150 YEARS AGO THIS WEEK (23rd - 29th NOVEMBER 1870)
This week's stories include the pitiable tale of the Irish beggar in Tontine Street, the bobby who almost lost his whiskers in Church Street, the St Helens volunteers prepare for war and the wild woman in court with bare arms.
We begin in the Petty Sessions on the 23rd when a young man called John Hogan was charged with being drunk in Parr Street. It transpired that Hogan had been arrested for persistently asking a policeman to drink with him – or as was stated in court – to have a "glass of summut". He was fined 5 shillings.
This was how the St Helens Newspaper described the court appearance on the following day of an elderly man facing a begging charge: "An old man named Denis Sweeney, who stated he was a shoemaker and had come to this country from Dublin twenty-nine years ago, was charged with begging the night before in Tontine-street. He told a pitiable tale – that he had come from Halifax, expecting to find work here, but was disappointed.
"It was his first time having been in the custody of the police, and if he were forgiven, which he asked to be for God's sake, he would leave the town immediately and go to Liverpool, where he hoped to obtain work, as he was best known in that town. Major Pilkington [on the Bench] regretted that he could not make a distinction in the case of the prisoner, and that of the many others who have lately been charged with a similar offence. The prisoner should go to gaol for seven days."
The Newspaper had a few alternative ways of describing someone as having been drunk. Referring to one defendant's appearance in court on the 26th, the paper wrote: "William Redmond was presented for the seventeenth time before the bench, each introduction being consequent on his too frequent libations to Bacchus." That's the Greco-Roman god of wine, apparently.
Joseph Sixsmith had a similar record of inebriation but tried it on in front of the three sitting magistrates, as described by the Newspaper: "Prisoner – I hope your worship will be light on me, as it is my first time appearing before you. Mr. Hall [magistrate] – Well, as it is your first time….. Mr. Ludlam (Police superintendent] – Why, sir, he has been here seventeen times! "Prisoner – Oh, I meant that I was never before your worships. (Laughter). Mr. Hall – You must pay 5s. and costs, or go to gaol for 14 days."
William Dyer was up on a similar charge having been found drunk on the streets of Eccleston but was rather insulted by Superintendent Ludlam's description of him to the Bench. The man in charge of St Helens police said he was a stranger and "a very suspicious looking character, too". To that Dyer replied: "I am not a stranger. I was born and bred in this town, and I am working those two years for the Corporation." The dodgy-looking council worker was fined 5s. or 7 days in gaol.
Last year Bridget Ward had described her occupation in court as "nothing but a woman". As addresses and ages of those appearing in the Petty Sessions were rarely reported, I can't confirm that the Bridget Ward that showed up this week was the same person – although I expect that she was. However the Newspaper said she presented rather a "wild appearance, with her bare arms and dishevelled hair". Fancy having bare arms in court!
Bridget was charged with having committed a breach of the peace at midnight in Eccleston by "cursing, swearing, and creating a noise". The Newspaper added: "The prisoner denied the charge of blaspheming, but admitted that she had made a noise, and with justification too, for as she was passing the corner of a street some men who were sparring there jostled against her and knocked her down."
Bridget's story might have been true but women on the street at midnight were not considered respectable and this was her twelfth time in court for a similar offence. She had absolutely no chance of being believed and so was effectively sent to prison for two months. Bridget was ordered to pay bail in the sum of £10 and find two people that were willing / daft enough to risk £5 each as sureties to guarantee her future conduct. These were astronomical sums for the poor and so there's no question that Bridget and her bare arms would have spent Christmas in Kirkdale Gaol in Liverpool.
With European countries having forged pacts with other nations, there was always the possibility that when war was declared between two of them bystander countries would get dragged into the conflict. That, of course, is how the shooting of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo led to the carnage of WW1. Although Britain had been just an interested observer in the Franco-Prussian war that had began in July 1870, there was concern that Britain might – as the St Helens Newspaper put it – "drift" into a war with Russia, if they entered the fray.
So volunteer and reserve forces throughout the country were being put on standby and on the 28th, 629 Snider breech-loading rifles "of the most approved construction" arrived in St Helens. They would be distributed to members of the town's main volunteer force called the 47th LRV (Lancashire Rifle Volunteers). In his autobiography published in 1936, former St Helens' MP James Sexton described how during his youth in the late 1860s, the town had been a hotbed of Irish republicanism.
The large numbers of Irishmen in the town were encouraged to join the 47th so they could be trained in the use of firearms in preparation for a possible future war with the British. Many weapons were also smuggled to Ireland from the armoury at the Volunteer Hall. Although Snider rifles were the state-of-the art for 1870, the single-shot guns were slow. After firing a shot the soldier had to turn his rifle upside down to allow the spent case to drop out. Then a new one had to be inserted. However a prolific rifleman could still let off 10 rounds per minute.
As a result of recent burglaries in the town the police were arresting suspicious characters and making careful checks on all properties on each bobby's beat. In court on the 28th Edward Walsh was charged with being in the yard of bookseller Thomas Craik's house in Church Street for an unlawful purpose and with assaulting a constable.
Photographs of St Helens policemen in the 19th century (as in the one above of veteran officers) show moustaches as being almost as mandatory as helmets. However PC675 almost lost his! The constable told the court that he found the accused at 3am in a petty, which was a small outhouse that could be used as a toilet. The man asked the policeman if he was alone and after saying that he was, Walsh began a "furious attack" in which he tore away a portion of his whiskers. I bet that hurt! The magistrates sentenced Walsh to a total of three months in prison for the two offences.
Medical men regularly had difficulty in getting paid for their services and often would have to write off debts from poor patients. There was also the question of liability, as in the case of Gorst vs. Hall in St Helens County Court on the 29th. A labourer called Hall from Huyton had called out Dr Richard Gorst from Prescot to attend to his sick father-in-law. However he swore to the court that he had never authorised the doctor to charge him personally for the treatment.
Dr Gorst swore that he had and the judge ruled: "As there is oath against oath, I have no alternative, but to non-suit". In other words dismiss the summons as not proved. The non-payment was only 30 shillings and it would have cost the doctor 6 or 7 shillings to bring the summons. But it must have really annoyed the medical men to have their patients squirming out of paying.
Next week's many stories will include the Parr scandal of a married woman and a 16-year-old boy, the man given 3 months for sleeping in the open air and the prosecution of the Prescot apprentice watchmaker for not turning up to work.
We begin in the Petty Sessions on the 23rd when a young man called John Hogan was charged with being drunk in Parr Street. It transpired that Hogan had been arrested for persistently asking a policeman to drink with him – or as was stated in court – to have a "glass of summut". He was fined 5 shillings.
This was how the St Helens Newspaper described the court appearance on the following day of an elderly man facing a begging charge: "An old man named Denis Sweeney, who stated he was a shoemaker and had come to this country from Dublin twenty-nine years ago, was charged with begging the night before in Tontine-street. He told a pitiable tale – that he had come from Halifax, expecting to find work here, but was disappointed.
"It was his first time having been in the custody of the police, and if he were forgiven, which he asked to be for God's sake, he would leave the town immediately and go to Liverpool, where he hoped to obtain work, as he was best known in that town. Major Pilkington [on the Bench] regretted that he could not make a distinction in the case of the prisoner, and that of the many others who have lately been charged with a similar offence. The prisoner should go to gaol for seven days."
The Newspaper had a few alternative ways of describing someone as having been drunk. Referring to one defendant's appearance in court on the 26th, the paper wrote: "William Redmond was presented for the seventeenth time before the bench, each introduction being consequent on his too frequent libations to Bacchus." That's the Greco-Roman god of wine, apparently.
Joseph Sixsmith had a similar record of inebriation but tried it on in front of the three sitting magistrates, as described by the Newspaper: "Prisoner – I hope your worship will be light on me, as it is my first time appearing before you. Mr. Hall [magistrate] – Well, as it is your first time….. Mr. Ludlam (Police superintendent] – Why, sir, he has been here seventeen times! "Prisoner – Oh, I meant that I was never before your worships. (Laughter). Mr. Hall – You must pay 5s. and costs, or go to gaol for 14 days."
William Dyer was up on a similar charge having been found drunk on the streets of Eccleston but was rather insulted by Superintendent Ludlam's description of him to the Bench. The man in charge of St Helens police said he was a stranger and "a very suspicious looking character, too". To that Dyer replied: "I am not a stranger. I was born and bred in this town, and I am working those two years for the Corporation." The dodgy-looking council worker was fined 5s. or 7 days in gaol.
Last year Bridget Ward had described her occupation in court as "nothing but a woman". As addresses and ages of those appearing in the Petty Sessions were rarely reported, I can't confirm that the Bridget Ward that showed up this week was the same person – although I expect that she was. However the Newspaper said she presented rather a "wild appearance, with her bare arms and dishevelled hair". Fancy having bare arms in court!
Bridget was charged with having committed a breach of the peace at midnight in Eccleston by "cursing, swearing, and creating a noise". The Newspaper added: "The prisoner denied the charge of blaspheming, but admitted that she had made a noise, and with justification too, for as she was passing the corner of a street some men who were sparring there jostled against her and knocked her down."
Bridget's story might have been true but women on the street at midnight were not considered respectable and this was her twelfth time in court for a similar offence. She had absolutely no chance of being believed and so was effectively sent to prison for two months. Bridget was ordered to pay bail in the sum of £10 and find two people that were willing / daft enough to risk £5 each as sureties to guarantee her future conduct. These were astronomical sums for the poor and so there's no question that Bridget and her bare arms would have spent Christmas in Kirkdale Gaol in Liverpool.
With European countries having forged pacts with other nations, there was always the possibility that when war was declared between two of them bystander countries would get dragged into the conflict. That, of course, is how the shooting of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo led to the carnage of WW1. Although Britain had been just an interested observer in the Franco-Prussian war that had began in July 1870, there was concern that Britain might – as the St Helens Newspaper put it – "drift" into a war with Russia, if they entered the fray.
So volunteer and reserve forces throughout the country were being put on standby and on the 28th, 629 Snider breech-loading rifles "of the most approved construction" arrived in St Helens. They would be distributed to members of the town's main volunteer force called the 47th LRV (Lancashire Rifle Volunteers). In his autobiography published in 1936, former St Helens' MP James Sexton described how during his youth in the late 1860s, the town had been a hotbed of Irish republicanism.
The large numbers of Irishmen in the town were encouraged to join the 47th so they could be trained in the use of firearms in preparation for a possible future war with the British. Many weapons were also smuggled to Ireland from the armoury at the Volunteer Hall. Although Snider rifles were the state-of-the art for 1870, the single-shot guns were slow. After firing a shot the soldier had to turn his rifle upside down to allow the spent case to drop out. Then a new one had to be inserted. However a prolific rifleman could still let off 10 rounds per minute.
As a result of recent burglaries in the town the police were arresting suspicious characters and making careful checks on all properties on each bobby's beat. In court on the 28th Edward Walsh was charged with being in the yard of bookseller Thomas Craik's house in Church Street for an unlawful purpose and with assaulting a constable.
Medical men regularly had difficulty in getting paid for their services and often would have to write off debts from poor patients. There was also the question of liability, as in the case of Gorst vs. Hall in St Helens County Court on the 29th. A labourer called Hall from Huyton had called out Dr Richard Gorst from Prescot to attend to his sick father-in-law. However he swore to the court that he had never authorised the doctor to charge him personally for the treatment.
Dr Gorst swore that he had and the judge ruled: "As there is oath against oath, I have no alternative, but to non-suit". In other words dismiss the summons as not proved. The non-payment was only 30 shillings and it would have cost the doctor 6 or 7 shillings to bring the summons. But it must have really annoyed the medical men to have their patients squirming out of paying.
Next week's many stories will include the Parr scandal of a married woman and a 16-year-old boy, the man given 3 months for sleeping in the open air and the prosecution of the Prescot apprentice watchmaker for not turning up to work.
This week's stories include the pitiable tale of the Irish beggar in Tontine Street, the bobby who almost lost his whiskers in Church Street, the St Helens volunteers prepare for war and the wild woman in court with bare arms.
We begin in the Petty Sessions on the 23rd when a young man called John Hogan was charged with being drunk in Parr Street.
It transpired that Hogan had been arrested for persistently asking a policeman to drink with him – or as was stated in court – to have a "glass of summut". He was fined 5 shillings.
This was how the St Helens Newspaper described the court appearance on the following day of an elderly man facing a begging charge:
"An old man named Denis Sweeney, who stated he was a shoemaker and had come to this country from Dublin twenty-nine years ago, was charged with begging the night before in Tontine-street. He told a pitiable tale – that he had come from Halifax, expecting to find work here, but was disappointed.
"It was his first time having been in the custody of the police, and if he were forgiven, which he asked to be for God's sake, he would leave the town immediately and go to Liverpool, where he hoped to obtain work, as he was best known in that town.
"Major Pilkington [on the Bench] regretted that he could not make a distinction in the case of the prisoner, and that of the many others who have lately been charged with a similar offence. The prisoner should go to gaol for seven days."
The Newspaper had a few alternative ways of describing someone as having been drunk.
Referring to one defendant's appearance in court on the 26th, the paper wrote:
"William Redmond was presented for the seventeenth time before the bench, each introduction being consequent on his too frequent libations to Bacchus."
That's the Greco-Roman god of wine, apparently.
Joseph Sixsmith had a similar record of inebriation but tried it on in front of the three sitting magistrates, as described by the Newspaper:
"Prisoner – I hope your worship will be light on me, as it is my first time appearing before you. Mr. Hall [magistrate] – Well, as it is your first time….. Mr. Ludlam (Police superintendent] – Why, sir, he has been here seventeen times!
"Prisoner – Oh, I meant that I was never before your worships. (Laughter). Mr. Hall – You must pay 5s. and costs, or go to gaol for 14 days."
William Dyer was up on a similar charge having been found drunk on the streets of Eccleston but was rather insulted by Superintendent Ludlam's description of him to the Bench.
The man in charge of St Helens police said he was a stranger and "a very suspicious looking character, too".
To that Dyer replied: "I am not a stranger. I was born and bred in this town, and I am working those two years for the Corporation."
The dodgy-looking council worker was fined five shillings or seven days in gaol.
Last year Bridget Ward had described her occupation in court as "nothing but a woman".
As addresses and ages of those appearing in the Petty Sessions were rarely reported, I can't confirm that the Bridget Ward that showed up this week was the same person – although I expect that she was.
However the Newspaper said she presented rather a "wild appearance, with her bare arms and dishevelled hair". Fancy having bare arms in court!
Bridget was charged with having committed a breach of the peace at midnight in Eccleston by "cursing, swearing, and creating a noise". The Newspaper added:
"The prisoner denied the charge of blaspheming, but admitted that she had made a noise, and with justification too, for as she was passing the corner of a street some men who were sparring there jostled against her and knocked her down."
Bridget's story might have been true but women on the street at midnight were not considered respectable and this was her twelfth time in court for a similar offence.
She had absolutely no chance of being believed and so was effectively sent to prison for two months.
Bridget was ordered to pay bail in the sum of £10 and find two people that were willing / daft enough to risk £5 each as sureties to guarantee her future conduct.
These were astronomical sums for the poor and so there's no question that Bridget and her bare arms would have spent Christmas in Kirkdale Gaol in Liverpool.
With European countries having forged pacts with other nations, there was always the possibility that when war was declared between two of them bystander countries would get dragged into the conflict.
That, of course, is how the shooting of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo led to the carnage of WW1.
Although Britain had been just an interested observer in the Franco-Prussian war that had began in July 1870, there was concern that Britain might – as the St Helens Newspaper put it – "drift" into a war with Russia, if they entered the fray.
So volunteer and reserve forces throughout the country were being put on standby and on the 28th, 629 Snider breech-loading rifles "of the most approved construction" arrived in St Helens.
These would be distributed to members of the town's main volunteer force called the 47th LRV (Lancashire Rifle Volunteers).
In his autobiography published in 1936, former St Helens' MP James Sexton described how during his youth in the late 1860s, the town had been a hotbed of Irish republicanism.
The large numbers of Irishmen in the town were encouraged to join the 47th so they could be trained in the use of firearms in preparation for a possible future war with the British.
Many weapons were also smuggled to Ireland from the armoury at the Volunteer Hall.
Although Snider rifles were the state-of-the art for 1870, the single-shot guns were slow.
After firing a shot the soldier had to turn his rifle upside down to allow the spent case to drop out.
Then a new one had to be inserted. However a prolific rifleman could still let off 10 rounds per minute.
As a result of recent burglaries in the town the police were arresting suspicious characters and making careful checks on all properties on each bobby's beat.
In court on the 28th Edward Walsh was charged with being in the yard of bookseller Thomas Craik's house in Church Street for an unlawful purpose and with assaulting a constable.
Photographs of St Helens policemen in the 19th century (as in the one above of veteran officers) show moustaches as being almost as mandatory as helmets.
However PC675 almost lost his! The constable told the court that he found the accused at 3am in a petty, which was a small outhouse that could be used as a toilet.
The man asked the policeman if he was alone and after saying that he was, Walsh began a "furious attack" in which he tore away a portion of his whiskers. I bet that hurt!
The magistrates sentenced Walsh to a total of three months in prison for the two offences.
Medical men regularly had difficulty in getting paid for their services and often would have to write off debts from poor patients.
There was also the question of liability, as in the case of Gorst vs. Hall in St Helens County Court on the 29th.
A labourer called Hall from Huyton had called out Dr Richard Gorst from Prescot to attend to his sick father-in-law.
However he swore to the court that he had never authorised the doctor to charge him personally for the treatment.
Dr Gorst swore that he had and the judge ruled: "As there is oath against oath, I have no alternative, but to non-suit". In other words dismiss the summons as not proved.
The non-payment was only 30 shillings and it would have cost the doctor 6 or 7 shillings to bring the summons.
But it must have really annoyed the medical men to have their patients squirming out of paying.
Next week's many stories will include the Parr scandal of a married woman and a 16-year-old boy, the man given 3 months for sleeping in the open air and the prosecution of the Prescot apprentice watchmaker for not turning up to work.
We begin in the Petty Sessions on the 23rd when a young man called John Hogan was charged with being drunk in Parr Street.
It transpired that Hogan had been arrested for persistently asking a policeman to drink with him – or as was stated in court – to have a "glass of summut". He was fined 5 shillings.
This was how the St Helens Newspaper described the court appearance on the following day of an elderly man facing a begging charge:
"An old man named Denis Sweeney, who stated he was a shoemaker and had come to this country from Dublin twenty-nine years ago, was charged with begging the night before in Tontine-street. He told a pitiable tale – that he had come from Halifax, expecting to find work here, but was disappointed.
"It was his first time having been in the custody of the police, and if he were forgiven, which he asked to be for God's sake, he would leave the town immediately and go to Liverpool, where he hoped to obtain work, as he was best known in that town.
"Major Pilkington [on the Bench] regretted that he could not make a distinction in the case of the prisoner, and that of the many others who have lately been charged with a similar offence. The prisoner should go to gaol for seven days."
The Newspaper had a few alternative ways of describing someone as having been drunk.
Referring to one defendant's appearance in court on the 26th, the paper wrote:
"William Redmond was presented for the seventeenth time before the bench, each introduction being consequent on his too frequent libations to Bacchus."
That's the Greco-Roman god of wine, apparently.
Joseph Sixsmith had a similar record of inebriation but tried it on in front of the three sitting magistrates, as described by the Newspaper:
"Prisoner – I hope your worship will be light on me, as it is my first time appearing before you. Mr. Hall [magistrate] – Well, as it is your first time….. Mr. Ludlam (Police superintendent] – Why, sir, he has been here seventeen times!
"Prisoner – Oh, I meant that I was never before your worships. (Laughter). Mr. Hall – You must pay 5s. and costs, or go to gaol for 14 days."
William Dyer was up on a similar charge having been found drunk on the streets of Eccleston but was rather insulted by Superintendent Ludlam's description of him to the Bench.
The man in charge of St Helens police said he was a stranger and "a very suspicious looking character, too".
To that Dyer replied: "I am not a stranger. I was born and bred in this town, and I am working those two years for the Corporation."
The dodgy-looking council worker was fined five shillings or seven days in gaol.
Last year Bridget Ward had described her occupation in court as "nothing but a woman".
As addresses and ages of those appearing in the Petty Sessions were rarely reported, I can't confirm that the Bridget Ward that showed up this week was the same person – although I expect that she was.
However the Newspaper said she presented rather a "wild appearance, with her bare arms and dishevelled hair". Fancy having bare arms in court!
Bridget was charged with having committed a breach of the peace at midnight in Eccleston by "cursing, swearing, and creating a noise". The Newspaper added:
"The prisoner denied the charge of blaspheming, but admitted that she had made a noise, and with justification too, for as she was passing the corner of a street some men who were sparring there jostled against her and knocked her down."
Bridget's story might have been true but women on the street at midnight were not considered respectable and this was her twelfth time in court for a similar offence.
She had absolutely no chance of being believed and so was effectively sent to prison for two months.
Bridget was ordered to pay bail in the sum of £10 and find two people that were willing / daft enough to risk £5 each as sureties to guarantee her future conduct.
These were astronomical sums for the poor and so there's no question that Bridget and her bare arms would have spent Christmas in Kirkdale Gaol in Liverpool.
With European countries having forged pacts with other nations, there was always the possibility that when war was declared between two of them bystander countries would get dragged into the conflict.
That, of course, is how the shooting of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo led to the carnage of WW1.
Although Britain had been just an interested observer in the Franco-Prussian war that had began in July 1870, there was concern that Britain might – as the St Helens Newspaper put it – "drift" into a war with Russia, if they entered the fray.
So volunteer and reserve forces throughout the country were being put on standby and on the 28th, 629 Snider breech-loading rifles "of the most approved construction" arrived in St Helens.
These would be distributed to members of the town's main volunteer force called the 47th LRV (Lancashire Rifle Volunteers).
In his autobiography published in 1936, former St Helens' MP James Sexton described how during his youth in the late 1860s, the town had been a hotbed of Irish republicanism.
The large numbers of Irishmen in the town were encouraged to join the 47th so they could be trained in the use of firearms in preparation for a possible future war with the British.
Many weapons were also smuggled to Ireland from the armoury at the Volunteer Hall.
Although Snider rifles were the state-of-the art for 1870, the single-shot guns were slow.
After firing a shot the soldier had to turn his rifle upside down to allow the spent case to drop out.
Then a new one had to be inserted. However a prolific rifleman could still let off 10 rounds per minute.
As a result of recent burglaries in the town the police were arresting suspicious characters and making careful checks on all properties on each bobby's beat.
In court on the 28th Edward Walsh was charged with being in the yard of bookseller Thomas Craik's house in Church Street for an unlawful purpose and with assaulting a constable.
However PC675 almost lost his! The constable told the court that he found the accused at 3am in a petty, which was a small outhouse that could be used as a toilet.
The man asked the policeman if he was alone and after saying that he was, Walsh began a "furious attack" in which he tore away a portion of his whiskers. I bet that hurt!
The magistrates sentenced Walsh to a total of three months in prison for the two offences.
Medical men regularly had difficulty in getting paid for their services and often would have to write off debts from poor patients.
There was also the question of liability, as in the case of Gorst vs. Hall in St Helens County Court on the 29th.
A labourer called Hall from Huyton had called out Dr Richard Gorst from Prescot to attend to his sick father-in-law.
However he swore to the court that he had never authorised the doctor to charge him personally for the treatment.
Dr Gorst swore that he had and the judge ruled: "As there is oath against oath, I have no alternative, but to non-suit". In other words dismiss the summons as not proved.
The non-payment was only 30 shillings and it would have cost the doctor 6 or 7 shillings to bring the summons.
But it must have really annoyed the medical men to have their patients squirming out of paying.
Next week's many stories will include the Parr scandal of a married woman and a 16-year-old boy, the man given 3 months for sleeping in the open air and the prosecution of the Prescot apprentice watchmaker for not turning up to work.