Scotforth
I’ll now try to describe our neighbourhood, as I remember it, with the families who occupied the various properties. In quoting the residents of Hala Road at the turn of the century I have referred to information given in the local directory published in 1901; I appreciate that such entries can be inaccurate or out-of-date (despite the publisher’s claims), and I can now see that in the majority of cases these do not correspond with my own recollections. Of course, this is a few years before I was born; my memories are of a slightly later period mainly covering about twenty years centred on the time of the First World War. Nearly all the properties in Hala Road were tenanted in those days, contributing to a relatively high turn-over of occupants of each property. My nephew Alan has supplied detailed notes based on his research of the censuses. Incidentally, this directory refers to this road as East Road, Scotforth30, which was its name before this part of the parish of Scotforth was incorporated into Lancaster in that year, as mentioned previously.
Hala Road – North Side
I shall start this little tour from our house; the numbers start from the main road, and we are going in the opposite direction, which might be a bit confusing. Next to Friends Farm heading up the road towards the old Hala Square was the Mission31, where we used to spend a lot of our time, particularly before the building of the new Wesleyan Church at the Greaves, to which we subscribed – the Parringtons and Rushtons were Wesleyan Methodists and attended Greaves Church for many years but, while we children were small, we attended the Scotforth Mission – on cold wet winter evenings it was just too convenient and, therefore, far preferable to walking all the way to the Greaves. Not only did we attend the services there, but we also went to parties and magic lantern shows at the Mission; and in the Sunday school there we were taught by the Whittle sisters, Mabel and Mary32. They too lived in Hala Road; together with their brother, William, they had previously lived in the substantial house which then stood on its own in the angle between the very top of Hala Road and Bowerham Lane. The construction of the M6 motorway has changed things quite a bit at this point; the road layout has been altered and the house itself is now surrounded by a small estate of modern houses; in those days this property was a market garden, which was tended by the Whittle family, but now the new houses have encroached right up to the junction. Anyway, when Mr Whittle gave up the market garden, he and his sisters all came to live in the cottage next to the Hall’s old farmhouse, ie at No 22 Hala Road.
The Mission was run by the Close family. John Woodhouse Close33 was a coal merchant and his wife a midwife, and they lived at Sunny Cottage, Piccadilly, just up from the post office – the very house where later, in the 1950s, my brother James lived and from which he conducted his wholesale knitwear business, using the old barn as a garage for his car34 and for the storage of his stock.
Each Sunday evening the Closes used to come down Hala Road singing on their way to take the evening service at the Mission, and anyone else could join in, so forming a sort of informal procession. They had two sons, Tom and John; it was Tom Close who ran the Sunday School in the morning; and, at the time when my brother later occupied Sunny Cottage, he and his sister Nellie lived in the adjacent house, called Newnham, which I suppose must have been built originally for their parents’ retirement. Tom Close was called up for service in the army in the first world war, and I remember him appearing at Sunday school one day during this period in a pale blue suit, which indicated that he had been wounded and was on leave on that account35.
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30 The 1881 and 1891 censuses refer to the street as ‘The Village’ and ‘Scotforth Village’ respectively.
31 I have not yet been able to find out what denomination the Scotforth Mission was; other mission churches in Lancaster (Skerton) were daughter churches of St Luke’s Parish Church (C of E), Skerton. Possibly it was a daughter church of St Paul’s, Scotforth, (1874) and the original church in Scotforth.
32 In 1911 Mabel (16) and Mary Whittle (12) were living with their parents at No 33 West Road, Lancaster; their father was a domestic gardener, as was their brother, whose name was actually Albert George (22); the sisters were born at Heysham, while their father and brother had been born in Dorset and their mother in Wolverhampton. By 1939 Albert was married with three children, still a market gardener (self-employed), living at No 96 Prospect St, Primrose.
33 The 1901 census shows that John William (sic) Close (41) was a carter (of stone), originally from Liverpool; his wife Margaret A (44) was a local woman. Currently living with them were four children: Mary Jane (20), dressmaker, Thomas J(osiah) (18), grocer’s assistant, Ellen (13) and John W (9), all born in Scotforth.
34 His cars were a large black early 1930s Austin 16, followed by a slightly later Wolseley 14/60, I think.
35 In 1910 Thomas Josiah Close had married Clara Newall, from Newnham, Worcs, and in 1911 they were living at No 7 Connaught Road, Bowerham. Clara died in 1930, aged 46, and the 1939 population register shows Thomas J Close as a widower, employed by the Co-op as an assistant grocery manager; his daughter Margaret E (b 1913) was currently living with him at Newnham, Piccadilly.
Beyond the Mission was the house where the Jacksons lived. This house, No 49 Hala Road, was built at right angles to the street and protruded into the road, and a large building with double doors was attached to it. I believe this had once been a smithy, and William Jackson was indeed a qualified blacksmith; but I am not sure whether he plied his trade here or elsewhere. In fact, I do not actually recall him at all, but I can remember Mrs Jackson and a son and daughter. She took in lodgers, and it would appear that the surviving Quarme sister Anne Esther (Easter) came to spend her remaining days there after selling her house to Uncle Dick in about 1900 – she died in 1914 at the age of 79, so I suppose she must have lived with the Jacksons36 for not far short of 15 years.
After the Jacksons left, the Moffatts came to live at this former smithy; they had a little girl. Mr Moffatt37 was not a blacksmith, but was employed as chauffeur by William Henry Satterthwaite38, a solicitor, who lived in a large house called Burrow House, now a nursing home, further south along Scotforth Road – the fields behind his house adjoining ours. Mr Satterthwaite, whose business was in New Street, must have been one of the first people in Lancaster to own a motor car (but not actually the first in Hala Road), and his Armstrong Siddeley car was kept by Mr Moffatt at these premises behind the double doors of what once would have been the smithy.
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36 No 49. The 1911 census shows the household as William Jackson (69), blacksmith, his wife Alice (71), both from Lancaster, and Miss Anne Esther Quarme (74), a boarder, place of birth stated as ‘not known’. The Jacksons had had 7 children, five of whom were still alive, but none of them were currently living here. Esther Quarme had already been boarding here in 1901, when her age was stated as 56 and place of birth Hest Bank; at this time other boarders were James S Preston (20), a police constable, from Pilling, and Paddy Jennings (19), a plumber, from Woolton, Liverpool. William Jackson appears to have died towards the end of 1917, aged 76, though not named in the 1912 trade directory, as he was probably retired by then; his widow Alice seems to have died in the second half of 1920, aged 80.
37 John Moffatt was still living at these premises in 1939; born in June 1865 he was now widowed and described as a retired gardener, aged about 74. A married couple were also living here, John’s daughter Grace and her husband Alexander Watson, a Council labourer (waterworks), with two children and someone else who may have been a lodger. John Moffatt had come from Liverpool via Wennington, where his daughter Grace Elizabeth was born in 1898, and they were still there in 1911. His wife Mary was also from Wennington, and there was also a son Redvers (10), no doubt named after the Boer War general Redvers Buller.
38 William Henry Satterthwaite was a solicitor and notary, originally from Preston; the 1912 directory gives his address as Skelsfield, Scotforth Road and that of his office as Cable St; in 1911 he was aged 38 and his wife Constance Margaret, from Bolton-le-Sands, was 35; they were at Skelsfield, and had then been married for 10 years, but had no children. In 1939 they were at Burrow Beck House; aged 66 he was still a practising solicitor.
There was, of course, another working smithy in the village, known as Scotforth Forge, just by Scotforth Square directly across the main road from the Boot and Shoe Inn. Where the Unitarian Church now stands at the corner of Ashford Road was once the smithy belonging to James Dixon39 around the turn of the century; as his assistant he employed James Reay40, who I am told had come all the way from Keswick with the intention of buying into the business; and so it was that, after a short time, James Reay subsequently took over the business himself. Sometime later, during the last war, one of his many children Walter41 married Muriel Passmore, one of my brother-in-law’s sisters. We used to visit the smithy regularly in the days when James Reay was in charge, but eventually we stopped going, when such visits began to be discouraged42. Muriel, however, tells me that in the late 1930s, after the older children had left to set up their own homes with their new partners, the Reays’ house became a gathering place for some of the young people of the area who came to play cards, eg. Kenneth Teasdale43 and his brother John.
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39 The 1901 census states that James Dixon (33), a local man, was a master blacksmith, employing two men; his wife Mary J (32) was from Bentham, and they had a son Robert (7), born in Lancaster; also living here was James’ widowed mother-in-law Mary Ann Hodgson (67), a retired farmer, originally from London. Boarding here were the two employees: Albert Bolas (24), from Shropshire, journeyman blacksmith, and James Heald (14), from Preston, apprentice blacksmith. James Dixon died in Dec 1903, according to the Probate Index, which states that his estate of just over £425 was to be administered by William George Carter, farmer, and Tim Hall, builder; BMD indexes confirm his age as just 36. In 1911 James’ widow Mary Jane Dixon (42) was still living at the Smithy (No 4 Scotforth Road) with two sons: Robert (17), apprentice blacksmith and James (6), born posthumously with birth registered in the 3rd quarter of 1904; Mary Ann Hodgson (77) was still living here too.
40 In 1911 James Reay and his family were living at No 10 Hala Road prior to taking over Scotforth smithy from the Dixon family.
41 My uncle Walter was one of the twelve children of James Reay and Annie Mary Dent.
42 I don’t know what lay behind this remark. Who was doing the discouraging? Perhaps it was something to do with the card playing, and James’s sometimes ‘fruity’ language whilst managing the horses. (Ed)
43 Thomas Kenneth Teasdale (b March 1913, Lancaster) became a relative of the Reay family, when in August 1938 he married Hilda Barton Dent at Scotforth Parish Church; Hilda (b Nov 1913, Keswick) was the niece of Annie Mary Reay (nee Dent) and a cousin of my uncle Walter; she is believed to have lived with the Reays at Scotforth smithy for a while. Kenneth Teasdale became a chartered accountant with offices (TK Teasdale) in Dalton Square, Lancaster; in the 1950/60s he was a prominent member of the Lancaster Footlights Club, as was my aunt Muriel, Walter’s wife. In 1939 they were living at No 298 Torrisholme Road. Kenneth died in June 1978 in France, aged 65, probate being granted on 27 Sept.; his widow Hilda outlived him for some years and died in Gloucestershire in June 2011, aged 97. His younger brother John H(arper) was also an accountant – he was still in training in 1939, and still living at home with their parents John and Mary Teasdale at Rostherne, Scotforth Road; their father was a registered accountant. He appears to have died in Lancaster, aged 83, in July 1997.
Beyond the former smithy in Hala Road was a short row of half a dozen cottages in a single terrace (Nos 37-47), known as Hamilton Terrace. They are understood to have been one of the terraces built by Matthew Hall in order to provide accommodation for some of the workers he engaged to work on his market garden – more of Matthew Hall later. At the turn of the century the first of these cottages (No 47) was occupied by a widow Mrs Nancy Townson44 and her six children, but it was the Pyes that I remember living there – I remember Joe Pye45 and his wife Nellie, who was disabled, and their daughters Nellie and Alice – at this time various other people seemed to live there too. Alice Pye was a great childhood friend of my cousin Margery Hall, who tells me that Mr Pye later became blind.
In the second cottage (No 45) at the turn of the century was George Ward, a mason; I suppose he must have died before I was really aware of the folk who lived in our road, but I do seem to remember Mrs Ward as an old lady46, who never went out much – perhaps that was because she was ill. I do remember it said that she had a strong wish to be buried at Quernmore; and that, when she died, her son George followed her coffin on foot all the way – a real act of devotion, I thought. Later, although he had little in the way of formal schooling, George went on to become a teacher at the technical school in Lancaster. There was, I believe, an older brother too. Perhaps the family moved on elsewhere after Mrs Ward’s death, for in the time that I mainly recall it was Mrs Preston, who lived alone at this house.
Next, our directory tells us that William Smith47, a labourer, lived at No 43 at the turn of the century. However, I think that around 1910 this cottage was occupied by Mr and Mrs Towers48; I do not really remember anything of any significance about them, which would tend to suggest that they were older or, rather, that there were no children living at this house at that time.
In the second half of this little terrace at No 41 lived Robert Hayes49 at the turn of the century; he was an inspector with the London & North Western Railway, according to the directory. The same source states that at No 39 lived John Winder, a labourer. I must confess that my recollection is somewhat different, as I seem to recall that the Winders, of whom I have no details, lived at No 4150, and the Wipers at No 39. The Wipers had two girls living with them – one called Sissy, and the other Carey. No 37 was the first little house in this terrace from the Hala Square end. This was the cottage which we understood to be reserved for our farmworker, but the 1901 directory lists the occupant as Herbert Carey51, an electrician. The 1912 directory, which is of little help in trying to establish the residents of Hala Road, gives a business address for Herbert Carey at No 8 Great John Street, Lancaster, describing him as joiner etc. It is, of course, quite conceivable that when Herbert Carey moved away, he left behind a daughter to live or stay with his next-door neighbours52; these informal arrangements were not uncommon in those days.
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44 No 47. The 1901 census confirms this. Nancy Townson was then a widow, aged 55, from Golgotha (Lancaster), a self-employed domestic laundress with six unmarried children: Tom G (31), market gardener, born at Golgotha, John (27), market gardener, born at Scotforth, William H(enry) (24), market gardener, born at Caton, Agnes (22), laundress, born at Scotforth, Margaret E(llen) (19), dressmaker, born at Scotforth, and George (15), market gardener, born at Scotforth; there was also an adopted daughter Maggie Proctor (2), born at Saltaire, Yorks. Nancy’s husband Henry Townson had been a platelayer employed by the L&NW Railway, born at Scotforth; he had died, however, aged 50, in early 1895.
45 John Pye actually – the Pyes were related to the Townsons. The 1911 census shows the Pye family as follows: John Thomas Pye (28) general agricultural labourer, his wife Margaret Ellen (29), their daughter Alice (5 mths), all born at Scotforth, plus an adopted daughter Maggie Nelson Procter (12), from Saltaire, Yorks. George Townson (25), Margaret’s youngest brother, a general labourer, born at Scotforth, was living with them. John Pye had married Nancy Townson’s daughter Margaret Ellen in 1909, around the time that Nancy herself had died, aged 60. In 1939 Thomas John Pye (sic), born July 1882, now a Council labourer and widowed, was still living here, looked after by an elder sister Mary Ellen; his wife Margaret Ellen had died in early 1930, aged 48.
46 No 45. Mary Ward was quite a few years older than her husband. The 1911 census shows: George Ward (49), stonemason, born at Wray, nr Lancaster, his wife Mary (62), born in (Over) Wyresdale, and their son George (20), a laboratory assistant at the technical school, born in (Over) Wyresdale. They had been married for 24 years, and had another child John W Ward (18) not resident here at this time. Eve’s view appears to be correct in this respect, for George Ward seems to have died late in 1912 at the age of 51, while his widow Mary died in 1923 at the age of 74. However, Mrs Preston was at No 43 in 1911 (see below), and in 1939 the current occupants of No 45 were now Ned C Shackleton (57), a permanent way worker on the railway, and his wife Annie (52).
47 In 1901 William Smith was in fact at No 9, one of the cottages in White Row – see below.
48 In fact James Towers (23) was already living at No 43 in 1901; he was a stonemason from Holme, while his wife Mary E Towers (22) was from Crosscrake, both Westmorland; by 1911 they had moved on to No 73 Westham St, Primrose, and now had three surviving children out of five births. By 1911 Mary Jane Preston, a 50-year-old widow, from Milnthorpe, Westmorland, was living here on her own; nothing found about her previously, but she appears to have died at Lancaster in 1934, aged 74. In 1939 the occupant was James Peters, another retired gardener, with his wife Elizabeth A, both aged 65. The 1911 census shows James (36) as an estate foreman, from Forton, while his wife Elizabeth Ann (37) was from Galgate; they had then been married for 14 years and had no surviving children (one born); they were living at Bailrigg at the time.
49 No 41. According to the 1901 census the current resident Robert Hayes was aged 41, his place of birth Cockerham and his occupation foreman platelayer; he and his wife Elizabeth (42), from Scorton, had five children, born at Scorton and Yealand. By 1911 the residents at this address were an elderly couple John and Margaret Harriet Woods; he was aged 67, local and working for Lord Ashton as a labourer in his linoleum factory; his wife (68) was from Pershore in Worcestershire. They had been married for 46 years, and had five surviving children out of 10 births, none resident here, though.
Living here in 1939 were Thomas and Mabel Beattie, both aged about 56; he did heavy work in a bakery.
50 No 39. The 1901 census confirms that the Winders were currently living at No 39; John Winder (48) was a sewer worker from Wyresdale; his wife Margaret (44) was also from Wyresdale; they had a daughter Jane (15), born at Broughton. They were still living here in 1911, when Jane was now a dressmaker, and had another surviving child. The Wiper family were related to the Winders and living here in 1939; Wilson Robinson Wiper was a plumber and sanitary engineer, born in the Lancaster area in 1879; his wife Jane, born in 1885 was the daughter of John & Margaret Winder (see above); they had two sons still with them: John W, born in 1914, a motor engineer, and William P, born 1918, a joiner & carpenter.
51 No 37. According to the 1901 census the resident Herbert Carey (32) was a joiner from Bristol; he was married, but his wife was not at home; they had five children aged between 1 and 8, the three youngest born in Scotforth; also here were his mother-in-law Margaret H Woods (57), from Pershore, Worcs, and sister-in-law Mabel Woods (17), born at Lancaster – in 1911 she was employed by confectioner and shopkeeper William Sewell at No 2 Norfolk St, Lancaster. The Carey family were still living at No 8 Great John Street in 1911, when Herbert stated that he was a widower and confirmed his occupation as joiner.
Residents here in 1939 were Joseph Whewell (35), a motor driver, and his wife Nellie (41?) with their three children.
52 The 1911 census gives the residents of No 37 as Thomas (Tom) Hall (27), market gardener, and his first wife Ethel (28), from Preston; they had been married for three years and currently had no children, Eve’s second cousin and friend Margery Hall being born in 1912. This terrace of houses had originally been built by Tom’s father Matthew Hall, who lived at No 20, to accommodate his workers.
When I was little, this end terrace house was occupied by the Batesons53. Jim Bateson was our farm labourer for a number of years; I thought of him as a good worker with time to be friendly towards us children but, when somewhat later Uncle Dick gave in to strong persuasion, spearheaded on our behalf by his housekeeper Louie Daniels, to lay out a tennis court at Sandfield, he seemed to change and no longer was so friendly towards us; I guess he thought that what he was asked to do – construct a tennis court – was not contained within his job description and that it was our fault, or that it was an unproductive use of the land, or some such. His wife’s name I do not recall, but there were two children, a boy Tom born in 1903 and, therefore, the same age as my brother James, who he used to help with the milk. There was also a girl called Hilda, somewhat younger than me, who was another friend of Margery Hall, my cousin from No 20. When the Bateson family went away, their place was taken by a redheaded Scot called Newhouse54. He was not one of Uncle Dick’s better appointments! He was not a good worker; instead he had a great interest in cars, and broken-down cars, and bits of cars littered the area around his house. He left after he had an accident on Ashton Road, when through his negligence he caused serious injury to a member of the congregation at Greaves Church, whose family we knew quite well.
Next, after a sizeable empty plot, came a substantial old house (No 17), occupied at the turn of the century by Robinson Loxam55, a dairyman. It had a large extension which would have taken his milk cart quite easily. I seem to recall, however, being told that these premises had once been another smithy; in our time it was the Nichol family lived there; they had a black dog which was usually around and rather frightened me. James Nichol56 was a potato dealer.
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53 James Bateson was from Kirkby Lonsdale and his wife Eleanor from Quernmore; in 1901 he was an ordinary agricultural labourer, aged 22, married and living close to Haverbreaks Farm; he and Eleanor (23) had an infant son Thomas Henry (10 mths), born in the Lunesdale district. Ten years later, in 1911, James Bateson (31) was a fellmonger’s apprentice, living now at No 20 Dorrington Road in a terrace which has the reputation of being the longest in the country; he and Eleanor now had a further child Hilda Mary (7 mths) born at Lancaster. It seems that Jim Bateson must have come to work at Friends Farm, sometime later. The Bateson family appear not to have been caught by the 1939 population register; nevertheless, it seems that Jim lived a long life and died in Lancaster in autumn 1970, aged 91; his wife Eleanor in early 1951, aged 73.
54 Though there were several persons of this name in the Lancaster area, it has not been possible to identify this particular individual – no Newhouse born in Scotland identified in the 1911 census.
55 No 17. The 1901 census shows that Robinson Loxam (33) was from Quernmore and his wife Alice (32) from Tatham. At this time they had six children up to the age of 9 and employed a milk boy and a nurse girl. The 1911 census finds Robinson Loxam now farming at Mount Vernon, Scotforth; he and Alice had been married for 14 years and had 9 children surviving out of 10 born, six of whom were still living in their parents’ home.
56 According to the 1911 census James Nichol (49), a potato merchant, was from Bristol, while his wife Jane (50) was from Dalton-in-Furness. They had been married for 20 years, but had no children. In 1892 James Nichols (sic) had married a widow Jane Nash, a cotton weaver, who in 1891 had been living at No 4 Germany St, Lancaster, with two children Elizabeth (9) and Edward (7), both born in Lancaster. Ten years later, in 1901, the Nicholls (sic) were living in Piccadilly; James’ occupation was then stated to be a carter; Elizabeth (19) was employed as a card room hand in a cotton mill; her brother Edward (17) was boarding in town with a work mate’s family at Lodge Place, Lodge St.
The Masheder family were living at No 17 in 1939: Thomas was a greengrocer, aged 56; his wife Isobella was aged 53. They appear to have had five children, of whom the eldest William was currently working in the family business.
No 13 Hala Road was another farm, probably built in the seventeenth century, and it was owned by the Royal Albert Asylum – the Royal Albert owned a number of farms in the area, which were worked by the inmates, presumably for therapy and recreation and in order to provide produce for the kitchens. At the turn of the century the occupant of the farmhouse was William Barnes57, an employee of the hospital and manager of the farm. We knew this as Berry’s58 farm, however, and I recall there were three Berry children: Madge was about my age, and she used to walk to Greaves School with me; a younger sister Evelyn had a deformed leg and wore callipers; and there was also a brother Walter between them in age. This farm had one field which stretched behind the properties on Scotforth Road and in Hala Road. We felt it was better equipped than ours; we were impressed by the very advanced arrangements (compared with ours) for sheep dipping around the back of the farm! This was probably because the farm was owned by a large organisation which could afford to make an appropriate investment to improve facilities.
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57 Nos 13/15. In 1901 the address of this farm is stated as 13/15 Hala Road. William Barnes (69) was a cattleman, from Warcop, Westmorland, while his wife Agnes (68) was from Ravenstonedale, Westmorland; they were living here alone. Ten years later, in 1911, Agnes, now stated to be aged 80, was a widow, living on her own at No 15.
58 According to the 1911 census Harold Archer Berry (35), living at no 13, was a farm labourer in the employment of the Royal Albert Institution; he was from Milnthorpe, Westmorland, while his wife Ellen (33) was from Burton, Westmorland. At this time they had probably been here about 2 or 3 years, as their children were Margaret Mary (7) and Walter (4), both born at Milnthorpe, plus Evelyn May (1), born at Scotforth. Walter was described as ‘feeble minded at birth’.
In 1939 the resident at Nos 13/15 was John (Jack) Airey (56), a stockman, employed by the Royal Albert farms, with his wife Elizabeth (47), nee Redman; their daughter Jenny (18) was a fitter in a shoe works, while twin brothers John and Thomas (14) were butcher’s and grocer’s errand boys, respectively. Jenny Airey married William (Bill) Pye in early 1942, and ten years later, in 1952, they took over Deep Cutting Farm at Aldcliffe. In the 1960’s they moved to Langthwaite. Their eldest child John Pye (1942) continues to live in the Langthwaite area.
At this point, after the farm, Hala Road now opened out into the square, with the Boot and Shoe on the south (left) side; on the opposite side there was first a wash-house in the corner and then another terrace of six ancient cottages of various designs and dates on the north side of the square (these were Nos 1-11), known as White Row. I see from the directory that at the turn of the century these tiny houses were occupied as follows: at No 11 was John Dilworth59, mason; at No 9 Mrs Rose Hardlan60; and at No 7 John Richard Lewis61, labourer. Another labourer, Thomas Ford62, lived at No 5, though I seem to recall that the Fords lived next to the Boot & Shoe on the opposite side – maybe this was a different family, or perhaps they simply moved, upgrading in the process! I remember a Mrs Fishwick63 being in one of these cottages; and earlier there was Hannah Fishwick at No 3, while next door at No 1 lived John Gelderd64, a labourer.
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59 No 11. The 1901 census confirms that John Dilworth was the current resident here; aged 50, he was a stonemason from Lancaster; his wife Alice (55) was from Caton; living with them was John’s widowed mother Margaret Dilworth (83), from Newbiggin, Northumberland. Alice Dilworth died in the Lancaster area, aged 59, during the final quarter of 1905; and in 1911 her widowed husband John (63) was boarding with the Smith family at No 12 Boundary Road, Lancaster; he died at the age of 65 during the 2nd quarter of 1916.
Ten years later, in 1911, the occupant was Edward Dent (27), a house-painter and decorator, from Heckmondwyke, Yorkshire; his wife Teresa Mary (26) was a local woman from Lancaster. They had been married for 5 years and had two children: Nora (5) and Elizabeth (3), both born in Scotforth. They were not to be here very long, as the family later emigrated to New Zealand, Teresa and the two children sailing from London to Wellington on 13 Nov 1913 on board the SS Mamari, Shaw Savill Line – Edward had sailed out there a year previously on 15 Nov 1912 on board the SS Athenic of the same line, his age here stated as 40.
The 1939 register gives the name of the current occupant of No 11 as Isobel Fishwick, a widow, born in May 1882, ie aged 57, not the former resident at No 3 in 1901, but in 1911 living at No 7 with her husband James and two daughters. James Fishwick appears to have died in 1933, aged 56. Her daughter Elizabeth (28) was a mental nurse, perhaps employed at the Royal Albert; her son Charles (17) (Charlie in the text) was currently an apprentice bricklayer. Mary Rodgerson (28), a nurse employed at the County Mental hospital, appears to have been staying or lodging here.
60 No 9. The identity of Rose Hardlan, listed in the 1901 directory, has not been established.
According to the 1901 census the current resident here was William Smith (40), a general labourer (soil wheeler), from Thurnham, Lancs; his wife Katherine (26) was from Lancaster; they had three children, the eldest born in Morecambe. By 1911 William P Smith (48), garden labourer, was living at No 12 Boundary Road, near The Pointer; he was from Thurnham, while his wife Catherine (36) was from Moorside; they had been married for 16 years and currently had 8 children, including 10-month-old twins; four of the children had been born at Scotforth around the turn of the century. John Dilworth, a stone mason and former neighbour in Hala Road, was currently boarding with this family. William P Smith died at Lancaster, aged 66, during the final quarter of 1928; his wife Catherine appears to have pre-deceased him when she died, aged 42, during the 2nd quarter of 1917.
Ten years later, in 1911, the occupant was Richard Ward Thornton (30), a carter (furniture removals), from Bispham, Blackpool; his wife Agnes (27) was from Bentham, Yorks, and they had two children, the elder one born at Bentham. In 1939 a widow Mary Sandham (50), a greengrocer, was living here on her own.
61 No 7. According to the 1901 census John R Lewis (34), from Durham, was a labourer in a wagon works, presumably the Midland Railway works on Caton Road; his wife Ellen (28) was originally from Devonport (Plymouth); they had a son aged 8, born at Gateshead.
In 1911 the occupant of this address (stated as No 7 White Row) was James Fishwick (36), a general labourer, from Lancaster; his wife Isabella (30) was from Barrow, and they had two young children born in Scotforth: Annie (5) and Lizzie (2); previously James had been a silk worker in the mill at Galgate, where he had been living at Green Dragon cottages with his mother and step-father – the family subsequently moved to No 11 – see above.
By 1939 the Cumpstys had left No 1; both parents had died, Bryan as long ago as 1913, but their daughter Sarah Ann (50) was now living here on her own, seemingly working in domestic service – her married sister living next door at No 5.
62 No 5. The 1901 census confirms that the current occupant Thomas Ford (25) was a labourer in a paint shop, from Ironbridge, Shropshire; his wife Alice (nee Battersby) (23) was from Warton, and they had an infant son William, born in Scotforth. Ten years later the family were still living at Scotforth, now a few yards away at No 5 Scotforth Road: the 1911 census states Thomas’ place of birth as Brosley, Salop, and his occupation varnish worker in a linoleum works; he and Alice had been married for 12 years and now had four children, all born at Scotforth: William (10), Annie (8), Alice (5) and Thomas (2). In 1939 the Fords were still at this address – Thomas, born Apr 1875, now stated to be a playing field attendant and retired engine driver, Alice b Oct 1877; living with them was their married daughter Carrie, b 1913, and her husband Henry Corless, b 1910, a cotton textile operative.
In 1911 the residents here were labourer John James Bell (45) and his wife Alice (47) from Penrith and Scotforth, respectively – no children. Ten years previously John James (35) had still been single and living with his mother and step-father and their family at No 16 De Vitre St, Lancaster; he married Alice, daughter of cottage gardener Richard Parkinson of Quarry Cottage, Scotforth, at Lancaster during the 3rd quarter of 1903. John J Bell died at Lancaster in 1926, aged 59.
The occupant in 1939 was James Robert Tuer (25), a cotton labourer at Lune Mills, with his wife Eleanor and a young son Derek R (2); he was a local man, who had married Eleanor Cumpsty in 1936 and died, eventually, in early 1981, aged 67. The Tuer family later moved to Skerton on the north side of Lancaster. Eleanor Tuer died in Lancaster, aged 83, during the first quarter of 2000. Eleanor’s unmarried relative Sarah Ann Cumpsty was living next door at No 7. David Tuer, son of Derek R, after a career in the police service, now lives in S.W. Scotland.
63 No 3. According to the 1901 census Ann Fishwick (70), widow, was originally from Sedbergh, currently living here on her own; in 1911 she was still living here, her age now stated as 82; for company she now had Agnes Whitehead (58), a single woman from Lancaster boarding with her. Ann Thompson had married Thomas Fishwick of Barbon at Sedbergh in 1848; in 1851 they were lodging at Birks House, Marthwaite, Sedbergh, and had a son John (2); they were then both working in cotton manufacturing. By 1871 they had moved, like many others from this area, to take up employment at the new mill at Galgate, and were living at No 1 Bentleys Cottages, Ellel. Thomas appears to have died shortly after this in 1872, and was buried at Cockerham. The 1881 census finds Ann (55), widowed, living with her unmarried son John (33), a labourer, in Scotforth village. In 1891 she was living alone in Scotforth, now described as a tailoress, aged 65. Ann Fishwick died towards the end of 1913, aged 85.
In 1939 the occupant here was another widow Elizabeth Porter, born 1861, with two other people whose details are still under embargo. I have not been able to find out anything further about her.
64 No 1. John Gelderd (31), who lived at No 1 in 1901, was a cattleman, from Ulverston; his wife Annie (29) was a local woman; they currently had four children with them, all born in Lancaster: Herbert (7), Martha (5), Nellie (3) and Fred (1). By 1911 they were living at No 96 Marshall Houses, Scotforth Road, and had five further children, including Henry (18), not listed in 1901: the 1912 directory places John Gelderd at No 2 Rose Bank, Scotforth. John Downward Gelderd seems to have married Annie, daughter of Burgoyne Hall, a boat proprietor, of Aldrens Lane, Skerton, at Lancaster in the 2nd quarter of 1892. The 1939 population register finds the Gelderd family now at No 16 Vine St, Lancaster: Downward J, b Feb 1870, was now retired, Annie, b Mar 1872, was occupied in household duties, while their daughter Marjorie, b Dec 1915, their 10th child, was employed as a shop assistant; living with them was a widow of private means Ellen Parkinson, b July 1870. John D Gelderd seems to have died in the Barrow-in-Furness district, aged 80, during the 3rd quarter of 1950.
The occupant of this house (No 1) in 1911 was Bryan Cumpsty (58), from Lancaster; his wife Sarah Ann (45) was from Coniston, now working as a charwoman. They had been married for 22 years, and had three children, none of whom were currently living with their parents. Bryan Cumpsty, a tailor, had first married Hannah Winder, a local woman, at Lancaster during the 3rd quarter of 1875, and in 1881 they were living at No 9 Marshall Houses; she died in 1885. He then married his second wife Sarah Ann Nicholson at Lancaster during the final quarter of 1888, and in 1891 they were living in Scotforth with three children, all born in Lancaster: Margaret (7), Hannah (6) and Sarah (1). In 1901 this family was living at No 96 Marshall Houses, Scotforth Road (see above): Bryan (50), a tailor/coat hand, Sarah (35), from Coniston, their daughter Sarah (11) and son Bryan (9) both born at Lancaster. Bryan Cumpsty appears to have died in Lancaster, aged 62, in 1913, and his widow Sarah Ann, aged 66, during the 2nd quarter of 1932. The 1939 register finds his daughter Sarah Ann, a domestic worker, living at No 7 Hala Road (see above).
Scotforth Road.
All the old properties on the east side of Scotforth Road, formerly North Road, between the Square and Barton Road, have long since been demolished to enable the road to be widened; the land adjacent to the rear has been re-developed for Booth’s supermarket, the (then) new Bowling Green Inn and a petrol filling station. Before these changes, on the corner and linked to the cottages just described, but largely fronting the main road, was McPhersons, the grocers65 at No 2; their door was always open to entice customers to wander inside and be tempted to buy something. The shop was tiny, and narrowed to the rear, so customers were close to the merchandise and there was almost no room to move around.
In front, facing Scotforth Square and largely enclosing the end of Hala Square, was an unusual triangular brick-built building, a municipal edifice, quite a contrast with all the other buildings hereabouts. With a clock mounted on the front outside the window on the upper floor, this building, which seems to have been called Central View66, was almost certainly connected with the corporation trams, which terminated here. The single deck vehicles were generally referred to as ‘coffin cars’, but there were double-deckers too, as shown in the earlier photo, with the top deck open to all the elements. The Vickers family used to live here; Robert Vickers used to turn the trolley pole for the trams – this collected the electricity from the overhead wire and needed re-positioning for the return journey to Lancaster – presumably he was some sort of inspector or time-keeper for the tram company. Either side of the central part of this building were a couple of lock-up shops of single storey construction, one of which I think was a greengrocer’s; I have a feeling that the other may have been a fish & chip shop, run by a family whose name escapes me.
65 No 2 Scotforth Road. Douglas McLeod McPherson (36), born at Bolton-le-Sands, was grocer here in 1911; his wife Annie (32) was from Kirkby Lonsdale; they had then been married for 12 years, but had no children.
Before this, from at least 1881 to 1891, the shopkeeper here was a widow Hannah Andrew, a native of Kendal, assisted by her daughter Bessie, who had been born in Blackburn. It was then Bessie Andrew (36), who was in charge of this grocery shop in 1901, when its address was No 2 North Road.
There was no-one resident here when the population register was compiled in 1939.
66 The Reay family of nearby Scotforth Smithy referred to this building as ‘the town hall’ because of the clock. This building may not have been built in 1901, as it is not mentioned in the census of that year. However, the 1911 census identifies the current resident here as Frederick Vickers (57), a navvy, from Little Eaton, Derbyshire; he and his wife Jane (54), from Ellel, had been married for 25 years, but had no children. Frederick Vickers appears to have died in 1913, aged 59. See No 6.
The occupants here in 1939 were Clement Danks (47), fish fryer & ARP warden, and his wife Edith E (46); they appear to have had a child whose details are redacted, and there was also Gladys M Mahon (36), a married woman, who appears to have been their maid or assistant. The 1901 census shows that Clement (9) was born in Yorkshire, the son of a widow Emma D Danks, who was housekeeper to her widowed father Job F Porter, a shoemaker, resident at No 10 Horam Road, Nether Hallam, Sheffield. He married Edith E Porter in the Wandsworth district of London during the 3rd quarter of 1919, and they had a son Alan, born in Wandsworth in 1922. Clement Danks died in Lancaster in 1966 at the age of 66, whilst his widow Edith Elizabeth died in 1975 at the age of 82.
It seems that the two shops here either side of the central block, must have been lock-ups with no residential accommodation.
Now we must walk a little way north along from McPherson’s shop68 towards the Bowling Green Hotel69, situated in a terrace of very old property, probably dating from the seventeenth century; the landlord was James Parker; before that, in 1881, Thomas Dearden, a Yorkshireman from Barrowford, had been in charge of this public house as innkeeper, with his wife Mary from Ingleton. Next door but one on this side, down a couple of steps and under a stone lintel with the date 1676 carved on it, was a sweet shop run by sisters Lily and Mary Woodhouse, who took it over after their policeman father William died – before they lived here, they had lived at 5 Ashford Road69 (a large old house in Scotforth Square which was used to house police officers), before the Charnleys came to live there. All these properties were cleared away many years ago; a new Bowling Green Hotel has been built on a new building line, well back from the road, with Booth’s supermarket to the south roughly where Nos 1-11 Hala Road stood, and a petrol filling station to the north, where there had been some more small cottages.
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67 Going north, next to the shop at No 4 Scotforth Road, in 1901 lived an oil cloth worker William C(harles) Hackett (29), from Edge Hill, Liverpool, with his wife W Jane (sic) (24), from Wyresdale, and her brother George R Wharton (21), an oil cloth worker, also from Wyresdale. William had married Tamar Wharton at St Paul’s parish church, Lancaster, on 2 Sept 1900, according to the banns. The 1911 census finds the Hackett family (no children) now living at 15 Lune Road, Lancaster, where William was working at the linoleum factory; his elder brother Walter Edward was one of two boarders here; William and Tamar were still at this address in 1939; he was now retired, but there were three lodgers here, supplementing their income. Tamar died at Lancaster, aged 77, during the 2nd quarter of 1952; it seems that, when William died two years later, aged 84, his name was registered as Charles W Hackett.
Ten years later, in 1911, the residents here were a farm labourer John William Holmes (24), from Liverpool, and his wife Gertrude (22), a local woman; they had been married for 2 years and had two infant children. John had married Gertrude Hodgson at Lancaster during the 2nd quarter of 1909. His father John was a sewer and road contractor, born at Moffat, Dumfries, while his grandfather James Holmes, born at Cockerham, was of similar occupation; in 1891 the two families were living next door to each other at Mill Dam Cottages, Ashton-with-Stodday. In 1939 John W Holmes was a milk roundsman; Gertrude appears to have died at Lancaster, aged 54, during the 3rd quarter of 1943, whilst her husband lived on to the age of 80; he died in the first quarter of 1968.
In 1939 there appears to have been just one resident at this address (No 4), whose details are currently redacted.
No 6. The occupants in 1901 were Frederick Vickers (47), a cattle dealer, from Long Eaton, Derbys, and his wife Mary J (47), from Ellel (Galgate). Ten years later they were at Central View (qv).
There appears to be no 1911 census record for No 6, which may have been empty at the time.
The 1939 register gives the current occupant as Mary E Ogden, a widow, born 1883, a sweets & tobacco dealer, living here on her own. No other details discovered about this woman – she may not have been a local person, or to have had local connections. I certainly remember this shop, having entered it several times a few times in my childhood.
No 8. In 1901 Thomas Boulter (44), a railway carter, from Wyre Piddle, Worcs, was the resident here with his wife Elizabeth (48), from Clifton-on-Teme, Worcs, and three sons: Thomas E (17), cabinet maker’s apprentice, Charles W (15), joiner’s apprentice, and Richard G (4), all born at Scotforth. Thomas had married Elizabeth Everill in the Droitwich district, Worcs, in 1882, and they appear to have been living White Row at the time of the 1891 census, his occupation drayman. In 1911 Thomas and Elizabeth were now living just across the road at No 17 Scotforth Road, with their son Richard George (14), now an apprentice cabinet maker; Thomas was still employed as a carter by the Midland Railway. Thomas Boulter died at Lancaster, aged 70, during the 3rd quarter of 1927; Elizabeth at the age of 86 in early 1939.
Here in 1911 was a local man Richard Johnson (24), a glass worker in a stained-glass works; he and his wife Agnes Ellen (23), from Galgate, a rover in a silk mill, had been married just one year, and currently had no children. The 1901 census shows Richard (14), born at Lancaster, as the third son of painter & glazier William and Mary Ann Johnson, originally from Ulverston; the family were currently living at No 1 Mill St, Lancaster. Richard married Agnes Helen Graham in the Lancaster district in early 1910. They appear not to have had children and are not found in 1939.
In 1939 there appears to have been just one resident at this address, whose details are currently redacted.
68 No 10 was the address of the Bowling Green Hotel, where the landlord in 1901 was Samuel M Carey (30), from Bristol, with his wife Mary (nee Mullen), a local woman; they had four children, the eldest Samuel (11) born at Shrewsbury. By 1911 Samuel Mortimer Carey (40) had moved on and was living in Birmingham at No 12 John Bright St, working as a restaurant keeper; his wife Mary (38) and daughter Lilian May (18) were both assistants.
The occupant here in 1911 Richard Seddon (36), from Aintree, Lancs, was a retailer of beer, wines and spirits; he was assisted by his wife Laura Harriet (nee Foster) (30), from Ormsby, Yorkshire; they had been married for 4 years and currently had three young children. They appear to have subsequently left the district, for Laura seems to have died at Burnley, aged 34, in early 1914, while Richard died also in Burnley, aged 62, in the third quarter of 1937. The landlord in 1939 was James Parker (64), who was living here with his wife Agnes Ann (60) and widowed mother Mary A Parker (84): he was a long-serving occupant of this position, as he had been listed as victualler at this establishment in the 1912 directory. In 1901 James (25), a local man, and Agnes Ann (24), from Ulverston were living at Lunesdale Bowling Club, West Road, where he seems to have been the gardener. Ten years later, in 1911, he was employed as a gardener by the County Asylum; but they were still living at the Lunesdale Bowling Club; they had been married for 11 years and had two children: William (8) and Gladys (5). No 12, adjacent to the pub was a cottage, where the occupant in 1901 was William Ashton (53), a fireman on a stationary engine, from Caton; his wife Margaret (51) was from Cockerham; they had a boarder William Arkwright (19), an ordinary agricultural labourer, from Cockerham (possibly a nephew). William died in early 1910, aged 62, in the Lancaster district, and in 1911 Margaret, now a widow, was living on her own at School Villas, Cockerham, maintained by her son; she seems to have died, aged 65, in early 1915. In 1911 the occupant of No 12 was Ponsonby Jenkinson (48), stated to be a baker and confectioner, from Greysouthen, near Seaton, Cumberland; his wife Mary (46) was from Bassenthwaite; they had 5 children aged 8 to 19, born in Cumberland and Herefordshire. The 1871 census shows Ponsonby (8) as the fifth son, the eighth out of nine children of Wilson and Mary Jenkinson of Schoose farm, Workington (430 acres). In 1881, aged 18, he was an apprentice chemist, but still living with his parents, who were now running a smaller farm of 79 acres in the village of Seaton, Workington. He married Mary Rothery in the Cockermouth district in early 1889, and the 1891 census finds them farming at Lime Tree House in the parish of Dovenby, now with one child Hartley Kendall (1), born at Greysouthen. Ten years later, in 1901, they were at Coldborough Park, Upton Bishop, in the Ross-on-Wye district of Herefordshire. Ponsonby Jenkinson died at Lancaster, aged 48, during the 3rd quarter of 1911; it is not clear what subsequently became of his widow Mary; it is possible that she lived on until 1949, when a death of a woman of this name was registered in the Lancaster district at the age of 83 during the final quarter of the year. According to the 1939 register the head resident at this house was a widow Mary E Prest (51), still room worker. Also here were Thomas Nicholson (55), window cleaner, and his children: Thomas (17), silk worker, Frank (16) shop assistant, Mary (10) and John (6). It may be that the elder Thomas was Mary Prest’s brother.
No 14. In 1901 the occupant was Thomas Knowles (57), a retired licensed victualler, from Staveley, Westmorland, with his wife Margaret (50), from Wray; he seems to have died at Lancaster before the end of the year, aged 57. Thomas (47) and Margaret (40) were already living in Scotforth village in 1891, his occupation licensed victualler – perhaps at the Bowling Green Inn. Ten years previously he had been a widower, working as an asylum attendant at the Royal Albert institution. There appears to be no return for these premises in the 1911 census; maybe they were between tenants at the time, or perhaps the sheet is just missing. According to the 1939 register there was just one person living at this address; currently the record is closed, however.
No 16. William Ball (44), a cattleman on a farm, a local man, was living here in 1901 with his wife Anne E (42), also a local, and their son John (20), a joiner, born in the parish of Ellel; they had a boarder William Alston (23), also a joiner and also from Ellel. By 1911 the Balls had re-located to No 5 Chatsworth Road, Scotforth; their son John (30), their only child, was still unmarried and living with them, working as a joiner at the Midland Railway carriage works in Lancaster. Anne Ellen (52) was now said to have been from Overton. It is not clear what subsequently became of this family.
In 1911 the occupant was James Garth (25), agricultural labourer, a local man; his wife Alice (26) was from Dalton-in-Furness; they had a two-year-old son Harry. William James was born towards the end of 1885 at Slyne, the son of a coachman, Roger Garth. By 1901 the Garths were at Burton Road, Over Kellet, where Roger was now a poultry farmer, while James was working as a horse lad on a farm. William James Garth married Alice Harrison in the Lancaster district in spring 1908. It is not clear what became of this family: Wm James may have died in Liverpool North, aged 50, during the final quarter of 1935.
There were then two further small cottages –
No 18. In 1901 Martha A Shackleton (57), a widow, from Lancaster, was living here – occupation not stated – with three unmarried children: Sarah A (26), a dressmaker, born at Scotforth, John (21), a platelayer, born at Aldcliffe, and William (15), an upholsterer, born at Lower Kellet. Also here was Arthur Dixon (3), a nurse child, born at Lancaster.
John Hodgson, a linoleum worker, from Priest Hutton, was living here in 1911.
No 20. Living here in 1901 was Abram Mount (67), a stonemason, from Milnthorpe, with his wife Sarah J (66), from Liverpool, and their daughter Mary E (21), born in Lancaster. Boarding here at the time was William H Sharp (31), a coal dealer, from Preston.
Ambrose Parkinson (30), from Thurnham, currently a linoleum worker, from Thurnham, was the occupant of this cottage in 1911, living here with his wife Margaret Ann (30), and two infant children: Agnes (4) and Ben (2), all born in Lancaster. Ten years previously he had been working as a cowman to John Drinkall at Marshaw Farm, Over Wyresdale. The 1912 directory lists him as a shopkeeper at No 88 Scotforth Road. By 1939 he had re-married and with his wife Lily was living in Windermere Road, Freehold, occupation now garden labourer.
It is not clear who was living here in 1939, as the record is redacted.
69 Both the 1901 and 1911 censuses show the Woodhouses at No 5 West/Ashford Road; this would have been the third house in the terrace beginning on the corner, where the Unitarian church now is; it was a large house with 10 living rooms. In 1911 the family was: William (44), from Carnforth, Mary (42), from Ennerdale, Cumberland, and children Lily Isabel (12), Mary Ellen (7) and Sarah Amy (4 mths), all born in Lancaster. William Woodhouse died towards the end of 1919, aged 52. In 1911 the Charnleys were living at No 31 Edith St: John Charnley (34), police constable, from Ellel, his wife Marion Isabel, (35), a local woman, and their son Richard Procter Charnley (6), born in Lancaster.
Further along, beyond these cottages was the home of Ben Parker70, who lived by himself at No 22 and owned quite a lot of land to the rear of Tom Hall’s gardens, extending as far as Wilson’s Field. When not working on his market garden, he would stand by his gate and pass the time of day with anyone prepared to engage with him. One Christmas Day he slipped and broke his leg somewhere round the back, and it was quite some time before he was able to get someone to take notice of his predicament.
70 No 22. The 1912 directory confirms Benjamin Parker’s address as No 22 Scotforth Road; in 1901 he was aged 52 and a retired gardener; he was a local man, but his wife Margaret (59) was from Liverpool: the 1911 census states their age as 63 and 73 respectively; they had been married for 27 years, but had no children; he appears to have been working again as a market gardener and an employer of labour. It seems that Margaret Parker may have died in 1921, at the age of 81, while Benjamin himself died in 1928, aged 80. Ben Parker was a good friend of Samuel Thompson and features as ‘human interest’ in many of his photographs.
Another retired market gardener George Jackson (67), a widower, was living here in 1939, with two of his children: George (33), market gardener, and Mary W (32), household duties; and a presumed granddaughter Lucy Jackson (10), at school.
No 24. (Crossgil or Croskell House) the only resident here in 1901 was Ann Croskill (79), a single woman, from the parish of Ellel; she had been here ten years previously, living on her own means.
The occupants here in 1911 appear to have been Herbert Edward Pick (37), from Leeds, grocer & provision dealer, whose shop was at No 92 Scotforth Road, his widowed mother Mary Pick (69), from Lincoln, and his assistant Jessie Towler (39), from Settle.
According to the 1939 register, the current occupants were James Beswick, a foreman mechanic in a textile works and his wife Laura (35); there appear to have been three children, whose details are currently redacted.
No 26. (Barton House) The residents in 1901 were market gardener Thomas Wilkinson (77), a single man, and his niece: Jane Parker (53), housekeeper, from Morecambe, plus her daughter Edith Parker (11), born in Scotforth. They had been living here in 1891, but in 1911 Jane Elizabeth (63) and Edith (20) were living close by with their husband/father Stephen Thomas Parker (60), market gardener, at No 26 Addlecroft, Scotforth Road.
Across the road from the Bowling Green still stands the former Scotforth Post Office and general grocery store71, then the hub of the universe, on the corner of Piccadilly; it was run by the Wilson family with the help of their two daughters. Every Sunday morning the postmaster, James Wilson, used to go off with his friends fishing, and it was a great tragedy in the village when on one of these occasions he and his friends were all drowned in the River Lune when their boat got stuck on a sandbank near Stodday72.
On the opposite corner of Piccadilly, where there is now a small car park, was the cobbler’s shop of Old Tim Longton73; it was flanked by cottages in Piccadilly and also (after a small yard) a further row of tiny cottages along the main road – all now long gone. Whether Old Tim was related to the Tim who was raised by Mrs Sturzaker at the Pottery, I do not know. Just behind there, a few steps up Piccadilly was Halls farm, still there; John Hall was a butcher as well as a farmer, and had a shop at Lancaster market.
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71 The post office on the corner of Piccadilly was in 1911 run by James Wilson (37), a grocer, from Grimsargh, near Preston, assisted by his wife Margaret E (31), from Priest Hutton; at this time they had two daughters: Mary I (10), born at Lancaster, and Frances E (9), born at Scotforth. James Wilson died at the age of 42, his death registered during the 3rd quarter of 1916.
72 The story was reported in the Lancashire Evening Post of 21 August 1916. The previous Sunday eight friends had set off at 7.00 am from St George’s Quay, Lancaster, for a sail on the River Lune on board the boat Pearl. On their return in the evening the boat was caught in a squall and capsized off Cockersand Abbey after getting stuck and taking on water; one man Richard Kenneth Wright (44) was a strong swimmer, and he volunteered to swim ashore, over a mile, to raise the alarm and get assistance, but by the time he reached the shore and a boat could be launched the others and their boat had all disappeared; amongst those missing were postmasters John (44) and James (42) Wilson and John’s son William (18). The Morecambe and Fleetwood lifeboats turned out, but found nothing, apart from an oar and a rudder.
73 This may have been J Timothy Longton (44), boot & shoe maker, from Ellel, who in 1911 was living at No 36 Aberdeen Road, Lancaster, with his wife Mary Ellen (50), who was from Colne; they had been married for 23 years and had four children: Clara (17), tailoress, and Charles Lord (16), upholsterer’s apprentice, both born at Quernmore, plus Timothy (13) and Alice (12), both born at Lancaster. Timothy jun. was stated to have been paralysed and appears to have died in 1914, aged 16.
In later post war years, prior to demolition, this shop traded as a greengrocers.
cross over to South Side of Hala Road.
or, return to Memories of Hala Road, Scotforth
