Young orphans march through the streets of Edwardian Manchester with heads held high.


Manchester Catholic Orphanage Boys (1901)




Facts
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Titles |
(Alternative)
Mitchell and Kenyon 448 Manchester Catholic Orphanage Boys
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Production | |
Distribution |
Categories
Actuality Film Black and White Boy Catholic Church Children Orphan Orphanage People Procession Short Silent Film ChildrenShortActuality Film, Black and White, Boy, Catholic Church, Orphan, Orphanage, People, Procession, Silent FilmDescriptions
Lavish Whitsuntide processions like this one attracted huge numbers of participants and spectators, and are well represented in the Mitchell and Kenyon collection. Some remarkable close-ups give this film a rich intimacy that sets it apart from similarly themed titles such as Manchester Catholic Whitsuntide Procession, shot three years later.
Catholics made up around a sixth of Manchester's churchgoing population in the Edwardian era and they began to participate in the Whit Walks from the mid-19th century. By the turn of the century their processions, which took place on the Friday and Sunday of the Whit weekend, were a major attraction. (Whit-Monday remained devoted to the Sunday School processions of Protestant denominations.) A contemporary Manchester Evening News article reported that the 'Animated Pictures' screenings at St James's Hall attracted more than 370,000 people over a five-week period.
Source: BFI
Procession of uniformed boys in Manchester. (Synopsis) Replacement title (0.07). Marching boy band, clergymen and uniformed boys with banners watched by large crowd file past the camera let to right. The crowd and policeman follow the procession. In the background is the sign for Brook Bond Co No 17 as featured in Mitchell and Kenyon 420, confirming the location as Manchester (1.33mins). (Shotlist)
Source: BFI