Wrenthorpe’s friendly societies

It’s surprising how little news coverage there is of local friendly societies and benefit clubs in Wrenthorpe in the late 19th/early 20th century. Membership of such a society or club was usually the only means of receiving access to sick pay and pensions, and to escaping the horrors of the poor law and workhouse.

Although much further primary research is needed, from the old newspapers it appears there was the Wrenthorpe Friendly Society founded in 1831, and a Wrenthorpe Lodge of Druids set up later that decade. Both organisations met at the Royal Oak.

Here are the only news pieces found so far.

Wakefield Free Press
Saturday 1 September 1877

WRENTHORPE FRIENDLY SOCIETY

On Sunday afternoon last, the members of the Wrenthorpe Friendly Society, who hold their meetings at the Royal Oak Inn, met and afterwards proceeded in processional order to the United Methodist Free Church, Potovens, where a sermon was preached by Mr G. H. Smith, of Ossett. A collection was made at the close in aid of the Clayton Hospital, and the sum of £2 3s 7d was realised.

 

Wakefield Free Press
Saturday 8 July 1882

CLUB ANNIVERSARY AT WRENTHORPE

The 1st of July will long be remembered by the inhabitants of Potovens as a red letter day, the occasion being the celebration of the fifty-first anniversary of the Wrenthorpe Friendly Society. The members were honoured with the presence of his worship, the Mayor of Wakefield, Mr Alderman Milthorp. Over 100 members, in addition to about 40 belonging to the juvenile branch, sat down to dinner at the Royal Oak. The catering of Mr and Mrs Hardy gave general satisfaction, and before separating hearty votes of thanks were accorded to the Mayor and Mr B. Kemp, solicitor, for their presence. A general wish was expressed that both gentlemen would at the next anniversary again honour the company. A procession of the members, along with a number of the juvenile members in a waggon belonging to Mr Glover, of Silcoates, and headed by the East Ardsley Brass Band, marched round the village.

 

Leeds Times
Saturday 1 December 1838

DRUIDS

On Monday, new lodge of Druids was opened at the house of Mr. Austerland, the Royal Oak, Potovens, near Wakefield.

 

Wakefield and West Riding Herald
Saturday 22 June 1901

NATIONAL EQUALISED DRUIDS: JUVENILE FRIENDLY SOCIETY

Thrift and providence are amongst the striking characteristics of the parishes round ye “merrie” city, and they are fostered by many a thriving clothing club and friendly society. Wrenthorpe has both, and both distinctly flourish. That the success of the Juvenile Branch of the Equalised Druids is due to the consistent energy of its worthy secretary (Mr. Eli Bateman) is without question. He performs his regular secretarial duties with a dogged perseverance which spells success, and, when one sees him in the midst of a hundred rollicking youngsters, one sees him in his element. He has the golden key to the hearts of the younger end of the present generation. It is not surprising, therefore, that on Saturday last, the day for the annual excursion of the Equalised Druids, Wrenthorpe should have been a forsaken waste. Woodkirk Gardens was the place of rendezvous for the various branches of the district, and out of Wrenthorpe went forth seven large conveyances about 100 children and 50 of their parents. En route they met the Outwood contingent about the same number. Free tickets provided for the children admittance to the gardens and an excellent tea, which was partaken of with very positive appetite, the fragments that remained being strikingly inconspicuous. The usual excellent programme of games and diversions was indulged in until about 9 o’clock, when the company was remustered and the return journey commenced. It was about 9.30 that a gradual crescendo of irresponsible frivolity, from amongst which a very sensitive ear could just detect the much loved sounds of the bugle of the C.L.B., communicated the intelligence that the kids – God bless ’em – had got safely back.

 

Wakefield Free Press
Saturday 11 June 1870

CLUB ANNIVERSARY AT SNOW HILL

On Whit-Monday, the members of the Benevolent Free Gift Club – a club self-supporting and unconnected with any other society – held their anniversary, at the house of Mr Lupton, the Bay Horse Inn, Snow Hill. About forty members partook of an excellent repast, served up in a creditable manner, and on the tables being cleared, the business of the meeting was proceeded with. We understand the society is in a very prosperous state, and has been the means of doing much good during the past year. The after part of the proceedings were of a very pleasant character, being harmoniously kept up till a late hour, when the members separated highly pleased with the “spread” “mine host” had provided for them.

Snippets 1

Five short pieces with nothing in common but too short for individual blog posts.

Wakefield and West Riding Herald
Saturday 26 April 1890

The cuckoo was first heard in this district at Brandy Carr on Thursday morning. This is two or three days later than usual.

 

Wakefield Free Press
Saturday 20 January 1866

Whilst pulling down some old buildings at Potovens, a few days ago, there was found, an ancient Roman copper coin, of the reign of Antonius-Arelius or Pius is not certain, as it is impossible to decipher the whole.

 

Wakefield Free Press
Saturday 11 June 1870

POTOVEN’S FEAST

The inhabitants of Wrenthorpe celebrated their feast on Whit-Monday, after much the usual fashion. On the following day the scholars belonging to the several schools walked in procession, and sung their anniversary hymns at several places on the route.

 

Wakefield and West Riding Herald
Saturday 9 December 1899

Highways and Sewerage Committee [of Wakefield Rural District Council] meeting held November 27th. The Committee considered a recommendation from the Alverthorpe Local Committee with regard to the dangerous state of the Waterloo Well at Kirkhamgate, and recommended that the surrounding wall be pulled down, the pump removed, and the well filled up.

 

Wakefield Free Press
Saturday 5 October 1873

POTOVENS HARVEST FESTIVAL

On Sunday last, a harvest festival was held at the Potovens National School Room, which was very tastefully and elaborately decorated. Miss Saville, Miss Meadows, Mrs Naters, and the Rev C Naters, and others, had the management of the decorations. Full choral services were held, the Rev. C. Naters preached in the morning, and the Rev J. Harrison in the evening.

Time finally called on Royal Oak pub

Standing on a site later occupied by Wrenthorpe Health Centre, the Royal Oak pub was at the heart of Potovens village life throughout the 1800s. Clubs and associations held their dinners and formal events there, and it was also the venue for most coroner’s inquest proceedings.

Despite its popularity, the pub’s owners couldn’t counter the force of the early 20th century Temperance Movement, nor was it deemed necessary to have so many pubs following the opening of Wrenthorpe Working Men’s Club in 1901. There were three pubs in the village centre in close proximity – The Malt Shovel, New Wheel and Royal Oak – one of them had to go.

Leeds Mercury
Tuesday 5 February 1907

PROSPECTIVE REDUCTIONS IN LOWER AGBRIGG
CHAIRMAN AND THE GROWTH OF CLUBS

The annual licensing meeting for the Lower Agbrigg Division of the West Riding was held at Wakefield yesterday, Mr Percy Tew presiding over a large attendance of members.

The Chairman observed that they had about an average number of public houses in the division, compared with other parts of the West Riding, but there were districts in the division where there were far too many public houses in proportion to the population.

The Justices were sorry to notice that whilst they were intrusted with very much larger powers of reducing the number of public houses there was a marked increase in the number of clubs, and there was not much encouragement to try to reduce facilities for drinking by a reduction of licences when they found the number of clubs increasing.

Apart from that question, however, they were of opinion there was a good number of public houses in the division which could be spared, and which were not required for the needs of the district. They were not in a position to deal with the question that day, but there were fourteen public houses, chiefly beerhouses, concerning which they had decided to consider at the adjourned Sessions a month hence whether or not they should be referred to the compensation authority.

The houses be considered at the adjourned Sessions are –Floating Light, Flockton Moor; Little Bull, Flockton; Farmer’s Boy, Flockton; Moulders’ Arms, Middlestown; Foresters’ Arms, Stocksmoor; Travellers’ Rest, Lofthouse Gate; Royal Oak, Potovens; Lord Nelson Inn, Carlton; Prince of Wales Inn, Carlton; Miners’ Arms, Ouchthorpe Lane, Stanley; Garden Gate, Stanley Lane End; Commercial Inn, Horbury; Ring o’Bells Inn, Horbury; Spotted Cow Tavern, Horbury Junction.

At the adjourned licensing meeting on 18 March, the Royal Oak was one of four pubs magistrates decided to refer to the Compensation Authority.

By early June the pub was among those publicised as having their licences refused and seeking compensation claims. Its landlord at the time was Thomas Walker, its owner The Tadcaster Tower Brewery.

The Sheffield Daily Telegraph of 10 July 1907 briefly reports the conclusions of the Compensation Committee, which was to pay the hefty sum of £1,608 for the loss of the Royal Oak’s licence. I wonder how the compensation was shared out between the brewery and the landlord.

Mining accident deaths: roof falls

Four mid to late-19th century reports on Wrenthorpe miners killed by roof falls at local pits.

Leeds Mercury
Saturday 5 April 1856

FATAL ACCIDENT IN A COAL PIT

On Thursday evening last, an inquest was held before T Taylor, Esq, coroner, at the Royal Oak Inn, Potovens, touching the death of John Bedford, who had died on the morning of the above day from the injuries he had received on the previous Monday, whilst working in the pit of Messrs R Hudson and Co, at Newton Lane End. From the evidence of Joseph Clegg, a miner, who was working near to deceased at the time of the accident, it appeared that he and deceased were in what is termed straight work, and on hearing something fall, he called out, but, receiving no reply, took his light and looked through a slit, and saw deceased under a stone weighing about half a ton. He assisted in getting deceased out of the pit, and saw him conveyed home to Potovens in a cart. He was 27 years of age, and was attended by Mr H Horsfall, surgeon, up to the time of his death. Verdict, “Accidentally crushed”.

Barnsley Chronicle
Saturday 21 December 1861

KILLED BY A FALL COAL

On Thursday, at the Royal Oak Inn, Potovens, T Taylor, Esq, held an inquest on the body of George Whiteley, a collier, who had been killed in the St John’s Colliery, which is the property of the executors of the late Mr Benjamin Burnley. According the evidence of James Whiteley, of Wrenthorpe, who was hurrier to the deceased, it appeared that the deceased worked at the St John’s Colliery. The seam is the Stanley Main bed, which consists of two veins, the lower being a yard thick, and intervening between it and the upper vein, which is about two feet thick, there is layer of loose stone and dirt. On Monday the deceased was at his work, and had “holed” under the lower bed about two feet. The bank where was working is about ten yards long, and he had bared about four yards in the middle. He had previously “felled’’ one end, and as he was cutting the other end the coal suddenly fell, and the corner hit him on the left side, and knocked him off his stool. He was just at the time getting the last curve load for that day, previous to ceasing work. After his injury he could not rise, and had to be taken home, where died on Wednesday from the injuries had sustained. In addition to the above facts, it was stated by a collier, named John Haigh, residing at Eastmoor, that if the deceased had been standing in place of sitting when the fall occurred, he would not have been injured. The verdict returned was to the effect that the death of the deceased had resulted from his being accidentally injured.

Sheffield Independent
Saturday 31 March 1888

FATAL COLLIERY ACCIDENT AT LOFTHOUSE

On Thursday, fall of roof took place at the Lofthouse Colliery, near Wakefield. A mass of about five tons of material fell upon a young man named Albert Tattersdale, between 19 and years of age, living at Potovens, burying him under the debris. When extricated, he was found to be quite dead, being crashed in a fearful manner.

Sheffield Evening Telegraph
Wednesday 3 May 1899

INQUEST

Yesterday, Major Taylor, JP, held an inquest at the Clayton Hospital, Wakefield, on the body of Harry Scott Clay, miner, 25 yean age of Wild’s Buildings, Potovens. The deceased was employed at the Silkstone seam the Lofthouse Colliery, when a large piece of stone suddenly fell from the roof, caught Clay on the head, and caused a compound fracture of the skull. A verdict of “Accidental death” was returned.

Knitting fog, or the 80-year wait

Searching for ‘Royal Oak’ and ‘Potovens’ turned up this unexpected find. No doubt a considerable amount of spin’s been put on this story, and it chimes with the then political allegiance of the Post and Intelligencer.

Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer
Monday 9 May 1887

WRENTHORPE CONSERVATIVE ASSOCIATION

The inaugural dinner of this newly formed association was held on Saturday evening at the Royal Oak Inn, Potovens. About seventy persons sat down to an excellent repast. The company included Mr J Thomas, president; Messrs W Pearson, J Brooke, and T Thompson, vice-presidents; Mr B F Glover, president of the Alverthorpe Conservative Association; Mr J Shuttleworth of Wakefield, the Conservative agent for the Normanton Division; Mr Haigh, Silcoates Mills; Mr W Briggs, Red Hall; Mr Bryan H Ramsden, &c. A letter was read from Mr C E Charlesworth, Moor House, Stanley, regretting his inability to be present, and at the same time expressing his pleasure at the formation of the association. A resolution of confidence in Her Majesty’s Government was proposed by Mr Haigh, seconded by Mr B F Glover, and supported by Mr Shuttleworth, the latter of whom replied at length to the speech recently delivered at Wrenthorpe by Mr B Pickard, MP [founder and President of the Miners’ Association of Great Britain and the local MP], with regard to the Mines’ Regulation Bill. Other toasts followed, after which the meeting assumed a convivial character, and a very pleasant evening was spent.

It wasn’t until 80 years later, in May 1967, that the Tories actually won an election in Wrenthorpe.

 

UPDATE

Now that the Wakefield newspapers have been added to the Newspaper Archive, it’s possible to delve more deeply the quirks of local politics. It seems that the Potovens of the second half of the 19th century wasn’t quite the Liberal/nonconformist bastion it should have been. The strength of the Anglicans, tactical voting and a particularly tenacious local politician meant that, surprisingly, the Liberals didn’t get a clear run.