150 YEARS AGO THIS WEEK 8 - 14 DECEMBER 1875
This week's many stories include the robbery from a boat on the St Helens Canal, the January Christmas tree at Whiston Workhouse, the scandal of playing billiards for money in the St Helens Liberal Club, most of the town's firemen resign, the man sleeping in an outhouse at Ravenhead Colliery that attacked a policeman and the drunken man's fall down the stairs in New Cross Street.
We begin on the 8th when a meeting of the council's Water and Lighting Committee took place and there was more criticism of the town's fire brigade. And many of the part-time firefighters appeared to have got fed up with all the mudslinging, as their superintendent, John Leigh, had handed in his notice, along with 14 of his men.
Councillor Fidler said at the meeting that he regretted to say that the brigade was in "a most deplorable condition" and he suggested that they should employ a stranger as chief who had some experience in managing a brigade. Fidler was a long-time critic of the firemen and at the meeting said he would like to reiterate that within the present brigade there were some men that he would like to keep. But, on the other hand, he said, there was a large portion of those who "are no more fit for the fire brigade than I am, and that is not much."
A meeting of the Prescot Guardians – the folk who administered Whiston Workhouse (pictured above) – was held on the 9th and they were told that there were currently 417 persons inside the house, of which 151 were children. Earlier in the year a married couple called Mr and Mrs Gatwood had been appointed to nurse the so-called imbeciles in the hospital that was attached to the workhouse.
But since their appointment they had also been put in charge of the general hospital and for those dual duties were still receiving the same pay. And so they had now written to the guardians to request an increase and it was decided that their letter would be referred to their Finance Committee for their consideration.
I can't find the pair listed in the 1881 census, which doesn't surprise me. The huge workload and low pay meant that the live-in nurses and schoolteachers did not last very long. Stephen Hale in 1866 did not even last 24 hours once his extensive duties as the boys' schoolmaster were explained to him.
One of the odd annual events at Whiston Workhouse was that a guardian called Birchall would donate a Christmas tree for the inmates to enjoy. What was unusual about the gift was that the tree was not installed in December – but in January. It was announced at the meeting that January 7th would be the date when the tree would arrive.
From the inmates' point of view the delay was not a bad thing. They would have their Christmas dinner and party on or around December 25th and then a second celebration with the Christmas tree and present giving, along with entertainment, would take place two or three weeks later. These were by far the two best days in the year for the paupers – but certainly, the timing seems very odd from our perspective.
The St Helens Newspaper’s headline "Robbery From A Flat" on the 11th had a different meaning in the 1870s than would be expected today. Instead of the theft having been made from an apartment, the goods had been stolen from a small, barge-type boat on the St Helens Canal. The term "flat" was, incidentally, highly localised and only used to describe such boats on the River Mersey and its tributaries.
The Newspaper explained how Francis McGurty, Thomas Lyon and Henry Campbell had appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions this week accused of breaking into the cabin of the flat Eliza, which had been lying on the canal by Crossfield's chemical works in Pocket Nook. The threesome was accused of stealing a clock and several articles of clothing valued at £2 10s.
The items belonged to Thomas Lee and William Jones, who had gone ashore at 6pm one evening after first locking up their cabin. When they returned they found the lock broken and the cabin stripped of its contents, including some bread and groceries. After reporting the crime to the police, PC Gilligan decided that Crossfield's neighbouring works would be his first port of call.
At 2 am he discovered the three men sleeping between two boilers and arrested them. Upon leaving the chemical plant, Francis McGurty said to the constable "We're the party that done it." As the man was wearing the stolen coat, trousers and boots belonging to Thomas Lee, he didn't seem to have much choice in admitting the crime. McGurty and Lyon were sent to prison for two months and one month, respectively, and Campbell was fined 20 shillings.
The differing values that in the 1870s were placed upon vagrancy and assaulting the police were demonstrated in another case. That was when a young man called Joseph Greenough was charged with sleeping in an outhouse at Ravenhead Colliery and with assaulting PC Calvert. The constable told the court that at 2:30 am on the previous Saturday morning, he had found Greenough in his stocking feet at the colliery.
But upon attempting to apprehend the man, Greenough had resisted and kicked the officer so violently that he had been off duty and under the doctor ever since. For the vagrancy offence Greenough was sent to prison for a month. But for the assault on the constable he was only fined 10 shillings and costs. If Greenough was unable or unwilling to pay the fine, he would be sent to prison for an additional 14 days. It had to be a very serious assault on a police officer before the assailant was sent to prison and not fined.
It had been 20 years since the Whigs had become the Liberal Party, after merging with other groups. But the term was still used in this letter published in the St Helens Newspaper that was written by somebody calling themselves "L.C." who was not impressed by the goings-on in the town's Liberal Club:
"Sir. – I have been informed, upon fairly good authority, that one day this week two games at billiards were played in the Liberal Club, by two gentlemen, for a stake of £1 per game, the result being that one of the players, a young gentleman of tender years, lost £2. I now ask you, sir, if, through the medium of your columns, this can be explained.
"For my own part, I have been under the impression that one of the main objects of institutions such as the one referred to (be they Whig or Tory) is to provide recreation and amusement, without the danger of the public house and gaming saloon being incurred; and, of course, if such things as gambling for sovereigns be allowed, all confidence will soon be gone in the character of the place, and likewise of those who frequent it."
There were many deaths 150 years ago from falling down the stairs. Most houses in St Helens did not have a bannister or rail to grasp and, of course, there was no electric light switch to turn on before starting an upward or downward journey. Many people would instead grip a lighted candle or some lamp, which made their use of the stairs even more hazardous. And stair carpets that might provide some extra grip were unlikely to be found in working class homes.
Samuel Byrne's fatal fall down the stairs this week was blamed on him being drunk. The 26-year-old watchmaker lodged with William Clay in New Cross Street and at 10pm on the previous Sunday night he had returned home drunk and gone straight to bed. A couple of hours later William Clay and his wife were woken by the sound of someone seemingly falling down the stairs.
William subsequently found Samuel Byrne lying at the foot of the stairs with blood flowing from a wound at the back of his head. The force of the fall had been such that the two bottom stairs had been broken. William and his wife carried Samuel into the kitchen where they placed him on a sofa and, as he appeared comfortable, they said they decided to leave him there.
It was not until 7 am, after the injured man was found lying on the floor after falling off the sofa, that a doctor was summoned and pronounced William dead. The man's inquest was held at the Royal Hotel in Westfield Street on the following day. There the jury returned a verdict that the deceased had fallen down the stairs while intoxicated but added an expression of regret that medical aid had not been sooner obtained.
Such delays in summoning a doctor were, in fact, very common. If William Clay or his wife had requested a doctor's attendance, they could have been held liable for the bill. Their lodger might well have refused to pay, saying he had not summoned a doctor and had not needed one. In the days before the NHS, people would often call for medical help only when the patient was at death's door – and then it could be too late for them to be helped.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's many stories will include the new St Helens coat of arms, the punch up in the Clock Face Inn, the family fight in the Lamb Hotel in College Street and the Rainford coal boss who was killed on the railway line.
We begin on the 8th when a meeting of the council's Water and Lighting Committee took place and there was more criticism of the town's fire brigade. And many of the part-time firefighters appeared to have got fed up with all the mudslinging, as their superintendent, John Leigh, had handed in his notice, along with 14 of his men.
Councillor Fidler said at the meeting that he regretted to say that the brigade was in "a most deplorable condition" and he suggested that they should employ a stranger as chief who had some experience in managing a brigade. Fidler was a long-time critic of the firemen and at the meeting said he would like to reiterate that within the present brigade there were some men that he would like to keep. But, on the other hand, he said, there was a large portion of those who "are no more fit for the fire brigade than I am, and that is not much."
But since their appointment they had also been put in charge of the general hospital and for those dual duties were still receiving the same pay. And so they had now written to the guardians to request an increase and it was decided that their letter would be referred to their Finance Committee for their consideration.
I can't find the pair listed in the 1881 census, which doesn't surprise me. The huge workload and low pay meant that the live-in nurses and schoolteachers did not last very long. Stephen Hale in 1866 did not even last 24 hours once his extensive duties as the boys' schoolmaster were explained to him.
One of the odd annual events at Whiston Workhouse was that a guardian called Birchall would donate a Christmas tree for the inmates to enjoy. What was unusual about the gift was that the tree was not installed in December – but in January. It was announced at the meeting that January 7th would be the date when the tree would arrive.
From the inmates' point of view the delay was not a bad thing. They would have their Christmas dinner and party on or around December 25th and then a second celebration with the Christmas tree and present giving, along with entertainment, would take place two or three weeks later. These were by far the two best days in the year for the paupers – but certainly, the timing seems very odd from our perspective.
The St Helens Newspaper’s headline "Robbery From A Flat" on the 11th had a different meaning in the 1870s than would be expected today. Instead of the theft having been made from an apartment, the goods had been stolen from a small, barge-type boat on the St Helens Canal. The term "flat" was, incidentally, highly localised and only used to describe such boats on the River Mersey and its tributaries.
The Newspaper explained how Francis McGurty, Thomas Lyon and Henry Campbell had appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions this week accused of breaking into the cabin of the flat Eliza, which had been lying on the canal by Crossfield's chemical works in Pocket Nook. The threesome was accused of stealing a clock and several articles of clothing valued at £2 10s.
The items belonged to Thomas Lee and William Jones, who had gone ashore at 6pm one evening after first locking up their cabin. When they returned they found the lock broken and the cabin stripped of its contents, including some bread and groceries. After reporting the crime to the police, PC Gilligan decided that Crossfield's neighbouring works would be his first port of call.
At 2 am he discovered the three men sleeping between two boilers and arrested them. Upon leaving the chemical plant, Francis McGurty said to the constable "We're the party that done it." As the man was wearing the stolen coat, trousers and boots belonging to Thomas Lee, he didn't seem to have much choice in admitting the crime. McGurty and Lyon were sent to prison for two months and one month, respectively, and Campbell was fined 20 shillings.
The differing values that in the 1870s were placed upon vagrancy and assaulting the police were demonstrated in another case. That was when a young man called Joseph Greenough was charged with sleeping in an outhouse at Ravenhead Colliery and with assaulting PC Calvert. The constable told the court that at 2:30 am on the previous Saturday morning, he had found Greenough in his stocking feet at the colliery.
But upon attempting to apprehend the man, Greenough had resisted and kicked the officer so violently that he had been off duty and under the doctor ever since. For the vagrancy offence Greenough was sent to prison for a month. But for the assault on the constable he was only fined 10 shillings and costs. If Greenough was unable or unwilling to pay the fine, he would be sent to prison for an additional 14 days. It had to be a very serious assault on a police officer before the assailant was sent to prison and not fined.
It had been 20 years since the Whigs had become the Liberal Party, after merging with other groups. But the term was still used in this letter published in the St Helens Newspaper that was written by somebody calling themselves "L.C." who was not impressed by the goings-on in the town's Liberal Club:
"Sir. – I have been informed, upon fairly good authority, that one day this week two games at billiards were played in the Liberal Club, by two gentlemen, for a stake of £1 per game, the result being that one of the players, a young gentleman of tender years, lost £2. I now ask you, sir, if, through the medium of your columns, this can be explained.
"For my own part, I have been under the impression that one of the main objects of institutions such as the one referred to (be they Whig or Tory) is to provide recreation and amusement, without the danger of the public house and gaming saloon being incurred; and, of course, if such things as gambling for sovereigns be allowed, all confidence will soon be gone in the character of the place, and likewise of those who frequent it."
There were many deaths 150 years ago from falling down the stairs. Most houses in St Helens did not have a bannister or rail to grasp and, of course, there was no electric light switch to turn on before starting an upward or downward journey. Many people would instead grip a lighted candle or some lamp, which made their use of the stairs even more hazardous. And stair carpets that might provide some extra grip were unlikely to be found in working class homes.
Samuel Byrne's fatal fall down the stairs this week was blamed on him being drunk. The 26-year-old watchmaker lodged with William Clay in New Cross Street and at 10pm on the previous Sunday night he had returned home drunk and gone straight to bed. A couple of hours later William Clay and his wife were woken by the sound of someone seemingly falling down the stairs.
William subsequently found Samuel Byrne lying at the foot of the stairs with blood flowing from a wound at the back of his head. The force of the fall had been such that the two bottom stairs had been broken. William and his wife carried Samuel into the kitchen where they placed him on a sofa and, as he appeared comfortable, they said they decided to leave him there.
It was not until 7 am, after the injured man was found lying on the floor after falling off the sofa, that a doctor was summoned and pronounced William dead. The man's inquest was held at the Royal Hotel in Westfield Street on the following day. There the jury returned a verdict that the deceased had fallen down the stairs while intoxicated but added an expression of regret that medical aid had not been sooner obtained.
Such delays in summoning a doctor were, in fact, very common. If William Clay or his wife had requested a doctor's attendance, they could have been held liable for the bill. Their lodger might well have refused to pay, saying he had not summoned a doctor and had not needed one. In the days before the NHS, people would often call for medical help only when the patient was at death's door – and then it could be too late for them to be helped.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's many stories will include the new St Helens coat of arms, the punch up in the Clock Face Inn, the family fight in the Lamb Hotel in College Street and the Rainford coal boss who was killed on the railway line.
This week's many stories include the robbery from a boat on the St Helens Canal, the January Christmas tree at Whiston Workhouse, the scandal of playing billiards for money in the St Helens Liberal Club, most of the town's firemen resign, the man sleeping in an outhouse at Ravenhead Colliery that attacked a policeman and the drunken man's fall down the stairs in New Cross Street.
We begin on the 8th when a meeting of the council's Water and Lighting Committee took place and there was more criticism of the town's fire brigade.
And many of the part-time firefighters appeared to have got fed up with all the mudslinging, as their superintendent, John Leigh, had handed in his notice, along with 14 of his men.
Councillor Fidler said at the meeting that he regretted to say that the brigade was in "a most deplorable condition" and he suggested that they should employ a stranger as chief who had some experience in managing a brigade.
Fidler was a long-time critic of the firemen and at the meeting said he would like to reiterate that within the present brigade there were some men that he would like to keep.
But, on the other hand, he said, there was a large portion of those who "are no more fit for the fire brigade than I am, and that is not much."
A meeting of the Prescot Guardians – the folk who administered Whiston Workhouse (pictured above) – was held on the 9th and they were told that there were currently 417 persons inside the house, of which 151 were children.
Earlier in the year a married couple called Mr and Mrs Gatwood had been appointed to nurse the so-called imbeciles in the hospital that was attached to the workhouse.
But since their appointment they had also been put in charge of the general hospital and for those dual duties were still receiving the same pay.
And so they had now written to the guardians to request an increase and it was decided that their letter would be referred to their Finance Committee for their consideration.
I can't find the pair listed in the 1881 census, which doesn't surprise me. The huge workload and low pay meant that the live-in nurses and schoolteachers did not last very long.
Stephen Hale in 1866 did not even last 24 hours once his extensive duties as the boys' schoolmaster were explained to him.
One of the odd annual events at Whiston Workhouse was that a guardian called Birchall would donate a Christmas tree for the inmates to enjoy.
What was unusual about the gift was that the tree was not installed in December – but in January.
It was announced at the meeting that January 7th would be the date when the tree would arrive, although the date was later changed to the 15th.
From the inmates' point of view the delay was not a bad thing. They would have their Christmas dinner and party on or around December 25th and then a second celebration with the Christmas tree and present giving, along with entertainment, would take place two or three weeks later.
These were by far the two best days in the year for the paupers – but certainly, the timing seems very odd from our perspective.
The St Helens Newspaper’s headline "Robbery From A Flat" on the 11th had a different meaning in the 1870s than would be expected today.
Instead of the theft having been made from an apartment, the goods had been stolen from a small, barge-type boat on the St Helens Canal.
The term "flat" was, incidentally, highly localised and only used to describe such boats on the River Mersey and its tributaries.
The Newspaper explained how Francis McGurty, Thomas Lyon and Henry Campbell had appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions this week accused of breaking into the cabin of the flat Eliza, which had been lying on the canal by Crossfield's chemical works in Pocket Nook.
The threesome was accused of stealing a clock and several articles of clothing valued at £2 10s.
The items belonged to Thomas Lee and William Jones, who had gone ashore at 6pm one evening after first locking up their cabin.
When they returned they found the lock broken and the cabin stripped of its contents, including some bread and groceries.
After reporting the crime to the police, PC Gilligan decided that Crossfield's neighbouring works would be his first port of call.
At 2 am he discovered the three men sleeping between two boilers and arrested them. Upon leaving the chemical plant, Francis McGurty said to the constable "We're the party that done it."
As the man was wearing the stolen coat, trousers and boots belonging to Thomas Lee, he didn't seem to have much choice in admitting the crime.
McGurty and Lyon were sent to prison for two months and one month, respectively, and Campbell was fined 20 shillings.
The differing values that in the 1870s were placed upon vagrancy and assaulting the police were demonstrated in another case.
That was when a young man called Joseph Greenough was charged with sleeping in an outhouse at Ravenhead Colliery and with assaulting PC Calvert.
The constable told the court that at 2:30 am on the previous Saturday morning, he had found Greenough in his stocking feet at the colliery.
But upon attempting to apprehend the man, Greenough had resisted and kicked the officer so violently that he had been off duty and under the doctor ever since.
For the vagrancy offence Greenough was sent to prison for a month. But for the assault on the constable he was only fined 10 shillings and costs.
If Greenough was unable or unwilling to pay the fine, he would be sent to prison for an additional 14 days.
It had to be a very serious assault on a police officer before the assailant was sent to prison and not fined.
It had been 20 years since the Whigs had become the Liberal Party, after merging with other groups.
But the term was still used in this letter published in the St Helens Newspaper that was written by somebody calling themselves "L.C." who was not impressed by the goings-on in the town's Liberal Club:
"Sir. – I have been informed, upon fairly good authority, that one day this week two games at billiards were played in the Liberal Club, by two gentlemen, for a stake of £1 per game, the result being that one of the players, a young gentleman of tender years, lost £2.
"I now ask you, sir, if, through the medium of your columns, this can be explained.
"For my own part, I have been under the impression that one of the main objects of institutions such as the one referred to (be they Whig or Tory) is to provide recreation and amusement, without the danger of the public house and gaming saloon being incurred; and, of course, if such things as gambling for sovereigns be allowed, all confidence will soon be gone in the character of the place, and likewise of those who frequent it."
There were many deaths 150 years ago from falling down the stairs.
Most houses in St Helens did not have a bannister or rail to grasp and, of course, there was no electric light switch to turn on before starting an upward or downward journey.
Many people would instead grip a lighted candle or some lamp, which made their use of the stairs even more hazardous.
And stair carpets that might provide some extra grip were unlikely to be found in working class homes.
Samuel Byrne's fatal fall down the stairs this week was blamed on him being drunk.
The 26-year-old watchmaker lodged with William Clay in New Cross Street and at 10pm on the previous Sunday night he had returned home drunk and gone straight to bed.
A couple of hours later William Clay and his wife were woken by the sound of someone seemingly falling down the stairs.
William subsequently found Samuel Byrne lying at the foot of the stairs with blood flowing from a wound at the back of his head.
The force of the fall had been such that the two bottom stairs had been broken.
William and his wife carried Samuel into the kitchen where they placed him on a sofa and, as he appeared comfortable, they said they decided to leave him there.
It was not until 7 am, after the injured man was found lying on the floor after falling off the sofa, that a doctor was summoned and pronounced William dead.
The man's inquest was held at the Royal Hotel in Westfield Street on the following day.
There the jury returned a verdict that the deceased had fallen down the stairs while intoxicated but added an expression of regret that medical aid had not been sooner obtained.
Such delays in summoning a doctor were, in fact, very common. If William Clay or his wife had requested a doctor's attendance, they could have been held liable for the bill.
Their lodger might well have refused to pay, saying he had not summoned a doctor and had not needed one.
In the days before the NHS, people would often call for medical help only when the patient was at death's door – and then it could be too late for them to be helped.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's many stories will include the new St Helens coat of arms, the punch up in the Clock Face Inn, the family fight in the Lamb Hotel in College Street and the Rainford coal boss who was killed on the railway line.
We begin on the 8th when a meeting of the council's Water and Lighting Committee took place and there was more criticism of the town's fire brigade.
And many of the part-time firefighters appeared to have got fed up with all the mudslinging, as their superintendent, John Leigh, had handed in his notice, along with 14 of his men.
Councillor Fidler said at the meeting that he regretted to say that the brigade was in "a most deplorable condition" and he suggested that they should employ a stranger as chief who had some experience in managing a brigade.
Fidler was a long-time critic of the firemen and at the meeting said he would like to reiterate that within the present brigade there were some men that he would like to keep.
But, on the other hand, he said, there was a large portion of those who "are no more fit for the fire brigade than I am, and that is not much."
Earlier in the year a married couple called Mr and Mrs Gatwood had been appointed to nurse the so-called imbeciles in the hospital that was attached to the workhouse.
But since their appointment they had also been put in charge of the general hospital and for those dual duties were still receiving the same pay.
And so they had now written to the guardians to request an increase and it was decided that their letter would be referred to their Finance Committee for their consideration.
I can't find the pair listed in the 1881 census, which doesn't surprise me. The huge workload and low pay meant that the live-in nurses and schoolteachers did not last very long.
Stephen Hale in 1866 did not even last 24 hours once his extensive duties as the boys' schoolmaster were explained to him.
One of the odd annual events at Whiston Workhouse was that a guardian called Birchall would donate a Christmas tree for the inmates to enjoy.
What was unusual about the gift was that the tree was not installed in December – but in January.
It was announced at the meeting that January 7th would be the date when the tree would arrive, although the date was later changed to the 15th.
From the inmates' point of view the delay was not a bad thing. They would have their Christmas dinner and party on or around December 25th and then a second celebration with the Christmas tree and present giving, along with entertainment, would take place two or three weeks later.
These were by far the two best days in the year for the paupers – but certainly, the timing seems very odd from our perspective.
The St Helens Newspaper’s headline "Robbery From A Flat" on the 11th had a different meaning in the 1870s than would be expected today.
Instead of the theft having been made from an apartment, the goods had been stolen from a small, barge-type boat on the St Helens Canal.
The term "flat" was, incidentally, highly localised and only used to describe such boats on the River Mersey and its tributaries.
The Newspaper explained how Francis McGurty, Thomas Lyon and Henry Campbell had appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions this week accused of breaking into the cabin of the flat Eliza, which had been lying on the canal by Crossfield's chemical works in Pocket Nook.
The threesome was accused of stealing a clock and several articles of clothing valued at £2 10s.
The items belonged to Thomas Lee and William Jones, who had gone ashore at 6pm one evening after first locking up their cabin.
When they returned they found the lock broken and the cabin stripped of its contents, including some bread and groceries.
After reporting the crime to the police, PC Gilligan decided that Crossfield's neighbouring works would be his first port of call.
At 2 am he discovered the three men sleeping between two boilers and arrested them. Upon leaving the chemical plant, Francis McGurty said to the constable "We're the party that done it."
As the man was wearing the stolen coat, trousers and boots belonging to Thomas Lee, he didn't seem to have much choice in admitting the crime.
McGurty and Lyon were sent to prison for two months and one month, respectively, and Campbell was fined 20 shillings.
The differing values that in the 1870s were placed upon vagrancy and assaulting the police were demonstrated in another case.
That was when a young man called Joseph Greenough was charged with sleeping in an outhouse at Ravenhead Colliery and with assaulting PC Calvert.
The constable told the court that at 2:30 am on the previous Saturday morning, he had found Greenough in his stocking feet at the colliery.
But upon attempting to apprehend the man, Greenough had resisted and kicked the officer so violently that he had been off duty and under the doctor ever since.
For the vagrancy offence Greenough was sent to prison for a month. But for the assault on the constable he was only fined 10 shillings and costs.
If Greenough was unable or unwilling to pay the fine, he would be sent to prison for an additional 14 days.
It had to be a very serious assault on a police officer before the assailant was sent to prison and not fined.
It had been 20 years since the Whigs had become the Liberal Party, after merging with other groups.
But the term was still used in this letter published in the St Helens Newspaper that was written by somebody calling themselves "L.C." who was not impressed by the goings-on in the town's Liberal Club:
"Sir. – I have been informed, upon fairly good authority, that one day this week two games at billiards were played in the Liberal Club, by two gentlemen, for a stake of £1 per game, the result being that one of the players, a young gentleman of tender years, lost £2.
"I now ask you, sir, if, through the medium of your columns, this can be explained.
"For my own part, I have been under the impression that one of the main objects of institutions such as the one referred to (be they Whig or Tory) is to provide recreation and amusement, without the danger of the public house and gaming saloon being incurred; and, of course, if such things as gambling for sovereigns be allowed, all confidence will soon be gone in the character of the place, and likewise of those who frequent it."
There were many deaths 150 years ago from falling down the stairs.
Most houses in St Helens did not have a bannister or rail to grasp and, of course, there was no electric light switch to turn on before starting an upward or downward journey.
Many people would instead grip a lighted candle or some lamp, which made their use of the stairs even more hazardous.
And stair carpets that might provide some extra grip were unlikely to be found in working class homes.
Samuel Byrne's fatal fall down the stairs this week was blamed on him being drunk.
The 26-year-old watchmaker lodged with William Clay in New Cross Street and at 10pm on the previous Sunday night he had returned home drunk and gone straight to bed.
A couple of hours later William Clay and his wife were woken by the sound of someone seemingly falling down the stairs.
William subsequently found Samuel Byrne lying at the foot of the stairs with blood flowing from a wound at the back of his head.
The force of the fall had been such that the two bottom stairs had been broken.
William and his wife carried Samuel into the kitchen where they placed him on a sofa and, as he appeared comfortable, they said they decided to leave him there.
It was not until 7 am, after the injured man was found lying on the floor after falling off the sofa, that a doctor was summoned and pronounced William dead.
The man's inquest was held at the Royal Hotel in Westfield Street on the following day.
There the jury returned a verdict that the deceased had fallen down the stairs while intoxicated but added an expression of regret that medical aid had not been sooner obtained.
Such delays in summoning a doctor were, in fact, very common. If William Clay or his wife had requested a doctor's attendance, they could have been held liable for the bill.
Their lodger might well have refused to pay, saying he had not summoned a doctor and had not needed one.
In the days before the NHS, people would often call for medical help only when the patient was at death's door – and then it could be too late for them to be helped.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's many stories will include the new St Helens coat of arms, the punch up in the Clock Face Inn, the family fight in the Lamb Hotel in College Street and the Rainford coal boss who was killed on the railway line.