150 YEARS AGO THIS WEEK 21 - 27 OCTOBER 1874
This week's many stories include the purring attack in Duke Street, the fatal accident at a Pocket Nook glassworks, Foottit's Circus comes to St Helens and Prescot, the highly ignorant Parr woman that fought with a man, the hare killing in Rainford and the thirsty carter who paid a high price for parking his cart outside the Eccleston Arms.
We begin with a lengthy advert in the St Helens Newspaper for Foottit's Circus who was shortly coming to both Prescot and St Helens. A highlight would be a "grand procession" of almost a mile in length and which at 1pm would parade through the main streets of the towns. The "mammoth establishment" boasted 80 horses and ponies and 23 carriages.
There would be 50 artistes featuring "The best riders of the age. Daring and muscular gymnasts. Fascinating equestriennes." Also promised were "laughter-loving clowns, and talented juveniles" and "beautiful thoroughbred steeds". There would be two performances daily of the circus but, as was often the case with such advertisements, there was no mention of locations.
The grounds of the Plough Hotel in Warrington Road in Prescot was a favourite for such entertainment and in St Helens the area known as the Fairground, off Salisbury Street, was the likely venue. That lasted from 1863 to 1882 when Holman Mitchell took it over and the fairground then moved closer to the Town Hall.
The Newspaper also commented that the St Helens miners' strike had now entered its third week without any sign of the dispute ending. Although some of the coal bosses had reached an agreement with their men, the miners at other pits, such as at Greengate Colliery in Thatto Heath and at Peasley Cross Colliery, had now come out.
The strike against a 15% cut in pay had been predicted to be short-lived as there was very little money in the union kitty to serve as a strike fund. But the entire district was not on strike and the Newspaper told how many miners were travelling to places like Rainford and Skelmersdale to find work.
Many readers will probably recall Rockware at Pocket Nook, which took over Forsters Glass in Atlas Street in 1968. Adjacent to the site – and where St Helens College's Technology Campus now is – had been the Union Plate Glassworks (pictured above) which began production in 1837 and closed in 1898.
The Newspaper also described how a worker at the glass plant had been killed and another injured. Richard Pye and Isaac Hesketh had been using a winch to turn a heavy flywheel that was due to be disassembled for repairs to be made. But before it could be made secure, the wheel had swung back to its original position and the handle of the winch that the men were holding flew out of their hands. The handle struck Pye on the head killing the man on the spot. Hesketh had a lucky escape but he still fractured one of his arms.
Prosecutions for poaching were very common – although that word was rarely used in the charge. For example, when John Parr appeared in court this week he faced a charge of "using a dog for the purpose of killing game on the land occupied by Edward Robinson" in Rainford. A railway worker called Henry Finsley gave evidence of being in Mill Lane and seeing John Parr go past him with a dog.
Suspecting he was up to no good, he said he followed Parr and saw the dog enter Robinson's field and kill a hare. After collecting the deceased animal Parr turned back and Mr Finsley confronted him. He denied that the dog was his and when the railway man persisted with his allegation he received a punch. That was a big mistake as Finsley had a stick with him and he used it to clobber Parr over the head which brought the poacher to his knees. Parr claimed that he had not set the dog on the hare but was convicted and fined 20 shillings.
It was common for carters to park their vehicles outside pubs while they went inside for a quick pint. However, if the police caught them they would be prosecuted for obstructing the highway. Edward Parr had only left his cart by the Eccleston Arms in Liverpool Road for about a quarter of an hour while he went inside for a drink. But he was still fined 10 shillings and costs, which was probably the best part of a week's wages.
When James Cathcart was summoned to the Petty Sessions for not maintaining his infirm father, his wife showed up instead and she told a rather sad story. She said they had recently buried three of their children from scarlet fever but insisted that they would still be able to maintain the old man.
A labourer called John Hunter bought a charge of assault against two miners named Holland and Marsh. Mr Hunter said as he had been walking to his work along Duke Street, he had come across the pair. Holland grabbed him by the throat and at first he thought it was horseplay, until Marsh started giving him a kicking with his clogs.
Clog-kicking by miners was known as "purring" and Hunter's back, front and sides were badly purred and he said it was with great difficulty that he managed to get away from the two men. Holland also had a piece of brick in his hand and Mr Hunter said he'd used it to break one of his teeth. A youthful witness called Foreman claimed that Holland had done all the kicking, with Marsh having just looked on smilingly.
Holland's story was that the complainant had run into him in the street by accident and had almost knocked him down. He claimed he'd put out his hand to show there was no ill feeling but Hunter had responded with a blow to his jar, which had loosened several of his teeth. That seemed an unlikely story but he was only fined five shillings and costs and as a result of the witness Foreman's testimony, Marsh was acquitted.
"Another Characteristic Parr Scrimmage" was the headline to a report in the Newspaper of a court case in which Thomas Waring was charged with assault. Mary Mather claimed to be the victim of the affair and she appeared to be a person that was highly ignorant. There were then a number of such ill-informed individuals living in places like Parr having received poor or non-existent educations.
Mary was unable to tell the magistrates when or where the incident had occurred even though it had taken place recently near her home. With no knowledge of dates and placenames the best she could come up with was "in the afternoon" and "in the lane". A witness later revealed that the incident had arisen where Mary resided in Coal Pit Lane (now Merton Bank).
Mary did state that Thomas Waring had approached her house and shouted out her name. She said she went outside to find out what he wanted and found the man stripped to the waist. The Newspaper wrote: "He told her he thought he could manage her in a stand up fight, and proved it by striking her and knocking her about. Her bonnet was the first to go down, and then she followed in the whole of her bulk."
The defendant Thomas Waring explained the background to his assault by saying he had fought with a man called Roberts who was Mary's brother-in-law. When Roberts had got Waring down on the ground, he claimed that Mary had kicked him several times in the ribs and that was why he had later confronted her.
The dispute was apparently connected to the miners’ strike, as a man called Wright was still working at Pilkington's Colliery and was related to one of the warring parties. That led to Wright being called a "knobstick" for strikebreaking and was the cause of the original fight. Thomas Waring was fined 5 shillings for the beating he gave Mary.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the two stabbing cases in St Helens, the huge fire at St Helens Junction, the miners riot at Haydock, two workers constructing the new Town Hall are injured and Dromgoole's goes hi-tech by using a gas boiler.
We begin with a lengthy advert in the St Helens Newspaper for Foottit's Circus who was shortly coming to both Prescot and St Helens. A highlight would be a "grand procession" of almost a mile in length and which at 1pm would parade through the main streets of the towns. The "mammoth establishment" boasted 80 horses and ponies and 23 carriages.
There would be 50 artistes featuring "The best riders of the age. Daring and muscular gymnasts. Fascinating equestriennes." Also promised were "laughter-loving clowns, and talented juveniles" and "beautiful thoroughbred steeds". There would be two performances daily of the circus but, as was often the case with such advertisements, there was no mention of locations.
The grounds of the Plough Hotel in Warrington Road in Prescot was a favourite for such entertainment and in St Helens the area known as the Fairground, off Salisbury Street, was the likely venue. That lasted from 1863 to 1882 when Holman Mitchell took it over and the fairground then moved closer to the Town Hall.
The Newspaper also commented that the St Helens miners' strike had now entered its third week without any sign of the dispute ending. Although some of the coal bosses had reached an agreement with their men, the miners at other pits, such as at Greengate Colliery in Thatto Heath and at Peasley Cross Colliery, had now come out.
The strike against a 15% cut in pay had been predicted to be short-lived as there was very little money in the union kitty to serve as a strike fund. But the entire district was not on strike and the Newspaper told how many miners were travelling to places like Rainford and Skelmersdale to find work.
The Newspaper also described how a worker at the glass plant had been killed and another injured. Richard Pye and Isaac Hesketh had been using a winch to turn a heavy flywheel that was due to be disassembled for repairs to be made. But before it could be made secure, the wheel had swung back to its original position and the handle of the winch that the men were holding flew out of their hands. The handle struck Pye on the head killing the man on the spot. Hesketh had a lucky escape but he still fractured one of his arms.
Prosecutions for poaching were very common – although that word was rarely used in the charge. For example, when John Parr appeared in court this week he faced a charge of "using a dog for the purpose of killing game on the land occupied by Edward Robinson" in Rainford. A railway worker called Henry Finsley gave evidence of being in Mill Lane and seeing John Parr go past him with a dog.
Suspecting he was up to no good, he said he followed Parr and saw the dog enter Robinson's field and kill a hare. After collecting the deceased animal Parr turned back and Mr Finsley confronted him. He denied that the dog was his and when the railway man persisted with his allegation he received a punch. That was a big mistake as Finsley had a stick with him and he used it to clobber Parr over the head which brought the poacher to his knees. Parr claimed that he had not set the dog on the hare but was convicted and fined 20 shillings.
It was common for carters to park their vehicles outside pubs while they went inside for a quick pint. However, if the police caught them they would be prosecuted for obstructing the highway. Edward Parr had only left his cart by the Eccleston Arms in Liverpool Road for about a quarter of an hour while he went inside for a drink. But he was still fined 10 shillings and costs, which was probably the best part of a week's wages.
When James Cathcart was summoned to the Petty Sessions for not maintaining his infirm father, his wife showed up instead and she told a rather sad story. She said they had recently buried three of their children from scarlet fever but insisted that they would still be able to maintain the old man.
A labourer called John Hunter bought a charge of assault against two miners named Holland and Marsh. Mr Hunter said as he had been walking to his work along Duke Street, he had come across the pair. Holland grabbed him by the throat and at first he thought it was horseplay, until Marsh started giving him a kicking with his clogs.
Clog-kicking by miners was known as "purring" and Hunter's back, front and sides were badly purred and he said it was with great difficulty that he managed to get away from the two men. Holland also had a piece of brick in his hand and Mr Hunter said he'd used it to break one of his teeth. A youthful witness called Foreman claimed that Holland had done all the kicking, with Marsh having just looked on smilingly.
Holland's story was that the complainant had run into him in the street by accident and had almost knocked him down. He claimed he'd put out his hand to show there was no ill feeling but Hunter had responded with a blow to his jar, which had loosened several of his teeth. That seemed an unlikely story but he was only fined five shillings and costs and as a result of the witness Foreman's testimony, Marsh was acquitted.
"Another Characteristic Parr Scrimmage" was the headline to a report in the Newspaper of a court case in which Thomas Waring was charged with assault. Mary Mather claimed to be the victim of the affair and she appeared to be a person that was highly ignorant. There were then a number of such ill-informed individuals living in places like Parr having received poor or non-existent educations.
Mary was unable to tell the magistrates when or where the incident had occurred even though it had taken place recently near her home. With no knowledge of dates and placenames the best she could come up with was "in the afternoon" and "in the lane". A witness later revealed that the incident had arisen where Mary resided in Coal Pit Lane (now Merton Bank).
Mary did state that Thomas Waring had approached her house and shouted out her name. She said she went outside to find out what he wanted and found the man stripped to the waist. The Newspaper wrote: "He told her he thought he could manage her in a stand up fight, and proved it by striking her and knocking her about. Her bonnet was the first to go down, and then she followed in the whole of her bulk."
The defendant Thomas Waring explained the background to his assault by saying he had fought with a man called Roberts who was Mary's brother-in-law. When Roberts had got Waring down on the ground, he claimed that Mary had kicked him several times in the ribs and that was why he had later confronted her.
The dispute was apparently connected to the miners’ strike, as a man called Wright was still working at Pilkington's Colliery and was related to one of the warring parties. That led to Wright being called a "knobstick" for strikebreaking and was the cause of the original fight. Thomas Waring was fined 5 shillings for the beating he gave Mary.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the two stabbing cases in St Helens, the huge fire at St Helens Junction, the miners riot at Haydock, two workers constructing the new Town Hall are injured and Dromgoole's goes hi-tech by using a gas boiler.
This week's many stories include the purring attack in Duke Street, the fatal accident at a Pocket Nook glassworks, Foottit's Circus comes to St Helens and Prescot, the highly ignorant Parr woman that fought with a man, the hare killing in Rainford and the thirsty carter who paid a high price for parking his cart outside the Eccleston Arms.
We begin with a lengthy advert in the St Helens Newspaper for Foottit's Circus who was shortly coming to both Prescot and St Helens.
A highlight would be a "grand procession" of almost a mile in length and which at 1pm would parade through the main streets of the towns.
The "mammoth establishment" boasted 80 horses and ponies and 23 carriages.
There would be 50 artistes featuring "The best riders of the age. Daring and muscular gymnasts. Fascinating equestriennes."
Also promised were "laughter-loving clowns, and talented juveniles" and "beautiful thoroughbred steeds".
There would be two performances daily of the circus but, as was often the case with such advertisements, there was no mention of locations.
The grounds of the Plough Hotel in Warrington Road in Prescot was a favourite for such entertainment and in St Helens the area known as the Fairground, off Salisbury Street, was the likely venue.
That lasted from 1863 to 1882 when Holman Mitchell took it over and the fairground then moved closer to the Town Hall.
The Newspaper also commented that the St Helens miners' strike had now entered its third week without any sign of the dispute ending.
Although some of the coal bosses had reached an agreement with their men, the miners at other pits, such as at Greengate Colliery in Thatto Heath and at Peasley Cross Colliery, had now come out.
The strike against a 15% cut in pay had been predicted to be short-lived as there was very little money in the union kitty to serve as a strike fund.
But the entire district was not on strike and the Newspaper told how many miners were travelling to places like Rainford and Skelmersdale to find work.
Many readers will probably recall Rockware at Pocket Nook, which took over Forsters Glass in Atlas Street in 1968.
Adjacent to the site – and where St Helens College's Technology Campus now is – had been the Union Plate Glassworks (pictured above) which began production in 1837 and closed in 1898.
The Newspaper also described how a worker at the glass plant had been killed and another injured.
Richard Pye and Isaac Hesketh had been using a winch to turn a heavy flywheel that was due to be disassembled for repairs to be made.
But before it could be made secure, the wheel had swung back to its original position and the handle of the winch that the men were holding flew out of their hands.
The handle struck Pye on the head killing the man on the spot. Hesketh had a lucky escape but he still fractured one of his arms.
Prosecutions for poaching were very common – although that word was rarely used in the charge.
For example, when John Parr appeared in court this week he faced a charge of "using a dog for the purpose of killing game on the land occupied by Edward Robinson" in Rainford.
A railway worker called Henry Finsley gave evidence of being in Mill Lane and seeing John Parr go past him with a dog.
Suspecting he was up to no good, he said he followed Parr and saw the dog enter Robinson's field and kill a hare.
After collecting the deceased animal Parr turned back and Mr Finsley confronted him. He denied that the dog was his and when the railway man persisted with his allegation he received a punch.
That was a big mistake as Finsley had a stick with him and he used it to clobber Parr over the head which brought the poacher to his knees.
Parr claimed that he had not set the dog on the hare but was convicted and fined 20 shillings.
It was common for carters to park their vehicles outside pubs while they went inside for a quick pint.
However, if the police caught them they would be prosecuted for obstructing the highway.
Edward Parr had only left his cart by the Eccleston Arms in Liverpool Road for about a quarter of an hour while he went inside for a drink.
But he was still fined 10 shillings and costs, which was probably the best part of a week's wages.
When James Cathcart was summoned to the Petty Sessions for not maintaining his infirm father, his wife showed up instead and she told a rather sad story.
She said they had recently buried three of their children from scarlet fever but insisted that they would still be able to maintain the old man.
A labourer called John Hunter bought a charge of assault against two miners named Holland and Marsh.
Mr Hunter said as he had been walking to his work along Duke Street, he had come across the pair.
Holland grabbed him by the throat and at first he thought it was horseplay, until Marsh started giving him a kicking with his clogs.
Clog-kicking by miners was known as "purring" and Hunter's back, front and sides were badly purred and he said it was with great difficulty that he managed to get away from the two men.
Holland also had a piece of brick in his hand and Mr Hunter said he'd used it to break one of his teeth.
A youthful witness called Foreman claimed that Holland had done all the kicking, with Marsh having just looked on smilingly.
Holland's story was that the complainant had run into him in the street by accident and had almost knocked him down.
He claimed he'd put out his hand to show there was no ill feeling but Hunter had responded with a blow to his jar, which had loosened several of his teeth.
That seemed an unlikely story but he was only fined five shillings and costs and as a result of the witness Foreman's testimony, Marsh was acquitted.
"Another Characteristic Parr Scrimmage" was the headline to a report in the Newspaper of a court case in which Thomas Waring was charged with assault.
Mary Mather claimed to be the victim of the affair and she appeared to be a person that was highly ignorant.
There were then a number of such ill-informed individuals living in places like Parr having received poor or non-existent educations.
Mary was unable to tell the magistrates when or where the incident had occurred even though it had taken place recently near her home.
With no knowledge of dates and place names the best she could come up with was "in the afternoon" and "in the lane".
A witness later revealed that the incident had arisen where Mary resided in Coal Pit Lane (now Merton Bank).
Mary did state that Thomas Waring had approached her house and shouted out her name.
She said she went outside to find out what he wanted and found the man stripped to the waist. The Newspaper wrote:
"He told her he thought he could manage her in a stand up fight, and proved it by striking her and knocking her about.
"Her bonnet was the first to go down, and then she followed in the whole of her bulk."
The defendant Thomas Waring explained the background to his assault by saying he had fought with a man called Roberts who was Mary's brother-in-law.
When Roberts had got Waring down on the ground, he claimed that Mary had kicked him several times in the ribs and that was why he had later confronted her.
The dispute was apparently connected to the miners’ strike, as a man called Wright was still working at Pilkington's Colliery and was related to one of the warring parties.
That led to Wright being called a "knobstick" for strikebreaking and was the cause of the original fight.
Thomas Waring was fined 5 shillings for the beating he gave Mary.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the two stabbing cases in St Helens, the huge fire at St Helens Junction, the miners riot at Haydock, two workers constructing the new Town Hall are injured and Dromgoole's goes hi-tech by using a gas boiler.
We begin with a lengthy advert in the St Helens Newspaper for Foottit's Circus who was shortly coming to both Prescot and St Helens.
A highlight would be a "grand procession" of almost a mile in length and which at 1pm would parade through the main streets of the towns.
The "mammoth establishment" boasted 80 horses and ponies and 23 carriages.
There would be 50 artistes featuring "The best riders of the age. Daring and muscular gymnasts. Fascinating equestriennes."
Also promised were "laughter-loving clowns, and talented juveniles" and "beautiful thoroughbred steeds".
There would be two performances daily of the circus but, as was often the case with such advertisements, there was no mention of locations.
The grounds of the Plough Hotel in Warrington Road in Prescot was a favourite for such entertainment and in St Helens the area known as the Fairground, off Salisbury Street, was the likely venue.
That lasted from 1863 to 1882 when Holman Mitchell took it over and the fairground then moved closer to the Town Hall.
The Newspaper also commented that the St Helens miners' strike had now entered its third week without any sign of the dispute ending.
Although some of the coal bosses had reached an agreement with their men, the miners at other pits, such as at Greengate Colliery in Thatto Heath and at Peasley Cross Colliery, had now come out.
The strike against a 15% cut in pay had been predicted to be short-lived as there was very little money in the union kitty to serve as a strike fund.
But the entire district was not on strike and the Newspaper told how many miners were travelling to places like Rainford and Skelmersdale to find work.
Adjacent to the site – and where St Helens College's Technology Campus now is – had been the Union Plate Glassworks (pictured above) which began production in 1837 and closed in 1898.
The Newspaper also described how a worker at the glass plant had been killed and another injured.
Richard Pye and Isaac Hesketh had been using a winch to turn a heavy flywheel that was due to be disassembled for repairs to be made.
But before it could be made secure, the wheel had swung back to its original position and the handle of the winch that the men were holding flew out of their hands.
The handle struck Pye on the head killing the man on the spot. Hesketh had a lucky escape but he still fractured one of his arms.
Prosecutions for poaching were very common – although that word was rarely used in the charge.
For example, when John Parr appeared in court this week he faced a charge of "using a dog for the purpose of killing game on the land occupied by Edward Robinson" in Rainford.
A railway worker called Henry Finsley gave evidence of being in Mill Lane and seeing John Parr go past him with a dog.
Suspecting he was up to no good, he said he followed Parr and saw the dog enter Robinson's field and kill a hare.
After collecting the deceased animal Parr turned back and Mr Finsley confronted him. He denied that the dog was his and when the railway man persisted with his allegation he received a punch.
That was a big mistake as Finsley had a stick with him and he used it to clobber Parr over the head which brought the poacher to his knees.
Parr claimed that he had not set the dog on the hare but was convicted and fined 20 shillings.
It was common for carters to park their vehicles outside pubs while they went inside for a quick pint.
However, if the police caught them they would be prosecuted for obstructing the highway.
Edward Parr had only left his cart by the Eccleston Arms in Liverpool Road for about a quarter of an hour while he went inside for a drink.
But he was still fined 10 shillings and costs, which was probably the best part of a week's wages.
When James Cathcart was summoned to the Petty Sessions for not maintaining his infirm father, his wife showed up instead and she told a rather sad story.
She said they had recently buried three of their children from scarlet fever but insisted that they would still be able to maintain the old man.
A labourer called John Hunter bought a charge of assault against two miners named Holland and Marsh.
Mr Hunter said as he had been walking to his work along Duke Street, he had come across the pair.
Holland grabbed him by the throat and at first he thought it was horseplay, until Marsh started giving him a kicking with his clogs.
Clog-kicking by miners was known as "purring" and Hunter's back, front and sides were badly purred and he said it was with great difficulty that he managed to get away from the two men.
Holland also had a piece of brick in his hand and Mr Hunter said he'd used it to break one of his teeth.
A youthful witness called Foreman claimed that Holland had done all the kicking, with Marsh having just looked on smilingly.
Holland's story was that the complainant had run into him in the street by accident and had almost knocked him down.
He claimed he'd put out his hand to show there was no ill feeling but Hunter had responded with a blow to his jar, which had loosened several of his teeth.
That seemed an unlikely story but he was only fined five shillings and costs and as a result of the witness Foreman's testimony, Marsh was acquitted.
"Another Characteristic Parr Scrimmage" was the headline to a report in the Newspaper of a court case in which Thomas Waring was charged with assault.
Mary Mather claimed to be the victim of the affair and she appeared to be a person that was highly ignorant.
There were then a number of such ill-informed individuals living in places like Parr having received poor or non-existent educations.
Mary was unable to tell the magistrates when or where the incident had occurred even though it had taken place recently near her home.
With no knowledge of dates and place names the best she could come up with was "in the afternoon" and "in the lane".
A witness later revealed that the incident had arisen where Mary resided in Coal Pit Lane (now Merton Bank).
Mary did state that Thomas Waring had approached her house and shouted out her name.
She said she went outside to find out what he wanted and found the man stripped to the waist. The Newspaper wrote:
"He told her he thought he could manage her in a stand up fight, and proved it by striking her and knocking her about.
"Her bonnet was the first to go down, and then she followed in the whole of her bulk."
The defendant Thomas Waring explained the background to his assault by saying he had fought with a man called Roberts who was Mary's brother-in-law.
When Roberts had got Waring down on the ground, he claimed that Mary had kicked him several times in the ribs and that was why he had later confronted her.
The dispute was apparently connected to the miners’ strike, as a man called Wright was still working at Pilkington's Colliery and was related to one of the warring parties.
That led to Wright being called a "knobstick" for strikebreaking and was the cause of the original fight.
Thomas Waring was fined 5 shillings for the beating he gave Mary.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the two stabbing cases in St Helens, the huge fire at St Helens Junction, the miners riot at Haydock, two workers constructing the new Town Hall are injured and Dromgoole's goes hi-tech by using a gas boiler.