150 YEARS AGO THIS WEEK (3rd - 9th OCTOBER 1872)
This week's stories include the Japanese ambassadors that paid a visit to St Helens, the woman that died from pipe smoking, the Rainford man's exhausting experience in a brook, the drunk killed on the railway line at Garswood and Rainhill Hospital advertises for a musical tailor.
The first co-operative retail undertaking in St Helens had been formed in 1850 in Worsley Brow with the creation of the Sutton Co-operative Friendly Society. That was quickly followed by another such jointly-owned venture at Haydock. A number of other co-operative groups soon followed, although they were generally short-lived, often because of mismanagement. One of these was the Sutton Alkali Co-operative Society, which had its shop on the corner of Warrington New Road – but had recently been forced to close. On the 5th the St Helens Newspaper published this excoriating critique of how the firm had been run:
"The Sutton Alkali Co-operative Society, generally known as “Kurtz's,” has at length got into trouble. It was originally started in connection with the large body of men employed at Mr. Kurtz's works, and in its early and prosperous days the management was under the supervision of the managers and foremen connected with the works.
"By degrees jealousies crept in, and “factions” were formed, and competent men had to give place to the loud-mouthed and the clannish; and by degrees palavering schemes crept in as paid officials and leading shareholders, who sought more to work the “concern” for their own benefit and aggrandisement and that of their friends, than for the general good of the shareholders and customers.
"The usual result of such dishonesty has at length come – ruin! and many a poor man who thought his shares in the “co-operative stores” were as good as gold, has now to regret that he ever placed his little savings in the concern. Few societies ever had a better prospect or a surer field for success, and few ever come to a more disgraceful, and, as the end will most likely show, a more disastrous termination."
This week the Rainford tobacco pipemaker's strike ended after their "masters" met in Manchester and voted to accede to their men's demand for a 10% pay rise. That was how it tended to be in the 19th century. Striking workers were either awarded everything they asked for – or, far more likely, they received nothing with their bosses playing for time until poverty drove the men back to their jobs. Compromise pay awards between bosses and unions appear to have been more of a 20th century arrangement.
I don't know whether it had been a Rainford pipe that caused the death of Sarah Battersby or whether she had been one of many female pipe smokers in St Helens – although I expect not. The 76-year-old miner's wife died on the 6th from the burns that she had received a few days before. Sarah had lit her pipe while in her nightdress and by some means a spark got on her clothing and set it alight. Her throat and the greater part of her right side were so severely burned that death soon ensued.
A few weeks ago the Mayor of Jeddo – the anglicised name by which Tokyo was then known – made a visit to St Helens. That put the cat amongst the pigeons because no one knew he was coming. The mayor was part of a large party of Japanese Embassy officials briefly staying in Liverpool after sailing to England from America. The group had to leave for London but promised to return to the region at the first opportunity.
That occurred this week and the party of nine – comprising five ambassadors and four secretaries – asked to inspect the Sutton glassworks. Two members of the Daglish family – who ran the St Helens Foundry engineering works in the town – met the Japanese delegation at the station. A special engine then took the group to Sutton and upon their return they enjoyed lunch at the Raven Hotel.
Fifty invitations had been issued to what was described as the leading gentlemen of the borough to attend the meal held in honour of the distinguished visitors. On the previous day the Japanese ambassadors had been to Crewe and were told in a speech by a director of the London & North Western Railway Company that their wagon works at Earlestown made a wagon every forty minutes.
From time to time Rainhill Asylum (pictured above) placed "situation vacant" adverts in regional newspapers in which they appeared to be seeking extra value for their paltry pay. On the 5th this ad appeared in the classified section of the Hampshire Telegraph: "Wanted at a County Asylum, – A TAILOR ATTENDANT, who must be a competent cutter out. Wages 40/– a year, with board, lodging, and washing, and a suit of clothes annually."
Nothing wrong in that, you might think? But at the end the ad says: "A man with a knowledge of vocal or instrumental music preferred. Apply to the Medical Superintendent, County Asylum, Rainhill, near Prescot, Lancashire." So a singing tailor or one who played a musical instrument was wanted for pay of £2 a year, plus keep in a mental hospital.
Many people used the railway line as a shortcut to their homes, which in the pitch-blackness of night-time after a visit to the pub was a highly dangerous practice. Also on the 5th, the Warrington Guardian described the inquest that had taken place on John Davies, a fireman at Pilkingtons' collieries in St Helens. The driver of a goods train had found fragments of the dead man's body lying on the railway, near to Garswood station. The paper wrote: "It is supposed he had on the previous evening rambled on the line whilst he was drunk, and been cut to pieces by a passing train. In this case the jury returned a verdict of “Found dead”."
Inquests were always held rapidly in the 1870s, as it was a legal requirement that the deceased's body had to be in the room in case the jurors wanted to inspect it – and they didn't want putrefaction to set in and stink the place out! But John Davies’s inquest was held super fast. His body was discovered early on a Monday morning and his inquest took place that afternoon.
There was another example this week of the perils of getting home in the dark – especially when short cuts were attempted on moonless nights. During the evening of the 7th, a man from Rainford called James Aspindale had attended a club meeting with William Travis. As the pair left the venue they walked along a footpath in the direction of Simonswood, alongside a brook that traversed from Chapel House to Kirkby.
The course of the brook and footpath had recently been diverted. But William Travis did not appear to know that and so, in the darkness, walked in the old direction of the path. The 24-year-old farm labourer stepped straight into the water and as a result of recent heavy rain, the brook was swollen to a depth of six feet and there was a strong current.
Travis was immediately swept away and his companion, James Aspindale, called to him but, after receiving no answer, jumped into the water to try and rescue his mate. However, he instead had what was described as a severe struggle to save his own life. After splashing about in the water for about fifteen minutes, Aspindale managed to get a hold on some steps that led from the brook into the churchyard.
By this means he managed to extricate himself, although he was completely exhausted by the experience. On the following day the brook was dragged but the body of William Travis was not found until almost 48 hours after he'd entered the water and about a mile away from where he'd fallen in.
The next council election would be held on November 1st and it would be the first elections conducted in St Helens by secret ballot. With a fairly small male electorate one would have thought that voter registration would be quite a simple process. It was far from it! What was called the "revision of the parliamentary lists" for the St Helens district was a lengthy series of hearings in which political parties raised objections against individuals being entitled to vote based on highly technical points.
If one party could stop someone from voting who they thought likely to vote for the opposition, that was obviously a good result for them. On the 9th, this year's revision began in the County Court in East Street in St Helens (pictured above). An example of the pedantic nature of the objections was how Dr O’Keefe lost his vote. Someone (thought to be the printers) had made a spelling mistake and on the provisional voting lists he was down as Dr Keefe. Even though the doctor's address was correctly stated on the roll, an objection was raised against his entitlement to vote, which the barrister that acted as judge sustained.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next week's stories will include the dead baby discovered in St Anne's churchyard, the reopening of the refurbished Theatre Royal, the strike at the railway Sheeting Sheds and the French captain in the Communards who was on the cadge in St Helens.
The first co-operative retail undertaking in St Helens had been formed in 1850 in Worsley Brow with the creation of the Sutton Co-operative Friendly Society. That was quickly followed by another such jointly-owned venture at Haydock. A number of other co-operative groups soon followed, although they were generally short-lived, often because of mismanagement. One of these was the Sutton Alkali Co-operative Society, which had its shop on the corner of Warrington New Road – but had recently been forced to close. On the 5th the St Helens Newspaper published this excoriating critique of how the firm had been run:
"The Sutton Alkali Co-operative Society, generally known as “Kurtz's,” has at length got into trouble. It was originally started in connection with the large body of men employed at Mr. Kurtz's works, and in its early and prosperous days the management was under the supervision of the managers and foremen connected with the works.
"By degrees jealousies crept in, and “factions” were formed, and competent men had to give place to the loud-mouthed and the clannish; and by degrees palavering schemes crept in as paid officials and leading shareholders, who sought more to work the “concern” for their own benefit and aggrandisement and that of their friends, than for the general good of the shareholders and customers.
"The usual result of such dishonesty has at length come – ruin! and many a poor man who thought his shares in the “co-operative stores” were as good as gold, has now to regret that he ever placed his little savings in the concern. Few societies ever had a better prospect or a surer field for success, and few ever come to a more disgraceful, and, as the end will most likely show, a more disastrous termination."
This week the Rainford tobacco pipemaker's strike ended after their "masters" met in Manchester and voted to accede to their men's demand for a 10% pay rise. That was how it tended to be in the 19th century. Striking workers were either awarded everything they asked for – or, far more likely, they received nothing with their bosses playing for time until poverty drove the men back to their jobs. Compromise pay awards between bosses and unions appear to have been more of a 20th century arrangement.
I don't know whether it had been a Rainford pipe that caused the death of Sarah Battersby or whether she had been one of many female pipe smokers in St Helens – although I expect not. The 76-year-old miner's wife died on the 6th from the burns that she had received a few days before. Sarah had lit her pipe while in her nightdress and by some means a spark got on her clothing and set it alight. Her throat and the greater part of her right side were so severely burned that death soon ensued.
A few weeks ago the Mayor of Jeddo – the anglicised name by which Tokyo was then known – made a visit to St Helens. That put the cat amongst the pigeons because no one knew he was coming. The mayor was part of a large party of Japanese Embassy officials briefly staying in Liverpool after sailing to England from America. The group had to leave for London but promised to return to the region at the first opportunity.
That occurred this week and the party of nine – comprising five ambassadors and four secretaries – asked to inspect the Sutton glassworks. Two members of the Daglish family – who ran the St Helens Foundry engineering works in the town – met the Japanese delegation at the station. A special engine then took the group to Sutton and upon their return they enjoyed lunch at the Raven Hotel.
Fifty invitations had been issued to what was described as the leading gentlemen of the borough to attend the meal held in honour of the distinguished visitors. On the previous day the Japanese ambassadors had been to Crewe and were told in a speech by a director of the London & North Western Railway Company that their wagon works at Earlestown made a wagon every forty minutes.
Nothing wrong in that, you might think? But at the end the ad says: "A man with a knowledge of vocal or instrumental music preferred. Apply to the Medical Superintendent, County Asylum, Rainhill, near Prescot, Lancashire." So a singing tailor or one who played a musical instrument was wanted for pay of £2 a year, plus keep in a mental hospital.
Many people used the railway line as a shortcut to their homes, which in the pitch-blackness of night-time after a visit to the pub was a highly dangerous practice. Also on the 5th, the Warrington Guardian described the inquest that had taken place on John Davies, a fireman at Pilkingtons' collieries in St Helens. The driver of a goods train had found fragments of the dead man's body lying on the railway, near to Garswood station. The paper wrote: "It is supposed he had on the previous evening rambled on the line whilst he was drunk, and been cut to pieces by a passing train. In this case the jury returned a verdict of “Found dead”."
Inquests were always held rapidly in the 1870s, as it was a legal requirement that the deceased's body had to be in the room in case the jurors wanted to inspect it – and they didn't want putrefaction to set in and stink the place out! But John Davies’s inquest was held super fast. His body was discovered early on a Monday morning and his inquest took place that afternoon.
There was another example this week of the perils of getting home in the dark – especially when short cuts were attempted on moonless nights. During the evening of the 7th, a man from Rainford called James Aspindale had attended a club meeting with William Travis. As the pair left the venue they walked along a footpath in the direction of Simonswood, alongside a brook that traversed from Chapel House to Kirkby.
The course of the brook and footpath had recently been diverted. But William Travis did not appear to know that and so, in the darkness, walked in the old direction of the path. The 24-year-old farm labourer stepped straight into the water and as a result of recent heavy rain, the brook was swollen to a depth of six feet and there was a strong current.
Travis was immediately swept away and his companion, James Aspindale, called to him but, after receiving no answer, jumped into the water to try and rescue his mate. However, he instead had what was described as a severe struggle to save his own life. After splashing about in the water for about fifteen minutes, Aspindale managed to get a hold on some steps that led from the brook into the churchyard.
By this means he managed to extricate himself, although he was completely exhausted by the experience. On the following day the brook was dragged but the body of William Travis was not found until almost 48 hours after he'd entered the water and about a mile away from where he'd fallen in.
The next council election would be held on November 1st and it would be the first elections conducted in St Helens by secret ballot. With a fairly small male electorate one would have thought that voter registration would be quite a simple process. It was far from it! What was called the "revision of the parliamentary lists" for the St Helens district was a lengthy series of hearings in which political parties raised objections against individuals being entitled to vote based on highly technical points.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next week's stories will include the dead baby discovered in St Anne's churchyard, the reopening of the refurbished Theatre Royal, the strike at the railway Sheeting Sheds and the French captain in the Communards who was on the cadge in St Helens.
This week's stories include the Japanese ambassadors that paid a visit to St Helens, the woman that died from pipe smoking, the Rainford man's exhausting experience in a brook, the drunk killed on the railway line at Garswood and Rainhill Hospital advertises for a musical tailor.
The first co-operative retail undertaking in St Helens had been formed in 1850 in Worsley Brow with the creation of the Sutton Co-operative Friendly Society. That was quickly followed by another such jointly-owned venture at Haydock.
A number of other co-operative groups soon followed, although they were generally short-lived, often because of mismanagement.
One of these was the Sutton Alkali Co-operative Society, which had its shop on the corner of Warrington New Road – but had recently been forced to close.
On the 5th the St Helens Newspaper published this excoriating critique of how the firm had been run:
"The Sutton Alkali Co-operative Society, generally known as “Kurtz's,” has at length got into trouble. It was originally started in connection with the large body of men employed at Mr. Kurtz's works, and in its early and prosperous days the management was under the supervision of the managers and foremen connected with the works.
"By degrees jealousies crept in, and “factions” were formed, and competent men had to give place to the loud-mouthed and the clannish; and by degrees palavering schemes crept in as paid officials and leading shareholders, who sought more to work the “concern” for their own benefit and aggrandisement and that of their friends, than for the general good of the shareholders and customers.
"The usual result of such dishonesty has at length come – ruin! and many a poor man who thought his shares in the “co-operative stores” were as good as gold, has now to regret that he ever placed his little savings in the concern.
"Few societies ever had a better prospect or a surer field for success, and few ever come to a more disgraceful, and, as the end will most likely show, a more disastrous termination."
This week the Rainford tobacco pipemaker's strike ended after their "masters" met in Manchester and voted to accede to their men's demand for a 10% pay rise.
That was how it tended to be in the 19th century. Striking workers were either awarded everything they asked for – or, far more likely, they received nothing with their bosses playing for time until poverty drove the men back to their jobs.
Compromise pay awards between bosses and unions appear to have been more of a 20th century arrangement.
I don't know whether it had been a Rainford pipe that caused the death of Sarah Battersby or whether she had been one of many female pipe smokers in St Helens – although I expect not.
The 76-year-old miner's wife died on the 6th from the burns that she had received a few days before.
Sarah had lit her pipe while in her nightdress and by some means a spark got on her clothing and set it alight.
Her throat and the greater part of her right side were so severely burned that death soon ensued.
A few weeks ago the Mayor of Jeddo – the anglicised name by which Tokyo was then known – made a visit to St Helens. That put the cat amongst the pigeons because no one knew he was coming.
The mayor was part of a large party of Japanese Embassy officials briefly staying in Liverpool after sailing to England from America.
The group had to leave for London but promised to return to the region at the first opportunity.
That occurred this week and the party of nine – comprising five ambassadors and four secretaries – asked to inspect the Sutton glassworks.
Two members of the Daglish family – who ran the St Helens Foundry engineering works in the town – met the Japanese delegation at the station.
A special engine then took the group to Sutton and upon their return they enjoyed lunch at the Raven Hotel.
Fifty invitations had been issued to what was described as the leading gentlemen of the borough to attend the meal held in honour of the distinguished visitors.
On the previous day the Japanese ambassadors had been to Crewe and were told in a speech by a director of the London & North Western Railway Company that their wagon works at Earlestown made a wagon every forty minutes.
From time to time Rainhill Asylum placed "situation vacant" adverts in regional newspapers in which they appeared to be seeking extra value for their paltry pay.
On the 5th this ad appeared in the classified section of the Hampshire Telegraph:
"Wanted at a County Asylum, – A TAILOR ATTENDANT, who must be a competent cutter out. Wages 40/– a year, with board, lodging, and washing, and a suit of clothes annually."
Nothing wrong in that, you might think? But at the end the ad says:
"A man with a knowledge of vocal or instrumental music preferred. Apply to the Medical Superintendent, County Asylum, Rainhill, near Prescot, Lancashire."
So a singing tailor or one who played a musical instrument was wanted for pay of £2 a year, plus keep in a mental hospital.
Many people used the railway line as a shortcut to their homes, which in the pitch-blackness of night-time after a visit to the pub was a highly dangerous practice.
Also on the 5th, the Warrington Guardian described the inquest that had taken place on John Davies, a fireman at Pilkingtons' collieries in St Helens.
The driver of a goods train had found fragments of the dead man's body lying on the railway, near to Garswood station. The paper wrote:
"It is supposed he had on the previous evening rambled on the line whilst he was drunk, and been cut to pieces by a passing train. In this case the jury returned a verdict of “Found dead”."
Inquests were always held rapidly in the 1870s, as it was a legal requirement that the deceased's body had to be in the room in case the jurors wanted to inspect it – and they didn't want putrefaction to set in and stink the place out!
But John Davies’s inquest was held super fast. His body was discovered early on a Monday morning and his inquest took place that afternoon.
There was another example this week of the perils of getting home in the dark – especially when short cuts were attempted on moonless nights.
During the evening of the 7th, a man from Rainford called James Aspindale had attended a club meeting with William Travis.
As the pair left the venue they walked along a footpath in the direction of Simonswood, alongside a brook that traversed from Chapel House to Kirkby.
The course of the brook and footpath had recently been diverted. But William Travis did not appear to know that and so, in the darkness, walked in the old direction of the path.
The 24-year-old farm labourer stepped straight into the water and as a result of recent heavy rain, the brook was swollen to a depth of six feet and there was a strong current.
Travis was immediately swept away and his companion, James Aspindale, called to him but, after receiving no answer, jumped into the water to try and rescue his mate.
However, he instead had what was described as a severe struggle to save his own life.
After splashing about in the water for about fifteen minutes, Aspindale managed to get a hold on some steps that led from the brook into the churchyard.
By this means he managed to extricate himself, although he was completely exhausted by the experience.
On the following day the brook was dragged but the body of William Travis was not found until almost 48 hours after he'd entered the water and about a mile away from where he'd fallen in.
The next council election would be held on November 1st and it would be the first elections conducted in St Helens by secret ballot.
With a fairly small male electorate one would have thought that voter registration would be quite a simple process. It was far from it!
What was called the "revision of the parliamentary lists" for the St Helens district was a lengthy series of hearings in which political parties raised objections against individuals being entitled to vote based on highly technical points.
If one party could stop someone from voting who they thought likely to vote for the opposition, that was obviously a good result for them.
On the 9th, this year's revision began in the County Court in East Street in St Helens (pictured above).
An example of the pedantic nature of the objections was how Dr O’Keefe lost his vote.
Someone (thought to be the printers) had made a spelling mistake and on the provisional voting lists he was down as Dr Keefe.
Even though the doctor's address was correctly stated on the roll, an objection was raised against his entitlement to vote, which the barrister that acted as judge sustained.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next week's stories will include the dead baby discovered in St Anne's churchyard, the reopening of the refurbished Theatre Royal, the strike at the railway Sheeting Sheds and the French captain in the Communards who was on the cadge in St Helens.
The first co-operative retail undertaking in St Helens had been formed in 1850 in Worsley Brow with the creation of the Sutton Co-operative Friendly Society. That was quickly followed by another such jointly-owned venture at Haydock.
A number of other co-operative groups soon followed, although they were generally short-lived, often because of mismanagement.
One of these was the Sutton Alkali Co-operative Society, which had its shop on the corner of Warrington New Road – but had recently been forced to close.
On the 5th the St Helens Newspaper published this excoriating critique of how the firm had been run:
"The Sutton Alkali Co-operative Society, generally known as “Kurtz's,” has at length got into trouble. It was originally started in connection with the large body of men employed at Mr. Kurtz's works, and in its early and prosperous days the management was under the supervision of the managers and foremen connected with the works.
"By degrees jealousies crept in, and “factions” were formed, and competent men had to give place to the loud-mouthed and the clannish; and by degrees palavering schemes crept in as paid officials and leading shareholders, who sought more to work the “concern” for their own benefit and aggrandisement and that of their friends, than for the general good of the shareholders and customers.
"The usual result of such dishonesty has at length come – ruin! and many a poor man who thought his shares in the “co-operative stores” were as good as gold, has now to regret that he ever placed his little savings in the concern.
"Few societies ever had a better prospect or a surer field for success, and few ever come to a more disgraceful, and, as the end will most likely show, a more disastrous termination."
This week the Rainford tobacco pipemaker's strike ended after their "masters" met in Manchester and voted to accede to their men's demand for a 10% pay rise.
That was how it tended to be in the 19th century. Striking workers were either awarded everything they asked for – or, far more likely, they received nothing with their bosses playing for time until poverty drove the men back to their jobs.
Compromise pay awards between bosses and unions appear to have been more of a 20th century arrangement.
I don't know whether it had been a Rainford pipe that caused the death of Sarah Battersby or whether she had been one of many female pipe smokers in St Helens – although I expect not.
The 76-year-old miner's wife died on the 6th from the burns that she had received a few days before.
Sarah had lit her pipe while in her nightdress and by some means a spark got on her clothing and set it alight.
Her throat and the greater part of her right side were so severely burned that death soon ensued.
A few weeks ago the Mayor of Jeddo – the anglicised name by which Tokyo was then known – made a visit to St Helens. That put the cat amongst the pigeons because no one knew he was coming.
The mayor was part of a large party of Japanese Embassy officials briefly staying in Liverpool after sailing to England from America.
The group had to leave for London but promised to return to the region at the first opportunity.
That occurred this week and the party of nine – comprising five ambassadors and four secretaries – asked to inspect the Sutton glassworks.
Two members of the Daglish family – who ran the St Helens Foundry engineering works in the town – met the Japanese delegation at the station.
A special engine then took the group to Sutton and upon their return they enjoyed lunch at the Raven Hotel.
Fifty invitations had been issued to what was described as the leading gentlemen of the borough to attend the meal held in honour of the distinguished visitors.
On the previous day the Japanese ambassadors had been to Crewe and were told in a speech by a director of the London & North Western Railway Company that their wagon works at Earlestown made a wagon every forty minutes.
On the 5th this ad appeared in the classified section of the Hampshire Telegraph:
"Wanted at a County Asylum, – A TAILOR ATTENDANT, who must be a competent cutter out. Wages 40/– a year, with board, lodging, and washing, and a suit of clothes annually."
Nothing wrong in that, you might think? But at the end the ad says:
"A man with a knowledge of vocal or instrumental music preferred. Apply to the Medical Superintendent, County Asylum, Rainhill, near Prescot, Lancashire."
So a singing tailor or one who played a musical instrument was wanted for pay of £2 a year, plus keep in a mental hospital.
Many people used the railway line as a shortcut to their homes, which in the pitch-blackness of night-time after a visit to the pub was a highly dangerous practice.
Also on the 5th, the Warrington Guardian described the inquest that had taken place on John Davies, a fireman at Pilkingtons' collieries in St Helens.
The driver of a goods train had found fragments of the dead man's body lying on the railway, near to Garswood station. The paper wrote:
"It is supposed he had on the previous evening rambled on the line whilst he was drunk, and been cut to pieces by a passing train. In this case the jury returned a verdict of “Found dead”."
Inquests were always held rapidly in the 1870s, as it was a legal requirement that the deceased's body had to be in the room in case the jurors wanted to inspect it – and they didn't want putrefaction to set in and stink the place out!
But John Davies’s inquest was held super fast. His body was discovered early on a Monday morning and his inquest took place that afternoon.
There was another example this week of the perils of getting home in the dark – especially when short cuts were attempted on moonless nights.
During the evening of the 7th, a man from Rainford called James Aspindale had attended a club meeting with William Travis.
As the pair left the venue they walked along a footpath in the direction of Simonswood, alongside a brook that traversed from Chapel House to Kirkby.
The course of the brook and footpath had recently been diverted. But William Travis did not appear to know that and so, in the darkness, walked in the old direction of the path.
The 24-year-old farm labourer stepped straight into the water and as a result of recent heavy rain, the brook was swollen to a depth of six feet and there was a strong current.
Travis was immediately swept away and his companion, James Aspindale, called to him but, after receiving no answer, jumped into the water to try and rescue his mate.
However, he instead had what was described as a severe struggle to save his own life.
After splashing about in the water for about fifteen minutes, Aspindale managed to get a hold on some steps that led from the brook into the churchyard.
By this means he managed to extricate himself, although he was completely exhausted by the experience.
On the following day the brook was dragged but the body of William Travis was not found until almost 48 hours after he'd entered the water and about a mile away from where he'd fallen in.
The next council election would be held on November 1st and it would be the first elections conducted in St Helens by secret ballot.
With a fairly small male electorate one would have thought that voter registration would be quite a simple process. It was far from it!
What was called the "revision of the parliamentary lists" for the St Helens district was a lengthy series of hearings in which political parties raised objections against individuals being entitled to vote based on highly technical points.
If one party could stop someone from voting who they thought likely to vote for the opposition, that was obviously a good result for them.
An example of the pedantic nature of the objections was how Dr O’Keefe lost his vote.
Someone (thought to be the printers) had made a spelling mistake and on the provisional voting lists he was down as Dr Keefe.
Even though the doctor's address was correctly stated on the roll, an objection was raised against his entitlement to vote, which the barrister that acted as judge sustained.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next week's stories will include the dead baby discovered in St Anne's churchyard, the reopening of the refurbished Theatre Royal, the strike at the railway Sheeting Sheds and the French captain in the Communards who was on the cadge in St Helens.