FIFTY YEARS AGO THIS WEEK (3 - 9 JULY 1973)
This week's 16 stories include the terrifying armed raid on Matty Coan’s betting office in Thatto Heath, the end of Providence Hospital's hand to mouth days, a shopping feature on Rainford, the opening of Whiston Hospital's new maternity wing, the new Gay Girl Wig Boutique in Lewis's and Lowe House Church's plan to thwart stained glass window vandals.
We begin with news that Boundary Road Baths (pictured above) planned to give swimming lessons to children aged nine and over during the summer holidays. Although lessons for very young children had been available for some time, the baths had never taught the older age group before. But they were not free – the ten-lesson course would cost parents £3.30.
Whiston Hospital's new maternity wing was opened at the beginning of this week, with their first customers being Mary Denning and what the Reporter called her "8lb 7oz bundle of joy". The 28-year-old from St Ann Place in Rainhill said she was delighted with her baby girl and Elsie Eames of Mardale Avenue in Clinkham Wood was next to give birth.
"Smashing" was Elsie's verdict on baby, Michelle, who was born within thirty minutes of her mother's arrival at the hospital. "This is the first child, and my husband, Brian, wanted a girl", added Elsie. The two new mothers, along with Alma Briggs from Widnes, received a cheque for £15 and a silver christening cup, on behalf of the St Helens & District Hospital Management Committee.
Since the 1960s most St Helens churches had kept their buildings locked out of service times to prevent vandalism and theft. But that did not stop stone throwing from outside, which could damage valuable stained glass windows. And so this week Lowe House parish church announced that it was spending £6,000 (around £100,000 in today’s money) to protect their windows.
The parish priest, Father Thomas Connor, said: "Recently we had to replace six panes of stained glass and it cost us £300. A lot of the windows are irreplaceable, and stained glass seems to be a dying art." The church had 92 stained glass windows worth around £25,000 and they were now going to be coated with a special glazing substance to give them extra protection against vandals. And Father Connor was launching an appeal fund to help pay for the protective glazing.
It was the annual meeting of Providence Hospital on the 5th and its secretary had some good news to impart. In presenting its accounts for 1972 William Livesey informed the meeting that they had leapt out of the red and now had a surplus of £76,000. He predicted an end to the "hand to mouth" days that the hospital had known in the past and said they were now in a position unknown for 15 to 20 years.
Much of that financial wellbeing had been as a result of the Mayor's "fighting fund" which was launched in 1971 when the Tolver Street hospital found itself £20,000 in debt. An important revenue stream was the hospital's annual flower day. That went back many decades and in 1972 it had brought in record receipts of £2,259. However, the Mayor, Councillor Harry Williams, warned against complacency and insisted that fundraising for Providence would need to continue.
There was an advert in the Runcorn Weekly News on the 5th for a caretaker at Rainford High School. The basic pay was £24 for a forty-hour week.
Pilkingtons announced on the 6th that following record profits they were giving £500,000 (about £7m in today's money) to its 2,800 pensioners, two-thirds of whom lived in St Helens. Most would receive lump sums in August ranging from £100 to £275, depending on their length of service. Others would benefit from an increase in their monthly pension payments.
The St Helens Reporter described on the 6th how Cliff McManus was retiring after 44 years teaching at Windleshaw Junior School, with 22 of them as headmaster. And at the same time his teacher wife, Kathleen, was retiring from her post at St Julie's school in Eccleston. Cliff's verdict on the generations of children that he had taught was: "Children don't alter – they just stay the same, although today's children have more pressures on them." The couple had eighteen grandchildren and said they planned to travel to Australia to see those that lived "down under".
Last year Lewis's had taken over Hart's large department store in Church Street in St Helens upon the death of its owner Albert Hart. At the time of his passing it was reported that the store employed 100 staff and 44 departments. Now there appeared to be a 45th as Lewis's had an advert in the Reporter announcing the opening of its new "Gay Girl Wig Boutique". Their advert said: "Special Opening Offer 10 Reduction On All Wigs In The Current Range", without specifying what the 10 was – 10% presumably?
Lilian Rogers at 30 Duke Street was advertising her summer sale: "Starts Today – Drastic reductions – Coats, suits, two pieces and dresses. All sizes: Teenage to XXOS – Mourning always in stock." Lilian Elliott the owner of the clothes shop was currently the president of the St Helens Chamber of Trade – the first female to hold that position.
Hanover Discount Warehouses of Vicarage Road, Haydock, were advertising their "great summer sale" with "rolls and rolls" of carpets from 85p per square yard and Hygena QA bedroom furniture up to 30% off.
"Roving Reporter In Rainford" was the name of an advertising feature in the paper. The advertisers included: Huyton's, 93 Ormskirk Road, Rainford ("Home made bread, confectionery and pies"); Wainwrights Electrical Services, 22 Church Road ("Specialists in colour TV"); Margery and Roy Rigby, the Derby Arms Hotel, Church Road ("Lunch time & evening snacks"); M. & P. Motors, Rainford Industrial Estate ("All bodywork, welding and mechanical repairs"); C. & G. Winstanley, Ormskirk Road ("Confectionery, groceries, beers, wines, and spirits") and Joseph Fairclough, 10 Church Road ("Boots and shoes repaired expertly by deaf and dumb craftsmen").
Also Houghtons, 15 Church Road ("Newsagents, tobacconists and confectionery, baby linens and wool"); Lowe’s Forge, Red Cat Lane, Crank ("Specialists in mobile welding and steel fabrications"); J. Prescot, 6 Ormskirk Road ("Fresh farm chickens"); Fashionflair, 2 Ormskirk Road ("For all ladies and gents holiday wear"); J. E. Cook (Butchers) Ltd, Ormskirk Road ("Personally selected animals slaughtered on our premises") and A. & E. Bradbury & Son, 14 Ormskirk Road ("News & magazines delivered daily").
There was also a mid-summer sale from the Sava-Lot Discount Warehouse of Old Lane in Rainford who promised "20% ON ALL SALES!" I think they meant 20% OFF all sales!
A front-page story in the Reporter covered the claims of John Evason. He said that he had lost his job delivering vegetables to schools partly through protesting about their poor quality. Seven of the schools that the Burscough firm made deliveries to were located in Rainford, Windle and Eccleston. Mr Evason told the paper: "All the best stuff is picked out and sent to supermarkets. The worst is sent out to the schools." The firm dismissed his allegations claiming that the man had been sacked for other reasons.
On the 8th the gardens of Windle Hall (pictured above) were opened to the public. Admission to the home of Lord and Lady Pilkington cost 10p, with proceeds to the Retired District Nurses' Benevolent Fund.
Also on that day two armed men wearing face masks raided a betting office belonging to Matty Coan in Crossley Road in Thatto Heath. Matty Coan's real name was John Smith and he and his manager Kenneth Boylan were bound, gagged and threatened by the two raiders. Boylan was clubbed with a metal bar and Smith had a gun pressed to his neck.
Police later revealed that the men had used a duplicate door key to gain entry to the office and had stolen £5,000. DCI Bob Moores said he thought a rogue locksmith had made the duplicate key, explaining: "It wasn't an inside job. We have eliminated all the staff from our inquiries." John Smith subsequently offered a £1,000 reward for information.
On the 9th the film version of TV comedy 'Love Thy Neighbour' replaced the film version of TV comedy 'The Lovers' for 7 days at the ABC Savoy. "The funniest comedy ever on the big screen", was the boastful strapline about Jack Smethurst and Rudolph Walker's movie. And at the Capitol Cinema, Donald Pleasance starred in 'Death Line', which was billed as "A new line in terror".
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the slow poisoning of Sutton residents, anger over Greenall's treatment of tenant landlords, St Helens dinner ladies complain about the food they dished up and the straw solution to a noisy Rainford pump.
Whiston Hospital's new maternity wing was opened at the beginning of this week, with their first customers being Mary Denning and what the Reporter called her "8lb 7oz bundle of joy". The 28-year-old from St Ann Place in Rainhill said she was delighted with her baby girl and Elsie Eames of Mardale Avenue in Clinkham Wood was next to give birth.
"Smashing" was Elsie's verdict on baby, Michelle, who was born within thirty minutes of her mother's arrival at the hospital. "This is the first child, and my husband, Brian, wanted a girl", added Elsie. The two new mothers, along with Alma Briggs from Widnes, received a cheque for £15 and a silver christening cup, on behalf of the St Helens & District Hospital Management Committee.
Since the 1960s most St Helens churches had kept their buildings locked out of service times to prevent vandalism and theft. But that did not stop stone throwing from outside, which could damage valuable stained glass windows. And so this week Lowe House parish church announced that it was spending £6,000 (around £100,000 in today’s money) to protect their windows.
The parish priest, Father Thomas Connor, said: "Recently we had to replace six panes of stained glass and it cost us £300. A lot of the windows are irreplaceable, and stained glass seems to be a dying art." The church had 92 stained glass windows worth around £25,000 and they were now going to be coated with a special glazing substance to give them extra protection against vandals. And Father Connor was launching an appeal fund to help pay for the protective glazing.
It was the annual meeting of Providence Hospital on the 5th and its secretary had some good news to impart. In presenting its accounts for 1972 William Livesey informed the meeting that they had leapt out of the red and now had a surplus of £76,000. He predicted an end to the "hand to mouth" days that the hospital had known in the past and said they were now in a position unknown for 15 to 20 years.
Much of that financial wellbeing had been as a result of the Mayor's "fighting fund" which was launched in 1971 when the Tolver Street hospital found itself £20,000 in debt. An important revenue stream was the hospital's annual flower day. That went back many decades and in 1972 it had brought in record receipts of £2,259. However, the Mayor, Councillor Harry Williams, warned against complacency and insisted that fundraising for Providence would need to continue.
There was an advert in the Runcorn Weekly News on the 5th for a caretaker at Rainford High School. The basic pay was £24 for a forty-hour week.
Pilkingtons announced on the 6th that following record profits they were giving £500,000 (about £7m in today's money) to its 2,800 pensioners, two-thirds of whom lived in St Helens. Most would receive lump sums in August ranging from £100 to £275, depending on their length of service. Others would benefit from an increase in their monthly pension payments.
The St Helens Reporter described on the 6th how Cliff McManus was retiring after 44 years teaching at Windleshaw Junior School, with 22 of them as headmaster. And at the same time his teacher wife, Kathleen, was retiring from her post at St Julie's school in Eccleston. Cliff's verdict on the generations of children that he had taught was: "Children don't alter – they just stay the same, although today's children have more pressures on them." The couple had eighteen grandchildren and said they planned to travel to Australia to see those that lived "down under".
Last year Lewis's had taken over Hart's large department store in Church Street in St Helens upon the death of its owner Albert Hart. At the time of his passing it was reported that the store employed 100 staff and 44 departments. Now there appeared to be a 45th as Lewis's had an advert in the Reporter announcing the opening of its new "Gay Girl Wig Boutique". Their advert said: "Special Opening Offer 10 Reduction On All Wigs In The Current Range", without specifying what the 10 was – 10% presumably?
Lilian Rogers at 30 Duke Street was advertising her summer sale: "Starts Today – Drastic reductions – Coats, suits, two pieces and dresses. All sizes: Teenage to XXOS – Mourning always in stock." Lilian Elliott the owner of the clothes shop was currently the president of the St Helens Chamber of Trade – the first female to hold that position.
Hanover Discount Warehouses of Vicarage Road, Haydock, were advertising their "great summer sale" with "rolls and rolls" of carpets from 85p per square yard and Hygena QA bedroom furniture up to 30% off.
"Roving Reporter In Rainford" was the name of an advertising feature in the paper. The advertisers included: Huyton's, 93 Ormskirk Road, Rainford ("Home made bread, confectionery and pies"); Wainwrights Electrical Services, 22 Church Road ("Specialists in colour TV"); Margery and Roy Rigby, the Derby Arms Hotel, Church Road ("Lunch time & evening snacks"); M. & P. Motors, Rainford Industrial Estate ("All bodywork, welding and mechanical repairs"); C. & G. Winstanley, Ormskirk Road ("Confectionery, groceries, beers, wines, and spirits") and Joseph Fairclough, 10 Church Road ("Boots and shoes repaired expertly by deaf and dumb craftsmen").
Also Houghtons, 15 Church Road ("Newsagents, tobacconists and confectionery, baby linens and wool"); Lowe’s Forge, Red Cat Lane, Crank ("Specialists in mobile welding and steel fabrications"); J. Prescot, 6 Ormskirk Road ("Fresh farm chickens"); Fashionflair, 2 Ormskirk Road ("For all ladies and gents holiday wear"); J. E. Cook (Butchers) Ltd, Ormskirk Road ("Personally selected animals slaughtered on our premises") and A. & E. Bradbury & Son, 14 Ormskirk Road ("News & magazines delivered daily").
There was also a mid-summer sale from the Sava-Lot Discount Warehouse of Old Lane in Rainford who promised "20% ON ALL SALES!" I think they meant 20% OFF all sales!
A front-page story in the Reporter covered the claims of John Evason. He said that he had lost his job delivering vegetables to schools partly through protesting about their poor quality. Seven of the schools that the Burscough firm made deliveries to were located in Rainford, Windle and Eccleston. Mr Evason told the paper: "All the best stuff is picked out and sent to supermarkets. The worst is sent out to the schools." The firm dismissed his allegations claiming that the man had been sacked for other reasons.
Also on that day two armed men wearing face masks raided a betting office belonging to Matty Coan in Crossley Road in Thatto Heath. Matty Coan's real name was John Smith and he and his manager Kenneth Boylan were bound, gagged and threatened by the two raiders. Boylan was clubbed with a metal bar and Smith had a gun pressed to his neck.
Police later revealed that the men had used a duplicate door key to gain entry to the office and had stolen £5,000. DCI Bob Moores said he thought a rogue locksmith had made the duplicate key, explaining: "It wasn't an inside job. We have eliminated all the staff from our inquiries." John Smith subsequently offered a £1,000 reward for information.
On the 9th the film version of TV comedy 'Love Thy Neighbour' replaced the film version of TV comedy 'The Lovers' for 7 days at the ABC Savoy. "The funniest comedy ever on the big screen", was the boastful strapline about Jack Smethurst and Rudolph Walker's movie. And at the Capitol Cinema, Donald Pleasance starred in 'Death Line', which was billed as "A new line in terror".
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the slow poisoning of Sutton residents, anger over Greenall's treatment of tenant landlords, St Helens dinner ladies complain about the food they dished up and the straw solution to a noisy Rainford pump.
This week's 16 stories include the terrifying armed raid on Matty Coan’s betting office in Thatto Heath, the end of Providence Hospital's hand to mouth days, a shopping feature on Rainford, the opening of Whiston Hospital's new maternity wing, the new Gay Girl Wig Boutique in Lewis's and Lowe House Church's plan to thwart stained glass window vandals.
We begin with news that Boundary Road Baths (pictured above) planned to give swimming lessons to children aged nine and over during the summer holidays.
Although lessons for very young children had been available for some time, the baths had never taught the older age group before.
But they were not free – the ten-lesson course would cost parents £3.30.
Whiston Hospital's new maternity wing was opened at the beginning of this week, with their first customers being Mary Denning and what the Reporter called her "8lb 7oz bundle of joy".
The 28-year-old from St Ann Place in Rainhill said she was delighted with her baby girl and Elsie Eames of Mardale Avenue in Clinkham Wood was next to give birth.
"Smashing" was Elsie's verdict on baby, Michelle, who was born within thirty minutes of her mother's arrival at the hospital. "This is the first child, and my husband, Brian, wanted a girl", added Elsie.
The two new mothers, along with Alma Briggs from Widnes, received a cheque for £15 and a silver christening cup, on behalf of the St Helens & District Hospital Management Committee.
Since the 1960s most St Helens churches had kept their buildings locked out of service times to prevent vandalism and theft.
But that did not stop stone throwing from outside, which could damage valuable stained glass windows.
And so this week Lowe House parish church announced that it was spending £6,000 (around £100,000 in today’s money) to protect their windows.
The parish priest, Father Thomas Connor, said: "Recently we had to replace six panes of stained glass and it cost us £300. A lot of the windows are irreplaceable, and stained glass seems to be a dying art."
The church had 92 stained glass windows worth around £25,000 and they were now going to be coated with a special glazing substance to give them extra protection against vandals.
And Father Connor was launching an appeal fund to help pay for the protective glazing.
It was the annual meeting of Providence Hospital on the 5th and its secretary had some good news to impart.
In presenting its accounts for 1972 William Livesey informed the meeting that they had leapt out of the red and now had a surplus of £76,000.
He predicted an end to the "hand to mouth" days that the hospital had known in the past and said they were now in a position unknown for 15 to 20 years.
Much of that financial wellbeing had been as a result of the Mayor's "fighting fund" which was launched in 1971 when the Tolver Street hospital found itself £20,000 in debt.
An important revenue stream was the hospital's annual flower day. That went back many decades and in 1972 it had brought in record receipts of £2,259.
However, the Mayor, Councillor Harry Williams, warned against complacency and insisted that fundraising for Providence would need to continue.
There was an advert in the Runcorn Weekly News on the 5th for a caretaker at Rainford High School. The basic pay was £24 for a forty-hour week.
Pilkingtons announced on the 6th that following record profits they were giving £500,000 (about £7m in today's money) to its 2,800 pensioners, two-thirds of whom lived in St Helens.
Most would receive lump sums in August ranging from £100 to £275, depending on their length of service. Others would benefit from an increase in their monthly pension payments.
The St Helens Reporter described on the 6th how Cliff McManus was retiring after 44 years teaching at Windleshaw Junior School, with 22 of them as headmaster.
And at the same time his teacher wife, Kathleen, was retiring from her post at St Julie's school in Eccleston.
Cliff's verdict on the generations of children that he had taught was: "Children don't alter – they just stay the same, although today's children have more pressures on them."
The couple had eighteen grandchildren and said they planned to travel to Australia to see those that lived "down under".
Last year Lewis's had taken over Hart's large department store in Church Street in St Helens upon the death of its owner Albert Hart.
At the time of his passing it was reported that the store employed 100 staff and 44 departments.
Now there appeared to be a 45th as Lewis's had an advert in the Reporter announcing the opening of its new "Gay Girl Wig Boutique".
Their advert said: "Special Opening Offer 10 Reduction On All Wigs In The Current Range", without specifying what the 10 was – 10% presumably?
Lilian Rogers at 30 Duke Street was advertising her summer sale: "Starts Today – Drastic reductions – Coats, suits, two pieces and dresses. All sizes: Teenage to XXOS – Mourning always in stock."
Lilian Elliott the owner of the clothes shop was currently the president of the St Helens Chamber of Trade – the first female to hold that position.
Hanover Discount Warehouses of Vicarage Road, Haydock, were advertising their "great summer sale" with "rolls and rolls" of carpets from 85p per square yard and Hygena QA bedroom furniture up to 30% off.
"Roving Reporter In Rainford" was the name of an advertising feature in the paper. The advertisers included:
Huyton's, 93 Ormskirk Road, Rainford ("Home made bread, confectionery and pies"); Wainwrights Electrical Services, 22 Church Road ("Specialists in colour TV"); Margery and Roy Rigby, the Derby Arms Hotel, Church Road ("Lunch time & evening snacks"); M. & P. Motors, Rainford Industrial Estate ("All bodywork, welding and mechanical repairs"); C. & G. Winstanley, Ormskirk Road ("Confectionery, groceries, beers, wines, and spirits") and Joseph Fairclough, 10 Church Road ("Boots and shoes repaired expertly by deaf and dumb craftsmen").
Also Houghtons, 15 Church Road ("Newsagents, tobacconists and confectionery, baby linens and wool"); Lowe’s Forge, Red Cat Lane, Crank ("Specialists in mobile welding and steel fabrications"); J. Prescot, 6 Ormskirk Road ("Fresh farm chickens"); Fashionflair, 2 Ormskirk Road ("For all ladies and gents holiday wear"); J. E. Cook (Butchers) Ltd, Ormskirk Road ("Personally selected animals slaughtered on our premises") and A. & E. Bradbury & Son, 14 Ormskirk Road ("News & magazines delivered daily").
There was also a mid-summer sale from the Sava-Lot Discount Warehouse of Old Lane in Rainford who promised "20% ON ALL SALES!" I think they meant 20% OFF all sales!
A front-page story in the Reporter covered the claims of John Evason. He said that he had lost his job delivering vegetables to schools partly through protesting about their poor quality.
Seven of the schools that the Burscough firm made deliveries to were located in Rainford, Windle and Eccleston. Mr Evason told the paper:
"All the best stuff is picked out and sent to supermarkets. The worst is sent out to the schools."
The firm dismissed his allegations claiming that the man had been sacked for other reasons.
On the 8th the gardens of Windle Hall (pictured above) were opened to the public. Admission to the home of Lord and Lady Pilkington cost 10p, with proceeds to the Retired District Nurses' Benevolent Fund.
Also on that day two armed men wearing face masks raided a betting office belonging to Matty Coan in Crossley Road in Thatto Heath.
Matty Coan's real name was John Smith and he and his manager Kenneth Boylan were bound, gagged and threatened by the two raiders.
Boylan was clubbed with a metal bar and Smith had a gun pressed to his neck.
Police later revealed that the men had used a duplicate door key to gain entry to the office and had stolen £5,000.
DCI Bob Moores said he thought a rogue locksmith had made the duplicate key, explaining:
"It wasn't an inside job. We have eliminated all the staff from our inquiries." John Smith subsequently offered a £1,000 reward for information.
On the 9th the film version of TV comedy 'Love Thy Neighbour' replaced the film version of TV comedy 'The Lovers' for 7 days at the ABC Savoy.
"The funniest comedy ever on the big screen", was the boastful strapline about Jack Smethurst and Rudolph Walker's movie.
And at the Capitol Cinema, Donald Pleasance starred in 'Death Line', which was billed as "A new line in terror".
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the slow poisoning of Sutton residents, anger over Greenall's treatment of tenant landlords, St Helens dinner ladies complain about the food they dished up and the straw solution to a noisy Rainford pump.
Although lessons for very young children had been available for some time, the baths had never taught the older age group before.
But they were not free – the ten-lesson course would cost parents £3.30.
Whiston Hospital's new maternity wing was opened at the beginning of this week, with their first customers being Mary Denning and what the Reporter called her "8lb 7oz bundle of joy".
The 28-year-old from St Ann Place in Rainhill said she was delighted with her baby girl and Elsie Eames of Mardale Avenue in Clinkham Wood was next to give birth.
"Smashing" was Elsie's verdict on baby, Michelle, who was born within thirty minutes of her mother's arrival at the hospital. "This is the first child, and my husband, Brian, wanted a girl", added Elsie.
The two new mothers, along with Alma Briggs from Widnes, received a cheque for £15 and a silver christening cup, on behalf of the St Helens & District Hospital Management Committee.
Since the 1960s most St Helens churches had kept their buildings locked out of service times to prevent vandalism and theft.
But that did not stop stone throwing from outside, which could damage valuable stained glass windows.
And so this week Lowe House parish church announced that it was spending £6,000 (around £100,000 in today’s money) to protect their windows.
The parish priest, Father Thomas Connor, said: "Recently we had to replace six panes of stained glass and it cost us £300. A lot of the windows are irreplaceable, and stained glass seems to be a dying art."
The church had 92 stained glass windows worth around £25,000 and they were now going to be coated with a special glazing substance to give them extra protection against vandals.
And Father Connor was launching an appeal fund to help pay for the protective glazing.
It was the annual meeting of Providence Hospital on the 5th and its secretary had some good news to impart.
In presenting its accounts for 1972 William Livesey informed the meeting that they had leapt out of the red and now had a surplus of £76,000.
He predicted an end to the "hand to mouth" days that the hospital had known in the past and said they were now in a position unknown for 15 to 20 years.
Much of that financial wellbeing had been as a result of the Mayor's "fighting fund" which was launched in 1971 when the Tolver Street hospital found itself £20,000 in debt.
An important revenue stream was the hospital's annual flower day. That went back many decades and in 1972 it had brought in record receipts of £2,259.
However, the Mayor, Councillor Harry Williams, warned against complacency and insisted that fundraising for Providence would need to continue.
There was an advert in the Runcorn Weekly News on the 5th for a caretaker at Rainford High School. The basic pay was £24 for a forty-hour week.
Pilkingtons announced on the 6th that following record profits they were giving £500,000 (about £7m in today's money) to its 2,800 pensioners, two-thirds of whom lived in St Helens.
Most would receive lump sums in August ranging from £100 to £275, depending on their length of service. Others would benefit from an increase in their monthly pension payments.
The St Helens Reporter described on the 6th how Cliff McManus was retiring after 44 years teaching at Windleshaw Junior School, with 22 of them as headmaster.
And at the same time his teacher wife, Kathleen, was retiring from her post at St Julie's school in Eccleston.
Cliff's verdict on the generations of children that he had taught was: "Children don't alter – they just stay the same, although today's children have more pressures on them."
The couple had eighteen grandchildren and said they planned to travel to Australia to see those that lived "down under".
Last year Lewis's had taken over Hart's large department store in Church Street in St Helens upon the death of its owner Albert Hart.
At the time of his passing it was reported that the store employed 100 staff and 44 departments.
Now there appeared to be a 45th as Lewis's had an advert in the Reporter announcing the opening of its new "Gay Girl Wig Boutique".
Their advert said: "Special Opening Offer 10 Reduction On All Wigs In The Current Range", without specifying what the 10 was – 10% presumably?
Lilian Rogers at 30 Duke Street was advertising her summer sale: "Starts Today – Drastic reductions – Coats, suits, two pieces and dresses. All sizes: Teenage to XXOS – Mourning always in stock."
Lilian Elliott the owner of the clothes shop was currently the president of the St Helens Chamber of Trade – the first female to hold that position.
Hanover Discount Warehouses of Vicarage Road, Haydock, were advertising their "great summer sale" with "rolls and rolls" of carpets from 85p per square yard and Hygena QA bedroom furniture up to 30% off.
"Roving Reporter In Rainford" was the name of an advertising feature in the paper. The advertisers included:
Huyton's, 93 Ormskirk Road, Rainford ("Home made bread, confectionery and pies"); Wainwrights Electrical Services, 22 Church Road ("Specialists in colour TV"); Margery and Roy Rigby, the Derby Arms Hotel, Church Road ("Lunch time & evening snacks"); M. & P. Motors, Rainford Industrial Estate ("All bodywork, welding and mechanical repairs"); C. & G. Winstanley, Ormskirk Road ("Confectionery, groceries, beers, wines, and spirits") and Joseph Fairclough, 10 Church Road ("Boots and shoes repaired expertly by deaf and dumb craftsmen").
Also Houghtons, 15 Church Road ("Newsagents, tobacconists and confectionery, baby linens and wool"); Lowe’s Forge, Red Cat Lane, Crank ("Specialists in mobile welding and steel fabrications"); J. Prescot, 6 Ormskirk Road ("Fresh farm chickens"); Fashionflair, 2 Ormskirk Road ("For all ladies and gents holiday wear"); J. E. Cook (Butchers) Ltd, Ormskirk Road ("Personally selected animals slaughtered on our premises") and A. & E. Bradbury & Son, 14 Ormskirk Road ("News & magazines delivered daily").
There was also a mid-summer sale from the Sava-Lot Discount Warehouse of Old Lane in Rainford who promised "20% ON ALL SALES!" I think they meant 20% OFF all sales!
A front-page story in the Reporter covered the claims of John Evason. He said that he had lost his job delivering vegetables to schools partly through protesting about their poor quality.
Seven of the schools that the Burscough firm made deliveries to were located in Rainford, Windle and Eccleston. Mr Evason told the paper:
"All the best stuff is picked out and sent to supermarkets. The worst is sent out to the schools."
The firm dismissed his allegations claiming that the man had been sacked for other reasons.
Also on that day two armed men wearing face masks raided a betting office belonging to Matty Coan in Crossley Road in Thatto Heath.
Matty Coan's real name was John Smith and he and his manager Kenneth Boylan were bound, gagged and threatened by the two raiders.
Boylan was clubbed with a metal bar and Smith had a gun pressed to his neck.
Police later revealed that the men had used a duplicate door key to gain entry to the office and had stolen £5,000.
DCI Bob Moores said he thought a rogue locksmith had made the duplicate key, explaining:
"It wasn't an inside job. We have eliminated all the staff from our inquiries." John Smith subsequently offered a £1,000 reward for information.
On the 9th the film version of TV comedy 'Love Thy Neighbour' replaced the film version of TV comedy 'The Lovers' for 7 days at the ABC Savoy.
"The funniest comedy ever on the big screen", was the boastful strapline about Jack Smethurst and Rudolph Walker's movie.
And at the Capitol Cinema, Donald Pleasance starred in 'Death Line', which was billed as "A new line in terror".
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the slow poisoning of Sutton residents, anger over Greenall's treatment of tenant landlords, St Helens dinner ladies complain about the food they dished up and the straw solution to a noisy Rainford pump.