Mark Addy (Albert Medal) - Memorials

Memorials

Not long after his death it was decided that a memorial should be erected and, in May 1891, 1,000 people attended the unveiling of the monument in Weaste Cemetery, Salford where he was buried. The monument consisted of a polished red granite obelisk rising from a stepped base. On the front was inscribed:

Sacred to the memory of Mark Addy, the Salford hero who died 9 June 1890 in the 52nd year of his age. He saved more than 50 persons from drowning in the River Irwell, for which he received amongst other rewards, The Albert Medal (1st class) from H.M. the Queen. Life's work well done, life's races well won. He rests in peace. Erected by public subscription.

Above the inscription was a carved lifebouy and rope entwining his initials and, above that, an oval bronze plaque inscribed with the portrait head of Addy. On the base was another bronze plaque depicting incidents from his life. The monument still stands today and is a Grade II listed structure, although it is in poor condition, with one of the bronze plaques missing.

Because of the large number of subscriptions to the memorial fund a life-size oil portrait of him wearing his medals was commissioned and donated to the Peel Park Picture Gallery, now the Salford Museum and Art Gallery, and a swimming trophy for Salford boys to be presented at Regent Road Baths, The Mark Addy Silver Cup, was instigated.

Addy has also been commemorated in a number of other forms: At Woden Street, between Pomona Docks and Regent Road, close to the former location of the Boathouse Inn, is a bridge known locally as the "Mark Addy Footbridge". On the Salford bank of the River Irwell, on the site of the former New Bailey landing stage and the Nemesis Rowing Club, below Stanley Street, is a riverside public house named "The Mark Addy", built in 1981 and re-opened in 2009.