manchester Institution (Mosley Street); the Athenaeum (Bond Street); the Friends Meeting House (Mount Street); and, most important of all for Dalton, the Literary and Philosophical Society (George Street). Dalton’s name was proposed for membership by Robert Owen, Drinkwater’s able young manager, in 1794. Peter Drinkwater was also a member; both men were shrewd industrial innovators, typical o f many of the members.
