Category Archives: 1879-80

It’s now almost 40 years since I first started detailed research into the history of Manchester City and its origins, and it’s an area that is still fascinating. I still keep being asked about the origins of Manchester City, particularly the period prior to 1894 and I love the fact so many are interested in the steps that led to the establishment of what has become a major, global footballing power. I’ve posted much about those early years on this site but I know it’s often in a scattered style making it difficult to find, so here for those interested, are links to past articles on key figures and moments in the St Mark’s, West Gorton, Gorton AFC, Ardwick & associated clubs’ history. Tomorrow from noon for 24 hours I’ll be giving free access to a video I did a while back on the origins (details of the video lower down this page).

Firstly, the earliest known game (note: not necessarily the first game!):

St Mark’s First

The club’s earliest known captain Walter Sumner. Here’s an article I posted in February 2023:

True Blues: William Sumner, the Earliest Captain

A couple of founding fathers:

True Blues – William Beastow and James Moores

Walter Chew, a man occasionally described as ‘The Father of Manchester City’ (though he himself tells a different story and in a 1920s interview told his eye witness story of who the actual founder was):

True Blues – Walter Chew

Ardwick’s death:

The 1890s: 1893-1894 Ardwick’s Last

The visionary who contributed so much to shape the newly created Manchester City in 1894:

True Blues – Joshua Parlby

The City launch:

The 1890s: 1894-1895 Parlby’s City

A man every Blue should know about, Lawrence Furniss. A player with Gorton, Ardwick secretary-manager, MCFC director, chairman responsible for move to Maine Road, Life President when City won the title in 1937. He saw it all and was involved from the 1880s through to 1940s when he died:

True Blues – Lawrence Furniss

The facts not the fiction…. There are so many myths, assumptions, exaggerations etc. doing the rounds so hopefully this piece I wrote a few years back helps to explain:

The Origins of Manchester City: Facts Not Fiction

If you’re interested in the wider Manchester story:

Manchester’s Football Origins

Information on the St Mark’s community leaders:

True Blues – St Mark’s Community Leaders

An example of an early match:

Broadbottom 3 Manchester City 0…

On 1 February 2023 I performed an online talk on the latest research into the origins of City, focusing on the period prior to 1887 when the club was based in the West Gorton and Gorton areas. Tomorrow from noon I’ll post this for all to see for free for 24 hours, but if you can’t wait or miss it then it is already available here for subscribers to the site:

History Talk Video: The Origins of MCFC

There are still many gaps in our knowledge even though material has been rediscovered in recent years. There are some things we won’t know but over the coming weeks I’ll post more on the early years. Some will be available to all, some to subscribers but I’m sure there’ll be lots out there to enjoy.

In the meantime why not search the website or use the tags to see articles on the period prior to 1894. Every season of the 1890s for example has a detailed article written about it while individual games, players and related stories are also included within the thousands of posts on this site. Here’s a link to the 1890-91 season for example:

The 1890s: 1890-1891 The Brewery Men

There are even features on attendances during that decade such as:

The 1890s: 1896-97 Attendances

And this one, which included stories of floodlit games:

The 1890s: 1889-1890 Illuminated Ardwick

The origins of Manchester City, like many other clubs, have been misunderstood or incorrectly reported over the years and there are many areas of ongoing research that will fill the gaps over the coming years. It takes time and effort to research at the level needed. When I first started researching there were some stories that had been passed down for years that have since been challenged and corrected but there are many other areas to reflect on. There are, of course, many other areas where further research is still needed.

For years I’ve worked with a variety of people on the origins of City (one of the key elements of my PhD research was on the origins of men’s and women’s football in Manchester and my research into this continues). In the 2010s MCFC set up a research group called Project Blue which I willingly helped and explained the myths that exist and what we still don’t know. The following slide was part of a lengthy presentation I performed on 14 December 2011 on that where I explained how we got where we were at the time and those who had worked together on uncovering the club’s early history.

I was always grateful to Dennis Chapman, John Maddocks and Ray Goble who welcomed me into their ‘club’ of research and others, such as Dave Masey who, like me, was a member of the Association of Football Statisticians. Dave continues to help my research. Thanks to these guys and others when I was starting out I have tried to ensure I help and support others researching. The more we research and share, the greater our collective knowledge.

There is still much to be done and sadly lots we will never know.

Whatever research is uncovered over the coming years one thing is clear and that is the history and origins of Manchester City are wrapped up in community initiatives and a desire by some to use football as a positive, community building enterprise. People like William Sumner, Walter & William Chew, Lawrence Furniss and Joshua Parlby should always be remembered for their part in the formative years of football in our city.

There is much research still to be done. If you’d like to support this research then please subscribe to the site and you’ll have access to hundreds of articles, interviews, talks etc. You could join for a month and see what you think.