Stockport's Bear Pit.

Chances are you've walked past it countless times, and if you're anything like us at Nub News, you'll have wondered what it was used for.

At the moment, it's mostly a haunt for Stockport's pigeons.

But historically, there's much more to the site than just being an avian social spot.

Indeed, far from being an animal paradise, up until 1835 the site was used for bear-baiting - the cruel blood sport where a bear would be chained up and forced to fight dogs.

Although historical records are scarce, it's believed that the bears were kept in the nearby sandstone caves and then brought out to provide entertainment for Stockport's eighteenth-century residents, and possibly even earlier.

Stockport's pigeon population make frequent visits to the Bear Pit (Image - Nub News)

However, this violent period of Stockport's history came to an end in 1835 when bear-baiting was abolished in Britain.

It wasn't until 100 years later in 1935 that the 'bear pit' was redeveloped to look something more like what we see today.

This came as part of works to improve Mersey Square. This, however, was still long before the Merseyway shopping centre as we know it would take shape.

By the 1980s, the modern Mersey Square began to take shape.

In 1983, the Bear Pit itself underwent some refurbishments which comprised gardens, benches, and raised flower beds.

Stockport's Bear Pit as seen circa 1983 (Image - Stockport Photographic Archive)

Since then, it was turned into the amphitheatre that we see today.

It's hosted performances, Christmas trees, people on their lunch break, and plenty of pigeons.

As yet, in 2025, there are no further works planned for the Bear Pit.

The arrival of Stockport Interchange in 2024 may have improved foot traffic somewhat, but most of the time the pit remains relatively quiet.

In any case, it's had a pretty storied history so far, and there may well be more to come.

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