IOO YEARS AGO THIS WEEK 17 - 23 AUGUST 1926
This week's many stories include the start of the building of the East Lancs Road, the withdrawal of Sutton Manor Colliery safety men, the Sutton burglar trio are brought to book, the fish that caught a fisherman, the police compassion for a troubled family and the railway outrage near St Helens Junction that could have led to a disaster.
Last week I wrote how a dispute was looming at some St Helens coalmines over so-called safety coal. The striking miners were allowing a skeleton staff to undertake vital safety work at the pits, including pumping out water to prevent flooding occurring. The engines that did such work needed coal to operate and the management of the mines said they had run out of stocks. And so they had given notice that they intended to mine fresh coal.
But at a large meeting of Sutton Manor Colliery miners held near the mine (pictured above) on the 17th, it was announced that all safety men at the colliery were being withdrawn. The union had accused the mine's managers of using blackleg labour to wind coal that could be sold.
And they stated that they would not allow any more safety work to be conducted unless the management gave an assurance that coal would not be wound for any purpose. But the colliery company contended that the coal that they had brought up was for safety use only and they needed some to operate pumps and conduct other safety work.
Striking miners had also been suspected of what was being described as a railway outrage near St Helens Junction. It had been found that the wooden pins that held down the line had, for a considerable length, been removed. Their removal might have caused the line to move and derail passing trains if the vandalism had not been quickly spotted. But when a group of small boys that had been found trespassing on the line were interviewed, they admitted committing the crime.
In court on the 17th it was stated that the lads had climbed a six-foot fence to gain access to the railway line. The Chairman of the Bench said what they had done was a terribly serious thing. He insisted that the parents of each boy give an undertaking that their children would never go on the line again and on that understanding he bound them over to be of good behaviour.
Two other boys were also in court charged with stone throwing. They had stationed themselves at Derbyshire Hill in Parr and stoned drivers of heavy motor-lorries bound for Manchester and had also thrown stones at car windscreens. They were also bound over.
Compassion by the police could be at a premium, although there were times when it was on show. However, in St Helens Police Court on the 18th, the sympathy that was expressed appeared to be more for the defendant's mother, rather than the man himself. The case concerned striking miner John Ball of Springfield Road who pleaded guilty to a charge of breaking into the British Legion Club and stealing a quantity of cigarettes. Inspector Steer told the Bench:
"This man's mother is a very decent woman and she is in great trouble over this affair. She also has a nephew lying dead at home, so we would like to reduce the charge from burglary to stealing." The Chairman said the police statement had been taken into consideration as they fined Ball ten shillings.
The aforementioned Inspector Percy Steer was a rising star in St Helens Police Force but would only serve for another year. In 1927 when in London on holiday, the then Chief Inspector fell out of his bedroom window in the middle of the night in a bizarre accident and his severe injuries led to him being invalided out of the force.
On the 18th one thousand men and women – believing that imported workers living in Haydock were bringing out coal at Sutton Manor Colliery – raided the mine. The police who were on duty tried to reason with the crowd and assured them that the workmen were safety men carrying out regular safety duties and that coal was not being sold or sent away.
The few such safety men that had gone down the pit were abused by the crowd. Threats were made and there were cries of, "If you do not come out we will fill up the pit and it will not take us long". There was a similar scene at Southport Colliery in Parr where four men stated that they intended to return to work. A large crowd tried to stop them but under police protection the men entered the mine.
The Liverpool Evening Express on the 18th wrote how a fish had caught a fisherman! William Henderson from Peter Street in St Helens and his brother Thomas had been night fishing on a Rainford reservoir belonging to Pilkingtons. They both fell asleep and when they woke they saw one of their rods moving swiftly up and down the surface of the water.
Thomas took off his clothes and plunged in to rescue his rod and ultimately succeeded in getting near the middle of the reservoir. But when he grasped hold of the rod, he found that the fish had caught him. Thomas was unable to make any headway and was instead dragged up and down the reservoir. After a struggle lasting 25 minutes he managed to get to the bank, remarking, "I have caught a whale!"
It took a further half-an-hour for Thomas and his brother to get the fish out. It was said to weigh 18½ pounds and was described as a magnificent specimen of carp, which was handed over to the owners of the reservoir as a trophy. But the St Helens Reporter later stated that the story had been exaggerated and the fish was really 10¾ pounds.
Another fish weighing 8 pounds had also been caught by the brothers and the two weights had been combined in the exaggerated version. The fish having caught a fisherman had occurred – but at a different time and that particular fish had eventually escaped.
Last week three young Sutton men had been charged with a number of cases of breaking and entering. Their cases had been remanded for a week as the police said their investigations were not complete. But on the 18th the trio returned to court and eight charges of burglary were preferred against Richard Proudlove of Powell Street.
Four of the offences were committed in Junction Lane. In one of the burglaries £4 5 shillings had been stolen from Todd's butchers. The same night that Proudlove was taken into custody, he bolted on the way to the police station and threw away a matchbox that was found to contain £1 5s 4d.
Proudlove was also accused with John Davies of Houghton Road of breaking into the East Sutton Labour Club and stealing bottles of whisky, cigarettes and chocolates. And John Grice of Powell Street was accused of receiving goods and, along with Proudlove, was charged with housebreaking and theft. The trio were committed to take their trial at the Liverpool Assizes and in October, the 18-year-old Proudlove and 20-year-old John Davies were sent to Borstal.
The judge told Proudlove: "The only course to save you from drifting into a regular criminal life is that you be detained in a Borstal institution for three years". The first such institution for delinquent youths had been established at the local prison at Borstal, near Rochester – hence the generic name given to such places. But 18-year-old Grice was given another chance and was bound over for 12 months. "To a great extent you have been led by the other two boys. There is still hope for you", said the judge.
"St. Helens And The Great New Road – Liverpool Scheme Sanctioned – Great Highway To The North Of St. Helens", were the headlines to a Reporter article on the 20th that heralded the start of work on building what would become known as the East Lancashire Road. Government approval had now been granted for the £3 million scheme, with construction work set to start in the autumn of 1926 and the Treasury had agreed to contribute 75% of the total cost. The new single lane highway was expected to take 4 - 5 years to complete and provide work for many unemployed men.
Recently, the Band of the Royal Air Force had performed in Victoria Park and their concert was described as one of the best musical performances ever heard in St Helens. This week the Reporter wrote how a "continuous procession of people" had wended their way along the whole length of North Road heading to Victoria Park to listen to the "magnificent" Band of HM Scots Guards. Over 2,000 music lovers were said to have received each piece with great enthusiasm.
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the two outcrop mining deaths, the 13-year-old thief who spent his ill-gotten gains in New Brighton, the war hero in despair over his missing wife and the singing of The Red Flag outside the Town Hall.
Last week I wrote how a dispute was looming at some St Helens coalmines over so-called safety coal. The striking miners were allowing a skeleton staff to undertake vital safety work at the pits, including pumping out water to prevent flooding occurring. The engines that did such work needed coal to operate and the management of the mines said they had run out of stocks. And so they had given notice that they intended to mine fresh coal.
And they stated that they would not allow any more safety work to be conducted unless the management gave an assurance that coal would not be wound for any purpose. But the colliery company contended that the coal that they had brought up was for safety use only and they needed some to operate pumps and conduct other safety work.
Striking miners had also been suspected of what was being described as a railway outrage near St Helens Junction. It had been found that the wooden pins that held down the line had, for a considerable length, been removed. Their removal might have caused the line to move and derail passing trains if the vandalism had not been quickly spotted. But when a group of small boys that had been found trespassing on the line were interviewed, they admitted committing the crime.
In court on the 17th it was stated that the lads had climbed a six-foot fence to gain access to the railway line. The Chairman of the Bench said what they had done was a terribly serious thing. He insisted that the parents of each boy give an undertaking that their children would never go on the line again and on that understanding he bound them over to be of good behaviour.
Two other boys were also in court charged with stone throwing. They had stationed themselves at Derbyshire Hill in Parr and stoned drivers of heavy motor-lorries bound for Manchester and had also thrown stones at car windscreens. They were also bound over.
Compassion by the police could be at a premium, although there were times when it was on show. However, in St Helens Police Court on the 18th, the sympathy that was expressed appeared to be more for the defendant's mother, rather than the man himself. The case concerned striking miner John Ball of Springfield Road who pleaded guilty to a charge of breaking into the British Legion Club and stealing a quantity of cigarettes. Inspector Steer told the Bench:
"This man's mother is a very decent woman and she is in great trouble over this affair. She also has a nephew lying dead at home, so we would like to reduce the charge from burglary to stealing." The Chairman said the police statement had been taken into consideration as they fined Ball ten shillings.
The aforementioned Inspector Percy Steer was a rising star in St Helens Police Force but would only serve for another year. In 1927 when in London on holiday, the then Chief Inspector fell out of his bedroom window in the middle of the night in a bizarre accident and his severe injuries led to him being invalided out of the force.
On the 18th one thousand men and women – believing that imported workers living in Haydock were bringing out coal at Sutton Manor Colliery – raided the mine. The police who were on duty tried to reason with the crowd and assured them that the workmen were safety men carrying out regular safety duties and that coal was not being sold or sent away.
The few such safety men that had gone down the pit were abused by the crowd. Threats were made and there were cries of, "If you do not come out we will fill up the pit and it will not take us long". There was a similar scene at Southport Colliery in Parr where four men stated that they intended to return to work. A large crowd tried to stop them but under police protection the men entered the mine.
The Liverpool Evening Express on the 18th wrote how a fish had caught a fisherman! William Henderson from Peter Street in St Helens and his brother Thomas had been night fishing on a Rainford reservoir belonging to Pilkingtons. They both fell asleep and when they woke they saw one of their rods moving swiftly up and down the surface of the water.
Thomas took off his clothes and plunged in to rescue his rod and ultimately succeeded in getting near the middle of the reservoir. But when he grasped hold of the rod, he found that the fish had caught him. Thomas was unable to make any headway and was instead dragged up and down the reservoir. After a struggle lasting 25 minutes he managed to get to the bank, remarking, "I have caught a whale!"
It took a further half-an-hour for Thomas and his brother to get the fish out. It was said to weigh 18½ pounds and was described as a magnificent specimen of carp, which was handed over to the owners of the reservoir as a trophy. But the St Helens Reporter later stated that the story had been exaggerated and the fish was really 10¾ pounds.
Another fish weighing 8 pounds had also been caught by the brothers and the two weights had been combined in the exaggerated version. The fish having caught a fisherman had occurred – but at a different time and that particular fish had eventually escaped.
Last week three young Sutton men had been charged with a number of cases of breaking and entering. Their cases had been remanded for a week as the police said their investigations were not complete. But on the 18th the trio returned to court and eight charges of burglary were preferred against Richard Proudlove of Powell Street.
Four of the offences were committed in Junction Lane. In one of the burglaries £4 5 shillings had been stolen from Todd's butchers. The same night that Proudlove was taken into custody, he bolted on the way to the police station and threw away a matchbox that was found to contain £1 5s 4d.
Proudlove was also accused with John Davies of Houghton Road of breaking into the East Sutton Labour Club and stealing bottles of whisky, cigarettes and chocolates. And John Grice of Powell Street was accused of receiving goods and, along with Proudlove, was charged with housebreaking and theft. The trio were committed to take their trial at the Liverpool Assizes and in October, the 18-year-old Proudlove and 20-year-old John Davies were sent to Borstal.
The judge told Proudlove: "The only course to save you from drifting into a regular criminal life is that you be detained in a Borstal institution for three years". The first such institution for delinquent youths had been established at the local prison at Borstal, near Rochester – hence the generic name given to such places. But 18-year-old Grice was given another chance and was bound over for 12 months. "To a great extent you have been led by the other two boys. There is still hope for you", said the judge.
"St. Helens And The Great New Road – Liverpool Scheme Sanctioned – Great Highway To The North Of St. Helens", were the headlines to a Reporter article on the 20th that heralded the start of work on building what would become known as the East Lancashire Road. Government approval had now been granted for the £3 million scheme, with construction work set to start in the autumn of 1926 and the Treasury had agreed to contribute 75% of the total cost. The new single lane highway was expected to take 4 - 5 years to complete and provide work for many unemployed men.
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the two outcrop mining deaths, the 13-year-old thief who spent his ill-gotten gains in New Brighton, the war hero in despair over his missing wife and the singing of The Red Flag outside the Town Hall.
This week's many stories include the start of the building of the East Lancs Road, the withdrawal of Sutton Manor Colliery safety men, the Sutton burglar trio are brought to book, the fish that caught a fisherman, the police compassion for a troubled family and the railway outrage near St Helens Junction that could have led to a disaster.
Last week I wrote how a dispute was looming at some St Helens coalmines over so-called safety coal.
The striking miners were allowing a skeleton staff to undertake vital safety work at the pits, including pumping out water to prevent flooding occurring.
The engines that did such work needed coal to operate and the management of the mines said they had run out of stocks.
And so they had given notice that they intended to mine fresh coal.
But at a large meeting of Sutton Manor Colliery miners held near the mine (pictured above) on the 17th, it was announced that all safety men at the colliery were being withdrawn.
The union had accused the mine's managers of using blackleg labour to wind coal that could be sold.
And they stated that they would not allow any more safety work to be conducted unless the management gave an assurance that coal would not be wound for any purpose.
But the colliery company contended that the coal that they had brought up was for safety use only and they needed some to operate pumps and conduct other safety work.
Striking miners had also been suspected of what was being described as a railway outrage near St Helens Junction.
It had been found that the wooden pins that held down the line had, for a considerable length, been removed.
Their removal might have caused the line to move and derail passing trains if the vandalism had not been quickly spotted.
But when a group of small boys that had been found trespassing on the line were interviewed, they admitted committing the crime.
In court on the 17th it was stated that the lads had climbed a six-foot fence to gain access to the railway line.
The Chairman of the Bench said what they had done was a terribly serious thing.
He insisted that the parents of each boy give an undertaking that their children would never go on the line again and on that understanding he bound them over to be of good behaviour.
Two other boys were also in court charged with stone throwing.
They had stationed themselves at Derbyshire Hill in Parr and stoned drivers of heavy motor-lorries bound for Manchester and had also thrown stones at car windscreens. They were also bound over.
Compassion by the police could be at a premium, although there were times when it was on show.
However, in St Helens Police Court on the 18th, the sympathy that was expressed appeared to be more for the defendant's mother, rather than the man himself.
The case concerned striking miner John Ball of Springfield Road who pleaded guilty to a charge of breaking into the British Legion Club and stealing a quantity of cigarettes. Inspector Steer told the Bench:
"This man's mother is a very decent woman and she is in great trouble over this affair. She also has a nephew lying dead at home, so we would like to reduce the charge from burglary to stealing."
The Chairman said the police statement had been taken into consideration as they fined Ball ten shillings.
The aforementioned Inspector Percy Steer was a rising star in St Helens Police Force but would only serve for another year.
In 1927 when in London on holiday, the then Chief Inspector fell out of his bedroom window in the middle of the night in a bizarre accident and his severe injuries led to him being invalided out of the force.
On the 18th one thousand men and women – believing that imported workers living in Haydock were bringing out coal at Sutton Manor Colliery – raided the mine.
The police who were on duty tried to reason with the crowd and assured them that the workmen were safety men carrying out regular safety duties and that coal was not being sold or sent away.
The few such safety men that had gone down the pit were abused by the crowd.
Threats were made and there were cries of, "If you do not come out we will fill up the pit and it will not take us long".
There was a similar scene at Southport Colliery in Parr where four men stated that they intended to return to work.
A large crowd tried to stop them but under police protection the men entered the mine.
The Liverpool Evening Express on the 18th wrote how a fish had caught a fisherman!
William Henderson from Peter Street in St Helens and his brother Thomas had been night fishing on a Rainford reservoir belonging to Pilkingtons.
They both fell asleep and when they woke they saw one of their rods moving swiftly up and down the surface of the water.
Thomas took off his clothes and plunged in to rescue his rod and ultimately succeeded in getting near the middle of the reservoir.
But when he grasped hold of the rod, he found that the fish had caught him.
Thomas was unable to make any headway and was instead dragged up and down the reservoir.
After a struggle lasting 25 minutes he managed to get to the bank, remarking, "I have caught a whale!"
It took a further half-an-hour for Thomas and his brother to get the fish out. It was said to weigh 18½ pounds and was described as a magnificent specimen of carp, which was handed over to the owners of the reservoir as a trophy.
But the St Helens Reporter later stated that the story had been exaggerated and the fish was really 10¾ pounds.
Another fish weighing 8 pounds had also been caught by the brothers and the two weights had been combined in the exaggerated version.
The fish having caught a fisherman had occurred – but at a different time and that particular fish had eventually escaped.
Last week three young Sutton men had been charged with a number of cases of breaking and entering.
Their cases had been remanded for a week as the police said their investigations were not complete.
But on the 18th the trio returned to court and eight charges of burglary were preferred against Richard Proudlove of Powell Street.
Four of the offences were committed in Junction Lane. In one of the burglaries £4 5 shillings had been stolen from Todd's butchers.
The same night that Proudlove was taken into custody, he bolted on the way to the police station and threw away a matchbox that was found to contain £1 5s 4d.
Proudlove was also accused with John Davies of Houghton Road of breaking into the East Sutton Labour Club and stealing bottles of whisky, cigarettes and chocolates.
And John Grice of Powell Street was accused of receiving goods and, along with Proudlove, was charged with housebreaking and theft.
The trio were committed to take their trial at the Liverpool Assizes and in October, the 18-year-old Proudlove and 20-year-old John Davies were sent to Borstal.
The judge told Proudlove: "The only course to save you from drifting into a regular criminal life is that you be detained in a Borstal institution for three years".
The first such institution for delinquent youths had been established at the local prison at Borstal, near Rochester – hence the generic name given to such places.
But 18-year-old Grice was given another chance and was bound over for 12 months. "To a great extent you have been led by the other two boys. There is still hope for you", said the judge.
"St. Helens And The Great New Road – Liverpool Scheme Sanctioned – Great Highway To The North Of St. Helens", were the headlines to a Reporter article on the 20th that heralded the start of work on building what would become known as the East Lancashire Road.
Government approval had now been granted for the £3 million scheme, with construction work set to start in the autumn of 1926 and the Treasury had agreed to contribute 75% of the total cost.
The new single lane highway was expected to take 4 - 5 years to complete and provide work for many unemployed men.
Recently, the Band of the Royal Air Force had performed in Victoria Park and their concert was described as one of the best musical performances ever heard in St Helens.
This week the Reporter wrote how a "continuous procession of people" had wended their way along the whole length of North Road heading to Victoria Park to listen to the "magnificent" Band of HM Scots Guards.
Over 2,000 music lovers were said to have received each piece with great enthusiasm.
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the two outcrop mining deaths, the 13-year-old thief who spent his ill-gotten gains in New Brighton, the war hero in despair over his missing wife and the singing of The Red Flag outside the Town Hall.
Last week I wrote how a dispute was looming at some St Helens coalmines over so-called safety coal.
The striking miners were allowing a skeleton staff to undertake vital safety work at the pits, including pumping out water to prevent flooding occurring.
The engines that did such work needed coal to operate and the management of the mines said they had run out of stocks.
And so they had given notice that they intended to mine fresh coal.
The union had accused the mine's managers of using blackleg labour to wind coal that could be sold.
And they stated that they would not allow any more safety work to be conducted unless the management gave an assurance that coal would not be wound for any purpose.
But the colliery company contended that the coal that they had brought up was for safety use only and they needed some to operate pumps and conduct other safety work.
Striking miners had also been suspected of what was being described as a railway outrage near St Helens Junction.
It had been found that the wooden pins that held down the line had, for a considerable length, been removed.
Their removal might have caused the line to move and derail passing trains if the vandalism had not been quickly spotted.
But when a group of small boys that had been found trespassing on the line were interviewed, they admitted committing the crime.
In court on the 17th it was stated that the lads had climbed a six-foot fence to gain access to the railway line.
The Chairman of the Bench said what they had done was a terribly serious thing.
He insisted that the parents of each boy give an undertaking that their children would never go on the line again and on that understanding he bound them over to be of good behaviour.
Two other boys were also in court charged with stone throwing.
They had stationed themselves at Derbyshire Hill in Parr and stoned drivers of heavy motor-lorries bound for Manchester and had also thrown stones at car windscreens. They were also bound over.
Compassion by the police could be at a premium, although there were times when it was on show.
However, in St Helens Police Court on the 18th, the sympathy that was expressed appeared to be more for the defendant's mother, rather than the man himself.
The case concerned striking miner John Ball of Springfield Road who pleaded guilty to a charge of breaking into the British Legion Club and stealing a quantity of cigarettes. Inspector Steer told the Bench:
"This man's mother is a very decent woman and she is in great trouble over this affair. She also has a nephew lying dead at home, so we would like to reduce the charge from burglary to stealing."
The Chairman said the police statement had been taken into consideration as they fined Ball ten shillings.
The aforementioned Inspector Percy Steer was a rising star in St Helens Police Force but would only serve for another year.
In 1927 when in London on holiday, the then Chief Inspector fell out of his bedroom window in the middle of the night in a bizarre accident and his severe injuries led to him being invalided out of the force.
On the 18th one thousand men and women – believing that imported workers living in Haydock were bringing out coal at Sutton Manor Colliery – raided the mine.
The police who were on duty tried to reason with the crowd and assured them that the workmen were safety men carrying out regular safety duties and that coal was not being sold or sent away.
The few such safety men that had gone down the pit were abused by the crowd.
Threats were made and there were cries of, "If you do not come out we will fill up the pit and it will not take us long".
There was a similar scene at Southport Colliery in Parr where four men stated that they intended to return to work.
A large crowd tried to stop them but under police protection the men entered the mine.
The Liverpool Evening Express on the 18th wrote how a fish had caught a fisherman!
William Henderson from Peter Street in St Helens and his brother Thomas had been night fishing on a Rainford reservoir belonging to Pilkingtons.
They both fell asleep and when they woke they saw one of their rods moving swiftly up and down the surface of the water.
Thomas took off his clothes and plunged in to rescue his rod and ultimately succeeded in getting near the middle of the reservoir.
But when he grasped hold of the rod, he found that the fish had caught him.
Thomas was unable to make any headway and was instead dragged up and down the reservoir.
After a struggle lasting 25 minutes he managed to get to the bank, remarking, "I have caught a whale!"
It took a further half-an-hour for Thomas and his brother to get the fish out. It was said to weigh 18½ pounds and was described as a magnificent specimen of carp, which was handed over to the owners of the reservoir as a trophy.
But the St Helens Reporter later stated that the story had been exaggerated and the fish was really 10¾ pounds.
Another fish weighing 8 pounds had also been caught by the brothers and the two weights had been combined in the exaggerated version.
The fish having caught a fisherman had occurred – but at a different time and that particular fish had eventually escaped.
Last week three young Sutton men had been charged with a number of cases of breaking and entering.
Their cases had been remanded for a week as the police said their investigations were not complete.
But on the 18th the trio returned to court and eight charges of burglary were preferred against Richard Proudlove of Powell Street.
Four of the offences were committed in Junction Lane. In one of the burglaries £4 5 shillings had been stolen from Todd's butchers.
The same night that Proudlove was taken into custody, he bolted on the way to the police station and threw away a matchbox that was found to contain £1 5s 4d.
Proudlove was also accused with John Davies of Houghton Road of breaking into the East Sutton Labour Club and stealing bottles of whisky, cigarettes and chocolates.
And John Grice of Powell Street was accused of receiving goods and, along with Proudlove, was charged with housebreaking and theft.
The trio were committed to take their trial at the Liverpool Assizes and in October, the 18-year-old Proudlove and 20-year-old John Davies were sent to Borstal.
The judge told Proudlove: "The only course to save you from drifting into a regular criminal life is that you be detained in a Borstal institution for three years".
The first such institution for delinquent youths had been established at the local prison at Borstal, near Rochester – hence the generic name given to such places.
But 18-year-old Grice was given another chance and was bound over for 12 months. "To a great extent you have been led by the other two boys. There is still hope for you", said the judge.
"St. Helens And The Great New Road – Liverpool Scheme Sanctioned – Great Highway To The North Of St. Helens", were the headlines to a Reporter article on the 20th that heralded the start of work on building what would become known as the East Lancashire Road.
Government approval had now been granted for the £3 million scheme, with construction work set to start in the autumn of 1926 and the Treasury had agreed to contribute 75% of the total cost.
The new single lane highway was expected to take 4 - 5 years to complete and provide work for many unemployed men.
This week the Reporter wrote how a "continuous procession of people" had wended their way along the whole length of North Road heading to Victoria Park to listen to the "magnificent" Band of HM Scots Guards.
Over 2,000 music lovers were said to have received each piece with great enthusiasm.
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the two outcrop mining deaths, the 13-year-old thief who spent his ill-gotten gains in New Brighton, the war hero in despair over his missing wife and the singing of The Red Flag outside the Town Hall.