FIFTY YEARS AGO THIS WEEK 1 - 7 APRIL 1974
This week's many stories include the start of local government reorganisation, the problem of glue sniffing in St Helens, there's good news for St Theresa's Primary School, the new cafe at Sherdley Park Golf Club, the plans for a water fountain in St Helens town centre, St Helens Civic Society declares war on litter bugs and the angry residents of Hamer Street furious over vandalism and arson.
Whenever Sooty made his annual appearance in St Helens, there was always a different name for his show. For a week from the 1st, Harry Corbett and his glove puppets performed at the Theatre Royal in what was being called the 'Sooty Super Show'.
Also on the 1st the Liverpool Echo wrote: "It was all-change to-day for local government. On Merseyside, replacing more than 25 councils, a new county council begins to operate along with five district councils – Liverpool, St. Helens, Wirral, Knowsley and Sefton. People living in the new areas, from Southport down to Wirral, Bootle over to St. Helens, are now in a new postal district called Merseyside. Also new to-day – Merseyside county police force, county fire brigade and county public transport, all part of the county council. New bodies, now apart from local government, are a North West water authority and a new health authority."
The Pilkington Glass Museum in Prescot Road had chosen to close during the fuel crisis but it had now reopened and announced that they had some rare exhibits on show. These included a Roman bottle and 23 pieces of glassware illustrating the historical development of glassmaking, which had been loaned to Pilks from the British Museum. And also from the 1st a month-long exhibition of paintings by Pilkingtons' employees was on display.
The Liverpool Echo on the 2nd profiled history enthusiast Harry Evans from Queens Road in Prescot. The paper wrote that the 61-year-old's most recent find had been a secret tunnel at Scholes Hall in Thatto Heath, which was believed to have been used by Catholics to escape from Cromwell's soldiers.
The Echo also described how Pilkington's planned to pay £250,000 to St Helens Corporation for a water fountain that would be installed in the new town centre. The glass giant was also offering £6,000 as prizes in a competition to find the best design for the feature, which would be situated near the Parish Church. The winner would be awarded £3,500, with the runner-up receiving £1,500 and there was also a third prize of £1,000. The article stated that the competition was going to be judged by a "world famous panel of sculptors".
There were two errors in the report. The Echo had added an extra zero to the amount that Pilks was giving to St Helens as part of its 150th anniversary commemorations. Their donation totalled £25,000 (not £250,000) and the prize money was included and not extra. In today's money it was worth around £400,000 and so still a lot for a fountain.
On the 3rd Paddy Gill was installed as the first mayor of the new St Helens District Council. The former fireman from Walkers Lane in Sutton Manor said: "I'm very proud to serve the new St. Helens. We have a duty to keep the people informed."
The Reporter described on the 5th how the St Helens Civic Society had decided to clean up the town in what the paper described as a "private war on litter bugs". The Chairman of the society, John Tandy, claimed there was apathy in St Helens about litter on a par with foreign cities, such as Jakarta in Indonesia. And Lady Mavis Pilkington argued that the litter situation was quite grim, explaining: "There are some horror spots in St. Helens. I took some foreigners past a place near the Saints ground and they were quite horrified by what they saw."
The redevelopment of St Helens in which numerous old streets were being demolished and new ones built had a number of downsides. But the biggest bugbear was that many vacant derelict houses that had been deemed unfit to live in were ending up juxtaposed with inhabited properties. Those tenants were waiting to be rehoused and the council required all of the houses in the street to be empty before starting demolition. That led all sorts of persons stealing from the derelict homes or living in them, much to the annoyance of their neighbours.
The latest to complain were the residents of Hamer Street and the Reporter described how this week they had handed in a 120-signature petition at St Helens Town Hall complaining of vandalism and arson. The organiser of the petition was 60-year-old Gladys Wylmot, who claimed that she and many of her neighbours were being harassed by people stealing from unoccupied houses in and around her street – much of which was under a Compulsory Purchase Order. Mrs Wylmot said:
"It's not uncommon to see people arriving in cars, going into the houses and stealing lead piping. Also, the backyards of some of the empty houses are used as dumping grounds for every kind of rubbish imaginable." Other neighbours complained that some of the properties were being used as doss houses for tramps and dropouts, many of whom, it was claimed, started fires. Last weekend one house only 50 yards away from Mrs Wylmot's home had been set ablaze.
"Things are so bad that many of us are afraid to leave our homes," she added. "I can't see any reason why the council can't board up the broken windows. After all, many of us will have to put up with this kind of nuisance for a long time before we are re-housed." The council response was to be sympathetic but only say: "Once houses become vacant for demolition, vandalism becomes one of our worst problems."
The Reporter also explained how one of St Helens Council's last acts prior to the local government reorganisation had been to allow a parish priest in Sutton Manor to take possession of an old library building. Father Cornelius McEnroe had faced competition from St Helens Social Services when he applied to take over the vacant rooms. However, the council had now granted him permission to use them for educational purposes. The library had transferred to a new building at Four Acre Lane and its former property would be converted into classrooms to expand St Theresa's Primary School in Gartons Lane.
Detective Inspector David Heaney was in St Helens this week to deliver a talk to parents. The Reporter said he was one of the country's top drugs experts and at the event organised by St Helens Junior Chamber of Commerce, he said the problem of glue sniffing was worse in St Helens than anywhere else in Lancashire. Children, as young as nine, he claimed, had taken to the craze, which caused hallucinations and had the risk of suffocation and heart failure. DI Heaney's lecture was aimed at getting parents to recognise the symptoms of drug taking amongst their kids.
The Reporter also published this short piece: "Golfers and non-golfers alike can now enjoy one of the loveliest views in St. Helens. It can be seen through the windows of the new cafe and bar at Sherdley Park Golf Club. It is on the top floor of the ultra-modern building overlooking the final green of the nine-hole course. And the lucky man who can enjoy the view every day is licensee Mr. Brian Bailey. “It really is worth seeing,” he says. “And what's more, you don’t have to be a member of the club to enjoy the facilities here.” Work has now started on the construction of a further nine holes to the course, estimated to take 18 months."
May Roughsedge was also featured in the Reporter after the 56-year-old had declared her hometown to be "a mess". Mrs Roughsedge had emigrated to Australia in 1951 and had returned to St Helens for a holiday with her husband, daughter and two young granddaughters. She found that Fox Street in Gerards Bridge where she had been born had been demolished and the house in Bewsey Street where she had lived prior to emigrating had also been bulldozed. May told the Reporter:
"When I left it was a homely town, people were more friendly, and it was a lot cleaner than it is today. Now all the buildings I wanted the little girls to see have gone. I can't look up people I knew because I don't know where they live anymore, and it's all supermarkets without the personal touch. They've knocked so much down without putting anything in its place. I'd like to come back and look at it when it's finished. Perhaps it'll look better then. But I could never come back and live here again."
A disturbing report in the Echo on the 5th stated how Mark Bonham Carter, chairman of the Community Relations Commission, had toured Liverpool and been distinctly unimpressed by its lack of diversity, saying: "We did not see members of the minority communities in shops, offices or banks. There are only two coloured policemen, and there was not much evidence in factories, plant and so on, for their promotion. We won't deal with this in Liverpool until we recognise the problems and find ways of dealing with them".
It was all change at the two St Helens' cinemas on the 7th. The ABC Savoy had been showing 'Don't Look Now' but replaced it with a James Bond double-bill of 'Diamonds Are Forever' and 'From Russia With Love'. Meanwhile, the Capitol replaced a Peter Fonda film called 'Tales Of Mystery' with 'Jesus Christ Superstar'. As it was the Easter holidays, 'Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory', along with some cartoons, were also being shown as afternoon matinees at the Cap.
Lord and Lady Pilkington held an open day at their Windle Hall home (pictured above) on the 7th which attracted 1,000 visitors. Usually, three such events took place each year to raise money for the District Nurses Benevolent Fund. As well as inspecting the gardens at Windle Hall, visitors heard songs performed by 31 local children who would be appearing in the St Helens Operatic Society's forthcoming production of 'The King and I'.
During the evening of the 7th, the Five Penny Piece were in concert at the Theatre Royal in Corporation Street and on the following day comedic folk singer Bob Williamson performed at the Fleece Hotel.
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the boxes of grenades that were discovered at Pilks' factory at Ravenhead, the gelignite explosion in Mill Lane, the troubles of Rocla Pipes in Sutton and the angry Haresfinch council tenants.
Whenever Sooty made his annual appearance in St Helens, there was always a different name for his show. For a week from the 1st, Harry Corbett and his glove puppets performed at the Theatre Royal in what was being called the 'Sooty Super Show'.
Also on the 1st the Liverpool Echo wrote: "It was all-change to-day for local government. On Merseyside, replacing more than 25 councils, a new county council begins to operate along with five district councils – Liverpool, St. Helens, Wirral, Knowsley and Sefton. People living in the new areas, from Southport down to Wirral, Bootle over to St. Helens, are now in a new postal district called Merseyside. Also new to-day – Merseyside county police force, county fire brigade and county public transport, all part of the county council. New bodies, now apart from local government, are a North West water authority and a new health authority."
The Pilkington Glass Museum in Prescot Road had chosen to close during the fuel crisis but it had now reopened and announced that they had some rare exhibits on show. These included a Roman bottle and 23 pieces of glassware illustrating the historical development of glassmaking, which had been loaned to Pilks from the British Museum. And also from the 1st a month-long exhibition of paintings by Pilkingtons' employees was on display.
The Liverpool Echo on the 2nd profiled history enthusiast Harry Evans from Queens Road in Prescot. The paper wrote that the 61-year-old's most recent find had been a secret tunnel at Scholes Hall in Thatto Heath, which was believed to have been used by Catholics to escape from Cromwell's soldiers.
The Echo also described how Pilkington's planned to pay £250,000 to St Helens Corporation for a water fountain that would be installed in the new town centre. The glass giant was also offering £6,000 as prizes in a competition to find the best design for the feature, which would be situated near the Parish Church. The winner would be awarded £3,500, with the runner-up receiving £1,500 and there was also a third prize of £1,000. The article stated that the competition was going to be judged by a "world famous panel of sculptors".
There were two errors in the report. The Echo had added an extra zero to the amount that Pilks was giving to St Helens as part of its 150th anniversary commemorations. Their donation totalled £25,000 (not £250,000) and the prize money was included and not extra. In today's money it was worth around £400,000 and so still a lot for a fountain.
On the 3rd Paddy Gill was installed as the first mayor of the new St Helens District Council. The former fireman from Walkers Lane in Sutton Manor said: "I'm very proud to serve the new St. Helens. We have a duty to keep the people informed."
The Reporter described on the 5th how the St Helens Civic Society had decided to clean up the town in what the paper described as a "private war on litter bugs". The Chairman of the society, John Tandy, claimed there was apathy in St Helens about litter on a par with foreign cities, such as Jakarta in Indonesia. And Lady Mavis Pilkington argued that the litter situation was quite grim, explaining: "There are some horror spots in St. Helens. I took some foreigners past a place near the Saints ground and they were quite horrified by what they saw."
The redevelopment of St Helens in which numerous old streets were being demolished and new ones built had a number of downsides. But the biggest bugbear was that many vacant derelict houses that had been deemed unfit to live in were ending up juxtaposed with inhabited properties. Those tenants were waiting to be rehoused and the council required all of the houses in the street to be empty before starting demolition. That led all sorts of persons stealing from the derelict homes or living in them, much to the annoyance of their neighbours.
The latest to complain were the residents of Hamer Street and the Reporter described how this week they had handed in a 120-signature petition at St Helens Town Hall complaining of vandalism and arson. The organiser of the petition was 60-year-old Gladys Wylmot, who claimed that she and many of her neighbours were being harassed by people stealing from unoccupied houses in and around her street – much of which was under a Compulsory Purchase Order. Mrs Wylmot said:
"It's not uncommon to see people arriving in cars, going into the houses and stealing lead piping. Also, the backyards of some of the empty houses are used as dumping grounds for every kind of rubbish imaginable." Other neighbours complained that some of the properties were being used as doss houses for tramps and dropouts, many of whom, it was claimed, started fires. Last weekend one house only 50 yards away from Mrs Wylmot's home had been set ablaze.
"Things are so bad that many of us are afraid to leave our homes," she added. "I can't see any reason why the council can't board up the broken windows. After all, many of us will have to put up with this kind of nuisance for a long time before we are re-housed." The council response was to be sympathetic but only say: "Once houses become vacant for demolition, vandalism becomes one of our worst problems."
The Reporter also explained how one of St Helens Council's last acts prior to the local government reorganisation had been to allow a parish priest in Sutton Manor to take possession of an old library building. Father Cornelius McEnroe had faced competition from St Helens Social Services when he applied to take over the vacant rooms. However, the council had now granted him permission to use them for educational purposes. The library had transferred to a new building at Four Acre Lane and its former property would be converted into classrooms to expand St Theresa's Primary School in Gartons Lane.
Detective Inspector David Heaney was in St Helens this week to deliver a talk to parents. The Reporter said he was one of the country's top drugs experts and at the event organised by St Helens Junior Chamber of Commerce, he said the problem of glue sniffing was worse in St Helens than anywhere else in Lancashire. Children, as young as nine, he claimed, had taken to the craze, which caused hallucinations and had the risk of suffocation and heart failure. DI Heaney's lecture was aimed at getting parents to recognise the symptoms of drug taking amongst their kids.
The Reporter also published this short piece: "Golfers and non-golfers alike can now enjoy one of the loveliest views in St. Helens. It can be seen through the windows of the new cafe and bar at Sherdley Park Golf Club. It is on the top floor of the ultra-modern building overlooking the final green of the nine-hole course. And the lucky man who can enjoy the view every day is licensee Mr. Brian Bailey. “It really is worth seeing,” he says. “And what's more, you don’t have to be a member of the club to enjoy the facilities here.” Work has now started on the construction of a further nine holes to the course, estimated to take 18 months."
May Roughsedge was also featured in the Reporter after the 56-year-old had declared her hometown to be "a mess". Mrs Roughsedge had emigrated to Australia in 1951 and had returned to St Helens for a holiday with her husband, daughter and two young granddaughters. She found that Fox Street in Gerards Bridge where she had been born had been demolished and the house in Bewsey Street where she had lived prior to emigrating had also been bulldozed. May told the Reporter:
"When I left it was a homely town, people were more friendly, and it was a lot cleaner than it is today. Now all the buildings I wanted the little girls to see have gone. I can't look up people I knew because I don't know where they live anymore, and it's all supermarkets without the personal touch. They've knocked so much down without putting anything in its place. I'd like to come back and look at it when it's finished. Perhaps it'll look better then. But I could never come back and live here again."
A disturbing report in the Echo on the 5th stated how Mark Bonham Carter, chairman of the Community Relations Commission, had toured Liverpool and been distinctly unimpressed by its lack of diversity, saying: "We did not see members of the minority communities in shops, offices or banks. There are only two coloured policemen, and there was not much evidence in factories, plant and so on, for their promotion. We won't deal with this in Liverpool until we recognise the problems and find ways of dealing with them".
It was all change at the two St Helens' cinemas on the 7th. The ABC Savoy had been showing 'Don't Look Now' but replaced it with a James Bond double-bill of 'Diamonds Are Forever' and 'From Russia With Love'. Meanwhile, the Capitol replaced a Peter Fonda film called 'Tales Of Mystery' with 'Jesus Christ Superstar'. As it was the Easter holidays, 'Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory', along with some cartoons, were also being shown as afternoon matinees at the Cap.
During the evening of the 7th, the Five Penny Piece were in concert at the Theatre Royal in Corporation Street and on the following day comedic folk singer Bob Williamson performed at the Fleece Hotel.
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the boxes of grenades that were discovered at Pilks' factory at Ravenhead, the gelignite explosion in Mill Lane, the troubles of Rocla Pipes in Sutton and the angry Haresfinch council tenants.
This week's many stories include the start of local government reorganisation, the problem of glue sniffing in St Helens, there's good news for St Theresa's Primary School, the new cafe at Sherdley Park Golf Club, the plans for a water fountain in St Helens town centre, St Helens Civic Society declares war on litter bugs and the angry residents of Hamer Street furious over vandalism and arson.
Whenever Sooty made his annual appearance in St Helens, there was always a different name for his show.
For a week from the 1st, Harry Corbett and his glove puppets performed at the Theatre Royal in what was being called the 'Sooty Super Show'.
Also on the 1st the Liverpool Echo wrote: "It was all-change to-day for local government. On Merseyside, replacing more than 25 councils, a new county council begins to operate along with five district councils – Liverpool, St. Helens, Wirral, Knowsley and Sefton.
"People living in the new areas, from Southport down to Wirral, Bootle over to St. Helens, are now in a new postal district called Merseyside.
"Also new to-day – Merseyside county police force, county fire brigade and county public transport, all part of the county council.
"New bodies, now apart from local government, are a North West water authority and a new health authority."
The Pilkington Glass Museum in Prescot Road had chosen to close during the fuel crisis but it had now reopened and announced that they had some rare exhibits on show.
These included a Roman bottle and 23 pieces of glassware illustrating the historical development of glassmaking, which had been loaned to Pilks from the British Museum.
And also from the 1st a month-long exhibition of paintings by Pilkingtons' employees was on display.
The Liverpool Echo on the 2nd profiled history enthusiast Harry Evans from Queens Road in Prescot.
The paper wrote that the 61-year-old's most recent find had been a secret tunnel at Scholes Hall in Thatto Heath, which was believed to have been used by Catholics to escape from Cromwell's soldiers.
The Echo also described how Pilkington's planned to pay £250,000 to St Helens Corporation for a water fountain that would be installed in the new town centre.
The glass giant was also offering £6,000 as prizes in a competition to find the best design for the feature, which would be situated near the Parish Church.
The winner would be awarded £3,500, with the runner-up receiving £1,500 and there was also a third prize of £1,000.
The article stated that the competition was going to be judged by a "world famous panel of sculptors".
There were two errors in the report. The Echo had added an extra zero to the amount that Pilks was giving to St Helens as part of its 150th anniversary commemorations.
Their donation totalled £25,000 (not £250,000) and the prize money was included and not extra. In today's money it was worth around £400,000 and so still a lot for a fountain.
On the 3rd Paddy Gill was installed as the first mayor of the new St Helens District Council. The former fireman from Walkers Lane in Sutton Manor said:
"I'm very proud to serve the new St. Helens. We have a duty to keep the people informed."
The Reporter described on the 5th how the St Helens Civic Society had decided to clean up the town in what the paper described as a "private war on litter bugs".
The Chairman of the society, John Tandy, claimed there was apathy in St Helens about litter on a par with foreign cities, such as Jakarta in Indonesia.
And Lady Mavis Pilkington argued that the litter situation was quite grim, explaining:
"There are some horror spots in St. Helens. I took some foreigners past a place near the Saints ground and they were quite horrified by what they saw."
The redevelopment of St Helens in which numerous old streets were being demolished and new ones built had a number of downsides.
But the biggest bugbear was that many vacant derelict houses that had been deemed unfit to live in were ending up juxtaposed with inhabited properties.
Those tenants were waiting to be rehoused and the council required all of the houses in the street to be empty before starting demolition.
That led all sorts of persons stealing from the derelict homes or living in them, much to the annoyance of their neighbours.
The latest to complain were the residents of Hamer Street and the Reporter described how this week they had handed in a 120-signature petition at St Helens Town Hall complaining of vandalism and arson.
The organiser of the petition was 60-year-old Gladys Wylmot, who claimed that she and many of her neighbours were being harassed by people stealing from unoccupied houses in and around her street – much of which was under a Compulsory Purchase Order. Mrs Wylmot said:
"It's not uncommon to see people arriving in cars, going into the houses and stealing lead piping. Also, the backyards of some of the empty houses are used as dumping grounds for every kind of rubbish imaginable."
Other neighbours complained that some of the properties were being used as doss houses for tramps and dropouts, many of whom, it was claimed, started fires.
Last weekend one house only 50 yards away from Mrs Wylmot's home had been set ablaze.
"Things are so bad that many of us are afraid to leave our homes," she added. "I can't see any reason why the council can't board up the broken windows. After all, many of us will have to put up with this kind of nuisance for a long time before we are re-housed."
The council response was to be sympathetic but only say: "Once houses become vacant for demolition, vandalism becomes one of our worst problems."
The Reporter also explained how one of St Helens Council's last acts prior to the local government reorganisation had been to allow a parish priest in Sutton Manor to take possession of an old library building.
Father Cornelius McEnroe had faced competition from St Helens Social Services when he applied to take over the vacant rooms. However, the council had now granted him permission to use them for educational purposes.
The library had transferred to a new building at Four Acre Lane and its former property would be converted into classrooms to expand St Theresa's Primary School in Gartons Lane.
Detective Inspector David Heaney was in St Helens this week to deliver a talk to parents.
The Reporter said he was one of the country's top drugs experts and at the event organised by St Helens Junior Chamber of Commerce, he said the problem of glue sniffing was worse in St Helens than anywhere else in Lancashire.
Children, as young as nine, he claimed, had taken to the craze, which caused hallucinations and had the risk of suffocation and heart failure.
DI Heaney's lecture was aimed at getting parents to recognise the symptoms of drug taking amongst their kids.
The Reporter also published this short piece: "Golfers and non-golfers alike can now enjoy one of the loveliest views in St. Helens.
"It can be seen through the windows of the new cafe and bar at Sherdley Park Golf Club.
"It is on the top floor of the ultra-modern building overlooking the final green of the nine-hole course. And the lucky man who can enjoy the view every day is licensee Mr. Brian Bailey.
"“It really is worth seeing,” he says. “And what's more, you don’t have to be a member of the club to enjoy the facilities here.”
"Work has now started on the construction of a further nine holes to the course, estimated to take 18 months."
May Roughsedge was also featured in the Reporter after the 56-year-old had declared her hometown to be "a mess".
Mrs Roughsedge had emigrated to Australia in 1951 and had returned to St Helens for a holiday with her husband, daughter and two young granddaughters.
She found that Fox Street in Gerards Bridge where she had been born had been demolished and the house in Bewsey Street where she had lived prior to emigrating had also been bulldozed. May told the Reporter:
"When I left it was a homely town, people were more friendly, and it was a lot cleaner than it is today. Now all the buildings I wanted the little girls to see have gone.
"I can't look up people I knew because I don't know where they live anymore, and it's all supermarkets without the personal touch.
"They've knocked so much down without putting anything in its place. I'd like to come back and look at it when it's finished. Perhaps it'll look better then. But I could never come back and live here again."
A disturbing report in the Echo on the 5th stated how Mark Bonham Carter, chairman of the Community Relations Commission, had toured Liverpool and been distinctly unimpressed by its lack of diversity, saying:
"We did not see members of the minority communities in shops, offices or banks. There are only two coloured policemen, and there was not much evidence in factories, plant and so on, for their promotion.
"We won't deal with this in Liverpool until we recognise the problems and find ways of dealing with them".
It was all change at the two St Helens' cinemas on the 7th. The ABC Savoy had been showing 'Don't Look Now' but replaced it with a James Bond double-bill of 'Diamonds Are Forever' and 'From Russia With Love'.
Meanwhile, the Capitol replaced a Peter Fonda film called 'Tales Of Mystery' with 'Jesus Christ Superstar'.
As it was the Easter holidays, 'Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory', along with some cartoons, were also being shown as afternoon matinees at the Cap.
Lord and Lady Pilkington held an open day at their Windle Hall home (pictured above) on the 7th which attracted 1,000 visitors.
Usually, three such events took place each year to raise money for the District Nurses Benevolent Fund.
As well as inspecting the gardens at Windle Hall, visitors heard songs performed by 31 local children who would be appearing in the St Helens Operatic Society's forthcoming production of 'The King and I'.
During the evening of the 7th, the Five Penny Piece were in concert at the Theatre Royal in Corporation Street and on the following day comedic folk singer Bob Williamson performed at the Fleece Hotel.
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the boxes of grenades that were discovered at Pilks' factory at Ravenhead, the gelignite explosion in Mill Lane, the troubles of Rocla Pipes in Sutton and the angry Haresfinch council tenants.
Whenever Sooty made his annual appearance in St Helens, there was always a different name for his show.
For a week from the 1st, Harry Corbett and his glove puppets performed at the Theatre Royal in what was being called the 'Sooty Super Show'.
Also on the 1st the Liverpool Echo wrote: "It was all-change to-day for local government. On Merseyside, replacing more than 25 councils, a new county council begins to operate along with five district councils – Liverpool, St. Helens, Wirral, Knowsley and Sefton.
"People living in the new areas, from Southport down to Wirral, Bootle over to St. Helens, are now in a new postal district called Merseyside.
"Also new to-day – Merseyside county police force, county fire brigade and county public transport, all part of the county council.
"New bodies, now apart from local government, are a North West water authority and a new health authority."
The Pilkington Glass Museum in Prescot Road had chosen to close during the fuel crisis but it had now reopened and announced that they had some rare exhibits on show.
These included a Roman bottle and 23 pieces of glassware illustrating the historical development of glassmaking, which had been loaned to Pilks from the British Museum.
And also from the 1st a month-long exhibition of paintings by Pilkingtons' employees was on display.
The Liverpool Echo on the 2nd profiled history enthusiast Harry Evans from Queens Road in Prescot.
The paper wrote that the 61-year-old's most recent find had been a secret tunnel at Scholes Hall in Thatto Heath, which was believed to have been used by Catholics to escape from Cromwell's soldiers.
The Echo also described how Pilkington's planned to pay £250,000 to St Helens Corporation for a water fountain that would be installed in the new town centre.
The glass giant was also offering £6,000 as prizes in a competition to find the best design for the feature, which would be situated near the Parish Church.
The winner would be awarded £3,500, with the runner-up receiving £1,500 and there was also a third prize of £1,000.
The article stated that the competition was going to be judged by a "world famous panel of sculptors".
There were two errors in the report. The Echo had added an extra zero to the amount that Pilks was giving to St Helens as part of its 150th anniversary commemorations.
Their donation totalled £25,000 (not £250,000) and the prize money was included and not extra. In today's money it was worth around £400,000 and so still a lot for a fountain.
On the 3rd Paddy Gill was installed as the first mayor of the new St Helens District Council. The former fireman from Walkers Lane in Sutton Manor said:
"I'm very proud to serve the new St. Helens. We have a duty to keep the people informed."
The Reporter described on the 5th how the St Helens Civic Society had decided to clean up the town in what the paper described as a "private war on litter bugs".
The Chairman of the society, John Tandy, claimed there was apathy in St Helens about litter on a par with foreign cities, such as Jakarta in Indonesia.
And Lady Mavis Pilkington argued that the litter situation was quite grim, explaining:
"There are some horror spots in St. Helens. I took some foreigners past a place near the Saints ground and they were quite horrified by what they saw."
The redevelopment of St Helens in which numerous old streets were being demolished and new ones built had a number of downsides.
But the biggest bugbear was that many vacant derelict houses that had been deemed unfit to live in were ending up juxtaposed with inhabited properties.
Those tenants were waiting to be rehoused and the council required all of the houses in the street to be empty before starting demolition.
That led all sorts of persons stealing from the derelict homes or living in them, much to the annoyance of their neighbours.
The latest to complain were the residents of Hamer Street and the Reporter described how this week they had handed in a 120-signature petition at St Helens Town Hall complaining of vandalism and arson.
The organiser of the petition was 60-year-old Gladys Wylmot, who claimed that she and many of her neighbours were being harassed by people stealing from unoccupied houses in and around her street – much of which was under a Compulsory Purchase Order. Mrs Wylmot said:
"It's not uncommon to see people arriving in cars, going into the houses and stealing lead piping. Also, the backyards of some of the empty houses are used as dumping grounds for every kind of rubbish imaginable."
Other neighbours complained that some of the properties were being used as doss houses for tramps and dropouts, many of whom, it was claimed, started fires.
Last weekend one house only 50 yards away from Mrs Wylmot's home had been set ablaze.
"Things are so bad that many of us are afraid to leave our homes," she added. "I can't see any reason why the council can't board up the broken windows. After all, many of us will have to put up with this kind of nuisance for a long time before we are re-housed."
The council response was to be sympathetic but only say: "Once houses become vacant for demolition, vandalism becomes one of our worst problems."
The Reporter also explained how one of St Helens Council's last acts prior to the local government reorganisation had been to allow a parish priest in Sutton Manor to take possession of an old library building.
Father Cornelius McEnroe had faced competition from St Helens Social Services when he applied to take over the vacant rooms. However, the council had now granted him permission to use them for educational purposes.
The library had transferred to a new building at Four Acre Lane and its former property would be converted into classrooms to expand St Theresa's Primary School in Gartons Lane.
Detective Inspector David Heaney was in St Helens this week to deliver a talk to parents.
The Reporter said he was one of the country's top drugs experts and at the event organised by St Helens Junior Chamber of Commerce, he said the problem of glue sniffing was worse in St Helens than anywhere else in Lancashire.
Children, as young as nine, he claimed, had taken to the craze, which caused hallucinations and had the risk of suffocation and heart failure.
DI Heaney's lecture was aimed at getting parents to recognise the symptoms of drug taking amongst their kids.
The Reporter also published this short piece: "Golfers and non-golfers alike can now enjoy one of the loveliest views in St. Helens.
"It can be seen through the windows of the new cafe and bar at Sherdley Park Golf Club.
"It is on the top floor of the ultra-modern building overlooking the final green of the nine-hole course. And the lucky man who can enjoy the view every day is licensee Mr. Brian Bailey.
"“It really is worth seeing,” he says. “And what's more, you don’t have to be a member of the club to enjoy the facilities here.”
"Work has now started on the construction of a further nine holes to the course, estimated to take 18 months."
May Roughsedge was also featured in the Reporter after the 56-year-old had declared her hometown to be "a mess".
Mrs Roughsedge had emigrated to Australia in 1951 and had returned to St Helens for a holiday with her husband, daughter and two young granddaughters.
She found that Fox Street in Gerards Bridge where she had been born had been demolished and the house in Bewsey Street where she had lived prior to emigrating had also been bulldozed. May told the Reporter:
"When I left it was a homely town, people were more friendly, and it was a lot cleaner than it is today. Now all the buildings I wanted the little girls to see have gone.
"I can't look up people I knew because I don't know where they live anymore, and it's all supermarkets without the personal touch.
"They've knocked so much down without putting anything in its place. I'd like to come back and look at it when it's finished. Perhaps it'll look better then. But I could never come back and live here again."
A disturbing report in the Echo on the 5th stated how Mark Bonham Carter, chairman of the Community Relations Commission, had toured Liverpool and been distinctly unimpressed by its lack of diversity, saying:
"We did not see members of the minority communities in shops, offices or banks. There are only two coloured policemen, and there was not much evidence in factories, plant and so on, for their promotion.
"We won't deal with this in Liverpool until we recognise the problems and find ways of dealing with them".
It was all change at the two St Helens' cinemas on the 7th. The ABC Savoy had been showing 'Don't Look Now' but replaced it with a James Bond double-bill of 'Diamonds Are Forever' and 'From Russia With Love'.
Meanwhile, the Capitol replaced a Peter Fonda film called 'Tales Of Mystery' with 'Jesus Christ Superstar'.
As it was the Easter holidays, 'Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory', along with some cartoons, were also being shown as afternoon matinees at the Cap.
Usually, three such events took place each year to raise money for the District Nurses Benevolent Fund.
As well as inspecting the gardens at Windle Hall, visitors heard songs performed by 31 local children who would be appearing in the St Helens Operatic Society's forthcoming production of 'The King and I'.
During the evening of the 7th, the Five Penny Piece were in concert at the Theatre Royal in Corporation Street and on the following day comedic folk singer Bob Williamson performed at the Fleece Hotel.
St Helens Reporter courtesy St Helens Archive Service at Eccleston Library
Next Week's stories will include the boxes of grenades that were discovered at Pilks' factory at Ravenhead, the gelignite explosion in Mill Lane, the troubles of Rocla Pipes in Sutton and the angry Haresfinch council tenants.