IOO YEARS AGO THIS WEEK (19th - 25th DECEMBER 1922)
This week's stories include the poor children's Christmas party, the female bigamist who asked her husband for a certificate of freedom, Father Christmas visits St Helens hospitals, the two 13-year-old girl shoplifters that deserved to be soundly birched, the children involved in a St Helens gambling house and the fun with blindfolds and geese that Rainford Potteries staff had at their Christmas party.
When Father Christmas visited St Helens hospitals during the 1920s, he always arrived a few days before December 25th. Well, he would have been very busy on that day wouldn't he? In 1922 Santa came on the 19th with two fairies in tow. One carried his train, and the other a basket of new-laid eggs. Oh, and there was also a bugler who heralded his coming with a fanfare. Now that's class!
First stop was Providence Hospital's children's ward, which the Reporter said was "brightly bedecked when the benevolent party arrived", with the 25 little patients reported to be in a state of "high glee". Then it was onto St Helens Hospital and the Old Whint Institution in Haydock, with the sanatorium at Eccleston Hall having been visited earlier.
"The party had an enthusiastic reception everywhere", wrote the Reporter. "Father Christmas had a large teddy bear on his back, and a huge sack of toys, etc., when he entered the various wards, and he was soon relieved of his burden and gave each of the little mites an apple, orange, a bag of chocolates and sweets, and a toy, and the elf with the eggs gave each one a new-laid egg."
Also on the 19th a curious bigamy case was heard at St Helens Police Court when Mary Latham from Woodlands Road in Haresfinch appeared in the dock. The woman had married Edward Latham at St Helens in 1916 while he was in the army and two years later had given birth to a child. Now living in Gillars Green, Latham told the court that when he heard about the birth while in France, he realised that the child could not possibly be his.
In January 1922 his wife asked if he would have any objection to her getting married again. Edward said he would not mind and Mary asked him to write a letter to that effect, which he did. She told the court that she was under the impression that while in possession of such a "certificate of freedom", she was legally entitled to re-marry. Mary Latham was committed for trial at the Assizes but was allowed bail and on January 30th the 24-year-old was sentenced to 14 days in prison.
The usual sentence for bigamy was somewhere between 3 and 9 months. And so a fortnight was a short term of imprisonment for what the judge called not much more than a technical offence. At the same hearing a Liverpool seaman admitted bigamy after his wife had been convicted of the same offence two years before. That was in May 1919 and the man told the police that upon her conviction, he thought he was free to re-marry without the need for a divorce. He also received two weeks in prison.
The annual smoking concert of the St Helens Glee Club took place on the 20th in the Fleece Hotel (pictured above). A surgeon called Dr Stanley Siddall from Prescot Road was the conductor of the choir.
When on the 21st two girls called Layland and Cahill appeared in St Helens Police Court, it was claimed that they had stolen goods from over twenty shops. Superintendent Dunn told the court that the 13-year-olds had also admitted stealing several purses. The magistrates ordered their parents to pay 17s 6d costs each and they placed both girls on probation for two years.
Birching of girls had long been banned and the Bench told them that if they had been boys they would have been "soundly birched, and they well deserved it". The parents were warned that they must exercise control over their girls or they would end up confirmed criminals.
In court on the 22nd Bridget Lewis was charged with using her house in Ann Street in St Helens for betting purposes. A bookmaker called Thomas Platt of Lawrenson Street, near Croppers Hill, was also charged with using Mrs Lewis's home for betting and her 16-year-old daughter Ellen was charged with assisting. The police described keeping the home under observation on two separate dates and seeing a large number of people entering to place bets.
The most serious part of the affair was, they said, the large number of those taking bets being children. When the police attempted to raid the house Mrs Lewis held the door and told her daughter to throw the betting slips on the fire. However, they managed to push the door open and obtain some of the slips as evidence. Both defendants were fined £15 and told that to carry on such business with boys and girls was a very serious matter. The charge against 16-year-old Ellen Lewis was withdrawn.
It would be a miserable Christmas for several mineworkers' families this year. Joseph Wilson was the manager of Collins Green Colliery and on the 22nd he was killed by runaway boxes of coal. The 33-year-old married man had only managed the mine for nine months and lived in Bold. On the same day inquests were held at St Helens Town Hall on two men who had died at Alexandra Colliery (pictured above).
William Hardman and Richard Hunter had been sent down a shaft to dismantle a water pump and were killed by a gas explosion in some old workings. Hardman's body was found in water at the bottom of the shaft with his clothing burnt off. Hunter had been able to signal to the engine winder on the surface to haul the pit cage up.
Upon its arrival some 90 seconds later, he was found to be on fire inside and very badly burned. Before dying in hospital, he said he had warned Hardman not to go far with his lamp due to the danger. Although electric torches had been issued to the men, they were described as ineffective when working in wide shafts and so open flame lights had been employed instead.
Last year with high levels of unemployment affecting the town, the people of St Helens were encouraged to donate to a fund set up by the mayor to provide a Christmas party for poor children. As a result a thousand kids were fed and entertained. The party had now become an annual event and on the 22nd it was held across several centres in St Helens. The Mayor, Ald. Peter Phythian, had been the driving force of the fundraising and subsequently had this letter published in the Reporter:
"The Mayoress and myself visited each centre during the afternoon, and we shall never forget the scenes of happiness and joy – two thousand bright, smiling little ones confidently awaiting the arrival of Father Christmas. Neither shall we ever forget the cheering of the children when Father Christmas actually arrived. It was a memorable afternoon, and the local committee are indebted to every one of the band of voluntary stewards, by whose efforts the arrangements for the party were carried through at each centre without a hitch."
The Reporter described on the 22nd how an out of work miner had been sent to prison for 14 days. Thomas Maloney of Brown Street in Parr pleaded guilty to a charge of making false representations to obtain unemployment relief. The man had declared that he was maintaining his wife – but the couple had been separated for 7 years and during that time he had not paid her a penny in support.
On the 23rd Rainford Potteries held their third annual Christmas treat for their workers – and a curious game was played with geese! This is how the Reporter described the fun: "Saturday afternoon was reserved entirely for the married men and their wives. In one of the pottery fields 30 geese were laid in a row, and much merriment was created as the thirty married men – blindfolded – groped their way towards them.
"Falls and collisions were frequent, but that mattered little. With a hearty laugh the men persevered with their groping until finally their fingers touched a bird. Not till then were they allowed to remove the bandage and claim the goose as their own. A ladies' race also caused considerable interest."
Meanwhile at the Engineer Hall in Croppers Hill, nearly 500 children of servicemen from the corps that had been killed in the war enjoyed their fourth annual Christmas party. "The children had a happy and hilarious time", said the Reporter.
An appeal had also gone out from the Mayor of St Helens for contributions to a fund to provide Christmas boxes to the 4,000 unemployed persons in the town. As a result parcels containing groceries and fruit were handed out to those out of work, with married men with children receiving the most. It was the 1922 version of a food bank, although many of those reduced to part-time work and who would still have been suffering great hardship would not have qualified for the hand-out.
On Christmas Eve Nutgrove Methodists' augmented choir comprising 120 voices put on a performance of 'The Messiah' at the Nutgrove Wesley Church. It was a tradition for church carol singers to go round the town late on Christmas Eve serenading the townsfolk and this year a band was also out on the streets.
And finally a rumour that a woman had been murdered spread round the town over Christmas after a woman's body was discovered at Sherdley Glassworks. That turned out not to have been the case and I'll report on her inquest in next week's article.
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next week's stories will include the Christmas shopping trip that turned into tragedy, the raving madman and the Tontine Street teapot, the Christmas court cases and the many insanitary houses in St Helens that could not be demolished.
When Father Christmas visited St Helens hospitals during the 1920s, he always arrived a few days before December 25th. Well, he would have been very busy on that day wouldn't he? In 1922 Santa came on the 19th with two fairies in tow. One carried his train, and the other a basket of new-laid eggs. Oh, and there was also a bugler who heralded his coming with a fanfare. Now that's class!
First stop was Providence Hospital's children's ward, which the Reporter said was "brightly bedecked when the benevolent party arrived", with the 25 little patients reported to be in a state of "high glee". Then it was onto St Helens Hospital and the Old Whint Institution in Haydock, with the sanatorium at Eccleston Hall having been visited earlier.
"The party had an enthusiastic reception everywhere", wrote the Reporter. "Father Christmas had a large teddy bear on his back, and a huge sack of toys, etc., when he entered the various wards, and he was soon relieved of his burden and gave each of the little mites an apple, orange, a bag of chocolates and sweets, and a toy, and the elf with the eggs gave each one a new-laid egg."
Also on the 19th a curious bigamy case was heard at St Helens Police Court when Mary Latham from Woodlands Road in Haresfinch appeared in the dock. The woman had married Edward Latham at St Helens in 1916 while he was in the army and two years later had given birth to a child. Now living in Gillars Green, Latham told the court that when he heard about the birth while in France, he realised that the child could not possibly be his.
In January 1922 his wife asked if he would have any objection to her getting married again. Edward said he would not mind and Mary asked him to write a letter to that effect, which he did. She told the court that she was under the impression that while in possession of such a "certificate of freedom", she was legally entitled to re-marry. Mary Latham was committed for trial at the Assizes but was allowed bail and on January 30th the 24-year-old was sentenced to 14 days in prison.
The usual sentence for bigamy was somewhere between 3 and 9 months. And so a fortnight was a short term of imprisonment for what the judge called not much more than a technical offence. At the same hearing a Liverpool seaman admitted bigamy after his wife had been convicted of the same offence two years before. That was in May 1919 and the man told the police that upon her conviction, he thought he was free to re-marry without the need for a divorce. He also received two weeks in prison.
When on the 21st two girls called Layland and Cahill appeared in St Helens Police Court, it was claimed that they had stolen goods from over twenty shops. Superintendent Dunn told the court that the 13-year-olds had also admitted stealing several purses. The magistrates ordered their parents to pay 17s 6d costs each and they placed both girls on probation for two years.
Birching of girls had long been banned and the Bench told them that if they had been boys they would have been "soundly birched, and they well deserved it". The parents were warned that they must exercise control over their girls or they would end up confirmed criminals.
In court on the 22nd Bridget Lewis was charged with using her house in Ann Street in St Helens for betting purposes. A bookmaker called Thomas Platt of Lawrenson Street, near Croppers Hill, was also charged with using Mrs Lewis's home for betting and her 16-year-old daughter Ellen was charged with assisting. The police described keeping the home under observation on two separate dates and seeing a large number of people entering to place bets.
The most serious part of the affair was, they said, the large number of those taking bets being children. When the police attempted to raid the house Mrs Lewis held the door and told her daughter to throw the betting slips on the fire. However, they managed to push the door open and obtain some of the slips as evidence. Both defendants were fined £15 and told that to carry on such business with boys and girls was a very serious matter. The charge against 16-year-old Ellen Lewis was withdrawn.
William Hardman and Richard Hunter had been sent down a shaft to dismantle a water pump and were killed by a gas explosion in some old workings. Hardman's body was found in water at the bottom of the shaft with his clothing burnt off. Hunter had been able to signal to the engine winder on the surface to haul the pit cage up.
Upon its arrival some 90 seconds later, he was found to be on fire inside and very badly burned. Before dying in hospital, he said he had warned Hardman not to go far with his lamp due to the danger. Although electric torches had been issued to the men, they were described as ineffective when working in wide shafts and so open flame lights had been employed instead.
Last year with high levels of unemployment affecting the town, the people of St Helens were encouraged to donate to a fund set up by the mayor to provide a Christmas party for poor children. As a result a thousand kids were fed and entertained. The party had now become an annual event and on the 22nd it was held across several centres in St Helens. The Mayor, Ald. Peter Phythian, had been the driving force of the fundraising and subsequently had this letter published in the Reporter:
"The Mayoress and myself visited each centre during the afternoon, and we shall never forget the scenes of happiness and joy – two thousand bright, smiling little ones confidently awaiting the arrival of Father Christmas. Neither shall we ever forget the cheering of the children when Father Christmas actually arrived. It was a memorable afternoon, and the local committee are indebted to every one of the band of voluntary stewards, by whose efforts the arrangements for the party were carried through at each centre without a hitch."
The Reporter described on the 22nd how an out of work miner had been sent to prison for 14 days. Thomas Maloney of Brown Street in Parr pleaded guilty to a charge of making false representations to obtain unemployment relief. The man had declared that he was maintaining his wife – but the couple had been separated for 7 years and during that time he had not paid her a penny in support.
On the 23rd Rainford Potteries held their third annual Christmas treat for their workers – and a curious game was played with geese! This is how the Reporter described the fun: "Saturday afternoon was reserved entirely for the married men and their wives. In one of the pottery fields 30 geese were laid in a row, and much merriment was created as the thirty married men – blindfolded – groped their way towards them.
"Falls and collisions were frequent, but that mattered little. With a hearty laugh the men persevered with their groping until finally their fingers touched a bird. Not till then were they allowed to remove the bandage and claim the goose as their own. A ladies' race also caused considerable interest."
Meanwhile at the Engineer Hall in Croppers Hill, nearly 500 children of servicemen from the corps that had been killed in the war enjoyed their fourth annual Christmas party. "The children had a happy and hilarious time", said the Reporter.
An appeal had also gone out from the Mayor of St Helens for contributions to a fund to provide Christmas boxes to the 4,000 unemployed persons in the town. As a result parcels containing groceries and fruit were handed out to those out of work, with married men with children receiving the most. It was the 1922 version of a food bank, although many of those reduced to part-time work and who would still have been suffering great hardship would not have qualified for the hand-out.
On Christmas Eve Nutgrove Methodists' augmented choir comprising 120 voices put on a performance of 'The Messiah' at the Nutgrove Wesley Church. It was a tradition for church carol singers to go round the town late on Christmas Eve serenading the townsfolk and this year a band was also out on the streets.
And finally a rumour that a woman had been murdered spread round the town over Christmas after a woman's body was discovered at Sherdley Glassworks. That turned out not to have been the case and I'll report on her inquest in next week's article.
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next week's stories will include the Christmas shopping trip that turned into tragedy, the raving madman and the Tontine Street teapot, the Christmas court cases and the many insanitary houses in St Helens that could not be demolished.
This week's stories include the poor children's Christmas party, the female bigamist who asked her husband for a certificate of freedom, Father Christmas visits St Helens hospitals, the two 13-year-old girl shoplifters that deserved to be soundly birched, the children involved in a St Helens gambling house and the fun with blindfolds and geese that Rainford Potteries staff had at their Christmas party.
When Father Christmas visited St Helens hospitals during the 1920s, he always arrived a few days before December 25th. Well, he would have been very busy on that day wouldn't he?
In 1922 Santa came on the 19th with two fairies in tow. One carried his train, and the other a basket of new-laid eggs. Oh, and there was also a bugler who heralded his coming with a fanfare. Now that's class!
First stop was Providence Hospital's children's ward, which the Reporter said was "brightly bedecked when the benevolent party arrived", with the 25 little patients reported to be in a state of "high glee".
Then it was onto St Helens Hospital and the Old Whint Institution in Haydock, with the sanatorium at Eccleston Hall having been visited earlier.
"The party had an enthusiastic reception everywhere", wrote the Reporter. "Father Christmas had a large teddy bear on his back, and a huge sack of toys, etc., when he entered the various wards, and he was soon relieved of his burden and gave each of the little mites an apple, orange, a bag of chocolates and sweets, and a toy, and the elf with the eggs gave each one a new-laid egg."
Also on the 19th a curious bigamy case was heard at St Helens Police Court when Mary Latham from Woodlands Road in Haresfinch appeared in the dock.
The woman had married Edward Latham at St Helens in 1916 while he was in the army and two years later had given birth to a child.
Now living in Gillars Green, Latham told the court that when he heard about the birth while in France, he realised that the child could not possibly be his.
In January 1922 his wife asked if he would have any objection to her getting married again. Edward said he would not mind and Mary asked him to write a letter to that effect, which he did.
She told the court that she was under the impression that while in possession of such a "certificate of freedom", she was legally entitled to re-marry.
Mary Latham was committed for trial at the Assizes but was allowed bail and on January 30th the 24-year-old was sentenced to 14 days in prison.
The usual sentence for bigamy was somewhere between 3 and 9 months. And so a fortnight was a short term of imprisonment for what the judge called not much more than a technical offence.
At the same hearing a Liverpool seaman admitted bigamy after his wife had been convicted of the same offence two years before.
That was in May 1919 and the man told the police that upon her conviction, he thought he was free to re-marry without the need for a divorce. He also received two weeks in prison.
The annual smoking concert of the St Helens Glee Club took place on the 20th in the Fleece Hotel (pictured above). A surgeon called Dr Stanley Siddall from Prescot Road was the conductor of the choir.
When on the 21st two girls called Layland and Cahill appeared in St Helens Police Court, it was claimed that they had stolen goods from over twenty shops.
Superintendent Dunn told the court that the 13-year-olds had also admitted stealing several purses.
The magistrates ordered their parents to pay 17s 6d costs each and they placed both girls on probation for two years.
Birching of girls had long been banned and the Bench told them that if they had been boys they would have been "soundly birched, and they well deserved it".
The parents were warned that they must exercise control over their girls or they would end up confirmed criminals.
In court on the 22nd Bridget Lewis was charged with using her house in Ann Street in St Helens for betting purposes.
A bookmaker called Thomas Platt of Lawrenson Street, near Croppers Hill, was also charged with using Mrs Lewis's home for betting and her 16-year-old daughter Ellen was charged with assisting.
The police described keeping the home under observation on two separate dates and seeing a large number of people entering to place bets.
The most serious part of the affair was, they said, the large number of those taking bets being children.
When the police attempted to raid the house Mrs Lewis held the door and told her daughter to throw the betting slips on the fire.
However, they managed to push the door open and obtain some of the slips as evidence.
Both defendants were fined £15 and told that to carry on such business with boys and girls was a very serious matter. The charge against 16-year-old Ellen Lewis was withdrawn.
It would be a miserable Christmas for several mineworkers' families this year. Joseph Wilson was the manager of Collins Green Colliery and on the 22nd he was killed by runaway boxes of coal.
The 33-year-old married man had only managed the mine for nine months and lived in Bold.
On the same day inquests were held at St Helens Town Hall on two men who had died at Alexandra Colliery (pictured above).
William Hardman and Richard Hunter had been sent down a shaft to dismantle a water pump and were killed by a gas explosion in some old workings.
Hardman's body was found in water at the bottom of the shaft with his clothing burnt off.
Hunter had been able to signal to the engine winder on the surface to haul the pit cage up. Upon its arrival some 90 seconds later, he was found to be on fire inside and very badly burned.
Before dying in hospital, he said he had warned Hardman not to go far with his lamp due to the danger.
Although electric torches had been issued to the men, they were described as ineffective when working in wide shafts and so open flame lights had been employed instead.
Last year with high levels of unemployment affecting the town, the people of St Helens were encouraged to donate to a fund set up by the mayor to provide a Christmas party for poor children. As a result a thousand kids were fed and entertained.
The party had now become an annual event and on the 22nd it was held across several centres in St Helens. The Mayor, Ald. Peter Phythian, had been the driving force of the fundraising and subsequently had this letter published in the Reporter:
"The Mayoress and myself visited each centre during the afternoon, and we shall never forget the scenes of happiness and joy – two thousand bright, smiling little ones confidently awaiting the arrival of Father Christmas.
"Neither shall we ever forget the cheering of the children when Father Christmas actually arrived.
"It was a memorable afternoon, and the local committee are indebted to every one of the band of voluntary stewards, by whose efforts the arrangements for the party were carried through at each centre without a hitch."
The Reporter described on the 22nd how an out of work miner had been sent to prison for 14 days.
Thomas Maloney of Brown Street in Parr pleaded guilty to a charge of making false representations to obtain unemployment relief.
The man had declared that he was maintaining his wife – but the couple had been separated for 7 years and during that time he had not paid her a penny in support.
On the 23rd Rainford Potteries held their third annual Christmas treat for their workers – and a curious game was played with geese! This is how the Reporter described the fun:
"Saturday afternoon was reserved entirely for the married men and their wives. In one of the pottery fields 30 geese were laid in a row, and much merriment was created as the thirty married men – blindfolded – groped their way towards them.
"Falls and collisions were frequent, but that mattered little. With a hearty laugh the men persevered with their groping until finally their fingers touched a bird.
"Not till then were they allowed to remove the bandage and claim the goose as their own. A ladies' race also caused considerable interest."
Meanwhile at the Engineer Hall in Croppers Hill, nearly 500 children of servicemen from the corps that had been killed in the war enjoyed their fourth annual Christmas party.
"The children had a happy and hilarious time", said the Reporter.
An appeal had also gone out from the Mayor of St Helens for contributions to a fund to provide Christmas boxes to the 4,000 unemployed persons in the town.
As a result parcels containing groceries and fruit were handed out to those out of work, with married men with children receiving the most.
It was the 1922 version of a food bank, although many of those reduced to part-time work and who would still have been suffering great hardship would not have qualified for the hand-out.
On Christmas Eve Nutgrove Methodists' augmented choir comprising 120 voices put on a performance of 'The Messiah' at the Nutgrove Wesley Church.
It was a tradition for church carol singers to go round the town late on Christmas Eve serenading the townsfolk and this year a band was also out on the streets.
And finally a rumour that a woman had been murdered spread round the town over Christmas after a woman's body was discovered at Sherdley Glassworks.
That turned out not to have been the case and I'll report on her inquest in next week's post.
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next week's stories will include the Christmas shopping trip that turned into tragedy, the raving madman and the Tontine Street teapot, the Christmas court cases and the many insanitary houses in St Helens that could not be demolished.
When Father Christmas visited St Helens hospitals during the 1920s, he always arrived a few days before December 25th. Well, he would have been very busy on that day wouldn't he?
In 1922 Santa came on the 19th with two fairies in tow. One carried his train, and the other a basket of new-laid eggs. Oh, and there was also a bugler who heralded his coming with a fanfare. Now that's class!
First stop was Providence Hospital's children's ward, which the Reporter said was "brightly bedecked when the benevolent party arrived", with the 25 little patients reported to be in a state of "high glee".
Then it was onto St Helens Hospital and the Old Whint Institution in Haydock, with the sanatorium at Eccleston Hall having been visited earlier.
"The party had an enthusiastic reception everywhere", wrote the Reporter. "Father Christmas had a large teddy bear on his back, and a huge sack of toys, etc., when he entered the various wards, and he was soon relieved of his burden and gave each of the little mites an apple, orange, a bag of chocolates and sweets, and a toy, and the elf with the eggs gave each one a new-laid egg."
Also on the 19th a curious bigamy case was heard at St Helens Police Court when Mary Latham from Woodlands Road in Haresfinch appeared in the dock.
The woman had married Edward Latham at St Helens in 1916 while he was in the army and two years later had given birth to a child.
Now living in Gillars Green, Latham told the court that when he heard about the birth while in France, he realised that the child could not possibly be his.
In January 1922 his wife asked if he would have any objection to her getting married again. Edward said he would not mind and Mary asked him to write a letter to that effect, which he did.
She told the court that she was under the impression that while in possession of such a "certificate of freedom", she was legally entitled to re-marry.
Mary Latham was committed for trial at the Assizes but was allowed bail and on January 30th the 24-year-old was sentenced to 14 days in prison.
The usual sentence for bigamy was somewhere between 3 and 9 months. And so a fortnight was a short term of imprisonment for what the judge called not much more than a technical offence.
At the same hearing a Liverpool seaman admitted bigamy after his wife had been convicted of the same offence two years before.
That was in May 1919 and the man told the police that upon her conviction, he thought he was free to re-marry without the need for a divorce. He also received two weeks in prison.
When on the 21st two girls called Layland and Cahill appeared in St Helens Police Court, it was claimed that they had stolen goods from over twenty shops.
Superintendent Dunn told the court that the 13-year-olds had also admitted stealing several purses.
The magistrates ordered their parents to pay 17s 6d costs each and they placed both girls on probation for two years.
Birching of girls had long been banned and the Bench told them that if they had been boys they would have been "soundly birched, and they well deserved it".
The parents were warned that they must exercise control over their girls or they would end up confirmed criminals.
In court on the 22nd Bridget Lewis was charged with using her house in Ann Street in St Helens for betting purposes.
A bookmaker called Thomas Platt of Lawrenson Street, near Croppers Hill, was also charged with using Mrs Lewis's home for betting and her 16-year-old daughter Ellen was charged with assisting.
The police described keeping the home under observation on two separate dates and seeing a large number of people entering to place bets.
The most serious part of the affair was, they said, the large number of those taking bets being children.
When the police attempted to raid the house Mrs Lewis held the door and told her daughter to throw the betting slips on the fire.
However, they managed to push the door open and obtain some of the slips as evidence.
Both defendants were fined £15 and told that to carry on such business with boys and girls was a very serious matter. The charge against 16-year-old Ellen Lewis was withdrawn.
It would be a miserable Christmas for several mineworkers' families this year. Joseph Wilson was the manager of Collins Green Colliery and on the 22nd he was killed by runaway boxes of coal.
The 33-year-old married man had only managed the mine for nine months and lived in Bold.
William Hardman and Richard Hunter had been sent down a shaft to dismantle a water pump and were killed by a gas explosion in some old workings.
Hardman's body was found in water at the bottom of the shaft with his clothing burnt off.
Hunter had been able to signal to the engine winder on the surface to haul the pit cage up. Upon its arrival some 90 seconds later, he was found to be on fire inside and very badly burned.
Before dying in hospital, he said he had warned Hardman not to go far with his lamp due to the danger.
Although electric torches had been issued to the men, they were described as ineffective when working in wide shafts and so open flame lights had been employed instead.
Last year with high levels of unemployment affecting the town, the people of St Helens were encouraged to donate to a fund set up by the mayor to provide a Christmas party for poor children. As a result a thousand kids were fed and entertained.
The party had now become an annual event and on the 22nd it was held across several centres in St Helens. The Mayor, Ald. Peter Phythian, had been the driving force of the fundraising and subsequently had this letter published in the Reporter:
"The Mayoress and myself visited each centre during the afternoon, and we shall never forget the scenes of happiness and joy – two thousand bright, smiling little ones confidently awaiting the arrival of Father Christmas.
"Neither shall we ever forget the cheering of the children when Father Christmas actually arrived.
"It was a memorable afternoon, and the local committee are indebted to every one of the band of voluntary stewards, by whose efforts the arrangements for the party were carried through at each centre without a hitch."
The Reporter described on the 22nd how an out of work miner had been sent to prison for 14 days.
Thomas Maloney of Brown Street in Parr pleaded guilty to a charge of making false representations to obtain unemployment relief.
The man had declared that he was maintaining his wife – but the couple had been separated for 7 years and during that time he had not paid her a penny in support.
On the 23rd Rainford Potteries held their third annual Christmas treat for their workers – and a curious game was played with geese! This is how the Reporter described the fun:
"Saturday afternoon was reserved entirely for the married men and their wives. In one of the pottery fields 30 geese were laid in a row, and much merriment was created as the thirty married men – blindfolded – groped their way towards them.
"Falls and collisions were frequent, but that mattered little. With a hearty laugh the men persevered with their groping until finally their fingers touched a bird.
"Not till then were they allowed to remove the bandage and claim the goose as their own. A ladies' race also caused considerable interest."
Meanwhile at the Engineer Hall in Croppers Hill, nearly 500 children of servicemen from the corps that had been killed in the war enjoyed their fourth annual Christmas party.
"The children had a happy and hilarious time", said the Reporter.
An appeal had also gone out from the Mayor of St Helens for contributions to a fund to provide Christmas boxes to the 4,000 unemployed persons in the town.
As a result parcels containing groceries and fruit were handed out to those out of work, with married men with children receiving the most.
It was the 1922 version of a food bank, although many of those reduced to part-time work and who would still have been suffering great hardship would not have qualified for the hand-out.
On Christmas Eve Nutgrove Methodists' augmented choir comprising 120 voices put on a performance of 'The Messiah' at the Nutgrove Wesley Church.
It was a tradition for church carol singers to go round the town late on Christmas Eve serenading the townsfolk and this year a band was also out on the streets.
And finally a rumour that a woman had been murdered spread round the town over Christmas after a woman's body was discovered at Sherdley Glassworks.
That turned out not to have been the case and I'll report on her inquest in next week's post.
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next week's stories will include the Christmas shopping trip that turned into tragedy, the raving madman and the Tontine Street teapot, the Christmas court cases and the many insanitary houses in St Helens that could not be demolished.