FIFTY YEARS AGO THIS WEEK (13th - 19th May 1969)
This week's 18 stories include more on the Reginald Road gipsies, Brian Harrison's murderer is convicted, a dramatic chase takes place in Hardshaw Street, a public inquiry is held into College Street and Gerards Bridge clearance orders, there are denials of religious discrimination in Rainford and the prospect of Sunday sport in Haydock.
Football referees in St Helens used to play matches themselves as well as officiate. On the 13th the St Helens Referees Society played the Wirral Referees Society in Huyton in the final of the J. T. McLoughlin Cup. Just who refereed the referees wasn't stated in the report!
A public inquiry was held at the Town Hall (pictured above) on the 13th into four clearance orders that were sought by St Helens Town Council. If the inspector chairing the inquiry approved the orders over a thousand people would be forced out of their homes and shops.
The orders would allow the compulsory purchase of properties in Central Street, College Street, Ward Street, Lord Street, Peel Street, Oldfield Street, Union Street, Fox Street, Queen Street, Crab Street, Albert Street, Cooper Street, Dicconson Street, Garswood Street and North Road.
Understandably some people didn't appreciate losing the homes that they'd occupied for many years – in spite of the poor state that many were in. So 70 people were present at the inquiry objecting to the proposals.
Essentially the four orders involved the building of houses and flats in the Gerards Bridge area and the improvement of roads around College Street. As well as houses having to be demolished, some shops and pubs would have to be turned to rubble if the scheme was given the green light.
Butcher John Leyland of College Street said he had been in business for almost 40 years and would not start up again if his shop was demolished. The College Street Post Office would also have to be knocked down if approval was given. The inspector examined a number of threatened properties and said her decision would be announced at a later date.
Do you remember the National Cycling Proficiency courses that were held at schools? Well the first in a new series took place at Rainford C. E. Junior School on the 14th where I did mine.
Although St Helens Corporation had granted the playing of Sunday sport within their public parks in 1961, Haydock was then outside of the borough and had yet to fully grant the concession.
However at a meeting of Haydock's Highways, Buildings and Private Street Works Committee on the 14th, it looked likely that they would soon permit sport on the Sabbath.
The committee granted the use of their King George V Playing Field on Saturdays to Grange Valley Youth Club, Haydock Youth Club Old Boys and Haydock Methodist Youth Club. Although they did not actually sanction the playing of matches on Sundays, the committee said it was under consideration and held the matter over in abeyance.
During the afternoon of the 14th, one man was killed and two seriously injured when an eight-ton gas pipe crashed on top of them. The accident occurred in a field off Swan Lane in Newton-le-Willows when the pipe was being lowered into an 8ft. deep excavation.
Two Kirkby youths appeared before St Helens magistrates on the same day, after previously admitting burglary and stealing sports equipment worth £182. Constable Lancaster had spotted one of the 18-year-olds on the roof of Booths Sports Depot in Hardshaw Street.
The youth climbed down and ran away but was arrested in a passage after police dogs had been brought in. His partner was captured on the roof while hiding behind a chimneystack. The magistrates decided to return one of them to Borstal and the other was placed on probation for two years.
The 14th was also Irish Night at the Theatre Royal when the Johnstones headed a line-up of folk groups.
"Life For Weeping Killer" was the Liverpool Echo's large headline to their front-page article on the 15th. The paper described the conviction at Liverpool Crown Court of a 22-year-old labourer for the murder of Brian Harrison.
The 34-year-old from Waterdale Crescent in Sutton had worked in the Magistrates Court in St Helens and was stabbed to death in Litherland. After the judge had sentenced his killer to life imprisonment, he was led away from the dock crying.
Fossett's Circus and Zoo was in St Helens for three days from the 15th, occupying a site in Parr Stocks Road with 3,000 seats available.
The Greenall Whitley Darts League Annual Concert and Prize Presentation was held on the 15th at Jacobs Canteen on the Parr Trading Estate. The Detours Showband and Glenn Irvin provided the entertainment.
The Reporter on the 16th stated that a woman who had reported losing drugs in the Watery Lane area had made an embarrassing discovery. After the police and media had been alerted, the woman found the tranquilisers and anti-depressants inside her coat pocket! That was after a warning had been issued that the pills if taken by children could prove dangerous.
The so-called Reginald Road gipsies were back in the news. Most of the fifty caravans on the site had been there since last September and local residents had regularly complained about their behaviour. Allegations had been made that the travellers had threatened locals and a few months earlier a policeman had been attacked on the site.
On May 2nd Councillor Joe Tickle – acting on behalf of the landowner – had given the travellers 48 hours notice to quit, although it was soon realised that the law required a notice period of two weeks. During the fortnight few of the travellers had showed any interest in leaving – in fact half-a-dozen more vans had arrived.
Others pleaded that they be allowed to remain. One said: "All we want is somewhere to live. If they would let us stay here we would be prepared to pay rent and tidy up the site. We are all sick of being moved on. Our children aren't being educated."
The day of the eviction was set as the 16th and students travelled from universities in Manchester, Liverpool and Keele to hold a sit-down protest. They carried placards that read: "Hands off gipsies", "Civil rights for gipsies" and "Think of gipsy children".
Councillor Tickle had said he would be going down to their field in a tractor and would personally pull the travellers' vans off. However the occupiers had spent the night building a barricade to stop their eviction and the authorities fearing a confrontation in front of the media chose to postpone their action until another day.
The Reporter also said that parents were complaining that the lives of fifty children attending Chapel Lane School in Eccleston were being placed in danger. This was because they had to walk half-a-mile to their temporary classroom at the Methodist Church Hall in Burrows Lane.
The pupils had to cross a main road twice and the parents, concerned for their children's safety, had formed the Chapel Lane School Action Group. They were pressing for temporary classrooms to be built inside the school premises in Chapel Lane, which were full to capacity.
The group said they had approached the Regional Director of Education in Prescot but he had simply told them that he didn't like pressure groups. I don't think he'd get away with that today!
The Reporter also examined rumours of religious discrimination that were supposedly being practised by the Lancashire Education Authority. Claims were being made that the authority had instructed Rainford Secondary School to refuse admission to Catholic children. The Divisional Education Officer denied the claim, telling the Reporter that such allegations were "nonsense".
Mr J. W. Davies explained that the school in Higher Lane was "grossly overcrowded" and as a result they'd been told to only accept new pupils from junior schools within their catchment area. He said Rainford Secondary School was proving "very desirable" to parents and for that reason admission had to be restricted.
Also in Rainford, the council chairman Jimmy Blackburn cut the first sod on a new housing estate on the 16th. The scheme in Bushey Lane would involve the building of 73 council dwellings and road works had already begun on the site.
On the 17th John Kenyon from Elizabeth Road in Haydock lost his life at Sutton Manor Colliery while dismantling a coalface-cutting machine. It somehow moved or slipped, which caused part of the machine to detach and strike the 42-year-old.
A new organ was dedicated at St Michael's Church in Gartons Lane on the 18th. The Vicar of Sutton, the Rev. Paul Conder, was appealing for donations, saying they still needed £630 to pay off the debt.
For six nights from the 19th, the comedy 'Goodnight Charlie' was performed at the Theatre Royal. West End star Julia Lockwood and John Gregson appeared and Lynda Baron was also in the cast.
She was seven years away from playing Nurse Gladys Emmanuel in 'Open All Hours', and was then known mainly as a singer, with a few small dramatic parts in TV shows and films.
At the Capitol (pictured above) from the 19th, 'Carry On Doctor' was screened starring Frankie Howerd, Sid James, Charles Hawtrey, Kenneth Williams, Jim Dale and Barbara Windsor. Meanwhile down Bridge Street Stanley Kubrick’s '2001: A Space Odyssey' was being shown at the ABC Savoy.
Next week's stories will include a claim that St Helens traffic wardens were "little Hitlers", the "terrified" Reginald Road housewives, a Billinge dispute over a stone wall, plans for a brass band contest in Rainford, Rainhill Sports Gala and three fires take place on a single day.
Football referees in St Helens used to play matches themselves as well as officiate. On the 13th the St Helens Referees Society played the Wirral Referees Society in Huyton in the final of the J. T. McLoughlin Cup. Just who refereed the referees wasn't stated in the report!
The orders would allow the compulsory purchase of properties in Central Street, College Street, Ward Street, Lord Street, Peel Street, Oldfield Street, Union Street, Fox Street, Queen Street, Crab Street, Albert Street, Cooper Street, Dicconson Street, Garswood Street and North Road.
Understandably some people didn't appreciate losing the homes that they'd occupied for many years – in spite of the poor state that many were in. So 70 people were present at the inquiry objecting to the proposals.
Essentially the four orders involved the building of houses and flats in the Gerards Bridge area and the improvement of roads around College Street. As well as houses having to be demolished, some shops and pubs would have to be turned to rubble if the scheme was given the green light.
Butcher John Leyland of College Street said he had been in business for almost 40 years and would not start up again if his shop was demolished. The College Street Post Office would also have to be knocked down if approval was given. The inspector examined a number of threatened properties and said her decision would be announced at a later date.
Do you remember the National Cycling Proficiency courses that were held at schools? Well the first in a new series took place at Rainford C. E. Junior School on the 14th where I did mine.
Although St Helens Corporation had granted the playing of Sunday sport within their public parks in 1961, Haydock was then outside of the borough and had yet to fully grant the concession.
However at a meeting of Haydock's Highways, Buildings and Private Street Works Committee on the 14th, it looked likely that they would soon permit sport on the Sabbath.
The committee granted the use of their King George V Playing Field on Saturdays to Grange Valley Youth Club, Haydock Youth Club Old Boys and Haydock Methodist Youth Club. Although they did not actually sanction the playing of matches on Sundays, the committee said it was under consideration and held the matter over in abeyance.
During the afternoon of the 14th, one man was killed and two seriously injured when an eight-ton gas pipe crashed on top of them. The accident occurred in a field off Swan Lane in Newton-le-Willows when the pipe was being lowered into an 8ft. deep excavation.
Two Kirkby youths appeared before St Helens magistrates on the same day, after previously admitting burglary and stealing sports equipment worth £182. Constable Lancaster had spotted one of the 18-year-olds on the roof of Booths Sports Depot in Hardshaw Street.
The youth climbed down and ran away but was arrested in a passage after police dogs had been brought in. His partner was captured on the roof while hiding behind a chimneystack. The magistrates decided to return one of them to Borstal and the other was placed on probation for two years.
The 14th was also Irish Night at the Theatre Royal when the Johnstones headed a line-up of folk groups.
"Life For Weeping Killer" was the Liverpool Echo's large headline to their front-page article on the 15th. The paper described the conviction at Liverpool Crown Court of a 22-year-old labourer for the murder of Brian Harrison.
The 34-year-old from Waterdale Crescent in Sutton had worked in the Magistrates Court in St Helens and was stabbed to death in Litherland. After the judge had sentenced his killer to life imprisonment, he was led away from the dock crying.
Fossett's Circus and Zoo was in St Helens for three days from the 15th, occupying a site in Parr Stocks Road with 3,000 seats available.
The Greenall Whitley Darts League Annual Concert and Prize Presentation was held on the 15th at Jacobs Canteen on the Parr Trading Estate. The Detours Showband and Glenn Irvin provided the entertainment.
The Reporter on the 16th stated that a woman who had reported losing drugs in the Watery Lane area had made an embarrassing discovery. After the police and media had been alerted, the woman found the tranquilisers and anti-depressants inside her coat pocket! That was after a warning had been issued that the pills if taken by children could prove dangerous.
The so-called Reginald Road gipsies were back in the news. Most of the fifty caravans on the site had been there since last September and local residents had regularly complained about their behaviour. Allegations had been made that the travellers had threatened locals and a few months earlier a policeman had been attacked on the site.
On May 2nd Councillor Joe Tickle – acting on behalf of the landowner – had given the travellers 48 hours notice to quit, although it was soon realised that the law required a notice period of two weeks. During the fortnight few of the travellers had showed any interest in leaving – in fact half-a-dozen more vans had arrived.
Others pleaded that they be allowed to remain. One said: "All we want is somewhere to live. If they would let us stay here we would be prepared to pay rent and tidy up the site. We are all sick of being moved on. Our children aren't being educated."
The day of the eviction was set as the 16th and students travelled from universities in Manchester, Liverpool and Keele to hold a sit-down protest. They carried placards that read: "Hands off gipsies", "Civil rights for gipsies" and "Think of gipsy children".
Councillor Tickle had said he would be going down to their field in a tractor and would personally pull the travellers' vans off. However the occupiers had spent the night building a barricade to stop their eviction and the authorities fearing a confrontation in front of the media chose to postpone their action until another day.
The Reporter also said that parents were complaining that the lives of fifty children attending Chapel Lane School in Eccleston were being placed in danger. This was because they had to walk half-a-mile to their temporary classroom at the Methodist Church Hall in Burrows Lane.
The pupils had to cross a main road twice and the parents, concerned for their children's safety, had formed the Chapel Lane School Action Group. They were pressing for temporary classrooms to be built inside the school premises in Chapel Lane, which were full to capacity.
The group said they had approached the Regional Director of Education in Prescot but he had simply told them that he didn't like pressure groups. I don't think he'd get away with that today!
The Reporter also examined rumours of religious discrimination that were supposedly being practised by the Lancashire Education Authority. Claims were being made that the authority had instructed Rainford Secondary School to refuse admission to Catholic children. The Divisional Education Officer denied the claim, telling the Reporter that such allegations were "nonsense".
Mr J. W. Davies explained that the school in Higher Lane was "grossly overcrowded" and as a result they'd been told to only accept new pupils from junior schools within their catchment area. He said Rainford Secondary School was proving "very desirable" to parents and for that reason admission had to be restricted.
Also in Rainford, the council chairman Jimmy Blackburn cut the first sod on a new housing estate on the 16th. The scheme in Bushey Lane would involve the building of 73 council dwellings and road works had already begun on the site.
On the 17th John Kenyon from Elizabeth Road in Haydock lost his life at Sutton Manor Colliery while dismantling a coalface-cutting machine. It somehow moved or slipped, which caused part of the machine to detach and strike the 42-year-old.
A new organ was dedicated at St Michael's Church in Gartons Lane on the 18th. The Vicar of Sutton, the Rev. Paul Conder, was appealing for donations, saying they still needed £630 to pay off the debt.
For six nights from the 19th, the comedy 'Goodnight Charlie' was performed at the Theatre Royal. West End star Julia Lockwood and John Gregson appeared and Lynda Baron was also in the cast.
She was seven years away from playing Nurse Gladys Emmanuel in 'Open All Hours', and was then known mainly as a singer, with a few small dramatic parts in TV shows and films.
Next week's stories will include a claim that St Helens traffic wardens were "little Hitlers", the "terrified" Reginald Road housewives, a Billinge dispute over a stone wall, plans for a brass band contest in Rainford, Rainhill Sports Gala and three fires take place on a single day.