Wednesday 28 October 2015

LUKE RALPH - TINSMITH (Pickering Street Tin Works and later Chapel St)




Luke Ralph - Tinsmiths of Chapel Street

Account compiled by Marie Ives (Great Grandaughter)

I have recently had a chance to look at some old ledgers that belonged to the firm owned and run by my Grandfather and his father before him, namely, Luke Ralph and Sons.  They were tinsmiths in Haslingden for about 85 years, established at the bottom of Chapel Street and before that, for a short time, in Pickering Street.  There are over 50 mills with whom the firm had accounts listed in the book, they were mostly in Haslingden, Rawtenstall and Helmshore.  The firm also did work for Haslingden Cooperative Society and Haslingden Borough Council as well as the local Brewery.  The first book dates from 1919/20 to 1931, and is one of 5; the others are more up to date.

My Grandfather came from Burnley to Haslingden in the 1880's as a child, with his father, mother, sister and brother; four more children were born in Haslingden.  They lived in Warwick Street for a spell, later moving to Clegg Street.  When my Grandfather married he lived in Piccadilly Street, first at No. 6 later moving to No. 49, where he died in 1958.  His only son, Craven carried on the business until the premises in Chapel Street were compulsory purchased by the Council in the late 1970's, and the business then closed down.

The firm in the 1920s supported all the family and one or two tradesmen who worked for them.  Luke Ralph's youngest son trained to be a saddler in a shop at the bottom of Chapel Street on Bury Road, adjacent to the New Inn.  All the other sons (William, Harry, Tom and Luke) worked for the family firm for a while.  After a family fall out, William set up business in opposition to his father and brothers in Grane Road, Craven never returned from the first World War, Luke married and went to live in Rotherham, he died in 1939, Tom died in 1938.  Great grandfather Luke himself died in 1934 and my Grandfather, Harry, carried on with the business, taking his son, Craven as an apprentice.  The two sisters in the family (Mary Ann and Jane) at sometime of their lives worked in the mills, even though they were both deformed.  The both married late in life.

With a lot of help from one or two Ralph relations, who have access to the Internet, we have traced Luke Ralph's forebears back to Burnley and before that to Settle, to one William Ralph who was born there in 1580.  There were lots of tradesmen amongst the family, mainly joiners and blacksmiths, but also paupers as well and lots of servants and mill workers.


Here is Luke Ralph, sat in the back of his landau with his son Harry in the driving seat

In 1920 my great grandfather charged his customers two shillings per hour for a tradesman to work on jobs at the various mills that they worked for, he would keep a few pence for profit from the job and pay his workers about 1shilling and threepence per hour.  Alas there is no wages book to refer to amongst the books that have survived.

Below are items copied from his ledger, typical of the jobs the firm did.

for MESSRS J. BARLOW AND SONS, HELMSHORE.

March 1923
1 Funnel repaired                                                               4d
1 Spring Oil Can repaired                                               1s.2d
April 6th
25 Weft Cans repaired and balance                            £3.15s.0d
24 Weft Cans, steel handles on 12lbs                        £7.16s.0d
May 4th
10 Weft Cans repaired and balanced                          £1.10s.0d
October 19th
1 Copper Bucket repaired                                               1s.0d
December 18th
1 Spring Oil Can repaired                                               1s.0d
December 20th
2 New Steel Covers and Brackets and
Measuring Making and Fixing                                       11s.6d

for MESSRS J.H. BIRTWISTLE AND CO, PARK MILL.

1920
May 27th
25 Oil Cans repaired                                                    16s.3d
Dec 9th
Man and apprentice 4 hrs each at Mill                            15s.4d
1921
April 12th
20 16lb Weft Cans repaired and balanced                     £6.0s.0d
May 17th
1 New Strong Guard for Scutcher Machine Complete   £1.17s.0d
1923
June 29th
16 Oil Cans repaired                                                       8s.0d

for MESSRS W.H. BAXTER (BREWERY)

Itemised jobs done at the Brewery in Haslingden and
at the Hare and Hounds Hotel, Rawtenstall, The Crown
Hotel and Holts Arms,

for MESSRS JAMES COTTON AND CO.

April 20th
52 Weft Cans and divisions in same 3/6d Each             £9.2s.0d
14 Weft Cans Plain 3/0d Each                                     £2.2s.0d



Two of the Ralph Brothers in the yard in Pickering Street 

Pickering Street was just at the back of the Court and Police Station and you would access it by going up George Street and just after Jim Barlows Ironmongery Shop turn right.


May 1st
Harry Ralph, Two and half hours on tin rollers 2/6d        6s.3d
May 5th
New 16lb Winders Cans   16/0d                              £9.12s 0d

The above is just a sampling of the firms accounts which Marie has documented in her article -

The majority of the jobs are now redundant; all the mills are gone as is Luke Ralph and Sons.
Most of the work the firm did towards the end of its existence was at Porritts and Spencers in Helmshore, right up until the firm closed down.

One of the more interesting accounts is for Haslingden Industrial Co-operative Society; the account is one of the first in the book, commencing in 1920.  They did lots of work for the Bakehouse, making loaf tins and baking trays as well as repairing egg whisks and buckets, things that we would not hesitate in throwing out these days, but the jobs kept them in work.  They also did jobs for the butchery dept., making tubes for their sausage machine, and also for the painting dept.,  Some of their work was for the various branches of the Co-op that were spread throughout Haslingden.  Ewood Bridge is mentioned as is Pine Street, Grane Road, Blackburn Road and Central Branch.

In August 1920 a mopping bucket was repaired for the Co-op Office at a charge of 6d, and in September 48 New Strong Loaf tins were made to sample at 1/-d (one shilling) each, charging them £2.8s.0d  Orders like this were for the H Dept., I presume these are for resale in the Hardware shop, but I am guessing.

The service they provided must have been satisfactory, by 1923/4 work was being carried out for the warehouse and for the garage.  In July 1924 a refrigerator at the Blackburn Road branch was repaired for the sum of 2s.9d.  Also in the same month they supplied 340 coal checks for bags for the princely sum of 16s.9d.  They were still repairing egg whisks, more or less by the dozen.  I can only think that they were larger than the household whisks and they made lots of their cakes and custards with lots of eggs.  In 1925 they were doing jobs for the cafe.

In March 1927 a new strong polished brass doorplate was supplied to the Hardware Dept., at a cost of 6s.0d, and a mopping bucket repaired for the Confectionery shop for 9d. And 10 strong steel plates were supplied to the Tea Room for 4s.9d. Whilst earlier, in February a lading can was repaired at a cost of 3d.  I think this is the cheapest price for job in the whole ledger.  Also in February a copper gas boiler was repaired at the Ambulance Hall for the price of 6s.6d. and a mudguard flap was repaired for a GCM Van for 2s.3d.

Another interesting account is with Haslingden Corporation, this again is one of the early accounts.

In May 1920 they supplied a sample dustbin and cover at a charge of 1s.3d. On June 6th, 6 new strong galvanised pales for the piggeries at the Towns Yard cost the ratepayers of Haslingden £8.12s.0d.  On August the 11th the firm supplied 2 new strong sheet iron plates and a stove pipe was repaired at the Secondary School at a cost of 12s.3d.  In November one steel ash barrow and frame - remaking and new steel bottom put in plus 26 new bolts and new cross rails put in all for £2.19s.6d.  On January 12th the following year a bigger job was done, at the Public Hall, this comprised one large exhaust ventilator repaired and remaking all new zinc top and strong galvanised bottom and base and knob and painting complete for the large sum of £21.17s.6d.

By September of the same year they were repairing a copper pipe for the petrol tank of a motor "lurry" and repairing a motor horn, later in the same month another copper pipe was repaired for a motor "lurry".  The individual charges for these jobs were 3s.3d., 6d, and 1s.6d, making a total of 5s.3d.  The spelling of "lurry" is as my great grandfather wrote it, I think a bit of Haslingden dialect is creeping in here.

In October a radiator was repaired for a motor bus and in December a new steam pipe was put on a road roller for 4s.9d  If the firm was doing repairs to Council vehicles one can only assume that the Council did not employ any mechanics at this time.




Craven Ralph and Wagon outside of works on Chapel St

Mills and Businesses with accounts with Luke Ralph and Sons from 1920 onwards


J.H. Ashworth and Co. Hall Carr Mills, Rawtenstall.
Abbey Carr and Woodfold Mill Co. Carr Mill, Haslingden
J. Barlow and Sons, Helmshore.
Wm Birtwistle, Carr Mill, Haslingden.
J.H. Birtwistle and Co. Park Mill, Helmshore.
Wm H. Baxter - Haslingden Brewery
J. Butterworth and Sons Waterfoot,
J. Barnes and Sons, Huncoat.
British Cotton and Wool Dyers Association
Carr Parker and Co, Charles Lane Mill, Haslingden
James Cotton and Co, Laneside Mill, Haslingden.
Coates Brothers Manufacturing Co. Reedsholme.
Cotton Cellulose Co. Union Mill Cloughfold.
Eccles Spinning and Manufacturing Co, Patricroft
Haslingden Corporation
Holden Wood Bleach Company
Hutch Bank Mill Co, Haslingden
Hargreaves Street Mftg Co. Haslingden
James Hasler Ltd, Vale Mill, Station Road, Haslingden
Haslingden Commercial Mftg Co. Commercial and Carr Mill
Haslingden Ind Co-op Society - various depts and shops
G. Haworth, Reedsholme,
Higher Mill Co.
Thos Hoghton Ltd, Forest Mill, Bacup.
Hazel Mill Co. Acre, Haslingden
J. Hoyle and Sons Rochdale.
Grane Mftg Co. Bury Road, Haslingden.
Globe Mftg Co. Stoneholme Mill, Crawshawbooth.
Goodshawfold Mftg Co. Crawshawbooth
Industrial Mftg Co. Baxenden
James Lambert Ltd, Carr Hall Mill, Haslingden.
J.W. Mitchell Ltd
Porritt and Spencer Ltd Sunnybank Mill, Helmshore.
J. Porritt and Son.
R.H. Pilling Reedsholme
L.H. Ormerod and Co. Albion Mill.
James Rothwell, Ilex Mill, Rawtenstall
James Rothwell, Stonefold Mill, Haslingden.
James Rothwell, Longholme Mill, Rawtenstall.
Rawtenstall Cotton Manufacturing Co.
Rhodesson Mftg Co. Britannia Mill, Crawshawbooth.
J. Stansfield and Sons Ltd.
A. Thorp Ltd, Laund Mill, Rawtenstall.
Torside Mftg Co. Middle Mill, Helmshore.
N. Tomlinson and Sons.
Vine Grove Mill Co. Vine Grove, Haslingden.
A. Worsley and Sons, Duckworth Clough Mill, Haslingden
N. Worsley Ltd, Longholme Mill, Rawtenstall.
N. Worsley Ltd, Rising Bridge Mill, Haslingden.
N. Worsley Ltd. Alliance and Victoria Mills, Haslingden
N. Worsley Ltd. Clough End Mill, Haslingden
T. Warburton and Sons, Flash Mills, Grane Road, Haslingden
L. Whittaker and Sons, Grane Road Mill, Haslingden.
A. Worsley and Sons - Bury Account

All the above are listed in the ledger dated 1919 - 1931 and these were the early customers of Luke Ralph, but has more and more ledgers have been produced, numerous additional companies are also listed within them ledgers (this here is only a sampling of the full customer database and showing just the early day customers)




The firm seems to have been doing a lot of transport work in 1937 for Joseph Porritt and Sons.  In October and November they were charged 8 shillings for 1 man and a motor to go to Bury, to Bury and Mossfield the price went up to 10 shillings.  In May of the next year the man and motor went to Helmshore and Bolton for a charge of 12 shillings. They made various trips to Helmshore and Stubbins Stations in 1938 charging 3 shillings and 4 shillings.  For Porritts the firm made hundred of 'lining cases' throughout this time, the charge was always below one pound.  In March 1940 Craven (my Uncle) who would be 21 years old at this time, worked 14 hours at R. Ashworth for which they were charged £1.11s.6d.  In 1937 the Cotton Cellulose Co. were charged £5.5s. for 48 and a half hours work by H. Whittaker, they were also charged £1.12s.4d. for work done by apprentice B.G. Smart for the same number of hours.  It would be interesting to look at a wages book for this period to see what wages these men were paid, but alas no book survives.

The work they did for Haslingden Corporation during the years 1941-42 included work for the Grammar School, Baxenden School, The Leyland Club, Turfcote, Transport Dept., Electric Works, CCS Nursery, War Nursery, Gas Works and General Works.  Turfcote was home for evacuees during part of the war and it would probably have been taken over by Haslingden Corporation. 

In January 1942 work at Industrial and Mechanical Engineers included fixing trunking at Mill.  They were charged for 30 hours for C. Ralph at 2/6d..... £3.15s.0d. and Apprentice H.B. 20 hours at 9d....15s.0d.  Wages still seemed to be low, and I wonder how much an hour a tradesman was paid.

In 1946 the firm did work for The Crag Motor Co. Ltd., in Wellbank at Haslingden.  Work was done on various car repairs including Morris, Wolsley 24, Austin 10,16 and 12, Rover, Standard, Morris 8, Wolsley 18, Armstrong, Rolls, Renault, Riley, Commer, Scammell and Hillman.  I cannot remember a garage in Wellbank it was always a residential area, but that is the given address in the ledger.

There have been many, many more business accounts within Ledger 2 from 28th May 1937, also further ledgers which start from March 1948 and ends in July 1952 the firms are far too many to mention individually. The final ledger starts in the 1950s and goes on until 1962, with just one or two accounts made up later than this.

As the years went on the mills closed down and the firm's work was adapted to suit their new customers.  My grandfather did the office work until his death in 1958.  There was always a spittoon full of sawdust holding the door open in the small office where he sat on a high stool up to a long wood sloping desk.  looking through the window to see who came up the stairs from Chapel Street.  Next to the desk was a large safe.  Behind him there was an array of shelves and an old cupboard where I think he must have kept the books and ledgers when he was not working on them.  There was no typewriter, everything was always handwritten.  The only modern appliance in the office was a telephone.  I can remember it was always dusty and looked like it wasn't used very much.  He went to work every day until he started being ill shortly before his death.  When I was a child I can remember four or five different men who worked for the firm. (Jack Holden, Arnold Billington and Jak Hallam as well as my Uncle Craven).  Later when the work went down, my Uncle Craven Worked on his own for some years until the building and all the adjoining area was compulsory purchased by the Council in the 1970's.  The firms first work room and stables in Pickering Street also went with the clearance of the land.

Marie Ives,
Carr Mount,
Rawtenstall

Winter 2007 - 2008




Adverts for Luke Ralph
 

Kindly contributed by Darren Ralph on 15th December 2015


Thursday 22 October 2015

HELMSHORE COUNTY PRIMARY SCHOOL STUDENT PHOTOS


1967 (Above) Helmshore County Primary School 1967 ish  (Click over photo to enlarge)
Photo: Kindly contributed by John Pilling and uploaded here on 27th Oct 2015

Helmshore CP School c1961 (Click over to enlarge)

Photo: Kindly shared by Dorothy Flynn and uploaded here on 14th March 2017
also filed under Helmshore CP School photo blog

Information kindly shared to us by Stephen Haines about his classmates in the photo:

Starting with the front row, the boy on the left is Peter Edmundson.  Peter had two older brothers, John and Ian, and a younger sister called Janet and they lived on Broadway, in the second house of the first semi as you turn left out of Brooklands Avenue.  His father was called Ernest and he was a butcher in Accrington, whilst his mother was Vera and she worked in the research department at TMM, Wavell Mill, on Holcombe Road.  They had a Rover 90 car, the biggest vehicle in that part of the village, at a time when most families didn’t have cars.
The girl sat next to Peter is Susan Haygarth.  She had an older brother called Brian and they also lived on Broadway in a house before Devon Crescent is reached, opposite what is now the High School.  Then it was fields.  Next to Susan is Martin Nuttall whose family lived on Helmshore Road.  Theirs was the first house of the last semi before you reach the drive into St Veronica’s church.
The girl in glasses on the left of the second row is Jacqueline Tremble, who lived somewhere in the Lancaster / York Avenue area, and she is sitting next to Robert Oldfield, often known as Ockey.  He had an older sister and they lived on Gregory Fold, in the last house in the row of stone cottages opposite the primary school.  His family often spoke of having seen or heard apparitions and it was widely accepted that the house was haunted.
The boy poking his head from behind that of Susan is me, Stephen Haines.  At that time, I had a younger brother called David – Stuart, the youngest, came along several years later – and we lived in the terrace on Brooklands Avenue, at no. 12.  My father was Arthur, who worked as a conductor for the bus department of Haslingden Corporation.  He had arrived in Haslingden in 1939 as a war-time evacuee from Salford and his family followed him here a little later.  My mother, Marion, was a weaver at Barlow’s Mill, off Holcombe Road, and her family had arrived here from Blackburn in the mid-1930s.
The boy next to me was Philip Cheetham and I remember little about him as he was not in the school long as his family out of the area.  I cannot work out who the others in the photograph are, though the girl at the very back, also in glasses, is I think Dorothy Ratcliffe.  If so, she is, again I think, the person who posted this photo on the website.  I think she lived on one of the streets right off Lancaster Avenue, as you go up.
The school milk was always delivered to the Gregory Fold side of the school and it was the job of the older boys, which we were not, to bring it inside.  I always preferred the milk in winter, when it was cold.  On really cold days, such as during the harsh winter of 1963, the milk froze and we thought it was like having ice cream.  I summer it was not so nice, as it was often warm and sometimes began to curdle.
 
 Helmshore CP School c1964/65 (Click over to enlarge)

Photo: Kindly shared by Dorothy Flynn and uploaded here on 14th March 2017
also filed under Helmshore CP School photo blog


The following information is kindly shared to us by Stephen Haines one of the pupils in the above photo: 
This is the same class as in the picture above, but several years later.  The teacher was Mr Hartley and I don’t remember much about him other that he left the primary school at the end of the school year and took a post at Haslingden Secondary Modern School, where some of those in this picture would have re-encountered him when they transferred there in 1966.
The boy at the left of the back row is Stefan Koman.  He had siblings and his family lived on Broadway, in a house halfway up the hill, as the road rises after its junction with Lancaster Avenue.  His father had arrived from Poland after the war and his mother was Jenny Walkden, who had been a school friend of my mother’s.  Not long after this photo was taken, they moved to Accrington.
Next to Stefan is Richard West, who had an elder sister and who lived on Holcombe Road, in a house on the left as you go towards the Italian restaurant, then the White Horse.  I don’t know the boy next to him, but the fourth boy is Noel Pilling.  His family lived on York Avenue, on the left near to its junction with Helmshore Road.
I am next to Noel and next to me is Martin Nuttall.  Next to Martin is Norman Constantine.  His family lived in one of the stone cottages by the river at the end of the drive that runs alongside Helmshore Memorial Gardens.  I don’t remember the name of the boy standing next to Norman.
The boy on the left of the middle row is Philip Abbott, who had a sister and who lived on Somerset Walk, on the right as you go up.  Then comes Peter Edmundson and then Alan Carr.  Alan also had a sister and his family ran Higher Cocker Farm, mainly dairy, but with a few pigs and poultry.  I remember the farm was a good place to hang around on Fridays, as that was baking day and his mother made fantastic cakes.  Rossendale Golf Club bought the farm soon after this picture was taken and they moved away.
The fourth boy on the row is Robert Oldfield and next to him is Billy Hanson, the biggest boy in the class.  His family lived near to the top of Granville Street.  Next to Billy is Paul Mellor, who later became Paul Chadwick.  He lived somewhere in Flaxmoss, around Mayfield Avenue, and next to him is Tony Barnes.  Tony lived on Helmshore Road, in a house opposite St Veronica’s, and I remember that whenever Corgi brought out a new model car, he was always the first to get it.  He was often to be seen racing his cars down the playground at the back of the school.
The boy second from the right Kevin Kerr, whose family lived on Devon Crescent and with whom I later played football for Helmshore Youth.  By then he’d acquired the nickname Hector, presumably after the Derby County player.  Last on the row is Johnny Smithson.  He had a sister called Anne and his family also lived on Holcombe Road, near to Richard West.  His father worked at Higher Mill.
The girl on the left of the front row is Susan Haygarth.  Then comes Jackie Tremble and next to her is Wendy Howarth.  Her family lived on Holcombe Road, somewhere opposite its junction with Bell Alley.  I can’t remember the name of the girl fourth on the row, though I think the fifth girl was called Jeanette, but I cannot recall her surname.
The next girl is Dorothy Ratcliffe and then comes Stephanie Knight.  Her father was called Ernie, who, like my father, worked for the Corporation.  They lived in the Flaxmoss area.  Next sits Carole Dowd, who lived in the Lancaster Avenue area and next to her is Stephanie Watson.  She had an elder brother called Graham and they lived on Brooklands Avenue, on the right near its junction with Raven Avenue.  The family later moved out of the area.
Second from right on that row is Carole Bond.  She lived somewhere around Holcombe Road, in the Higher Mill area, and her family moved to Blackburn sometime later.  The last girl on the row is Carole Beardsworth, though I can’t remember where she lived.  (I hope I’ve spelled the Caroles correctly.)
**************

Helmshore CP School c1963 (Click over to enlarge)

Photo: Kindly shared by Dorothy Flynn and uploaded here on 14th March 2017
also filed under Helmshore CP School photo blog


Here below is information kindly shared with us by Stephen Haines (Pupil in the photo) 
This is a photograph of our class when we were about eight years old.  The teacher was Mrs Pilling, who was certainly a teacher of the old school.  I remember her as a formidable lady, quite strict, who would punish misdemeanours with a ruler across the hand, and across the back of the legs for greater crimes.  I felt it on more than one occasion.  Yet, she knew how to encourage her young charges.  She had a system of stars, used in other classes too, of various colours, the highest valued being silver and gold and there was a healthy competition to try to achieve them.  I looked forwards to going up to her class because we would begin subjects like history and geography.  At the time I’d no idea what they were, but their mysterious, grown-up names sounded far more exciting than the reading, writing and sums we did lower down the school.  She was a brilliant teacher and I learned a lot from her lessons.  We had a reading book that had vivid coloured drawings on one side and text on the other, and I was so impressed that I got my mum to buy me a copy so that I could read it at home.  One of the things she got us to read was extracts from the “Song of Hiawatha” by HW Longfellow.  Hiawatha became one of my childhood heroes and because of it I changed sides when watching Westerns.  I began supporting the Indians and not the Cowboys.   I can’t imagine any teacher nowadays trying to get eight-year-old pupils to read such challenging stuff.  She did and, fifty-odd years later, I can still recite chunks of it from memory.  That’s a good teacher.
To the class:  back row, going from left to right we have Stefan Koman, Noel Pilling, me, Richard West, Philip Abbot and Norman Constantine.  On the second row is Peter Edmundson, Alan Carr, Paul Mellor, Tony Barnes, Billy Hanson, Robert Oldfield, Martin Nuttall and James Walker.  He doesn’t appear in the other photographs that I’ve written about, but his family lived on Broadway, on the left-hand side as you go up the hill from the junction with Lancaster Avenue.  He became known as “Judd” and played in goal for the Helmshore Youth football team I played in.  Last on the row is Kevin Kerr.
The girl on the left of the front row is Stephanie Knight and next to her is Susan Burke.  She didn’t stay long in the class with us, her family moving away, but at the time they lived on Raven Avenue.  Next to Susan is Wendy Howarth and then comes Brenda Holden.  Her family lived, I think, in the Holcolme Road area of the village.  Next is Dorothy Ratcliffe and I can’t remember the name of the girl to her right, but she might have been called Carole Busky.  Then comes Carole Beardsworth, Jeanette, whose surname I can’t recall, and Sheila Skupsky.  She was another whose family moved out of the area and didn’t stay long in the class.  Finally sits Anne Priddle.  Anne was one of a large family who lived in a big house on the corner of Mayfield Avenue and Helmshore Road, in Flaxmoss.

Of the front five girls, Jackie Tremble is on the left.  Then comes Carole Dowd, Stephanie Watson, Carole Bond and Susan Haygarth.  (Again, I hope I’ve spelled the Caroles correctly.)

Helmshore CP School c1964 (Click over to enlarge)

Photo: Kindly shared by Dorothy Flynn and uploaded here on 14th March 2017
also filed under Helmshore CP School photo blog

(14th June 2018 - Memory notes kindly offered by Steve Haines (Pupil in the photo)
This photograph above is of our class a couple of years earlier than the one above, so I guess we’d have been five or six years old.  The teacher is Mrs Winstanley, who taught the very early years’ class.  I’d date this picture around 1960.
Going from left  to right on the back row: I don’t remember the name of the boy standing next to Mrs Winstanley, but stood next to him is Philip Abbott.  Then comes me (Steve Haines),Norman Constantine, Kevin Kerr, Richard West and Stefan Koman.
On the second row of boys, stood on the floor and again going left to right, are Noel Pilling, Johnny Smithson, Alan Carr, Tony Barnes, Paul Mellor, and Robert Oldfield.  I can’t recall the name of the boy third from right, but next to him is Martin Nuttall and finally comes Peter Edmunson.  He was the younger brother of Ian Edmunson, who has posted the next three photographs in the series.
Of the girls seated on the third row, the first is Carole Dowd.  I can’t remember the name of the next three girls, but the girl fifth in the row is Jeanette, whose surname I’ve lost.  Dorothy Ratcliffe is sixth in the row, next to Brenda Holden, Sheila Skupsky, Wendy Howarth, Carole Beardsworth and Stephanie Knight.

Stephanie Watson is the first of the girls kneeling at the front, on the left.  Next comes Anne Priddle, Susan Haygarth, Jackie Tremble and Carole Bond.
*******************************************
 
Helmshore County Primary School 1964 ish  (Click over to enlarge)

Back Row: Stephen Greenwood, Alan Hollin, Alan Seville, ?,?, Craig Fleming, David Edney, Kenneth McWaters, Mrs. Winstanley.
3rd Row: Ian Edmundson, Dave Peddie, Alan Jepson, Harry Howard, Dave Ackroyd, Ian Yates, John Henney, Raymond Holden, Roy Gregory, Paul Duzzwick.
2nd Row: ?, Lynne Gregory, Susan Crankshaw, ?,?,?,?,Susan Gorton, ?,?, Linda Bradshaw, ?
Front Row: Ingrid Bentley, ?,?,?,?, Carol Wigston, Carole Oldham, Jane Kirk.

Photo: Kindly shared by Ian Edmundson and uploaded here on 15th March 2017
Also now archived in the Helmshore CP Photo Blog

 
Helmshore County Primary School 1964 ish  (Click over to enlarge)

Photo: Kindly shared by Ian Edmundson and uploaded here on 15th March 2017
Also now archived in the Helmshore CP Photo Blog

 
Helmshore County Primary School 1964 ish  (Click over to enlarge)

Photo: Kindly shared by Ian Edmundson and uploaded here on 15th March 2017
Also now archived in the Helmshore CP Photo Blog


Helmshore CP School c1965 (Click over to enlarge)

Photo: Kindly shared by Dorothy Flynn and uploaded here on 14th March 2017
also filed under Helmshore CP School photo blog

The following information is kindly supplied by Stephen Haines (Pupil) - 9th July 2018
This is the first school photograph I ever had taken.  It was taken outside the school gate, on Gregory Fold in 1961, when we were five or six years old.  I remember us being lined up on benches, though the taller boys, in the middle row, had to stand.  In those days, Gregory Fold had cobbles from what was then the Big Tree, on its junction with Helmshore Road, to the end of the school when it became a rough track that went down to Holcombe Road, at the bottom.  This picture was taken where the rough track began.  It is housing now, but then behind the school was open fields sloping down to the river in the valley below.
The teacher’s name was Mrs Pickup.  I remember her with great fondness, as she was a kindly lady who really looked after us – or so it seemed to me.  She was the one who taught us how to read and write properly and I remember her classroom had posters around the walls of all the letters we had to make, with pictures showing something that began with that letter – A/a for apple etc.  She taught us numbers as well and I remember she had a saying about the number 5, which she described as a “big fat policeman with a hat on top”.  We had to do our writing in books in which each row had three lines.  We made the lower case letters from the bottom line to that in the middle and the upper case ones to the line at the top.  This way we learned to make our letters different sizes.
In the spring and summer, when the weather was nice, she’d take us on nature walks up Musbury Valley and show us the different trees, flowers and birds and tell us something about them.  I particularly remember her kindness when we had to go for our inoculations and jabs.  This was something that held us young ones in trepidation and she used to bring in a tin full of what she called toast, but I guess was some sort of homemade crisp bread.  She’d tell us that, if we didn’t cry, we could have some toast as a treat and she was good as her word.  Even then, it seemed rare for a teacher to bring in things to give the pupils, which is why it sticks out in my memory.  I remember resolutely trying to fight back the tears so that I could get my hands on the toast, which always seemed to taste so nice.
Next to Mrs Pickup, on the left of back row, is Stefan Koman.  Next to him is Noel Pilling, then me, and I don’t remember the name of the next boy.  The fifth boy on the row is Johnny Smithson, then comes Kevin Kerr, Richard West, Norman Constantine, Philip Abbott and, finally, Peter Edmundson.
On the left of the middle row is Martin Nuttall.  Next is Tony Barnes, Philip Cheatham, Alan Carr, Billy Hanson, Robert Oldfield, Paul Mellor, James Walker and Eric Grey.
Of the girls, on the left is Stephanie Knight.  I can’t remember the name of the next girl, but the third girl in is Anne Priddle.  Next is Carole Beardsworth, Sheila Skupsky, Dorothy Ratcliffe, Brenda Holden, Susan Haygarth, Stephanie Watson and, finally, Susan Burke.

Helmshore Primary School 1962 (Click over to enlarge)

Kindly contributed by John Edmundson 




Helmshore Primary School
Kindly contributed by Mary Loy White


 
Helmshore Primary School, Helmshore c1960 (Please click over to enlarge)
Photo: Kindly shared to us by Dorothy Flynn on 13th March 2017

The following information is kindly given by Stephen Haines (pupil) and submitted here on 9th July 2018.
This is a photo of my class at the primary school, but before I joined it.  I joined the school at Easter in 1961, when I was four years old.  I was the youngest in my year group throughout my school career, both at primary and secondary schools.   The people in this picture were in the class when I arrived and must have started in September of 1959.  It is probably what would be today known as the reception class.
I don’t remember the teacher.  She certainly didn’t teach me when I arrived.  I also don’t remember the girl next to her, but the second girl in from the left is Carole Bond.  Then comes Dorothy Ratcliffe.  I can’t remember the fourth girl in the row, but next to her is Carole Beardsworth.  Next to her is Brenda Holden and I can’t recall the last girl in the row.

The first boy, on the left, is Norman Constantine.  I don’t know the boy second in the row, but third sits Alan Carr.  Then is Billy Hanson, Martin Nuttall, Philip Cheatham, but I can’t remember the name of the last boy in the row.

 
Helmshore County Primary School 1953 or 1954
left side: front Brian Haworth, Peter Kay behind him and on right side David Pilling front,
Jeff Smith and Jimmy Peel, on the 2nd row and Janet Schofield behind them on third row
Photo: Kindly shared with us by Lorraine Brumpton

 
Helmshore County Primary School (Click over to enlarge)
Photo: Kindly shared to us by Lorraine Brumpton

 
Helmshore County Primary School (Click over to enlarge)
Photo: kindly shared to us by Lorraine Brumpton



Helmshore County Primary School c 1952-57 (Click over photo to enlarge)
Photo: kindly contributed by Pauline Emmett Dagg and uploaded here on 22nd October 2015



Helmshore County Primary School c 1952-57 (Click over photo to enlarge)
Photo: kindly contributed by Pauline Emmett Dagg and uploaded here on 22nd October 2015




Helmshore County Primary School c 1952-57 (Click over photo to enlarge)
Photo: kindly contributed by Pauline Emmett Dagg and uploaded here on 22nd October 2015



 
Helmshore County Primary School c 1952-57 (Click over photo to enlarge)
Photo: kindly contributed by Pauline Emmett Dagg and uploaded here on 21st October 2015



Helmshore County Primary School c 1952-57 (Click over photo to enlarge)

Photo: kindly contributed by Pauline Emmett Dagg and uploaded here on 21st October 2015



 

Haslingden County Primary School 1953/1954 (Click over to enlarge)
Photo: Kindly shared to us by Ian Jefferson




Helmshore County Primary School c1954  (Click over to enlarge)
Photo: kindly contributed by Dave Wise and uploaded here on 5th November 2015



Helmshore County Primary School c1959  (Click over to enlarge)
Photo: kindly contributed by Dave Wise and uploaded here on 5th November 2015

 
Helmshore Council Infants c1912  (Click over to enlarge)
Photo: kindly contributed by Andy Metcalfe




Helmshore Council School 1880s  (Click to enlarge)
Photo: kindly contributed by Andy Metcalfe


 
Helmshore Primary School. The Farnworth family. From the left : John (deceased) Jean, Susan and Thomas.
(Click over to enlarge) Photo: Kindly shared by Jean Smith on 25th April 2017


 
Helmshore County Primary School around 1955
Photo: Kindly shared by Jean Smith on 27th April 2017

 
Helmshore County Primary 1964 Soccer Team
Photo: Kindly shared by Jean Smith on 27th April 2017







 Helmshore County Primary Gymnastics Team 1979 (Click over to enlarge)
Names offered and in no particular order: Tracy Durkin, Kerry Hackett, Louise Aitken, Tracy Best, Alison Gilmore, Susan Taylor, Stephanie Hampshaw, Katherine Pendlebury, Sarah Kay, Nicola Johnson.


 
Helmshore County Primary School Concert 1979 (Click over to enlarge)
Names offered in no particular order: Lee Wright, Justin Nicholls, Jonathan Kay, Frank Willis



Helmshore Primary School (Click over to enlarge)
Photo: Kindly shared to us by Victoria Roles