150 YEARS AGO THIS WEEK (26 JUNE - 2 JULY 1873)
This week's many stories include the disputed accusations of attempted rape and robbery, the man that head-butted a pane of glass, a satirical take on the charming state of St Helens, the Sutton man without a spark of manhood that assaulted a woman and the brute of a husband that attacked his wife with a poker in Parr.
In last week's article I did not have the space to include the shocking accusations that were made in court against Thomas Roberts. The carter had appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions charged with assault, robbery and attempted rape. His victim had been Catherine Aspin from Liverpool Road who had travelled with her husband to Wigan, Liverpool and other places to collect monies that were owed to them. At Knotty Ash the husband had got drunk in a pub and did not return home with his wife. So Mrs Aspin hitched a lift with Thomas Roberts and the St Helens Newspaper described what was alleged to have occurred in the man's cart on the dark roads leading into St Helens:
"Soon after leaving Knotty Ash, defendant kissed her, pushed her head down, used insulting language, and endeavoured to commit the offence complained of [rape]. He also assaulted her in a similar manner after passing Prescot. She became insensible on both occasions. She did not remember coming through Prescot, but was quite sensible on going down Combshop brow [Croppers Hill] into St. Helens.
"He begged and prayed of her not to say anything about what had occurred, on reaching St. Helens. Her dress was torn in several places, and her bonnet was saturated with blood from a wound received during the assault. On getting home she missed a ring off her finger and £1 18s and some coppers she had in her pocket. The defendant was apprehended at Prescot, and on being charged, said he did not touch her. The case was remanded, defendant being allowed out on bail."
However, at the adjourned hearing this week new information came to light. Witnesses said that at Knotty Ash, Mrs Aspin had got drunk and quarrelled with her husband, who had driven off from the pub without her. She had then clung to his cart for 100 yards before falling into the road, where she was found to be bleeding and scratched and her dress torn. That was seen as explaining her injuries and torn dress and so the case against the carter was dismissed.
Why Mrs Aspin would fabricate her serious charge against the carter that had come to her rescue was not explained. Evidence was also given that Thomas Roberts had arrived back in St Helens with his own face scratched, supposedly after Mrs Aspin had defended herself against his unwanted attentions. But her failure at the first court hearing to say exactly what had occurred in Knotty Ash did her no favours.
On the 27th the formal opening of Warrington's Bank Hall as a Town Hall and public park took place. John Wilson-Patten – an MP for North Lancashire – had donated the mansion and land to the people of the town. The St Helens Newspaper said the opening had been the "occasion of a great demonstration in Warrington". In the 19th century the term demonstration was mainly used when people gathered in favour of something – as opposed to protesting.
Bernard Dromgoole, the editor and owner of the St Helens Newspaper, was no fan of Dr Robert McNicoll. The Hardshaw Street doctor was also an alderman and had been in charge of important health and sanitary committees on the council. However, despite St Helens' huge problems with pollution, little had improved during his time in office.
Dromgoole had been against Dr McNicoll's recent appointment as the town's first Medical Officer of Health at a salary of £200 per year. And he was not impressed with the doctor's recent report to the Town Council. This is what Dromgoole wrote in an editorial on the 28th:
"Charming St. Helens! – It is delightful to discover that while almost every town in the country is complaining of nuisances, there are no nuisances in St. Helens ! No ! not even in those filthy drains and ditches from which usually there were powerfully offensive smells. This must be very gratifying to the Mayor, Aldermen, Councillors, and Burgesses [voters], St. Helens without a nuisance – a discovery which only costs £200!
"How delighted commercial travellers will be to learn this fact; and how welcome will be the intelligence that now they can sleep with impunity at the Raven. Of course there is one trifling matter, yet requiring some attention, namely, the closet department. But these night-soil men have been told off, on furlough, with instructions to make summer excursions to Rochdale and another towns – to visit ashpits, number unlimited.
"Delightful, but suitable occupation. It is to be hoped that the report of these inspectors may be as “highly satisfactory” as the one presented to the Health Committee, namely, that St. Helens is A 1; nothing to complain of – even when compared with the best regulated towns."
Timothy Connolly was this week's extreme brute of a husband, seemingly living in Ardwick Street in Parr with his wife Anne. In the St Helens Petty Sessions PC Gill described how the man had been drunk and disorderly in the street but went into his house as soon as he saw the constable. There he attacked his wife with a poker striking her several heavy blows. He threatened to kill her and so in panic Mrs Connolly ran upstairs. She was so desperate to escape from her husband that she threw herself out of a window.
The 42-year-old sustained such severe injuries that she had to be taken to the hospital at Whiston Workhouse. It was another dreadful story but an all too common one that the St Helens Newspaper felt only deserved 14 lines in their report. The magistrates had the authority to commit him to prison for up to six months or send him for trial at the assizes where longer sentences were available. However, Connolly was dealt with in the Petty Sessions and given just a month in prison – if he had stolen some clothing he probably would have received a longer sentence.
Another brute was Thomas Lilley from Sutton, who was charged with assaulting Jane Barrett – who wore a black eye in court. Both their sons had fought in a field and when it was over, Thomas Lilley had attacked Mrs Barrett's son who had won the bout, knocking him to the ground and kicking him. Mrs Barrett asked Lilley to stop assaulting her boy and so instead, he committed what was described as a "furious onslaught" on the mother.
A witness told the court that she had seen the defendant beat the woman with his fist as hard as he could and when she was down on the ground, he had kicked her all over. A claim was made that Mrs Barrett had struck the first blow, but the magistrates were not impressed. The Chairman said he would not have thought it possible that a man with a "spark of manhood" about him would have abused a woman in such a manner. However, Lilley was only ordered to pay a fine of 40 shillings with £1 17s 6d costs. Or if in default of payment, go to prison for two months.
There never seemed to be a dull moment in Parr, with many neighbourly rows and assaults. Michael Nolan also appeared in the Petty Sessions this week charged with assaulting Mary Moore and breaking her window – with his head! And Sarah Smith and James and Thomas Kearney were charged with assaulting Nolan. The latter had been a lodger with Mary Moore but his decision to move out had, for some reason, proved controversial. I expect he still owed his landlady some back rent. Whatever the reason, a quarrel broke out in the street in which Michael Nolan gave Mrs Moore's son what was described as a "disfigured eye" and his mother received a sore hip, possibly the result of a kick.
This is how the Newspaper described what Michael Nolan then did: "Subsequently, when they kept the doors closed, and refused to let him in, he ran full tilt with his head against the window, and got his face through one of the panes of glass. The effort to project his shoulders through was not successful, and he withdrew, carrying away with him several distinct impressions of pokers and brass candlesticks."
A witness on behalf of the Moores described to the court the fury of the Nolan attack and said that he had told the man to go away as he was in a "quare place". The Chairman of the Bench decided that it was six of one and half-a-dozen of the other and dismissed the case.
Also in court was Mary Quinn from Sutton. The 13-year-old was sent to prison for a week for stealing a watch valued at 25 shillings belonging to Mary Watkinson. Mary had been arrested while trying to pawn the watch at Pennington's pawnbrokers. She was told she would have been given a much longer sentence but for her youth.
The Newspaper could be quite scathing when describing the poor souls that appeared before the magistrates in court. This is what they had to say about a vagrant called Wall:
"A most miserable and disgusting looking object, half clad and filthy, who gave the name of Thomas Wall, was charged with sleeping in a stable in Liverpool-street, on the previous night. Prisoner admitted the charge, and stated that he had nowhere else to sleep, having been refused lodging. The Chairman said he would be committed to the workhouse for a month."
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the annual gathering of the miners of St Helens and Haydock, another fire strikes St Helens Town Hall, the eccentric night soil dumper of Rainford and the stone throwing and egg chucking in Parr.
In last week's article I did not have the space to include the shocking accusations that were made in court against Thomas Roberts. The carter had appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions charged with assault, robbery and attempted rape. His victim had been Catherine Aspin from Liverpool Road who had travelled with her husband to Wigan, Liverpool and other places to collect monies that were owed to them. At Knotty Ash the husband had got drunk in a pub and did not return home with his wife. So Mrs Aspin hitched a lift with Thomas Roberts and the St Helens Newspaper described what was alleged to have occurred in the man's cart on the dark roads leading into St Helens:
"Soon after leaving Knotty Ash, defendant kissed her, pushed her head down, used insulting language, and endeavoured to commit the offence complained of [rape]. He also assaulted her in a similar manner after passing Prescot. She became insensible on both occasions. She did not remember coming through Prescot, but was quite sensible on going down Combshop brow [Croppers Hill] into St. Helens.
"He begged and prayed of her not to say anything about what had occurred, on reaching St. Helens. Her dress was torn in several places, and her bonnet was saturated with blood from a wound received during the assault. On getting home she missed a ring off her finger and £1 18s and some coppers she had in her pocket. The defendant was apprehended at Prescot, and on being charged, said he did not touch her. The case was remanded, defendant being allowed out on bail."
However, at the adjourned hearing this week new information came to light. Witnesses said that at Knotty Ash, Mrs Aspin had got drunk and quarrelled with her husband, who had driven off from the pub without her. She had then clung to his cart for 100 yards before falling into the road, where she was found to be bleeding and scratched and her dress torn. That was seen as explaining her injuries and torn dress and so the case against the carter was dismissed.
Why Mrs Aspin would fabricate her serious charge against the carter that had come to her rescue was not explained. Evidence was also given that Thomas Roberts had arrived back in St Helens with his own face scratched, supposedly after Mrs Aspin had defended herself against his unwanted attentions. But her failure at the first court hearing to say exactly what had occurred in Knotty Ash did her no favours.
Bernard Dromgoole, the editor and owner of the St Helens Newspaper, was no fan of Dr Robert McNicoll. The Hardshaw Street doctor was also an alderman and had been in charge of important health and sanitary committees on the council. However, despite St Helens' huge problems with pollution, little had improved during his time in office.
Dromgoole had been against Dr McNicoll's recent appointment as the town's first Medical Officer of Health at a salary of £200 per year. And he was not impressed with the doctor's recent report to the Town Council. This is what Dromgoole wrote in an editorial on the 28th:
"Charming St. Helens! – It is delightful to discover that while almost every town in the country is complaining of nuisances, there are no nuisances in St. Helens ! No ! not even in those filthy drains and ditches from which usually there were powerfully offensive smells. This must be very gratifying to the Mayor, Aldermen, Councillors, and Burgesses [voters], St. Helens without a nuisance – a discovery which only costs £200!
"How delighted commercial travellers will be to learn this fact; and how welcome will be the intelligence that now they can sleep with impunity at the Raven. Of course there is one trifling matter, yet requiring some attention, namely, the closet department. But these night-soil men have been told off, on furlough, with instructions to make summer excursions to Rochdale and another towns – to visit ashpits, number unlimited.
"Delightful, but suitable occupation. It is to be hoped that the report of these inspectors may be as “highly satisfactory” as the one presented to the Health Committee, namely, that St. Helens is A 1; nothing to complain of – even when compared with the best regulated towns."
Timothy Connolly was this week's extreme brute of a husband, seemingly living in Ardwick Street in Parr with his wife Anne. In the St Helens Petty Sessions PC Gill described how the man had been drunk and disorderly in the street but went into his house as soon as he saw the constable. There he attacked his wife with a poker striking her several heavy blows. He threatened to kill her and so in panic Mrs Connolly ran upstairs. She was so desperate to escape from her husband that she threw herself out of a window.
The 42-year-old sustained such severe injuries that she had to be taken to the hospital at Whiston Workhouse. It was another dreadful story but an all too common one that the St Helens Newspaper felt only deserved 14 lines in their report. The magistrates had the authority to commit him to prison for up to six months or send him for trial at the assizes where longer sentences were available. However, Connolly was dealt with in the Petty Sessions and given just a month in prison – if he had stolen some clothing he probably would have received a longer sentence.
Another brute was Thomas Lilley from Sutton, who was charged with assaulting Jane Barrett – who wore a black eye in court. Both their sons had fought in a field and when it was over, Thomas Lilley had attacked Mrs Barrett's son who had won the bout, knocking him to the ground and kicking him. Mrs Barrett asked Lilley to stop assaulting her boy and so instead, he committed what was described as a "furious onslaught" on the mother.
A witness told the court that she had seen the defendant beat the woman with his fist as hard as he could and when she was down on the ground, he had kicked her all over. A claim was made that Mrs Barrett had struck the first blow, but the magistrates were not impressed. The Chairman said he would not have thought it possible that a man with a "spark of manhood" about him would have abused a woman in such a manner. However, Lilley was only ordered to pay a fine of 40 shillings with £1 17s 6d costs. Or if in default of payment, go to prison for two months.
There never seemed to be a dull moment in Parr, with many neighbourly rows and assaults. Michael Nolan also appeared in the Petty Sessions this week charged with assaulting Mary Moore and breaking her window – with his head! And Sarah Smith and James and Thomas Kearney were charged with assaulting Nolan. The latter had been a lodger with Mary Moore but his decision to move out had, for some reason, proved controversial. I expect he still owed his landlady some back rent. Whatever the reason, a quarrel broke out in the street in which Michael Nolan gave Mrs Moore's son what was described as a "disfigured eye" and his mother received a sore hip, possibly the result of a kick.
This is how the Newspaper described what Michael Nolan then did: "Subsequently, when they kept the doors closed, and refused to let him in, he ran full tilt with his head against the window, and got his face through one of the panes of glass. The effort to project his shoulders through was not successful, and he withdrew, carrying away with him several distinct impressions of pokers and brass candlesticks."
A witness on behalf of the Moores described to the court the fury of the Nolan attack and said that he had told the man to go away as he was in a "quare place". The Chairman of the Bench decided that it was six of one and half-a-dozen of the other and dismissed the case.
Also in court was Mary Quinn from Sutton. The 13-year-old was sent to prison for a week for stealing a watch valued at 25 shillings belonging to Mary Watkinson. Mary had been arrested while trying to pawn the watch at Pennington's pawnbrokers. She was told she would have been given a much longer sentence but for her youth.
The Newspaper could be quite scathing when describing the poor souls that appeared before the magistrates in court. This is what they had to say about a vagrant called Wall:
"A most miserable and disgusting looking object, half clad and filthy, who gave the name of Thomas Wall, was charged with sleeping in a stable in Liverpool-street, on the previous night. Prisoner admitted the charge, and stated that he had nowhere else to sleep, having been refused lodging. The Chairman said he would be committed to the workhouse for a month."
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the annual gathering of the miners of St Helens and Haydock, another fire strikes St Helens Town Hall, the eccentric night soil dumper of Rainford and the stone throwing and egg chucking in Parr.
This week's many stories include the disputed accusations of attempted rape and robbery, the man that head-butted a pane of glass, a satirical take on the charming state of St Helens, the Sutton man without a spark of manhood that assaulted a woman and the brute of a husband that attacked his wife with a poker in Parr.
In last week's article I did not have the space to include the shocking accusations that were made in court against Thomas Roberts.
The carter had appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions charged with assault, robbery and attempted rape.
His victim had been Catherine Aspin from Liverpool Road who had travelled with her husband to Wigan, Liverpool and other places to collect monies that were owed to them.
At Knotty Ash the husband had got drunk in a pub and did not return home with his wife.
So Mrs Aspin hitched a lift with Thomas Roberts and the St Helens Newspaper described what was alleged to have occurred in the man's cart on the dark roads leading into St Helens:
"Soon after leaving Knotty Ash, defendant kissed her, pushed her head down, used insulting language, and endeavoured to commit the offence complained of [rape].
"He also assaulted her in a similar manner after passing Prescot. She became insensible on both occasions.
"She did not remember coming through Prescot, but was quite sensible on going down Combshop brow [Croppers Hill] into St. Helens.
"He begged and prayed of her not to say anything about what had occurred, on reaching St. Helens.
"Her dress was torn in several places, and her bonnet was saturated with blood from a wound received during the assault. On getting home she missed a ring off her finger and £1 18s and some coppers she had in her pocket.
"The defendant was apprehended at Prescot, and on being charged, said he did not touch her. The case was remanded, defendant being allowed out on bail."
However, at the adjourned hearing this week new information came to light.
Witnesses said that at Knotty Ash, Mrs Aspin had got drunk and quarrelled with her husband, who had driven off from the pub without her.
She had then clung to his cart for 100 yards before falling into the road, where she was found to be bleeding and scratched and her dress torn.
That was seen as explaining her injuries and torn dress and so the case against the carter was dismissed.
Why Mrs Aspin would fabricate her serious charge against the carter that had come to her rescue was not explained.
Evidence was also given that Thomas Roberts had arrived back in St Helens with his own face scratched, supposedly after Mrs Aspin had defended herself against his unwanted attentions.
But her failure at the first court hearing to say exactly what had occurred in Knotty Ash did her no favours.
On the 27th the formal opening of Warrington's Bank Hall as a Town Hall and public park took place.
John Wilson-Patten – an MP for North Lancashire – had donated the mansion and land to the people of the town.
The St Helens Newspaper said the opening had been the "occasion of a great demonstration in Warrington".
In the 19th century the term demonstration was mainly used when people gathered in favour of something – as opposed to protesting.
Bernard Dromgoole, the editor and owner of the St Helens Newspaper, was no fan of Dr Robert McNicoll.
The Hardshaw Street doctor was also an alderman and had been in charge of important health and sanitary committees on the council.
However, despite St Helens' huge problems with pollution, little had improved during his time in office.
Dromgoole had been against Dr McNicoll's recent appointment as the town's first Medical Officer of Health at a salary of £200 per year.
And he was not impressed with the doctor's recent report to the Town Council. This is what Dromgoole wrote in an editorial on the 28th:
"Charming St. Helens! – It is delightful to discover that while almost every town in the country is complaining of nuisances, there are no nuisances in St. Helens ! No ! not even in those filthy drains and ditches from which usually there were powerfully offensive smells.
"This must be very gratifying to the Mayor, Aldermen, Councillors, and Burgesses [voters], St. Helens without a nuisance – a discovery which only costs £200!
"How delighted commercial travellers will be to learn this fact; and how welcome will be the intelligence that now they can sleep with impunity at the Raven.
"Of course there is one trifling matter, yet requiring some attention, namely, the closet department. But these night-soil men have been told off, on furlough, with instructions to make summer excursions to Rochdale and another towns – to visit ashpits, number unlimited. Delightful, but suitable occupation.
"It is to be hoped that the report of these inspectors may be as “highly satisfactory” as the one presented to the Health Committee, namely, that St. Helens is A 1; nothing to complain of – even when compared with the best regulated towns."
Timothy Connolly was this week's extreme brute of a husband, seemingly living in Ardwick Street in Parr with his wife Anne.
In the St Helens Petty Sessions PC Gill described how the man had been drunk and disorderly in the street but went into his house as soon as he saw the constable.
There he attacked his wife with a poker striking her several heavy blows. He threatened to kill her and so in panic Mrs Connolly ran upstairs.
She was so desperate to escape from her husband that she threw herself out of a window.
The 42-year-old sustained such severe injuries that she had to be taken to the hospital at Whiston Workhouse.
It was another dreadful story but an all too common one that the St Helens Newspaper felt only deserved fourteen lines in their report.
The magistrates had the authority to commit him to prison for up to six months or send him for trial at the assizes where longer sentences were available.
However, Connolly was dealt with in the Petty Sessions and given just a month in prison – if he had stolen some clothing he probably would have received a longer sentence.
Another brute was Thomas Lilley from Sutton, who was charged with assaulting Jane Barrett – who wore a black eye in court.
Both their sons had fought in a field and when it was over, Thomas Lilley had attacked Mrs Barrett's son who had won the bout, knocking him to the ground and kicking him.
Mrs Barrett asked Lilley to stop assaulting her boy and so instead, he committed what was described as a "furious onslaught" on the mother.
A witness told the court that she had seen the defendant beat the woman with his fist as hard as he could and when she was down on the ground, he had kicked her all over.
A claim was made that Mrs Barrett had struck the first blow, but the magistrates were not impressed.
The Chairman said he would not have thought it possible that a man with a "spark of manhood" about him would have abused a woman in such a manner.
However, Lilley was only ordered to pay a fine of 40 shillings with £1 17s 6d costs. Or if in default of payment, go to prison for two months.
There never seemed to be a dull moment in Parr, with many neighbourly rows and assaults.
Michael Nolan also appeared in the Petty Sessions this week charged with assaulting Mary Moore and breaking her window – with his head!
And Sarah Smith and James and Thomas Kearney were charged with assaulting Nolan.
The latter had been a lodger with Mary Moore but his decision to move out had, for some reason, proved controversial. I expect he still owed his landlady some back rent.
Whatever the reason, a quarrel broke out in the street in which Michael Nolan gave Mrs Moore's son what was described as a "disfigured eye" and his mother received a sore hip, possibly the result of a kick.
This is how the Newspaper described what Michael Nolan then did:
"Subsequently, when they kept the doors closed, and refused to let him in, he ran full tilt with his head against the window, and got his face through one of the panes of glass.
"The effort to project his shoulders through was not successful, and he withdrew, carrying away with him several distinct impressions of pokers and brass candlesticks."
A witness on behalf of the Moores described to the court the fury of the Nolan attack and said that he had told the man to go away as he was in a "quare place".
The Chairman of the Bench decided that it was six of one and half-a-dozen of the other and dismissed the case.
Also in court was Mary Quinn from Sutton. The 13-year-old was sent to prison for a week for stealing a watch valued at 25 shillings belonging to Mary Watkinson.
Mary had been arrested while trying to pawn the watch at Pennington's pawnbrokers. She was told she would have been given a much longer sentence but for her youth.
The Newspaper could be quite scathing when describing the poor souls that appeared before the magistrates in court. This is what they had to say about a vagrant called Wall:
"A most miserable and disgusting looking object, half clad and filthy, who gave the name of Thomas Wall, was charged with sleeping in a stable in Liverpool-street, on the previous night.
"Prisoner admitted the charge, and stated that he had nowhere else to sleep, having been refused lodging. The Chairman said he would be committed to the workhouse for a month."
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the annual gathering of the miners of St Helens and Haydock, another fire strikes St Helens Town Hall, the eccentric night soil dumper of Rainford and the stone throwing and egg chucking in Parr.
In last week's article I did not have the space to include the shocking accusations that were made in court against Thomas Roberts.
The carter had appeared in St Helens Petty Sessions charged with assault, robbery and attempted rape.
His victim had been Catherine Aspin from Liverpool Road who had travelled with her husband to Wigan, Liverpool and other places to collect monies that were owed to them.
At Knotty Ash the husband had got drunk in a pub and did not return home with his wife.
So Mrs Aspin hitched a lift with Thomas Roberts and the St Helens Newspaper described what was alleged to have occurred in the man's cart on the dark roads leading into St Helens:
"Soon after leaving Knotty Ash, defendant kissed her, pushed her head down, used insulting language, and endeavoured to commit the offence complained of [rape].
"He also assaulted her in a similar manner after passing Prescot. She became insensible on both occasions.
"She did not remember coming through Prescot, but was quite sensible on going down Combshop brow [Croppers Hill] into St. Helens.
"He begged and prayed of her not to say anything about what had occurred, on reaching St. Helens.
"Her dress was torn in several places, and her bonnet was saturated with blood from a wound received during the assault. On getting home she missed a ring off her finger and £1 18s and some coppers she had in her pocket.
"The defendant was apprehended at Prescot, and on being charged, said he did not touch her. The case was remanded, defendant being allowed out on bail."
However, at the adjourned hearing this week new information came to light.
Witnesses said that at Knotty Ash, Mrs Aspin had got drunk and quarrelled with her husband, who had driven off from the pub without her.
She had then clung to his cart for 100 yards before falling into the road, where she was found to be bleeding and scratched and her dress torn.
That was seen as explaining her injuries and torn dress and so the case against the carter was dismissed.
Why Mrs Aspin would fabricate her serious charge against the carter that had come to her rescue was not explained.
Evidence was also given that Thomas Roberts had arrived back in St Helens with his own face scratched, supposedly after Mrs Aspin had defended herself against his unwanted attentions.
But her failure at the first court hearing to say exactly what had occurred in Knotty Ash did her no favours.
On the 27th the formal opening of Warrington's Bank Hall as a Town Hall and public park took place.
John Wilson-Patten – an MP for North Lancashire – had donated the mansion and land to the people of the town.
The St Helens Newspaper said the opening had been the "occasion of a great demonstration in Warrington".
Bernard Dromgoole, the editor and owner of the St Helens Newspaper, was no fan of Dr Robert McNicoll.
The Hardshaw Street doctor was also an alderman and had been in charge of important health and sanitary committees on the council.
However, despite St Helens' huge problems with pollution, little had improved during his time in office.
Dromgoole had been against Dr McNicoll's recent appointment as the town's first Medical Officer of Health at a salary of £200 per year.
And he was not impressed with the doctor's recent report to the Town Council. This is what Dromgoole wrote in an editorial on the 28th:
"Charming St. Helens! – It is delightful to discover that while almost every town in the country is complaining of nuisances, there are no nuisances in St. Helens ! No ! not even in those filthy drains and ditches from which usually there were powerfully offensive smells.
"This must be very gratifying to the Mayor, Aldermen, Councillors, and Burgesses [voters], St. Helens without a nuisance – a discovery which only costs £200!
"How delighted commercial travellers will be to learn this fact; and how welcome will be the intelligence that now they can sleep with impunity at the Raven.
"Of course there is one trifling matter, yet requiring some attention, namely, the closet department. But these night-soil men have been told off, on furlough, with instructions to make summer excursions to Rochdale and another towns – to visit ashpits, number unlimited. Delightful, but suitable occupation.
"It is to be hoped that the report of these inspectors may be as “highly satisfactory” as the one presented to the Health Committee, namely, that St. Helens is A 1; nothing to complain of – even when compared with the best regulated towns."
Timothy Connolly was this week's extreme brute of a husband, seemingly living in Ardwick Street in Parr with his wife Anne.
In the St Helens Petty Sessions PC Gill described how the man had been drunk and disorderly in the street but went into his house as soon as he saw the constable.
There he attacked his wife with a poker striking her several heavy blows. He threatened to kill her and so in panic Mrs Connolly ran upstairs.
She was so desperate to escape from her husband that she threw herself out of a window.
The 42-year-old sustained such severe injuries that she had to be taken to the hospital at Whiston Workhouse.
It was another dreadful story but an all too common one that the St Helens Newspaper felt only deserved fourteen lines in their report.
The magistrates had the authority to commit him to prison for up to six months or send him for trial at the assizes where longer sentences were available.
However, Connolly was dealt with in the Petty Sessions and given just a month in prison – if he had stolen some clothing he probably would have received a longer sentence.
Another brute was Thomas Lilley from Sutton, who was charged with assaulting Jane Barrett – who wore a black eye in court.
Both their sons had fought in a field and when it was over, Thomas Lilley had attacked Mrs Barrett's son who had won the bout, knocking him to the ground and kicking him.
Mrs Barrett asked Lilley to stop assaulting her boy and so instead, he committed what was described as a "furious onslaught" on the mother.
A witness told the court that she had seen the defendant beat the woman with his fist as hard as he could and when she was down on the ground, he had kicked her all over.
A claim was made that Mrs Barrett had struck the first blow, but the magistrates were not impressed.
The Chairman said he would not have thought it possible that a man with a "spark of manhood" about him would have abused a woman in such a manner.
However, Lilley was only ordered to pay a fine of 40 shillings with £1 17s 6d costs. Or if in default of payment, go to prison for two months.
There never seemed to be a dull moment in Parr, with many neighbourly rows and assaults.
Michael Nolan also appeared in the Petty Sessions this week charged with assaulting Mary Moore and breaking her window – with his head!
And Sarah Smith and James and Thomas Kearney were charged with assaulting Nolan.
The latter had been a lodger with Mary Moore but his decision to move out had, for some reason, proved controversial. I expect he still owed his landlady some back rent.
Whatever the reason, a quarrel broke out in the street in which Michael Nolan gave Mrs Moore's son what was described as a "disfigured eye" and his mother received a sore hip, possibly the result of a kick.
This is how the Newspaper described what Michael Nolan then did:
"Subsequently, when they kept the doors closed, and refused to let him in, he ran full tilt with his head against the window, and got his face through one of the panes of glass.
"The effort to project his shoulders through was not successful, and he withdrew, carrying away with him several distinct impressions of pokers and brass candlesticks."
A witness on behalf of the Moores described to the court the fury of the Nolan attack and said that he had told the man to go away as he was in a "quare place".
The Chairman of the Bench decided that it was six of one and half-a-dozen of the other and dismissed the case.
Also in court was Mary Quinn from Sutton. The 13-year-old was sent to prison for a week for stealing a watch valued at 25 shillings belonging to Mary Watkinson.
Mary had been arrested while trying to pawn the watch at Pennington's pawnbrokers. She was told she would have been given a much longer sentence but for her youth.
The Newspaper could be quite scathing when describing the poor souls that appeared before the magistrates in court. This is what they had to say about a vagrant called Wall:
"A most miserable and disgusting looking object, half clad and filthy, who gave the name of Thomas Wall, was charged with sleeping in a stable in Liverpool-street, on the previous night.
"Prisoner admitted the charge, and stated that he had nowhere else to sleep, having been refused lodging. The Chairman said he would be committed to the workhouse for a month."
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the annual gathering of the miners of St Helens and Haydock, another fire strikes St Helens Town Hall, the eccentric night soil dumper of Rainford and the stone throwing and egg chucking in Parr.