Eccles and District History Society

ECCLES CAKES
	Records show that James Birch began making Eccles Cakes in a shop opposite Eccles Parish Church in 1796. In 1810 he moved to larger premises across the road. The photograph on the left shows this shop with its sign " Eccles Cake Makers Removed from across the way". These premises still exist today on Church Street but are now home to a dry cleaners' shop.
When James Birch moved to bigger premises across the road a former employee, James Bradburn, took over the original shop. In 1835 Bradburn had the shop rebuilt - the premises shown on the photograph on the right. There was great rivalry between the two shops. Bradburn's sign was in direct challenge to his former employer's sign: this was the "original and oldest established Eccles Cake Shop, Never Removed". This shop was demolished in the late 1960s to make way for the Eccles Shopping Precinct. VIVE LE ECCLES CAKE! A cake for Europe... Thanks to Roy Bullock for sending this article from The Times Online of 6 March : No birthday party is complete without a cake and candles. But what style of bakery best befits a 50th-birthday bash with 27 guests, all from different countries and culinary traditions? For the Germans, notorious pastry addicts and hosts of the European Union’s 50th anniversary celebrations in Berlin, the answer was . . . well, a piece of cake. They announced yesterday that each country will have its favourite cakes on the table — two varieties. Pride of place for British patisserie will go to the Eccles cake, a rich fruity delicacy made to 18th-century Lancastrian recipes, and the hot cross bun — because the EU commemoration is only two weeks before Easter. The Germans hope that bakers across the country will join the spirit of celebration and create the whole EU range. Preparations are even said to be under way to find a chef from each member state of the EU and fly them to Berlin to prepare a bakery banquet for European leaders on March 25. The recipes will all be available at: www.eu50.eu