150 YEARS AGO THIS WEEK (31st OCT. - 6th NOV. 1872)
This week's stories include the novelty of voting in secret elections, the casual attitude to explosive gas in a Sutton Heath coal mine, the fireworks in a Newton court, a most impudent robbery of jewellery takes place at Knowsley Hall and the assault on a policeman's whiskers in Market Street.
Two weeks ago I described how Joseph Rigby from Duke Street had been severely burned by a gas explosion at Sutton Heath Colliery. As the young man had descended the pit carrying a lit candle he had seen the word "Fire!” scrawled on his spade. Joseph interpreted that as a warning of danger. However, he assumed that the gas was not in his immediate vicinity and continued walking to his workplace until an explosion stopped him in his tracks.
An individual badly burned 150 years ago had a low chance of survival and Joseph had since died from his injuries. At his inquest held in the Clarence Hotel in Duke Street on the 31st, the jury decided that the explosion that killed Rigby was to some extent caused by his own negligence. However, they also recommended that a better signal must be created that would warn of the presence of explosive gas – rather than simply scrawling "fire" on a shovel. That was rather obvious. During 1871 a total of 1,075 men and boys were killed in coal mines in Great Britain with 269 of them dying through explosions.
The St Helens Newspaper reported on the 2nd that there had been fireworks in a recent hearing of Newton Petty Sessions – literally! Isaac Mee was charged with selling two halfpenny fireworks to two boys under the age of sixteen, one aged just 11. A policeman discharged one of the fireworks in court to prove to the Bench that they came within the meaning of an Act of Parliament. However, the shop owner's solicitor argued that they did not come under the Act – and if they did, Mrs Mee, who sold the fireworks to the boys, had broken the law unwittingly. The case was dismissed upon payment of court costs.
In an editorial the Newspaper wrote: "November, with its busy scenes and party contests, has come again. St. Helens has no great struggle this year, although considerable interest has attached to the ward contests on account of the novelty of the Ballot Act arrangements." What the paper was alluding to was that the annual round of council elections had come round again. However, there were no particularly interesting battles between candidates, in part because some wards were uncontested.
But what was exciting people's interest was the novelty of the secret vote. That was being introduced in an election in St Helens for the very first time and it was hoped secret voting would bring an end to the corruption that had marred elections in the town in the past. Then voters were plied with alcohol and although that could still take place, the bribers would no longer have the means of checking that the bribed person had voted for their man.
The Newspaper also commented how their prediction of a "popular tumult" in Liverpool over the decision of the city's local magistrates to close pubs at 9pm on Sundays was coming true. On the first Sunday curtailment of drinking hours, a large crowd had assembled in front of St George's Hall to hold what the paper described as an "indignation meeting" – but the police had used "repressive action" – as it was described – to disperse them.
The paper announced that seven tenders for the building of the new St Helens town hall had been received, four from local contractors and three from Liverpool. The lowest bid had been £35,000 and the highest £40,000. The Corporation were not committed to accept the lowest tender for the job and a decision on who would win the contract had been deferred.
The Newspaper also wrote: "Despite the smoke and vapour of St. Helens, it is quite possible, as every-day experience proves, to enjoy an exceedingly long life in this borough. We have recently noticed several cases of longevity and the subjoined is not the least remarkable. In a house in Wright-street, Greenbank, three old people dwell together whose united ages make a total of 233 years. They were all born, and have lived all their lives, in St. Helens, and they still enjoy comparatively good health."
That sounds impressive, although the average age of the trio at 77 would not, of course, be all that special today. What the report did not say was what jobs the threesome had undertaken, as that could have a considerable bearing on their lifespan. In 1868 the Prescot Reporter had described how life expectancy at birth in England was only 40 years for men and 42 for women and for every 100 children born, 26 never saw their fifth birthday.
Expectancy of life increased the longer people lived and didn’t succumb to disease and endure fatal accidents. So those who got past five could anticipate living for another fifty years. Those aged 20 could expect to live until they were 60 and those that reached the age of 50 could, on average, expect to last until they were 70.
The Newspaper this week also described a "most impudent" burglary at Knowsley Hall when diamonds and jewellery to the value of £3,000 were stolen. The jewels belonged to a Hon. Miss Constance Grosvenor, who was a guest at Lord Derby's mansion and she had left her property in her room with one of its windows slightly open. Upon returning to the room at 11pm it was discovered that an entry had been made by what we might call a cat burglar and the loot taken. A "liberal reward" was offered for information on the theft.
The Prescot Reporter later stated that the value of the stolen items was around £300, not £3,000 – but that's still around £40,000 in today's money. The paper also stated that Prescot Police believed the theft had been an inside job, as we would call it, with attempts made to give the impression the burglary had been the work of an outsider. However, it does not appear that the culprit was ever caught.
There were not all that many fires in the 1870s, with blazes involving electrical appliances yet to be an issue. But those that did occur often had a simple cause – carelessness. On the 2nd a fire broke out in the George and Dragon Inn in Smithy Brow in St Helens, which was blamed on a workman lighting his pipe and not extinguishing the match.
The pub was being renovated prior to a new tenant moving in and several joiners had been working in the place where the fire started. Most workers were only employed until lunchtime on Saturdays and it was believed the pipe had been lit as the men were leaving their work at noon. It was not until almost three o’clock that the fire was discovered and it took the brigade an hour to put it out. Fortunately the premises were insured.
During the 19th century it was almost mandatory for police officers in St Helens to wear a moustache – or whiskers, as they tended to be called. Photographs of police from that period show very few officers without a substantial growth on their top lip. Sometimes, when attempting to make an arrest, their moustache became a problem, as their prospective prisoner would grab hold of it and pull.
The St Helens Petty Sessions on the 4th heard of such a case when Edward Barry, Michael Finn and James McGerty were charged with assaulting PC Berry in the execution of his duty. The constable told the court that the landlord of the Victoria Hotel in Market Street in St Helens had summoned him to eject a troublesome drinker. He was Edward Barry, who, while struggling with the officer, pulled him against the wall by his whiskers and jaw and Finn and McGerty then kicked the constable to allow his captive to get away.
A shoemaker called Thomas Owen gave evidence of seeing Michael Finn strike the policeman and the others "rush upon him like bulldogs". Mr Owen then ran to the nearby police station in New Market Place to summon help. The magistrates fined all three men 20 shillings each, plus court costs, or if in default of payment, they would have to spend a month in prison.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next week's stories will include the introduction of the secret vote in St Helens, the annual Lowe House Church tea party and ball, the reopening of St Helens Library and the dirty mains water at Greenbank.
Two weeks ago I described how Joseph Rigby from Duke Street had been severely burned by a gas explosion at Sutton Heath Colliery. As the young man had descended the pit carrying a lit candle he had seen the word "Fire!” scrawled on his spade. Joseph interpreted that as a warning of danger. However, he assumed that the gas was not in his immediate vicinity and continued walking to his workplace until an explosion stopped him in his tracks.
An individual badly burned 150 years ago had a low chance of survival and Joseph had since died from his injuries. At his inquest held in the Clarence Hotel in Duke Street on the 31st, the jury decided that the explosion that killed Rigby was to some extent caused by his own negligence. However, they also recommended that a better signal must be created that would warn of the presence of explosive gas – rather than simply scrawling "fire" on a shovel. That was rather obvious. During 1871 a total of 1,075 men and boys were killed in coal mines in Great Britain with 269 of them dying through explosions.
The St Helens Newspaper reported on the 2nd that there had been fireworks in a recent hearing of Newton Petty Sessions – literally! Isaac Mee was charged with selling two halfpenny fireworks to two boys under the age of sixteen, one aged just 11. A policeman discharged one of the fireworks in court to prove to the Bench that they came within the meaning of an Act of Parliament. However, the shop owner's solicitor argued that they did not come under the Act – and if they did, Mrs Mee, who sold the fireworks to the boys, had broken the law unwittingly. The case was dismissed upon payment of court costs.
In an editorial the Newspaper wrote: "November, with its busy scenes and party contests, has come again. St. Helens has no great struggle this year, although considerable interest has attached to the ward contests on account of the novelty of the Ballot Act arrangements." What the paper was alluding to was that the annual round of council elections had come round again. However, there were no particularly interesting battles between candidates, in part because some wards were uncontested.
But what was exciting people's interest was the novelty of the secret vote. That was being introduced in an election in St Helens for the very first time and it was hoped secret voting would bring an end to the corruption that had marred elections in the town in the past. Then voters were plied with alcohol and although that could still take place, the bribers would no longer have the means of checking that the bribed person had voted for their man.
The Newspaper also commented how their prediction of a "popular tumult" in Liverpool over the decision of the city's local magistrates to close pubs at 9pm on Sundays was coming true. On the first Sunday curtailment of drinking hours, a large crowd had assembled in front of St George's Hall to hold what the paper described as an "indignation meeting" – but the police had used "repressive action" – as it was described – to disperse them.
The paper announced that seven tenders for the building of the new St Helens town hall had been received, four from local contractors and three from Liverpool. The lowest bid had been £35,000 and the highest £40,000. The Corporation were not committed to accept the lowest tender for the job and a decision on who would win the contract had been deferred.
The Newspaper also wrote: "Despite the smoke and vapour of St. Helens, it is quite possible, as every-day experience proves, to enjoy an exceedingly long life in this borough. We have recently noticed several cases of longevity and the subjoined is not the least remarkable. In a house in Wright-street, Greenbank, three old people dwell together whose united ages make a total of 233 years. They were all born, and have lived all their lives, in St. Helens, and they still enjoy comparatively good health."
That sounds impressive, although the average age of the trio at 77 would not, of course, be all that special today. What the report did not say was what jobs the threesome had undertaken, as that could have a considerable bearing on their lifespan. In 1868 the Prescot Reporter had described how life expectancy at birth in England was only 40 years for men and 42 for women and for every 100 children born, 26 never saw their fifth birthday.
Expectancy of life increased the longer people lived and didn’t succumb to disease and endure fatal accidents. So those who got past five could anticipate living for another fifty years. Those aged 20 could expect to live until they were 60 and those that reached the age of 50 could, on average, expect to last until they were 70.
The Prescot Reporter later stated that the value of the stolen items was around £300, not £3,000 – but that's still around £40,000 in today's money. The paper also stated that Prescot Police believed the theft had been an inside job, as we would call it, with attempts made to give the impression the burglary had been the work of an outsider. However, it does not appear that the culprit was ever caught.
There were not all that many fires in the 1870s, with blazes involving electrical appliances yet to be an issue. But those that did occur often had a simple cause – carelessness. On the 2nd a fire broke out in the George and Dragon Inn in Smithy Brow in St Helens, which was blamed on a workman lighting his pipe and not extinguishing the match.
The pub was being renovated prior to a new tenant moving in and several joiners had been working in the place where the fire started. Most workers were only employed until lunchtime on Saturdays and it was believed the pipe had been lit as the men were leaving their work at noon. It was not until almost three o’clock that the fire was discovered and it took the brigade an hour to put it out. Fortunately the premises were insured.
During the 19th century it was almost mandatory for police officers in St Helens to wear a moustache – or whiskers, as they tended to be called. Photographs of police from that period show very few officers without a substantial growth on their top lip. Sometimes, when attempting to make an arrest, their moustache became a problem, as their prospective prisoner would grab hold of it and pull.
The St Helens Petty Sessions on the 4th heard of such a case when Edward Barry, Michael Finn and James McGerty were charged with assaulting PC Berry in the execution of his duty. The constable told the court that the landlord of the Victoria Hotel in Market Street in St Helens had summoned him to eject a troublesome drinker. He was Edward Barry, who, while struggling with the officer, pulled him against the wall by his whiskers and jaw and Finn and McGerty then kicked the constable to allow his captive to get away.
A shoemaker called Thomas Owen gave evidence of seeing Michael Finn strike the policeman and the others "rush upon him like bulldogs". Mr Owen then ran to the nearby police station in New Market Place to summon help. The magistrates fined all three men 20 shillings each, plus court costs, or if in default of payment, they would have to spend a month in prison.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next week's stories will include the introduction of the secret vote in St Helens, the annual Lowe House Church tea party and ball, the reopening of St Helens Library and the dirty mains water at Greenbank.
This week's stories include the novelty of voting in secret elections, the casual attitude to explosive gas in a Sutton Heath coal mine, the fireworks in a Newton court, a most impudent robbery of jewellery takes place at Knowsley Hall and the assault on a policeman's whiskers in Market Street.
Two weeks ago I described how Joseph Rigby from Duke Street had been severely burned by a gas explosion at Sutton Heath Colliery.
As the young man had descended the pit carrying a lit candle he had seen the word "Fire!” scrawled on his spade.
Joseph interpreted that as a warning of danger. However, he assumed that the gas was not in his immediate vicinity and continued walking to his workplace until an explosion stopped him in his tracks.
An individual badly burned 150 years ago had a low chance of survival and Joseph had since died from his injuries.
At his inquest held in the Clarence Hotel in Duke Street on the 31st, the jury decided that the explosion that killed Rigby was to some extent caused by his own negligence.
However, they also recommended that a better signal must be created that would warn of the presence of explosive gas – rather than simply scrawling "fire" on a shovel.
That was rather obvious. During 1871 a total of 1,075 men and boys were killed in coal mines in Great Britain with 269 of them dying through explosions.
The St Helens Newspaper reported on the 2nd that there had been fireworks in a recent hearing of Newton Petty Sessions – literally!
Isaac Mee was charged with selling two halfpenny fireworks to two boys under the age of sixteen, one aged just 11.
A policeman discharged one of the fireworks in court to prove to the Bench that they came within the meaning of an Act of Parliament.
However, the shop owner's solicitor argued that they did not come under the Act – and if they did, Mrs Mee, who sold the fireworks to the boys, had broken the law unwittingly. The case was dismissed upon payment of court costs.
In an editorial the Newspaper wrote: "November, with its busy scenes and party contests, has come again. St. Helens has no great struggle this year, although considerable interest has attached to the ward contests on account of the novelty of the Ballot Act arrangements."
What the paper was alluding to was that the annual round of council elections had come round again.
However, there were no particularly interesting battles between candidates, in part because some wards were uncontested.
But what was exciting people's interest was the novelty of the secret vote.
That was being introduced in an election in St Helens for the very first time and it was hoped secret voting would bring an end to the corruption that had marred elections in the town in the past.
Then voters were plied with alcohol and although that could still take place, the bribers would no longer have the means of checking that the bribed person had voted for their man.
The Newspaper also commented how their prediction of a "popular tumult" in Liverpool over the decision of the city's local magistrates to close pubs at 9pm on Sundays was coming true.
On the first Sunday curtailment of drinking hours, a large crowd had assembled in front of St George's Hall to hold what the paper described as an "indignation meeting" – but the police had used "repressive action" – as it was described – to disperse them.
The paper announced that seven tenders for the building of the new St Helens town hall had been received, four from local contractors and three from Liverpool.
The lowest bid had been £35,000 and the highest £40,000. The Corporation were not committed to accept the lowest tender for the job and a decision on who would win the contract had been deferred.
The Newspaper also wrote: "Despite the smoke and vapour of St. Helens, it is quite possible, as every-day experience proves, to enjoy an exceedingly long life in this borough.
"We have recently noticed several cases of longevity and the subjoined is not the least remarkable. In a house in Wright-street, Greenbank, three old people dwell together whose united ages make a total of 233 years.
"They were all born, and have lived all their lives, in St. Helens, and they still enjoy comparatively good health."
That sounds impressive, although the average age of the trio at 77 would not, of course, be all that special today.
What the report did not say was what jobs the threesome had undertaken, as that could have a considerable bearing on their lifespan.
In 1868 the Prescot Reporter had described how life expectancy at birth in England was only 40 years for men and 42 for women and for every 100 children born, 26 never saw their fifth birthday.
Expectancy of life increased the longer people lived and didn’t succumb to disease and endure fatal accidents.
So those who got past five could anticipate living for another fifty years. Those aged 20 could expect to live until they were 60 and those that reached the age of 50 could, on average, expect to last until they were 70.
The Newspaper this week also described a "most impudent" burglary at Knowsley Hall (pictured above) when diamonds and jewellery to the value of £3,000 were stolen.
The jewels belonged to a Hon. Miss Constance Grosvenor, who was a guest at Lord Derby's mansion and she had left her property in her room with one of its windows slightly open.
Upon returning to the room at 11pm it was discovered that an entry had been made by what we might call a cat burglar and the loot taken. A "liberal reward" was offered for information on the theft.
The Prescot Reporter later stated that the value of the stolen items was around £300, not £3,000 – but that's still around £40,000 in today's money.
The paper also stated that Prescot Police believed the theft had been an inside job, as we would call it, with attempts made to give the impression the burglary had been the work of an outsider. However, it does not appear that the culprit was ever caught.
There were not all that many fires in the 1870s, with blazes involving electrical appliances yet to be an issue. But those that did occur often had a simple cause – carelessness.
On the 2nd a fire broke out in the George and Dragon Inn in Smithy Brow in St Helens, which was blamed on a workman lighting his pipe and not extinguishing the match.
The pub was being renovated prior to a new tenant moving in and several joiners had been working in the place where the fire started.
Most workers were only employed until lunchtime on Saturdays and it was believed the pipe had been lit as the men were leaving their work at noon.
It was not until almost three o’clock that the fire was discovered and it took the brigade an hour to put it out. Fortunately the premises were insured.
During the 19th century it was almost mandatory for police officers in St Helens to wear a moustache – or whiskers, as they tended to be called.
Photographs of police from that period show very few officers without a substantial growth on their top lip.
Sometimes, when attempting to make an arrest, their moustache became a problem, as their prospective prisoner would grab hold of it and pull.
The St Helens Petty Sessions on the 4th heard of such a case when Edward Barry, Michael Finn and James McGerty were charged with assaulting PC Berry in the execution of his duty.
The constable told the court that the landlord of the Victoria Hotel in Market Street in St Helens had summoned him to eject a troublesome drinker.
He was Edward Barry, who, while struggling with the officer, pulled him against the wall by his whiskers and jaw and Finn and McGerty then kicked the constable to allow his captive to get away.
A shoemaker called Thomas Owen gave evidence of seeing Michael Finn strike the policeman and the others "rush upon him like bulldogs".
Mr Owen then ran to the nearby police station in New Market Place to summon help.
The magistrates fined all three men 20 shillings each, plus court costs, or if in default of payment, they would have to spend a month in prison.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next week's stories will include the introduction of the secret vote in St Helens, the annual Lowe House Church tea party and ball, the reopening of St Helens Library and the dirty mains water at Greenbank.
Two weeks ago I described how Joseph Rigby from Duke Street had been severely burned by a gas explosion at Sutton Heath Colliery.
As the young man had descended the pit carrying a lit candle he had seen the word "Fire!” scrawled on his spade.
Joseph interpreted that as a warning of danger. However, he assumed that the gas was not in his immediate vicinity and continued walking to his workplace until an explosion stopped him in his tracks.
An individual badly burned 150 years ago had a low chance of survival and Joseph had since died from his injuries.
At his inquest held in the Clarence Hotel in Duke Street on the 31st, the jury decided that the explosion that killed Rigby was to some extent caused by his own negligence.
However, they also recommended that a better signal must be created that would warn of the presence of explosive gas – rather than simply scrawling "fire" on a shovel.
That was rather obvious. During 1871 a total of 1,075 men and boys were killed in coal mines in Great Britain with 269 of them dying through explosions.
The St Helens Newspaper reported on the 2nd that there had been fireworks in a recent hearing of Newton Petty Sessions – literally!
Isaac Mee was charged with selling two halfpenny fireworks to two boys under the age of sixteen, one aged just 11.
A policeman discharged one of the fireworks in court to prove to the Bench that they came within the meaning of an Act of Parliament.
However, the shop owner's solicitor argued that they did not come under the Act – and if they did, Mrs Mee, who sold the fireworks to the boys, had broken the law unwittingly. The case was dismissed upon payment of court costs.
In an editorial the Newspaper wrote: "November, with its busy scenes and party contests, has come again. St. Helens has no great struggle this year, although considerable interest has attached to the ward contests on account of the novelty of the Ballot Act arrangements."
What the paper was alluding to was that the annual round of council elections had come round again.
However, there were no particularly interesting battles between candidates, in part because some wards were uncontested.
But what was exciting people's interest was the novelty of the secret vote.
That was being introduced in an election in St Helens for the very first time and it was hoped secret voting would bring an end to the corruption that had marred elections in the town in the past.
Then voters were plied with alcohol and although that could still take place, the bribers would no longer have the means of checking that the bribed person had voted for their man.
The Newspaper also commented how their prediction of a "popular tumult" in Liverpool over the decision of the city's local magistrates to close pubs at 9pm on Sundays was coming true.
On the first Sunday curtailment of drinking hours, a large crowd had assembled in front of St George's Hall to hold what the paper described as an "indignation meeting" – but the police had used "repressive action" – as it was described – to disperse them.
The paper announced that seven tenders for the building of the new St Helens town hall had been received, four from local contractors and three from Liverpool.
The lowest bid had been £35,000 and the highest £40,000. The Corporation were not committed to accept the lowest tender for the job and a decision on who would win the contract had been deferred.
The Newspaper also wrote: "Despite the smoke and vapour of St. Helens, it is quite possible, as every-day experience proves, to enjoy an exceedingly long life in this borough.
"We have recently noticed several cases of longevity and the subjoined is not the least remarkable. In a house in Wright-street, Greenbank, three old people dwell together whose united ages make a total of 233 years.
"They were all born, and have lived all their lives, in St. Helens, and they still enjoy comparatively good health."
That sounds impressive, although the average age of the trio at 77 would not, of course, be all that special today.
What the report did not say was what jobs the threesome had undertaken, as that could have a considerable bearing on their lifespan.
In 1868 the Prescot Reporter had described how life expectancy at birth in England was only 40 years for men and 42 for women and for every 100 children born, 26 never saw their fifth birthday.
Expectancy of life increased the longer people lived and didn’t succumb to disease and endure fatal accidents.
So those who got past five could anticipate living for another fifty years. Those aged 20 could expect to live until they were 60 and those that reached the age of 50 could, on average, expect to last until they were 70.
The jewels belonged to a Hon. Miss Constance Grosvenor, who was a guest at Lord Derby's mansion and she had left her property in her room with one of its windows slightly open.
Upon returning to the room at 11pm it was discovered that an entry had been made by what we might call a cat burglar and the loot taken. A "liberal reward" was offered for information on the theft.
The Prescot Reporter later stated that the value of the stolen items was around £300, not £3,000 – but that's still around £40,000 in today's money.
The paper also stated that Prescot Police believed the theft had been an inside job, as we would call it, with attempts made to give the impression the burglary had been the work of an outsider. However, it does not appear that the culprit was ever caught.
There were not all that many fires in the 1870s, with blazes involving electrical appliances yet to be an issue. But those that did occur often had a simple cause – carelessness.
On the 2nd a fire broke out in the George and Dragon Inn in Smithy Brow in St Helens, which was blamed on a workman lighting his pipe and not extinguishing the match.
The pub was being renovated prior to a new tenant moving in and several joiners had been working in the place where the fire started.
Most workers were only employed until lunchtime on Saturdays and it was believed the pipe had been lit as the men were leaving their work at noon.
It was not until almost three o’clock that the fire was discovered and it took the brigade an hour to put it out. Fortunately the premises were insured.
During the 19th century it was almost mandatory for police officers in St Helens to wear a moustache – or whiskers, as they tended to be called.
Photographs of police from that period show very few officers without a substantial growth on their top lip.
Sometimes, when attempting to make an arrest, their moustache became a problem, as their prospective prisoner would grab hold of it and pull.
The St Helens Petty Sessions on the 4th heard of such a case when Edward Barry, Michael Finn and James McGerty were charged with assaulting PC Berry in the execution of his duty.
The constable told the court that the landlord of the Victoria Hotel in Market Street in St Helens had summoned him to eject a troublesome drinker.
He was Edward Barry, who, while struggling with the officer, pulled him against the wall by his whiskers and jaw and Finn and McGerty then kicked the constable to allow his captive to get away.
A shoemaker called Thomas Owen gave evidence of seeing Michael Finn strike the policeman and the others "rush upon him like bulldogs".
Mr Owen then ran to the nearby police station in New Market Place to summon help.
The magistrates fined all three men 20 shillings each, plus court costs, or if in default of payment, they would have to spend a month in prison.
St Helens Newspaper courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next week's stories will include the introduction of the secret vote in St Helens, the annual Lowe House Church tea party and ball, the reopening of St Helens Library and the dirty mains water at Greenbank.