The air raid shelters in Stockport are open to the public so as we were staying overnight in Stockport we decided to have a look around.
The Chestergate shelter opened in 1939 after just over a year of digging out the sandstone rock.
After opening there were ‘open’ days for the public to have a look round and see the tunnels in order for them to know where they would have to shelter should Stockport become a bombing target.
The tunnels are 7 feet high and 7 feet wide, and about 40 feet underground. ARP (Air Raid Protection) Wardens had their own space.
Humans sheltering would sit on the benchs either side of the tunnel with two people standing in the middle between them, so it was quite crowded.
There were flushing toilets with compartments separated by curtains.
These toilets were for the air raid shelter staff, which included the wardens, nurses and canteen staff.
People would travel from miles around to use the shelters as they felt they were stronger and better equipped than other shelters, some spending all night in them, giving the tunnels the nickname ‘The Chestergate Hotel’. Originally the shelters housed about 4000 people, due to the demand was later extended with more tunnels to accommodate 6500 people.
The tunnels are nearly a mile in length, but not all open to the public. They had electric lighting but that was taken out when the war ended and re-used elsewhere.
The ARP had an area to store their tools, which would have been behind a door like this!
There are five underground shelter systems in Stockport but they do not link together. Each shelter was intended to serve people in the immediate area, but as stated above, people from further afield such as Manchester used to travel to spend the nights in the shelters. Stockport did get bombed in 1940 and later in 1944 but wasn’t a main target like Manchester.
There are narrow tunnels accessing the bigger tunnels.
A canteen serving basic food was situated in one area.
There were many bunk beds, 1575 in total.
Basic medical care was available in the first aid post.
I felt a little that I could have ended up going round and round and never emerging as there are so many tunnels!
This is a replica of the sort of air raid shelter people may have had in their gardens. They were called ‘Andersen’ shelters and were made of corrugated iron and were usually partially below ground. My human remembers her mother talking about a ‘Morrison’ shelter, which was used indoors and the shelter could be used as a table when not in use; she remembers her mum mentioning having to hide under the table when the air raid siren sounded.
There are lots of old signs displayed around the shelters, including this one urging people to not waste the rubber by wearing wellies unnecessarily.
After an hour or so exploring we emerged back out into the sunshine.
I do recommend visiting these shelters if you are in the Stockport area, they could be combined with the hat museum for a day out and both are very interesting.
More information about the Air Raid Tunnels Air Raid Shelters – Stockport Council
Link to my blog about Stockport Hat Museum https://horacethealresfordbear.com/2025/11/30/hats-hats-and-history-at-stockport-hat-works-museum/
Horace the Alresford Bear 4/5/2026