150 YEARS AGO THIS WEEK 28 JULY - 3 AUGUST 1875
This week's many stories include the claim for compensation after a little girl loses a toe, the Sutton Heath Colliery fire is explained, another drunk drowns in St Helens Canal, the Parr Stocks neighbours that were in dispute, the death down a Thatto Heath coal mine, the police get another kicking in Parr, the second annual Sutton Athletics Sports takes place and the child's death at Rainford Potteries.
We begin on the 28th with the monthly meeting of the council's Paving, Highways and Sewering Committee. It was decided to experiment on Kirkland Street (pictured above) with a new method of bottoming streets by using refuse from local glass, iron and copper works instead of slag. It was nothing to do with recycling. Slag now cost as much as a shilling per ton but the industrial refuse was freely available, with the only outlay being its transport by cart.
It was not easy to get compensation from the council after an accident. Any claim had to prove negligence from their employees and be based on reimbursing loss of income and / or expenses incurred. A child that was not in employment had none of the former to claim and any expense was likely to only be a doctor's bill.
The Highways Committee members at their meeting considered a claim for compensation from the unnamed mother of a little girl who had needed to have a toe amputated after suffering an accident. That was when returning home after playing in a field at the bottom of Oldfield Street. The child caught a flagging stone that a workman had left standing against a wall and it had crashed down upon her foot.
The mother's claim was just for the reimbursement of the £1 5 shillings medical bill that Dr Martin had submitted to her. But some members of the committee were against making any payment, arguing that the girl must have been partly responsible for the accident. When it went to a vote there was a tie but the Chairman gave his casting vote in favour of making the payment.
Canal drownings were almost weekly events and this week's victim was Peter Higgins. The body of the 30-year-old from Water Street was spotted on the 29th floating in the waters of the canal opposite the works of the Bridgewater Smelting Company. Peter had been employed at the works as a labourer but had been discharged and on the following day when he received his back wages had used his pay to get very drunk. It was likely that in the dark Peter had stumbled into the canal and then in his intoxicated state had been unable to extricate himself.
Last week I described how for several days a fire had been burning on a coal heap at Sutton Heath Colliery, which was owned by James Radley, the present Mayor of St Helens. The Newspaper wrote that the cause of the fire was believed to be spontaneous combustion. However, this week the paper offered a more rational explanation for what had occurred and had to admit that there had not actually been a fire.
"The appearance of fire", had in fact been sulphurous gas rising from the centre of a coal heap. A large number of men in relays had worked night and day at about a dozen different parts of the heap to place the coal into waggons and shunt it away. At the same time continuous streams of water were played upon the heap to prevent it from catching fire and avert a "terrible disaster" as, the Newspaper claimed, the whole of the works above ground would likely have been destroyed. It took a whole week before the problem could be resolved.
Meanwhile, at another of Radley's coalmines in Elephant Lane, a young man named Samuel Hilton was killed. The death took place on Wednesday after Samuel had detonated some explosives. A large stone estimated at five tons in weight subsequently fell down upon him and killed Samuel on the spot, crushing him beyond recognition. The 22-year-old left a wife and young child.
PC Robert Sheriff received another kicking this week. The appropriately named constable told St Helens Petty Sessions that he had been on duty in Vernon Street in Parr when he saw Patrick McGuire very drunk and disorderly. He told the man to go home but as he would not do so and instead became abusive, he was taken into custody.
While being escorted to the police station, McGuire became very violent and PC Sheriff required the assistance of PC Kiernan. But both officers were still severely kicked and struck by McGuire who was only fined 40 shillings plus costs.
This week's neighbours' dispute that was aired in court was between the Tither and Wadsworth families of Parr Stocks. According to the Newspaper, Mary Wadsworth was accused of calling Jane Tither "very vile and opprobrious" names. Mrs Wadsworth's daughter Esther had then added her own insults and proceeded to kick Mrs Tither in an eye.
But their defence solicitor called witnesses who proved that the complainant Jane Tither had been the first to use bad language and that no blows had been struck until she had grabbed Esther's hair and said: "I will have a leg or an arm of some of you this night". The magistrates decided that both sides were as bad as each other and dismissed the case.
During the 1870s athletics festivals began to be held in the St Helens district, mainly organised by cricket clubs. They already had a large field that could easily be used for races and with thousands of spectators prepared to pay an admission fee, it was a profitable way to raise cash for the club.
On the 31st the second annual Sutton Athletics Sports was held, organised by the Sutton Recreation Cricket Club, near St Helens Junction. They still exist, by the way, but now play in New Street. It was a fine day and so there was a very good attendance. However, the Newspaper said because of the ground's exposed position, there were quite as many people who "obtained a gratuitous view from the outside" than those who had paid to enter the enclosed space.
And the paper was unimpressed with the lack of facilities for the press, saying: "We had to push our way as best we could, and had to look at several of the events through the medium of a lady's brown silk umbrella, which was politely put up in front of us." A total of £70 was available as prizes in the form of cups, watches etc., although not all of the events were treated seriously. The Newspaper wrote:
"Our comical friend who figured at the St. Helens sports turned up again here in the walking race, but he was rigged out in a brand-new walking costume of magenta and white, with what appeared to be a pair of clown's stockings. Of course, as before, he waddled like a duck – some said more like a goose – for the first time round…The donkey race certainly created a good deal of amusement."
There was another example on August 3rd of why children should never be employed in industrial settings. That was when Ellen Westhead from what was described as Red Cat village near Crank was killed at Rainford Potteries in Mill Lane where the girl worked. The 14-year-old had for some unknown reason been standing on a train of waggons in a siding near the works.
A shunting engine struck the train and the girl fell onto the rails at the same time as two laden waggons passed over her, killing Ellen on the spot. Her body was taken to her mother's home to await an inquest that was held at the Crank Hotel two days later where the usual verdict of accidental death was returned. This was a second blow for the girl's mother as her husband had deserted his family some years before.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the poor state of the St Helens police station, the first public children's nursery opens in St Helens, the plans for a new post office in Church Street and the neighbourly row over a clothesline.
It was not easy to get compensation from the council after an accident. Any claim had to prove negligence from their employees and be based on reimbursing loss of income and / or expenses incurred. A child that was not in employment had none of the former to claim and any expense was likely to only be a doctor's bill.
The Highways Committee members at their meeting considered a claim for compensation from the unnamed mother of a little girl who had needed to have a toe amputated after suffering an accident. That was when returning home after playing in a field at the bottom of Oldfield Street. The child caught a flagging stone that a workman had left standing against a wall and it had crashed down upon her foot.
The mother's claim was just for the reimbursement of the £1 5 shillings medical bill that Dr Martin had submitted to her. But some members of the committee were against making any payment, arguing that the girl must have been partly responsible for the accident. When it went to a vote there was a tie but the Chairman gave his casting vote in favour of making the payment.
Canal drownings were almost weekly events and this week's victim was Peter Higgins. The body of the 30-year-old from Water Street was spotted on the 29th floating in the waters of the canal opposite the works of the Bridgewater Smelting Company. Peter had been employed at the works as a labourer but had been discharged and on the following day when he received his back wages had used his pay to get very drunk. It was likely that in the dark Peter had stumbled into the canal and then in his intoxicated state had been unable to extricate himself.
Last week I described how for several days a fire had been burning on a coal heap at Sutton Heath Colliery, which was owned by James Radley, the present Mayor of St Helens. The Newspaper wrote that the cause of the fire was believed to be spontaneous combustion. However, this week the paper offered a more rational explanation for what had occurred and had to admit that there had not actually been a fire.
"The appearance of fire", had in fact been sulphurous gas rising from the centre of a coal heap. A large number of men in relays had worked night and day at about a dozen different parts of the heap to place the coal into waggons and shunt it away. At the same time continuous streams of water were played upon the heap to prevent it from catching fire and avert a "terrible disaster" as, the Newspaper claimed, the whole of the works above ground would likely have been destroyed. It took a whole week before the problem could be resolved.
Meanwhile, at another of Radley's coalmines in Elephant Lane, a young man named Samuel Hilton was killed. The death took place on Wednesday after Samuel had detonated some explosives. A large stone estimated at five tons in weight subsequently fell down upon him and killed Samuel on the spot, crushing him beyond recognition. The 22-year-old left a wife and young child.
PC Robert Sheriff received another kicking this week. The appropriately named constable told St Helens Petty Sessions that he had been on duty in Vernon Street in Parr when he saw Patrick McGuire very drunk and disorderly. He told the man to go home but as he would not do so and instead became abusive, he was taken into custody.
While being escorted to the police station, McGuire became very violent and PC Sheriff required the assistance of PC Kiernan. But both officers were still severely kicked and struck by McGuire who was only fined 40 shillings plus costs.
This week's neighbours' dispute that was aired in court was between the Tither and Wadsworth families of Parr Stocks. According to the Newspaper, Mary Wadsworth was accused of calling Jane Tither "very vile and opprobrious" names. Mrs Wadsworth's daughter Esther had then added her own insults and proceeded to kick Mrs Tither in an eye.
But their defence solicitor called witnesses who proved that the complainant Jane Tither had been the first to use bad language and that no blows had been struck until she had grabbed Esther's hair and said: "I will have a leg or an arm of some of you this night". The magistrates decided that both sides were as bad as each other and dismissed the case.
During the 1870s athletics festivals began to be held in the St Helens district, mainly organised by cricket clubs. They already had a large field that could easily be used for races and with thousands of spectators prepared to pay an admission fee, it was a profitable way to raise cash for the club.
On the 31st the second annual Sutton Athletics Sports was held, organised by the Sutton Recreation Cricket Club, near St Helens Junction. They still exist, by the way, but now play in New Street. It was a fine day and so there was a very good attendance. However, the Newspaper said because of the ground's exposed position, there were quite as many people who "obtained a gratuitous view from the outside" than those who had paid to enter the enclosed space.
And the paper was unimpressed with the lack of facilities for the press, saying: "We had to push our way as best we could, and had to look at several of the events through the medium of a lady's brown silk umbrella, which was politely put up in front of us." A total of £70 was available as prizes in the form of cups, watches etc., although not all of the events were treated seriously. The Newspaper wrote:
"Our comical friend who figured at the St. Helens sports turned up again here in the walking race, but he was rigged out in a brand-new walking costume of magenta and white, with what appeared to be a pair of clown's stockings. Of course, as before, he waddled like a duck – some said more like a goose – for the first time round…The donkey race certainly created a good deal of amusement."
There was another example on August 3rd of why children should never be employed in industrial settings. That was when Ellen Westhead from what was described as Red Cat village near Crank was killed at Rainford Potteries in Mill Lane where the girl worked. The 14-year-old had for some unknown reason been standing on a train of waggons in a siding near the works.
A shunting engine struck the train and the girl fell onto the rails at the same time as two laden waggons passed over her, killing Ellen on the spot. Her body was taken to her mother's home to await an inquest that was held at the Crank Hotel two days later where the usual verdict of accidental death was returned. This was a second blow for the girl's mother as her husband had deserted his family some years before.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the poor state of the St Helens police station, the first public children's nursery opens in St Helens, the plans for a new post office in Church Street and the neighbourly row over a clothesline.
This week's many stories include the claim for compensation after a little girl loses a toe, the Sutton Heath Colliery fire is explained, another drunk drowns in St Helens Canal, the Parr Stocks neighbours that were in dispute, the death down a Thatto Heath coal mine, the police get another kicking in Parr, the second annual Sutton Athletics Sports takes place and the child's death at Rainford Potteries.
We begin on the 28th with the monthly meeting of the council's Paving, Highways and Sewering Committee.
It was decided to experiment on Kirkland Street (pictured above) with a new method of bottoming streets by using refuse from local glass, iron and copper works instead of slag.
It was nothing to do with recycling. Slag now cost as much as a shilling per ton but the industrial refuse was freely available, with the only outlay being its transport by cart.
It was not easy to get compensation from the council after an accident. Any claim had to prove negligence from their employees and be based on reimbursing loss of income and / or expenses incurred.
A child that was not in employment had none of the former to claim and any expense was likely to only be a doctor's bill.
The Highways Committee members at their meeting considered a claim for compensation from the unnamed mother of a little girl who had needed to have a toe amputated after suffering an accident.
That was when returning home after playing in a field at the bottom of Oldfield Street.
The child caught a flagging stone that a workman had left standing against a wall and it had crashed down upon her foot.
The mother's claim was just for the reimbursement of the £1 5 shillings medical bill that Dr Martin had submitted to her.
But some members of the committee were against making any payment, arguing that the girl must have been partly responsible for the accident.
When it went to a vote there was a tie but the Chairman gave his casting vote in favour of making the payment.
Canal drownings were almost weekly events and this week's victim was Peter Higgins.
The body of the 30-year-old from Water Street was spotted on the 29th floating in the waters of the canal opposite the works of the Bridgewater Smelting Company.
Peter had been employed at the works as a labourer but had been discharged and on the following day when he received his back wages had used his pay to get very drunk.
It was likely that in the dark Peter had stumbled into the canal and then in his intoxicated state had been unable to extricate himself.
Last week I described how for several days a fire had been burning on a coal heap at Sutton Heath Colliery, which was owned by James Radley, the present Mayor of St Helens.
The Newspaper wrote that the cause of the fire was believed to be spontaneous combustion.
However, this week the paper offered a more rational explanation for what had occurred and had to admit that there had not actually been a fire.
"The appearance of fire", had in fact been sulphurous gas rising from the centre of a coal heap.
A large number of men in relays had worked night and day at about a dozen different parts of the heap to place the coal into waggons and shunt it away.
At the same time continuous streams of water were played upon the heap to prevent it from catching fire and avert a "terrible disaster" as, the Newspaper claimed, the whole of the works above ground would likely have been destroyed.
It took a whole week before the problem could be resolved.
Meanwhile, at another of Radley's coalmines in Elephant Lane, a young man named Samuel Hilton was killed.
The death took place on Wednesday after Samuel had detonated some explosives.
A large stone estimated at five tons in weight subsequently fell down upon him and killed Samuel on the spot, crushing him beyond recognition. The 22-year-old left a wife and young child.
PC Robert Sheriff received another kicking this week. The appropriately named constable told St Helens Petty Sessions that he had been on duty in Vernon Street in Parr when he saw Patrick McGuire very drunk and disorderly.
He told the man to go home but as he would not do so and instead became abusive, he was taken into custody.
While being escorted to the police station, McGuire became very violent and PC Sheriff required the assistance of PC Kiernan.
But both officers were still severely kicked and struck by McGuire who was only fined 40 shillings plus costs.
This week's neighbours' dispute that was aired in court was between the Tither and Wadsworth families of Parr Stocks.
According to the Newspaper, Mary Wadsworth was accused of calling Jane Tither "very vile and opprobrious" names.
Mrs Wadsworth's daughter Esther had then added her own insults and proceeded to kick Mrs Tither in an eye.
But their defence solicitor called witnesses who proved that the complainant Jane Tither had been the first to use bad language and that no blows had been struck until she had grabbed Esther's hair and said: "I will have a leg or an arm of some of you this night".
The magistrates decided that both sides were as bad as each other and dismissed the case.
During the 1870s athletics festivals began to be held in the St Helens district, mainly organised by cricket clubs.
They already had a large field that could easily be used for races and with thousands of spectators prepared to pay an admission fee, it was a profitable way to raise cash for the club.
On the 31st the second annual Sutton Athletics Sports was held, organised by the Sutton Recreation Cricket Club, near St Helens Junction. They still exist, by the way, but now play in New Street.
It was a fine day and so there was a very good attendance. However, the Newspaper said because of the ground's exposed position, there were quite as many people who "obtained a gratuitous view from the outside" than those who had paid to enter the enclosed space.
And the paper was unimpressed with the lack of facilities for the press, saying:
"We had to push our way as best we could, and had to look at several of the events through the medium of a lady's brown silk umbrella, which was politely put up in front of us."
A total of £70 was available as prizes in the form of cups, watches etc., although not all of the events were treated seriously. The Newspaper wrote:
"Our comical friend who figured at the St. Helens sports turned up again here in the walking race, but he was rigged out in a brand-new walking costume of magenta and white, with what appeared to be a pair of clown's stockings.
"Of course, as before, he waddled like a duck – some said more like a goose – for the first time round…The donkey race certainly created a good deal of amusement."
There was another example on August 3rd of why children should never be employed in industrial settings.
That was when Ellen Westhead from what was described as Red Cat village near Crank was killed at Rainford Potteries in Mill Lane where the girl worked.
The 14-year-old had for some unknown reason been standing on a train of waggons in a siding near the works.
A shunting engine struck the train and the girl fell onto the rails at the same time as two laden waggons passed over her, killing Ellen on the spot.
Her body was taken to her mother's home to await an inquest that was held at the Crank Hotel two days later where the usual verdict of accidental death was returned.
This was a second blow for the girl's mother as her husband had deserted his family some years before.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the poor state of the St Helens police station, the first public children's nursery opens in St Helens, the plans for a new post office in Church Street and the neighbourly row over a clothesline.
It was decided to experiment on Kirkland Street (pictured above) with a new method of bottoming streets by using refuse from local glass, iron and copper works instead of slag.
It was nothing to do with recycling. Slag now cost as much as a shilling per ton but the industrial refuse was freely available, with the only outlay being its transport by cart.
It was not easy to get compensation from the council after an accident. Any claim had to prove negligence from their employees and be based on reimbursing loss of income and / or expenses incurred.
A child that was not in employment had none of the former to claim and any expense was likely to only be a doctor's bill.
The Highways Committee members at their meeting considered a claim for compensation from the unnamed mother of a little girl who had needed to have a toe amputated after suffering an accident.
That was when returning home after playing in a field at the bottom of Oldfield Street.
The child caught a flagging stone that a workman had left standing against a wall and it had crashed down upon her foot.
The mother's claim was just for the reimbursement of the £1 5 shillings medical bill that Dr Martin had submitted to her.
But some members of the committee were against making any payment, arguing that the girl must have been partly responsible for the accident.
When it went to a vote there was a tie but the Chairman gave his casting vote in favour of making the payment.
Canal drownings were almost weekly events and this week's victim was Peter Higgins.
The body of the 30-year-old from Water Street was spotted on the 29th floating in the waters of the canal opposite the works of the Bridgewater Smelting Company.
Peter had been employed at the works as a labourer but had been discharged and on the following day when he received his back wages had used his pay to get very drunk.
It was likely that in the dark Peter had stumbled into the canal and then in his intoxicated state had been unable to extricate himself.
Last week I described how for several days a fire had been burning on a coal heap at Sutton Heath Colliery, which was owned by James Radley, the present Mayor of St Helens.
The Newspaper wrote that the cause of the fire was believed to be spontaneous combustion.
However, this week the paper offered a more rational explanation for what had occurred and had to admit that there had not actually been a fire.
"The appearance of fire", had in fact been sulphurous gas rising from the centre of a coal heap.
A large number of men in relays had worked night and day at about a dozen different parts of the heap to place the coal into waggons and shunt it away.
At the same time continuous streams of water were played upon the heap to prevent it from catching fire and avert a "terrible disaster" as, the Newspaper claimed, the whole of the works above ground would likely have been destroyed.
It took a whole week before the problem could be resolved.
Meanwhile, at another of Radley's coalmines in Elephant Lane, a young man named Samuel Hilton was killed.
The death took place on Wednesday after Samuel had detonated some explosives.
A large stone estimated at five tons in weight subsequently fell down upon him and killed Samuel on the spot, crushing him beyond recognition. The 22-year-old left a wife and young child.
PC Robert Sheriff received another kicking this week. The appropriately named constable told St Helens Petty Sessions that he had been on duty in Vernon Street in Parr when he saw Patrick McGuire very drunk and disorderly.
He told the man to go home but as he would not do so and instead became abusive, he was taken into custody.
While being escorted to the police station, McGuire became very violent and PC Sheriff required the assistance of PC Kiernan.
But both officers were still severely kicked and struck by McGuire who was only fined 40 shillings plus costs.
This week's neighbours' dispute that was aired in court was between the Tither and Wadsworth families of Parr Stocks.
According to the Newspaper, Mary Wadsworth was accused of calling Jane Tither "very vile and opprobrious" names.
Mrs Wadsworth's daughter Esther had then added her own insults and proceeded to kick Mrs Tither in an eye.
But their defence solicitor called witnesses who proved that the complainant Jane Tither had been the first to use bad language and that no blows had been struck until she had grabbed Esther's hair and said: "I will have a leg or an arm of some of you this night".
The magistrates decided that both sides were as bad as each other and dismissed the case.
During the 1870s athletics festivals began to be held in the St Helens district, mainly organised by cricket clubs.
They already had a large field that could easily be used for races and with thousands of spectators prepared to pay an admission fee, it was a profitable way to raise cash for the club.
On the 31st the second annual Sutton Athletics Sports was held, organised by the Sutton Recreation Cricket Club, near St Helens Junction. They still exist, by the way, but now play in New Street.
It was a fine day and so there was a very good attendance. However, the Newspaper said because of the ground's exposed position, there were quite as many people who "obtained a gratuitous view from the outside" than those who had paid to enter the enclosed space.
And the paper was unimpressed with the lack of facilities for the press, saying:
"We had to push our way as best we could, and had to look at several of the events through the medium of a lady's brown silk umbrella, which was politely put up in front of us."
A total of £70 was available as prizes in the form of cups, watches etc., although not all of the events were treated seriously. The Newspaper wrote:
"Our comical friend who figured at the St. Helens sports turned up again here in the walking race, but he was rigged out in a brand-new walking costume of magenta and white, with what appeared to be a pair of clown's stockings.
"Of course, as before, he waddled like a duck – some said more like a goose – for the first time round…The donkey race certainly created a good deal of amusement."
There was another example on August 3rd of why children should never be employed in industrial settings.
That was when Ellen Westhead from what was described as Red Cat village near Crank was killed at Rainford Potteries in Mill Lane where the girl worked.
The 14-year-old had for some unknown reason been standing on a train of waggons in a siding near the works.
A shunting engine struck the train and the girl fell onto the rails at the same time as two laden waggons passed over her, killing Ellen on the spot.
Her body was taken to her mother's home to await an inquest that was held at the Crank Hotel two days later where the usual verdict of accidental death was returned.
This was a second blow for the girl's mother as her husband had deserted his family some years before.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the poor state of the St Helens police station, the first public children's nursery opens in St Helens, the plans for a new post office in Church Street and the neighbourly row over a clothesline.