Museum of Science and Industry

Clothing and tools connected to the waterproofing industry, as well as recorded interviews are part of a new exhibition at MOSI called The Waterproof People, which shows how the Jewish community became closely linked to the waterproofing trade, and supplied most of the UK's waterproof garments.

The community exhibition, which has been put together with the support of  the Manchester Jewish Museum, includes stories from people who worked in Jewish-owned waterproofing factories, objects such as waterproof coats, and tools used in making belts and fabrics for waterproof clothes. Photos and accounts from people who worked in the industry give a fascinating glimpse into a labour-intensive trade which has virtually disappeared from Manchester.

As part of the upcoming Full of Life Festival there is also a special event on 3 October 2010 (1-3.30pm), which includes a tour of the exhibition and a free visit to Manchester Jewish Museum. Tickets must be booked in advance.

Many Jewish entrepreneurs became involved in the waterproofing industry and by 1903 there were at least 100 waterproof workshops around the immigrant districts of Cheetham Hill and Strangeways.  There were also large factories, such as the Greengate and Irwell Rubber Company which employed about 1,000 people, while other famous companies included P. Frankenstein, Cohen and Wilkes and Holstein and Portnoy. Some Jewish waterproofing companies survived until the 1990s, while waterproof clothing company Cooper and Stollbrand in Salford still operates today.

Josie Sykes, Community Development officer at MOSI said: "Perhaps not surprisingly in the rainy city, waterproofing became a thriving industry in Manchester during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and was very closely linked to the Jewish community. Today there are only a handful of waterproofing businesses left. This exhibition was put together with the help of the Jewish community and Manchester Jewish Museum, and features some fascinating accounts of working life in the factory as well as a chance to see some of the tools of a trade which has largely ceased to exist."

Leslie Lapidus was interviewed for the exhibition about his memories of the waterproofing industry: "Almost literally every other building was making waterproof coats or raincoats. You'd come out of your workshop at 6 o'clock in the evening, after having worked from 8 o'clock in the morning and there'd be a mass of people queuing for buses, all with their raincoats on and their trilby hats."

The Jewish community in Manchester can trace its origins as far back as the 1780s. By the mid-19^th century, the Jewish population was concentrated mainly around the Red Bank and Cheetham Hill areas to the north of the city centre.  Many of these people were families of migrants fleeing persecution in Eastern Europe and Russia. These districts were characterised by thriving Jewish businesses and institutions including schools and synagogues.

MOSI's collections from Jewish businesses include a hydrometer from The Greengate and Irwell Rubber Company and a 1940s waterproof immersion blouse made by the Frankenstein Group.

The Waterproof People is in MOSI's Community Exhibition Gallery and runs until 4 January 2011.

To book your free ticket on 3 October to have a tour of The Waterproof People with a visit to the Manchester Jewish Museum please call 0161 833 0027 or email r.leese@mosi.org.uk

For media enquiries please contact: Sarah Roe, MOSI press and publicity officer on Tel: 0161 606 0176, m: 07847 372647.

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