Two-Up, Two-Down
Until the late 1960s, most houses in cotton milling towns were
“two-up, two-down”
terraced houses. They were built by private developers during
the
nineteenth century to house the region’s rapidly expanding
workforce.
Mill and factory workers needed cheap accommodation and property
developers built rows of low cost houses close to the mills and the
factories to rent out for profit.
Before the 1870s, there were
few building regulations and the quality of housing varied greatly.
Some developers provided well built houses. Others
skimped wherever
possible and provided poor drainage, shared toilet facilities and
cramped accommodation.
Typically, the houses had a parlour and
kitchen downstairs and two bedrooms upstairs. The toilet, or
privy,
was outside in the backyard. The parlour was kept for special
occasions. It also served as a dining room and general living
room.
The kitchen cooking range was the most important feature.
It provided
a fire for cooking on, an oven and was the main source of heating for
the house.
