Wellingtonia - WordPress.com · 2014-01-03 · On the other hand, recruitment was also done by...

well as topics relating to the town itself. The possibilities are endless! Please see back page for our contact detailsand inside for informationon the public talks we aregiving in 2009.

We have been very fortunate and are most grateful for the grants we have been given by Awards For All and Wellington Town Council. The money has been and will continue to be used toproduce four copies of Wellingtonia, as well as provide equipment enabling us to give publictalks during the twelve months ending in September this year. Whathappens after thendepends on many factors.

Recently, the Group has also made donations of magazines and books to local schools and collegesto help both teachers and students gain a better und-

erstanding of the area’s past.It’s not easy researching

history. That’s why we need yoursupport, and it’s also why we askyou to get involved.

We’ll do what we can to helpyou and hope you’ll let us borrowitems like old photos to give us theopportunity to increase ourknowledge. Much of what we findout isn’t discovered in oldnewspapers and books, it comesfrom people like you.

We are all, one way or another,historians.

Treasurer Phil Fairclough proudlydisplays the Awards For All cheque.

WellingtoniaNewsletter of the Wellington History Group,

rediscovering the past of Wellington in Shropshire

Issue 2 : Winter 2009

WELCOME ...

FREE ISSUE!

Produced with financial support from Awards For All

... to Issue Two of our quarterly magazine. Response to Issue One has been staggering, to say the least, with copies snapped up from Wellington and Telford libraries as well as shops in the town. We had a suspicion they’d fly off the shelves but were surprised by how quickly they disappeared!

We have been very pleased (and relieved!) to receive so many positivecomments about its presentation and the quality of our articles. Some have come from as far away as Canada, America, South Africa andAustralia, so either friends living in far away places have been sent a copy, or they’ve asked for a copy to be sent (free of charge) as an email attachment. We do our best!

Several readers have askedwhether Wellingtonia is in directcompetition with the WellingtonNews magazine. The answer is definitely not. We aren’t inbusiness, nor do we tend to reportrecent newsworthy events.

Our articles are designedspecifically to emphasiseWellington’s rich history andencourage readers to learn more,perhaps beginning their own linesof research into family histories as

IN THIS ISSUE******************

Page2. Wellington 18323. Unsolved Mysteries 4. Shropshire’s Catholic Pilgrimage5. Wellingtonians6. Life on the Arleston Estate7. Public Talks in 20098. New Street or High Street?9. The Gumshoe Trail

10. Old School Photos12. Two Parishes in One14. Healy/Haley and

Welsh/Walsh Families15. The Old Spike16. A Day at the Seaside17. Wellington Journal18. Methodism in Wellington20. Schools Benefit; Contact Details

***********

2 Wellingtonia: Issue 2, Winter 2009

Sometimes, when with myfriends of Wellington HistoryGroup, I feel like the odd

man out, not only because I’m themost ancient but also because I’ma geographer rather than anhistorian, though I admit tohaving read many history booksover the twenty years or so that Ispent writing local history.

Maps have been a fascinationfor me over the years; I enjoyreading them and visualising theplaces on them. Someone said thathistory is about chaps andgeography about maps and there’sa lot of truth in that.

John Wood’s map of Wellingtonin 1832 is a beauty and worthhours of reading. I have severalversions, of which Allan Frost’s isthe best. His shows a few placeslater than 1832, like Christ Church(1838), and that’s an advantage. Itis the earliest accurate map ofWellington we have and showsour town as it was 167 years ago.

One important reason formaking the map must have beenthe forthcoming railway so theownership of the land was vital toWood’s sponsor, the Duke ofSutherland and his partners. Muchof the land outside the built uparea was the property of big locallandowners like Lord Forester, St.John Chiverton Charlton, EdwardCludde and Thomas Eyton. Evenin those days, the LilleshallCompany could not proceedwithout buying the land. Wenotice that Forester ownedthe land where bothrailway stations (passengerand goods) were built andthe Shropshire Works,where the rolling stock andother articles were made(later Groom’s TimberYard).

The map showsWellington as a small townmercifully free from anyhint of planning. Roadsradiate in a higgledy-piggledy manner from theMarket Square as if madeby the town drunk. Along

them are huddled hundreds ofsmall houses with a few biggerones and other larger houses setback from the streets. Behindmany of the houses are longnarrow gardens set out likemedieval burgess plots for traders.Some of these plots are full of tinyhouses for the poor. They musthave been terrible places to liveand were probably temporaryaccommodation until a betterhome could be afforded. Severalnurseries are marked, presumablysupplying vegetables for the town.

Many street names havechanged, like Jarrats Lane (GlebeStreet), New Town (HaygateRoad), Water Lane (Wrekin Road),Back Lane (King Street), ButcherLane (Market Street), and what themap calls New Street includes ourHigh Street.

Market Square is very tightlybuilt up. Barrie Trinder’s idea thatit used to include Crown Street,Bell Street and Duke Street looksquite correct. That’s Crown Street,Dun Cow Lane and Swinemarketon the map. Barrie suggested thatthe buildings between theseancient streets were originallymarket stalls that became moreand more permanent. The markethall is not marked; it wasdismantled in 1800 but saved therest of Market Square frombecoming built up.

What became Lloyds Bank wasour first bank; it’s shown on thenorth side of Ten Tree Croft. Thisis surprising but John Wood is a

careful cartographer. Behind thebank, I assume, was Tenter Croft,where cloth was stretched ontenterhooks. Northeast of that, Ibelieve, was the town’s pond,probably where flax was retted forlinen making.

North of the church is thepublic school that later transferredto Constitution Hill (BelleviewRoad here) and later to OrletonLane, becoming Orleton Park..There’s a foundry in New HallStreet (later Foundry Road, nowdisappeared) that I think was thebrass foundry, where bells weremade. Later there was a large ironfoundry making bread ovens andcalled the Panification Works. Tothe southwest is the vicarage, latercalled the Priory.

Other large houses are theVineyard, Parville House, SpringHill House (now Priory NursingHome), and Chapel House, oncethe Baptist Church in PloughRoad.

Roads radiate, to the northtowards Eyton and the WealdMoors, southeast to Watling Street,then a separate township,southwest to The Wrekin andeastwards to Shrewsbury,Wrockwardine and Admaston Spa.If older roads have more twistsand turns, many of these are veryancient, with only a vague ideawhere to go. The map makesnonsense of any idea of defence;you just could not defendWellington, it’s not designed for it.The Home Guard found that outin 1939.

This is a fascinating map; oneto drool over, to wonder about, to

speculate on. Itencapsulates the past of thetown, making references toearlier days and pointingto the future – where welive. To a mapaholic likeme it ranks with some ofmy favourite stories andpoems.

Before they all go, if youreally want to learn aboutWellington’s history, snapone of these wonderfuldocuments up from AllanFrost. He only sells them athis talks, and they’re abargain at £5.00.

WELLINGTON 1832 George Evans

Here is the next historicalproblem we’d likesomeone to solve by

providing us with definite proof:where exactly did King Charles Imake his famous Declarationwhich heralded the beginning ofthe English Civil War?

The MysteryI have been unable to find anyproof that King Charles I ever setfoot in Wellington itself, butanother myth has arisen over thelast thirty or so years: that hemade his Declaration of War inMarket Square (or Market Place asit was then known).

Where did Charles stay?What we do know is that he andhis troops stopped overnight from19th - 20th September 1642 whileon their way from Nottingham viaNewport to Shrewsbury, where hehoped to receive offers of supportand gain more troops.

There were then two mainroutes from Newport toShrewsbury. The first was the oldPortway, which passes throughShawbirch; the second was thelane which ran through Trenchtowards Wellington where itjoined Watling Street, then ranpast Orleton Hall on its way to theCounty town. Both routes by-passWellington.

The Portway was the shortestand most direct route. It passesclose to Apley Castle whoseCharlton family at the time wereRoyalist supporters.

The Cludde family at OrletonHall could have accommodatedCharles and his soldiers with theirtents, horses and artillery, and TheWrekin Hill may have provided afocal point for potential recruits toassemble, but it strikes me as morelogical for the king and his armyto strike camp overnight at a placeoffering him noble hospitalityclose to the quickest route, whichwas across The Weald Moorsalong the Portway.

Whichever site was chosen, it’sunbelievable to think Charleswould have allowed his 4,000-

strong army of largely untrainedand undisciplined soldiersanywhere near the centre of asmall town like Wellington.

He needed to keep them incheck. Even at this early stage,there was always the risk ofdesertion and rioting.

Where was the Standard raised?It is, however, possible that hisstandard was raised in the Square,even if he wasn't personallypresent; it might have been, andprobably was, done as an attemptto recruit men to his cause in whatwas the recognised centre of thedistrict: he had done the samething in Nottingham a few daysearlier.

On the other hand, recruitmentwas also done by inviting localknights and gentry into the king’spresence and making a personalappeal for them to commit anumber of men from tenants ontheir lands to his cause.

We also have to bear in mindthat the king did not appear infront of the general public exceptin special circumstances.Monarchs preferred to stay awayin more comfortable surroundings

and sent their underlings to do thedirty work.

King Charles I made theDeclaration to his army to inspireand maintain loyalty for his cause;it was made immediately aftermilitary orders had been given toeach of his assembled regiments.He couldn’t have done that in thecentre of what was little more thana village.

In W. Farrow’s 1926 bookShropshire 1642-49: The Great CivilWar, he states with regard toWellington:

‘In the vicinity of that town, theKing placing himself in the midst ofhis troops, made a speech that waswarmly welcomed, not only by thearmy, but also by the people of thelocality whose loyalty had beensomewhat shaken by the propagandaof Parliament.’

We must reach the conclusionthat the Declaration didn’t takeplace in Wellington itself, butrather on its outskirts, after whichCharles and his army progressedto Shrewsbury where he recruitedmore troops and apparentlyaccepted cash and militarysupport from wealthy inhabitantsin exchange for honours. He alsohad coins produced at the town’sMint.

Do you have any definite proofto shed more light on the matter?

If so, let us know.

* * *

3

UNSOLVED MYSTERIES Allan Frost

‘I desire to govern by theknown laws of the land, and

that the liberty and property ofthe subject may be by them

preserved with the same care asmy own just rights. And if it

please God, by his blessingupon this armie raised for mynecessary defence, to preserve

me from this rebellion, I dosolemnly and faithfully promisein the sight of God to maintainjust privileges and freedom ofParliament, and to govern bythe known laws of the land tothe utmost of my power; and

particularly to observeinviolably the laws consented to

me by this Parliament.’

The King’s Declaration

King Charles I addresses troops atGay Meadow, Shrewsbury, 1642.


Imagine the scene, a small bandof pilgrims gathered by theparish church of All Saints in

Wellington to prepare for theirannual pilgrimage to the shrine atHolywell in Wales.

The great banner depicting OurLady had been recently blessed byCardinal Wolsey, the Papal Legate,and would be carried in front,showing the way forward. Theycould still hear the familiarrhythm of the Latin chant sung bya visiting group of monks fromnearby Haughmond Abbey andsmell the heady incense driftingfrom the candle lit church. Theywere proud that their King, HenryVIII, had just been awarded a newtitle by Pope Leo 10th to honourhis rebuttal of the Lutheran heresy.The king was now ‘Defender ofthe Faith’ ... the Catholic faith.

In less than a generation fromthat time, a thousand years ofCatholic tradition was to be sweptaway and that band of pilgrimswould live to see the destructionof their faith and the forcedimposition of new beliefs both onthem and their children. Theywere all facing a much more lifechallenging pilgrimage than theycould ever have imagined as theystepped forward on that day in theyear 1521.

Some learned with dismay thatthe Pope would no longer be thehead of the English church. Themonasteries were to be stripped ofall their valuables and land andtheir lead and stone used to buildhouses for rich landowners andmerchants. No longer wouldchurch services be sung in Latinand the veneration of Our Ladyand the Saints was discouraged.The ‘Defender of the Faith’ hadproved to be its destroyer.

Times got harder for thedwindling group of loyalCatholics who still clung to the oldbeliefs. Heavy fines were imposedfor refusal to attend the newprotestant Church of England.Priests were hunted down andmany were executed.

One, the Blessed Robert

Johnson, after whom oursecondary school is named, wassaid to come from South EastShropshire, possibly from one ofthe parishes of Claverley,Halesowen or Worfield.

In 1572, at the age of 29 years,he left to study at the GermanCollege in Rome to become aCatholic priest. It was illegal tostudy for the priesthood inEngland and those wishing tofollow this dangerous vocationwere secretly smuggled out of thecountry.

Despite ill health anddifficulties with study, Robert wasordained in Brussels in 1576. Aftera period of further study with theJesuits at Louvain, he brieflyvisited England in 1579, beforereturning to Rome.

William Cecil, Lord Burleigh,Elizabeth's chief minister, had avery elaborate system of spies whomonitored the movements ofEnglish priests training on thecontinent. One of these spies saw

Robert Johnson in Rome.‘He is about 40 years of age,

slender of body, somewhat hardfavoured, his face full of wrinkles, thehair of his beard not cut, a flaxenyellow colour, wanting two teeth onhis upper jaw on the right side. Hespeaketh Italian excellently’ (fromAnsthruther Seminary Priests).

In 1580, he returned to Englandunder the patronage of the Talbotfamily of Shrewsbury.Immediately arrested, he was sentto prison in the Counter in thePoultry in London. In December ofthat year he was transferred to theTower of London for interrogationand torture. He was arraignedwith the famous martyr, EdmundCampion and condemned to deathon 20th November 1581. Heprotested at his trial that he hadnever even seen those with whomhe was accused of plotting untilthey met in the court room! On28th May 1582 his life's pilgrimageended in martyrdom at Tyburnwith two others, Thomas Ford andJohn Short.

It was extremely dangerous forCatholic priests to exist in Englandand they had to rely on a systemof safe houses with secret priestholes to enable them to hideduring the many raids. Some verywealthy aristocratic landownersstill maintained the Catholic faithin their large manor houses, oftensupporting a private chapel whereMass could be said secretly forthem and their household.

The Catholic CrescentThese aristocratic houses thatsupported the Catholics werespread out like a huge crescentsurrounding Wellington. In thenorth was Longford HallNewport, the home of the Talbots,Earls of Shrewsbury. To the east,Viscount Stafford lived at theManor House in Shifnal.Southwards, the Brooke familywho owned much of the iron andcoal workings in the Gorge livedin Madeley Court near the Purcellfamily who owned Benthall Hall.Finally in the south west, at Acton

SHROPSHIRE‘S CATHOLIC PILGRIMAGE Phil Fairclough

Window depicting the Blessed RobertJohnson in St. Patrick’s church.

Burnell, lived the Smythe family. In Wellington, Edward Forester

of Old Hall, Watling Street,hereditary warden of the WrekinForest, sent his son Francis forordination at the English Collegein Rome in 1592. The same family,who moved to Dothill Park in1602, welcomed a French priest, FrStepen le Maitre, a refugee fromthe French Revolution, toWellington's first legal CatholicChapel in the Lodge at DothillHouse in 1806.

More humble Catholics lived intheir shadow and the few we cantrace to these early times lived onWatling Street and were probablyemployed as colliers in theSteeraway lime kilns at NewWorks, owned by the Foresterfamily. It seems certain thatMadeley Court was the mainreligious centre and priests rodeout on horse back from there toWellington to minister to theneeds of their tiny flock. They metin a humble shed behind theDuke's Head Pub in New Streetand later in a nearby shop.

The heavy fines andpersecution took a heavy toll andby the end of the 18th centuryCatholicism had virtually died inShropshire. It has been estimatedthat there were only 90,000Catholics left in the whole ofEngland. They were concentratedin London, Lancashire,Staffordshire and the north easterncounties of Durham andNorthumberland.

Salvation came fromunexpected sources. The rising

prosperity associated with theIndustrial Revolution pulled inworkers and traders from all over.The first new Catholics to arrive inWellington were from Italy andIreland. The Cetti family fromLake Como established a jewellerybusiness here in 1836 and by 1841had been joined by two moreItalian families. They were rapidlyfollowed by waves of Irishimmigration mainly from Galway,Sligo and Mayo, so many that anew church on Mill Bank wasbuilt in 1838.

By 1841 there were 188 Irishborn people settled in Wellington.The expansion continued over thefollowing century withimmigration from Poland,Germany, Italy, France, Hungary,India and many other places.

The last congregational surveyin 2005 at St Patrick's Church,Wellington, lists members from 33different countries excluding thosefrom Ireland, England, Scotlandand Wales. It really has againbecome ‘Many Nations OneChurch’, just as the church hadbeen in medieval Europe.

Some things have alwaysendured. There are stillpilgrimages to Holywell.Throughout all the violent changesin religion over the interveningfour centuries, small bands ofpeople have continuously madetheir way to the Holy Well andkept faith with those earlypilgrims who left Wellington in1521 to begin their epic journeythrough turmoil and change.

What makes aWellingtonian? Is itsomeone who was born

here? Or their family has lived inthe town for a generation or two?Or someone who has moved here?And, if you go to live somewhereelse, can you still be a regarded asa Wellingtonian?

The answers to all thesequestions is ‘yes.’

Since the beginnings of thetown some 1300 years ago(probably founded, it has to besaid, by a migrant Anglo-Saxon),the growth from farmstead tovillage to town has only beenmade possible by folk migrating tothe area, settling down and havingfamilies. Not all were whiteindigenous ‘English’ or evenBritish.

Over the centuries ourpopulation has seen the arrival ofa wide variety of races and creeds,ranging from the Normans (whoseorigins lay in Scandinavia) duringthe eleventh century right throughto Italians who settled here duringthe mid-nineteenth century.

The twentieth centurywitnessed an influx of newresidents from all over the world.Some were refugees escaping fromconflict, or political or religiouspersecution. Others were‘economic’ migrants, who came insearch of new jobs and sometimesbegan their own highly successfulbusinesses.

Wellington has always been amixed society and has, by andlarge, extended the hand offriendship to everyone, whatevertheir origins, language or colour ofskin.

The town is all the richer for it.People are people, after all, withtheir own personalities, beliefs andways of life. Just because we don’talways like someone or agree withwhat they say or do doesn’t make‘us’ right and ‘them’ wrong.

A Wellingtonian is someonewho has a deep affection for ourtown, its multicultural society,streets, buildings and people.Wherever they happen to live.

5

Sketch ofthe original

All Saintsparish

church,built for

use by theCatholic

faith. It was

demolishedin 1789 tomake wayfor today’s

building.

WELLINGTONIANS

ones up the hill, and we and theother 577 families felt excited, andquite superior, to be moving in.

By 1950, the hardships ofWorld War II were generallyforgotten, although some foodrationing remained. ClementAttlee’s Labour Government werestill in power (admittedly not formuch longer) and at long lastpeople’s disposable incomes weregrowing.

This was evident amongst ourneighbours. People began buyingcars, bicycles, new furniture, newclothes – the wartimethumbscrews were off.

As young boys then (I was 10)we Arleston hamster packmembers were rarely bored. Therewere things to mess up, such asthe neat piles of sand being usedby Wimpey to build the other halfof the estate between 1950 and1954, there were unoccupiedupstairs bedrooms to jump out of(into the sand), timber to ‘borrow’to make buggy cars, windows tobreak (accidentally), football toplay in the street, building sitenight watchmen to drive nuts, etc.

Tourist park developers couldlearn a great deal from partlycompleted housing estates likeours. It was an absolute dream forkids, and Disney could have saved

THE late 1940s and early 50ssaw significant housingdevelopment in Wellington,

in particular the creation of the‘new’ Arleston estate - not to beconfused with the old Arlestonestate which carried thederogatory local name tag of LittleRussia.

This older part (Urban DistrictCouncil houses completed pre-war), consisted of double-storeyred brick semi-detached dwellings,to be joined, from 1947-1954, by578 pastel coloured dwellings(houses and flats) forming theUDC’s ‘new’ Arleston estate,down the steep hill and to thewest.

My family lived in this newpart from 1950 to 1962. NewArleston homes looked verydifferent from their Little Russiacounterparts. All were built, notof brick, but of in situ no finesconcrete, their exteriors coated in aTyrolean finish, rather like razor-sharp, rock-hard porridge.Experts have acknowledged thatthese swish-looking Wimpeyproductions, constructed in acombination of poured concreteand breeze block, were notoriouslydifficult to keep warm in winter.

But their design was streetsahead of the rather grim red brick


himself millions in set-up costssimply by reproducing a half-finished Arleston Estate andcharging admission.

Oddly enough, even thoughthe ill-advised 11-plus scholarshipsystem sent 82 per cent of childrento secondary modern schools, asfar as I can remember almost allthe New Arleston lads I got toknow went to the local grammarschool. This placed us in eachother’s pockets morning, day andevening, especially in the schoolholidays with no homework togrind through.

We lived in Kingsland, thelong, sloping thoroughfare that lay(and still lies) as the spine of theentire development, with, lookinguphill, Dawley Road over to theright of us, and the seldom-visitedLittle Russia far to the left.

There were no recreationalfacilities such as grassed openspace available on the estate, sowe played our football and cricket,even tennis either side of animaginary net, out in the street,plagued though we were on aregular basis by a local motorcyclepoliceman who would stop ourgames, lecture us about thedangers of playing on a streetpractically devoid of traffic, thenride away, only to appear minuteslater after doing a loop to see if wehad heeded his warnings. Wenever had.

Life on a new housing estatelike New Arleston was an eye-opener for the majority of thetenants. Due to the primitivestandard of municipal pre-warhousing stock, a surprisingnumber of homes had no runninghot water, no separate bathroom,and both the coalhouse and thelavatory situated directly off thekitchen. New Arleston changedall that.

The estate had a refreshingly‘open’ air about it – no frontfences, and, as far as I recall, noside or back fences either, otherthan posts and two strands ofwire. When we moved in, thebuilders had not even erected the

LIFE ON THE ARLESTON ESTATE John Westwood

John Westwood’s former home at 28 Kingsland.

posts and wire, and an uncle, dryof wit, stepped out back andremarked – ‘what a massivegarden you’ve got to knock intoshape’ (you could see a good 300yards to the Dawley Road, prior toits own transformation some yearslater by ribbon residentialdevelopment).

A major event for us boys (andgirls of course) was the opening ofthe estate’s own shops. At thelower end of Kingsland where itjoined Dawley Road, a substantialretail complex, with a flat aboveevery shop, was constructed in theearly 50s, featuring Alf Davies’grocery, the Foskett’s bread andcakes, men’s clothing, a butcher, aflorist, and, most important of all,Ernie Morgan’s sweet shop, whichalso sold ice cream.

Ernie was a former MidlandRed bus driver of cheerfuldisposition (surrounded by sweetsstacked to the rafters, whowouldn’t be cheerful?). He andhis pleasantly quiet wife ran theshop together, and we boys wereamong their regulars. Thanks tothe Morgans, we all put on weight.Walls ice cream, Cadbury’schocolate, walnut whirls, chocolateéclairs – all got a serious aworkout; Ernie could hardly keeppace.

7

New Arleston became one ofmany bright feathers in the cap ofthe Conservatives’ ministerresponsible for the post-warhousing rush, Harold Macmillan.He had promised to substantiallyincrease the nation’s stock ofaffordable housing made short byneglect on the one hand, and thewar on the other, and hesucceeded, later to be rewardedwith the prime ministership.

The other day, I was shown arecent photograph of our formerhouse at 28 Kingsland. Afternearly 60 years, it stands today (asemi-detached with bay windows)virtually as it was then, and, nodoubt, so do all the other 577.

Long live municipal building!

John Westwood now lives inMelbourne, Australia.

Keen sportsman John was a member of the Grammar School Cricket Team in thelate 1950s. Back row, from left, Norman Earle, Bill Smith, Tony Taylor, JohnWestwood, Peter Hughes, Neil Summerton. Front: -?-, George Benbow, TerryWoodward, Robert Purcell, Gilbert Band.

DON’T MISS OUR PUBLIC TALKS IN 2009!

Amonthly series of talks on subjects relating to our area began inJanuary when Allan Frost spoke about the history of our famousWrekin Brewery. At the time of writing, Phil Fairclough is

scheduled to talk about ‘When Europe Came To Shropshire, 1939-1950’ inFebruary.

Please make a note of the following dates and projected topics, and doyour best to give us your support. All meetings will take place in theCommittee Room at Wellington Civic Centre, beginning promptly at 7:30p.m. Admission is free, and refreshments will be provided.

March 11: George Evans: The Wrekin ForestApril 15: Neil Clarke: The Holyhead RoadMay 13: Advice on Family History ResearchJune 17: Geoff Harrison: History of Eyton upon the Wealdmoors

Announcements on these and other events, such as evening walks-and-talks, will be made at meetings and in the local Press.

Our Group will also be hosting the Wrekin Local Studies AnnualConference on Saturday 16th May in the Parish Hall of All Saints church.The day’s event will include talks and (weather permitting) town walks,and your chance to vote for ‘Who was the most notable Wellingtonian’.

More details to follow.

To learn more about the history ofWellington’s breweries, pop and bottlingfirms, read these books by Allan Frost.Order them from all good booksellers.


system began, where properties onthe left hand side were given oddnumbers, those on the right even.

To cope with increasingamounts of mail, it was decided inthe early 1870s to divide NewStreet into two, thus creating HighStreet, which commenced at theChapel Lane/St. John Streetjunction.

High Street was given its ownproperty numbers, althoughdwellings in yards or courtsrunning off High Street weren’t.

To add to the confusion, since afew years ago, New Street nowends and High Street begins at theRing Road near the MethodistChurch.

(often doubling up as abrewhouse); these groupeddwellings were usually named‘courts’ or ‘yards’, and took theowner’s name, like Keay’s Court.

The Post Office needed a moreprecise way of sorting the mail, sointroduced a system ofnumbering. Originally, NewStreets numbers ran from MarketSquare in the order 1, 2, 3, etc., allthe way along the northern side tothe King Street corner, thencrossed over the road to thesouthern side and continued untilit arrived back at Market Square.

Problems arose when newproperties were built, thusupsetting the order, so the present

Anyone researching theirfamily tree may get a littleconfused when checking

addresses in Census records of themid nineteenth century.

For example, you may find thatthe house number is different forsomeone living in New Street in1851 than is shown for 1861.

Similarly, an ancestor may beshown as living in New Street in1871, but appears to have movedto a new house in High Street tenyears later. The chances are thatthey haven’t moved at all.

These anomalies may havenothing at all to do with peoplemoving from one house to another(although the possibility shouldn’tbe ruled out) but rather therenumbering and subsequentdivision of New Street.

New Street was ‘created’during the Middle Ages and ranfrom the southern end of MarketPlace (or ‘Square’ as the Victoriansrenamed it) all the way to thejunction between King Street(formerly Back Lane) and MillBank (earlier called WindmillBank).

When postal services becamemore organised after 1828, whenauthoress Hesba Stretton’s fatherBenjamin Smith becameWellington’s first postmaster, theamount of post delivered on adaily basis was minimal. However,the arrival of the railway in 1849led to a massive increase andpostmen found it increasinglydifficult to carry overladen bags.

To begin with, none of theproperties in New Street werenumbered: there wasn’t any need;a person’s name and street wereall that were required to ensuredelivery ... we must rememberthat Wellington was only a smalltown and everyone kneweveryone else, and strangers andnew residents were quicklyrecognised.

A large number of poorer folklived in substandard slums, manyof which were tenement blocks orcottages around a central squarewith a communal wash house

NEW STREET OR HIGH STREET? Allan Frost

New Street ended and High Street began at the junction with Chapel Lane andSt. John Street (‘St. John’ is pronounced ‘Sinjun’). 1882 Ordnance Survey map.

9

Reading about Wellington’shistory is all well and goodbut what could be better

than going out and discovering itfirst hand?

We don’t just want to let youknow about the town’s fascinatingpast: no, we want you to starttelling us about it, too!

The Gumshoe Trail is a columndesigned to help do just that,detecting the most useful primarysources of local knowledge fromthe bewildering array of archivematerial in the public realm.

Marc Petty starts the ballrolling with yet anotherinnovation of the Victorian age:district authority records.

What are they?Local government papers. Morespecifically, the collected recordsof the Wellington ImprovementCommission and its successorbody, Wellington Urban DistrictCouncil.

What did they do?The 19th Century witnessed anenormous expansion of stateintervention in everyday life,primarily in response to the hugepublic health problems created bythe rapid industrialisation ofBritain’s towns and cities.Wellington was no different.

By 1854, the town’s manorcourt (a dubious medievalanachronism consisting of thearea’s wealthier citizens) waslosing the battle to stay abreast ofthese developments.

As a result, unhappy localtaxpayers successfully applied foran Act of Parliament to establishan improvement commission—ademocratically elected body,charged with enhancing publichealth in the area.

OK, but why is this so important?Between 1854 and 1894, the fifteencommissioners probably did morethan anyone else in Wellington’shistory to transform it into themodern town we know today: gasand water supplies were

improved, a new cemeteryconsecrated, streets were pavedand regularly cleansed and someof the worst slum housingremoved.

However, improvementcommissions had been aroundlong before the nineteenth centuryand were considered obsolete bythe time Wellington adopted one.Fewer than fifty remained inexistence by the 1880s, and theywere all swept away when acountrywide network of moderncouncils was established in 1894.

As such, Wellington becamehome to both an Urban and RuralDistrict Council; the former takingresponsibility for the affairs of thetown itself, with the latteradministering the outlying areasto the north and east as far asDonnington.

This dual system remainedintact until the local governmentreforms of the early 1970s.

It all sounds a bit boring!On the contrary! These recordspresent an unparalleled account ofdaily life in Wellington during aperiod of huge change.

Aside from recording regularcouncil business, such as minutesof its various committees, thecollection houses a vast number offiles belonging to its chiefadministrative officer, the townclerk.

They shed light on a widearray of subjects, from civil

defence procedures in the case of anuclear attack to the coming ofTelford (or, as it was dubbed in1965, ’50 000 overspillpopulation’—not a particularlycatchy name for a new town!).

However, much had alreadychanged in Wellington before thisdate and maps, photographs andnewspaper cuttings all help tochronicle the major post-warredevelopment of the town.

A bit random, isn’t it?Absolutely! Wellington UDCcertainly had an interest in thefiner points of public life.

There are details of prestigiousevents, presentations to localnotables and papers relating to aplethora of other bodies: fromlocal theatre groups to the firebrigade and even the PigMarketing Board!

Where can I find them?The records of Wellington UrbanDistrict Council (whichincorporate the papers of theImprovement Commission) areheld at Shropshire Archives inShrewsbury.

If you want to see them, you’llneed to get a Reader’s Ticket at thecentre itself (a simple procedurethat requires proof of identity andtwo passport-style photos).

If you’re just curious and wantto know what’s available, there’salso a catalogue of the records(reference number DA13) onlineon the Shropshire Archiveswebsite:

www.shropshire.gov.uk/archives.nsf

THE GUMSHOE TRAIL Marc Petty

Wellington Urban District Council meeting, 1962, with George Evans(third from right) as Chairman.

and sports teams. Long panoramicphotos of the whole school beganin the 1930s and continued, albeitless frequently, into the 1970s.

Individual pupil photos seemto have been the norm from the1940s to 1970s, possibly 1980s insome schools. They were oftenproduced shortly before Christmasand mounted in foldover cards forparents to give away as presentsor to adorn the mantelpiece and,as a by-product, help school fundsfor parties and subsidise day trips.

Sadly, schools do not alwaysappreciate the historical or familyimportance of their photos andmay not bother to make notes onwhat each one is about, or (horror


School photographs arewonderful things, especiallyones taken before this age of

political correctness. It’s nowdifficult to obtain photographs of

children in the classroom or takingpart in events for which they’vespend a great deal of timerehearsing and preparing. It didn’tused to be like that.

The history of school photos isa fascinating one. If nothing else,they can reveal what our ancestorslooked like in an age when takingphotographs was uncommon andthe services of professionals whounderstood this dark art wereessential in providing them.

Initially, photos were taken ofclasses, teachers and special events

OLD SCHOOL PHOTOS Allan Frost

Can you help us withcopies of old school

photographs, especially onesshowing groups of pupils?If so, please let us borrowthem to make computer

copies.

Wellington Mixed Modern School, 1960.

Wellington Boys’ Grammar, 1962.

Wellington Girls’ High School, 1963.

Miss Hallan’s Tutor Group at New College, c.1980.

11

of horrors!) throw them awaywhen, for example, a school isclosed or merged with another, ashappened when the formerSecondary Modern school inOrleton Lane closed a few yearsago.

Everyone (well, almosteveryone) likes to see themselvesor identify long lost friends inphotos such as these. Quite often,they are the only record we haveof our younger days.

Our chairman is trying to takecopies of as many Wellingtonschool photos as he can, so let himknow if you have any so that hecan borrow them. Please help himby getting in touch.


Most people in Wellingtonwill know that within thetown there are two

Anglican churches, each being thecentre of a parish. Christ Church isin the south of the town and beganits life as a ‘daughter’ church(technically a Chapel of Ease)within the All Saints parish; thechurch itself, built about 1837,stands away from the noise andbusiness of the town and is itself aparish church (see The Story ofChrist Church by Allan Frost, 2007)

To Wellingtonians and visitorswalking around the town, it isimpossible not to notice theimposing Georgian buildingstanding in the old church yard ( aGarden of Rest since the early1950s) – All Saints, the parishchurch of Wellington. Althoughlocked for security reasons, it isopen on Sundays and eachmorning early for prayer, and atlunch-time on Thursdays.

This is the parish church of thetown but most Wellingtonians donot realise that there are twochurches within the one Parish:look closely at the notices and youwill see ‘Parish of All Saints,Wellington with St. Catherine’s,Eyton’.

These two churches wereconstructed, probably on the sitesof the previous buildings, in theGeorgian period but are verydifferent in appearance.

The present All Saints church isbuilt of greyish Grinshill stone,similar to St. Chad’s church,Shrewsbury, not surprising as theywere designed by the samearchitect. The interior is typicalbasilican form with galleriessupported by columns with cast-iron at their core. It was built in1788-90.

St. Catherine’s church, built in1743, is very much smaller with arectangular nave and semi-circularapse at the east, all built of red-brick with red-sandstone quoins. Ithas a west-gallery. The church isset in surrounding farm-land.

But why are there two churchesin the parish?

At the time of the DomesdaySurvey in 1087, the village ofWellington had a church under thecontrol of the Abbey ofShrewsbury. Just to the north wasthe hamlet of Eyton upon theWealdmoors (variously speltWyldemor, Wildmoors) which wasa manor with, it is believed, asmall manorial chapel.

As time moved on through theMiddle Ages, the church atWellington became a parish with aVicar, and at Eyton the manorialchapel became a parish with aRector. Such distinctions relate tohow the priest was supported – aVicar only had ‘lesser tithes’, the‘greater tithes’ going to the lord ofthe manor, in the case ofWellington originally to the Abbeyat Shrewsbury and later after theAbbey was dissolved the Crown;whereas at Eyton the Rectorreceived the ‘greater tithes’ fromthe Manor of Eyton.

In the mid sixteenth century,the patron of both livings, orparishes, was the lord of Eytonupon the Weald Moors, ThomasEyton who acquired the right toappoint a priest at All Saints fromthe Crown. The patron of a livingis the authority who ‘appointed’the priest: consequently, duringthe period of about 200 years after1560, the lord of the Manor ofEyton was instrumental in theappointment of the priests at bothAll Saints, Wellington and St.

Catherine’s, Eyton.By looking at the list of Vicars

of Wellington and Rectors ofEyton, it is clear that the holder ofeach living was different: onlyvery occasionally, usually when itwas a member of the Eyton family,did the same individual hold bothpositions.

In the mid eighteenth centuryafter St. Catherine’s church hadbeen rebuilt following thedereliction of the Civil War butbefore All Saints was similarlyrebuilt, the two positions wereformally joined together: the sameindividual would be both theVicar of All Saints and Rector ofSt. Catherine’s ... but the parisheswould remain separate.

In the year of 1767, the twolivings were so unified. What hadbeen an informal arrangementnow became formal but it had tobe done correctly, legally and inperpetuity. That could onlyhappen with approval of theChurch and legal authorities.

A translation of the documentmay be viewed at the LichfieldJoint Records Office. It is a lengthydocument of very turgid legalisticprose but a few extracts areworthy of consideration.

‘Frederick, by Divine permissionLord Bishop of Lichfield & Coventry... Whereas Thomas Eyton Esq., thetrue and undoubted patron of theVicarage of Wellington in the Countyof Salop ... and likewise of the Rectory

TWO PARISHES IN ONE Geoff Harrison

All Saints, Wellington

transactions were recorded inVestry Meeting Minutes and theChurchwardens’ Accounts.

The Vestry was then the councilchamber of the parish, whichmanaged all the temporal affairsof the community.

Churchwardens’ account bookscan be of interest. In general, manyof these account books date frompre-Reformation times anddisclose the changes which tookplace in the fabric of the church;they were usually kept with greatexactness, and contained anaccurate record of the receipts andexpenditure for each year. Sadly,the records of both All Saints andSt. Catherine’s are not of suchgreat value.

The joint living continued untilthe late twentieth century whenthe two parishes were united: theywould subsequently beadministered as one, but there hadto be some safeguards. St.Catherine’s would have its ownadministration within the ParishChurch Council of the unifiedparish. As before, there had to beformal agreements through churchand legal authorities. The processwas reported to the local ParishChurch Councils;

‘The initial idea was made in April1986 and was shared with the PCC’sof St. Catherine’s and All Saints inthe ensuring months ... It foundready acceptance and the WorkingParty was asked to submit its plans ...The position now is that the plans arewith the Church Commissioners whowill draw up detailed maps andproposals for the approval of theparishes.’

and ‘the Scheme for uniting the Parish

of All Saints, Wellington and St.Catherine’s, Eyton received the RoyalAssent on 1st August 1989 and cameinto force on 1st September 1989.’

The ancient parish of St.Catherine’s, Eyton upon the WealdMoors, became a ‘daughter’church within the enlarged parishbut its traditional rural form ofworship was not lost.

It would be true to say that thetwo churches within the unifiedparish complement each other intheir traditions and forms ofworship.

13

of Eyton upon Wildmoors in theCounty & Diocese aforesaid, &Richard Smith Clerk, bachelor inDivinity, the legal incumbent of boththe said Vicarage & Rectory, have bytheir joint Petition under their hands& seals bearing date the nineteenthday of August in the year of our Lord1767, represented to us that thefruits, profits & ecclesiasticalemoluments of the said vicarage ofWellington & Rectory of Eyton uponWildmoors are scarce sufficient for themaintenance of a minister in suchmanner as the decency of his Clericalorder requires ...’

After this declaration arefurther comments;

‘... that there is no burying at thechurch of Eyton but the inhabitants ofEyton have from time immemorialbeen buried at Wellington, that thechurches are within one mile distanceof each other, ... Rev Stephen Pantingsome years ago for a considerable timeministered at the church of Eytononce a day only ... and for these twoyears past the duty has beenperformed by your Petitioner RichardSmith in the same manner, togetherwith the duty of Wellington only onemile distant from Eyton.’

The formal petition concludes:‘Wherefore your Petitioners for the

reasons aforesaid, the smallness of theRectory of Eyton and theinconsiderable number of itsinhabitants and its lying socontiguous to Wellington … thepresent incumbent thereof & hissuccessors humbly pray that the saidvicarage & rectory may beconsolidated in one united living.’

The legal document continues

identifying the Act of Parliamentwhich permits union:

‘by an Act of Parliament made inthe thirty seventh year of King HenryVIII ... It is so enacted & established“That a union or consolidation of twochurches in one, the one of them notbeing above the yearly value of sixpounds ... and distant from the otherabove one mile in any place or placeswithin the Realm of England” ...Wherefore we the said Frederick LordBishop of Lichfield & Coventry beingcredibly informed of the truth of, andhaving well weighed & considered thepromises, have in pursuance of thesaid recited act ... decreed that the saidvicarage of Wellington and the rectoryof Eyton upon Wildmoors with alland singular the tithes, fruits, profits,revenues, obligations, rights andemoluments whatsoever to the samebelonging ... be now held, and in allfuture times be presented to, called,held, esteemed taken and reputed asone benefice only. By the name of thisvicarage of Wellington with therectory of Eyton upon theWildmoors.’

The legal document of unionrambles on but concludes:

‘In testimony whereof we havecaused our Episcopal Seal to behereunto affixed; Dated at Eccleshallthe 8th September 1767.’

Although the living wasunited, the parishes wereadministered separately – twoseparate communities, one smalland rural, the other a large markettown. Each had their own ChurchCouncils and Vestry Meetings, andduties to their Poor. The Parishwas the local authority and its

St. Catherine’s, Eyton

In 1841 Bridget Healy, bornc.1820 somewhere in Ireland,was living at Lincoln Hill,

Madeley with her older siblingsGeorge, Patrick and Ann. On 20February 1846, at the RegistryOffice in Wellington, she marriedMatthew Welsh, born c.1813 inIreland.

My great grandfather Jamesarrived on November 7 1846followed by Matthew in 1849,Mary in 1851, Ann in 1853, John in1855 and two Georges, born in1858 and 1860, both of whom diedin infancy.

On 7 October 1864 MatthewSnr. died of an abscess on NewStreet where the family had livedsince 1846. His oldest sonsemigrated sometime before the1871 census was taken: James toNew York (NY) City and Matthewto Sydney, New South Wales,Australia. Ann married LukeChilds, born in 1850 in Wellingtonto John and Susan Childs, at theParish Church on 1 December1870.

Their son James Michael wasborn 14 July 1871 and Matthew on3 March 1873. Bridget, Mary andJohn came to NY City about 1872and Ann Childs and her two boysfollowed, arriving on the Adriatic,7 October 1873. Neither the Childsnor Walsh families know whatbecame of her husband Luke. Myfamily said he died in Englandbefore his wife and childrenemigrated but we can find norecord of his death anywhere inthe UK.

By 1880 Bridget was employedas housekeeper to a banker andAnn and her boys were in thehousehold, on the site of part ofthe present day Rockefeller Center.

Mary had married ThomasBurke, born c.1838 in Mayo,Ireland, whom she’d likely knownin Wellington. He was a son ofMichael and Ann (maiden nameunknown) Burke Carrane and halfbrother of John Thomas Carrane, asolicitor with in Wellington.

They lived in PomptonTownship, New Jersey whereThomas worked as a gardener andfarmer. James was living inAlbany, NY with his wife Sarahnee McQuirk and Mary bornc.1876, George c.1878 andMargaret on 9 September 1879.James Jr. followed in February1882.

James Sr., a brick mason, felloff a scaffold from the eighth floorof a building under construction atMadison Avenue and East 52ndStreet in NY City and died 29 May1882. Soon after, Sarah and herchildren moved to Troy, NY to bewith her family.

Ann Childs died 5 February1887 and her sons lived with theirgrandmother Bridget and UncleJohn, a building contractor, andhis childless wife, Mary.

Bridget died on 26 March 1894and John, while delirious, leapedto his death from his 4th floorapartment window on 17December 1894 (see newspaperreport aside). According to anewspaper article at the time,John and his wife had travelled toEngland that year, returningshortly before his death. About1896, after the deaths of hermother and brother, Sarah and herchildren returned to NY City andMatthew Childs was living withthem in 1897.

In 1903 he married his firstcousin, Margaret. They had nochildren. Matt was also a brickmason, as were his cousins andbrothers-in-law, George and JamesWalsh. Margaret died in 1966 andMatt in 1970.


HEALY/HALEY AND WELSH/WALSH FAMILIES Mary Carlson

It’s surprising howmany folk can trace their

family roots to Wellington.Genealogy isn’t just aboutcollecting names and dates,it’s about detail which often

gets overlooked. This article shows how pieces

in a jigsaw can be fittedtogether to form a family

history.

New York Times report ofJohn Walsh’s death.

For some reason I’ve yet tofathom Matt took on the Walshname and is listed as MatthewChilds Walsh in the US censuses1900 – 1930, on his 1918 WWIDraft Registration and his deathcertificate, although he did use hiscorrect legal name when hemarried.

James and Sarah’s daughterMary married Albert Moore, aCanadian, in 1921. Albert died in1926, having suffered a heartattack on a golf course, and Mariein 1960. They also were childless.James Jr., a bachelor, died in 1927.

Mary Burke nee Welsh diedin1913 and her husband Thomasin 1917, both in NY City. They hadfour children, all born in NewJersey: Cosmas Michael in 1881,John James in 1882, Ulick Matthewin 1884 and Ann Janette in 1888.

Ann had a brief marriage toEdward Blake Burke but there wasno issue. Her brothers nevermarried. Ulick was hit by a carand died in California in 1931.Cosmas and John died in NY Cityin 1958 and 1959 and Ann inPhiladelphia, Pa. in 1960.

who trained all the nurses. Ednawas very happy working at thehospital and found Mrs. Chapmanto be a very good tutor.

The hospital wards weremainly for medical or maternitycases. There were no residentdoctors at the hospital although alist was kept of local GPs whocould be called on if needed.

Edna worked from seven in themorning until seven in theevening, with every other Sundayoff and only two weeks holiday ayear. Food and lodging in thenurses’ home was provided butuniform had to be paid for out ofsalary, which was £2 a month.

The Infirmary did not dealwith accidents, emergencies, oroperations, which were all referredto Shrewsbury Hospital. Its wardshandled medical and maternitycases and there were also facilitiesfor looking after cases whichrequired isolation or specialnursing, such as diphtheria,pneumonia and tuberculosis. Forthe latter, special ‘shelters’ hadbeen built in the grounds. Thesewere wooden buildings with asingle bed in each and were opento the air on one side. If theweather was cold or windy, a half-door could be closed and theshelter revolved on its circulartrack to face out of the wind.

This necessitated the nursesvisiting the shelters at regularintervals throughout the day andnight in order to make anynecessary adjustments.

Back in 1919, Mr. and Mrs.Wright, with their family,decided to move from

Woodstock, Ontario, Canada, backto Wellington from where theyhad emigrated a few years earlier.

Their fourth eldest child wasnamed Edna Kathleen. She wasborn in Canada on 23 February,1913 (there would eventually be 9children in the family, eight girlsand one boy who was a twin toone of the girls).

At the age of 17, Edna took ajob as a student nurse atWellington Infirmary. TheInfirmary was back to back withthe Workhouse and, at that time,the Master of both the Workhouseand the Infirmary was Mr.Chapman. His wife was Matronof the Infirmary and it was she

15

John J. Burke had also taken onanother name, Arthur J. ‘Jack’Decker, and travelled using thatname, as evidenced by passengermanifests. His death certificate isfor Arthur J. Decker aka John J.Burke and his sister Ann was theinformant. She said the alias wasfor business reasons!

Matthew Walsh, a bachelor,died in Sydney on 12 March 1921.James Michael Childs, anotherbrick mason, married ClaraHenrietta Sand and they had adaughter, Clara Henrietta born in1910, who became a Dominicannun known as Sister MaryannaChilds, O.P. She was a poet, authorand professor of English at OhioDominican College in Columbus,Ohio and died there in 2003.

In 1907 George Walsh marriedLillian Hagan Simpson, a widowborn in NY City in 1879. JohnFrancis was born 1910 and James,my father, in 1911. George diedFebruary 18 1927, his sons John in1968 and James in 1995.

I and my sisters, Suzanne andMargaret, and their families alllive in New York State. Our onlybrother, James, died in 1978.

John Francis Walsh, our cousin,is a Federal judge and lives inCalifornia. He has two sons, JohnFrancis Jr. and James Matthew,and a grandson, Ryan Matthewborn in 2007.

Of Bridget’s siblings, little isknown. Their father was LawrenceHealy and their mother, whosefirst name is unknown, was neeKelly according to Bridget’s deathcertificate.

Ann married John Long, atailor, at the Catholic Chapel,Madeley in 1847 and lived inWolverhampton in 1861.

In 1855 at the Manor Court inShrewsbury, Patrick was convictedof thievery for the third time andwas sentenced to one year at hardlabour. George, who had been awitness to Ann’s marriage, wasgodfather to Bridget’s son Georgein 1858.

That’s all I can discover aboutthem and they are the brick wall Iam trying to tear down.

* * *

THE OLD SPIKE Shelagh Nabb

Wellington Workhouseand Infirmary 1931 – 1938

The information in this articlewas provided by Edna Watkins

(nee Wright).

Top: Edna Wright. Above: Master and Matron Mr. & Mrs. Chapman.

Advertisements in theWellington Journal in thelate 1950s give details of

summer excursion trains whichoffered potential trippers a day atthe seaside ... always an attractiveproposition, particularly for thoseliving in inland built-up areas,ever since means of transport firstmade it possible in the mid-nineteenth century.

Early railway companies werequick to exploit the potentialmarket, and resorts such asBlackpool, Bournemouth andScarborough took off as a result.This phenomenon can also be seenin the growth of Cardigan Bayresorts, particularly Aberystwyth,Barmouth and Pwllheli. Both theCambrian Railways and later theGreat Western Railway promotedholiday traffic to the coast.

Through services fromPaddington began after the FirstWorld War and the title ‘CambrianCoast Express’ was first used in1927, disappearing during thesecond war but revived by BritishRailways in 1951.

A determined publicity drive inthe mid and late 1950s, which sawthe provision of excursion trains tothe coast particularly on SummerSundays and Bank Holidays,reversed the decline in holidaytraffic.

Day trippers were prepared totravel up to 150 miles by trainfrom the West Midland and SouthLancashire conurbations, spendingin some cases over four hours onthe journey, in order to enjoy fiveor six hours at one of the CardiganBay resorts.

One such day was Sunday, 18August 1957, when excursiontrains from Ellesmere, Manchester,Birmingham and Worcester ran toAberystwyth. The train fromBirmingham called at Wellington(where I got on) just after 11.00 amand the Worcester train (the oneadvertised in the Wellington

Journal) picked up passengers at11.42 am. The adult fare toAberystwyth was twelve shillingsand threepence (62p) and thejourney took just under threehours.

After arrivalat Aberystwyth,the day trippers(includingmyself) madethe most of theirfive or six hoursin the sun. Themajority stayedin the resort,spending theirtime on thebeach, strollingthe mile longpromenade orascendingConstitutionalHill (by foot orcliff railway),and patronisedthe local shopsand cafes.

Some,however,managed to fit ina trip to Devil’sBridge on thenarrow gaugeVale of RheidolRailway. No

doubt for all of them, thetime for the return

journey home came far too soon.Returning Wellington passengerscaught either the 6.45 pmBirmingham train or the 7.50 pmto Worcester, both journeys takingabout three hours.


Rail excursions fromWellington 50 years ago

A DAY AT THE SEASIDE Neil Clarke

Advertisement in the Wellington Journal,10 August 1957.

The Birmingham-Aberystwyth train, behind 4-6-0 locomotive no. 7818Granville Manor, taking on water at Welshpool.

One of the best sources foreveryday information onWellington is the

Wellington Journal & ShrewsburyNews, which began life as TheWellington Journal in 1854 andcontinued until its demise in 1965.

In addition to the usual arrayof advertisements, which providea wonderful insight into the typesof businesses operating at anygiven time and the wording theychose to tempt customers throughtheir doors, there are highlydetailed reports on social andtheatrical events, clubs, societies,sports, deaths, marriages, crime ...almost anything you can think of.

In 1958 the‘Shropshire HolidayExpress’ travelled toSouthport,Gloucester/Cheltenham,Llandudno, Oxfordand Morecambe; in1959 to Southport,Weston-super-Mare,Rhyl, Stratford-upon-Avon andBlackpool; and in1960 to Southport,Cardiff/Barry

Island, Rhyl, Borth/Aberystwythand Blackpool.

So, over the four year period,17 of the 20 trips were to seasideresorts, the majority Welsh.

17

Other day trips by rail wereadvertised in the WellingtonJournal at the time, one of themost popular being the‘Shropshire Holiday Express’.This train operated during AugustBank Holiday Week (i.e. the firstweek in August) between 1957and 1960, on each occasionoffering five days travel todifferent destinations, mostlyseaside resorts.

The advertisement above givesdetails of the destinations, week’sfare and on-board facilities of thefirst such service. The train pickedup at Oakengates, Wellington andShrewsbury, and separate dailybookings were available fromthese stations. Four of the fivetrips on this first occasion were toWelsh resorts.

WELLINGTON JOURNAL

With the increase in private carownership and changes in holidaytaste, fewer excursion trains wererun in the 1960s.

The last ‘Cambrian CoastExpress’ (from Paddington) ran onSaturday, 4 March, 1967, leavingthe replacement Euston-Aberystwyth service viaWellington and Shrewsbury onSaturdays during the summermonths as the only throughservice from the capital to theCardigan Bay resorts; and this,too, was eventually withdrawn.

However, the revival of railtravel in recent years has seen daytrippers from this area to the coastmaking use of the Birmingham-Aberystwyth service operated byArriva Trains Wales.

Advertisement in the WellingtonJournal, 3 August 1957.

The Bank Holiday Monday ‘Shropshire Holiday Express’, restarting after asignal check at Glandyfi en route to Borth and Aberystwyth, behind 2-6-0

locomotives nos. 7309 and 7330.

And reports aren’t confined tothe Wellington area: all parts ofwhat is now the Telfordconurbation are covered, fromCoalport to Admaston, as well asmany other parts of Shropshire.

The standard of reporting, ithas to be said, is in some respectsmuch better than many of today’snewspapers and can give hours offascinating reading, especiallywhen you’re not looking foranything in particular.

Telford Library has thesenewspapers on microfilm (youneed to book a microfilm readerin advance), and ShropshireArchives at Shrewsbury hasactual papers from 1900 to 1965,which makes browsing easier.

Methodism began inWellington when the Rev.John Fletcher, Vicar of

Madeley, preached in the town in1765. A small ‘society’ wasfounded, meeting in a privatehouse. In 1771 it was WilliamButtery’s in New Street.

The society grew and the firstchapel was built by 1797 in whatbecame called Chapel Lane offHigh Street. By 1799 there was acongregation of 200.

These Methodists were closelylinked to the local parish church ofAll Saints, worshipping there inthe morning as late as 1813because of the Evangelical VicarJohn Eyton, who consulted theMethodist ministers and wasconsulted in his turn about whichwere sent to the circuit. Eyton metin a Methodist class, paid hisMethodist class money and wentto the Methodist chapel in theevening.

The circuit preaching plansshow in 1813 no service in themorning and in 1818 one at 9 a.m.well before the service at theparish church. In 1823, which wasthe year of his death, there was amove first to 10 a.m. and then to10-30. The chapel in Chapel Lanewas enlarged in 1811 andWellington became anindependent circuit in 1817.Methodists continued to bebaptised at the Parish Church. TheMethodist Baptismal Register onlybegan in 1827.

In the nineteenth century thegrowing Wellington society wasdominated by the town’stradesmen and businessmen, suchas the ironmaster William Ison ofSteeraway. This growth led to thebuilding of a new, much larger,chapel fronting onto New Street in1834, with manse behind. Both stillsurvive although the chapel has anex-factory front and is now flats.

A leading Methodist wasBenjamin Smith, printer and LocalPreacher, who kept a book andprinting shop in the town. He andhis wife were buried in front of the1834 chapel. Their daughter Sarah

was the popular children’s author‘Hesba Stretton.’

In 1851 Wellington reported107 members and congregations of277 in the morning and 251 in theevening. In the 1850s growthcontinued with 250 members in1862. The congregation helped tobuild a Wesleyan Day School inPrince’s Street in 1857 and amission for the poorer end of thetown at Watling Street in 1861.This only had evening servicesand was never independent of theparent society, shutting under thepressure of war in 1940 (thebuilding still stands). The NewStreet chapel added galleries in1866.

These developments werefinanced by the Grooms, timbermerchants, owning a large timber-yard at Groom’s Alley by therailway to which wood wasbrought from all over Shropshireand much of Wales. RichardGroom (1778-1866), the founder,was converted under Eyton. Hisson Thomas (1816-1889) was aLocal Preacher and a class leaderin the society. Thomas’syounger brother Richard(1818-1892) was amagistrate and CircuitSteward, Chairman of thelocal School Board,Chairman of theGuardians and a CountyAlderman. The brotherssupported the MethodistJohn Bayley in 1880 whenhe ceased to be theHeadmaster of Constit-ution Hill Board Schoolto set up a private school

in Albert Road, the venture whicheventually became WrekinCollege.

In 1882 the brothers, supportedby their sons, decided to movefrom the old chapel and build anew one. Ground further downNew Street was purchased (thecurrent site). The cost of buyingthe land, building the new chapel,and refurbishing the old buildingas a Sunday School was £4,000.The new building, designed by theBradford architect Herbert Isitt,connected by marriage to ThomasGroom, had an imposing Italianatefrontage. 82 feet by 52 feet andlarge balconies on three sides,providing 850 sittings and openedin 1883. It was filled in themorning, until the Sunday Schoolwent out, partly by them but alsoby the boys of Wrekin College(until 1907) and the girls of Hiatt’sCollege, a private girls’ schooleven closer to the church.

The Sunday School reached itspeak in this period, being run byJohn Wesley Clift (1856-1939), acarriage manufacturer of the town


METHODISM IN WELLINGTON John Lenton

The Methodist Chapel built in the 1830s in the centre of this 2006 photo, with theChad Valley frontage added in the 1920s on the left and the Sunday School

building at a right angle between the chapel and the white-painted former Manse.

New Street Wesleyan Methodist Church, 1920s.

who married Harriett,daughter of the youngerRichard Groom. In his‘model’ Sunday School,each scholar had a cardwhich was punched whenthey were away. As long asthere were not manypunches, they received bookprizes. The school had 500on its registers for most ofthe 50 years he wasSuperintendent.

The twentieth centurysaw a weakening of the financialstrength of Wesleyanism inWellington. The Grooms mostlymoved away to Hereford. In 1908the chapel was extended bybuilding a ‘new Church Room’behind costing £250. The FirstWorld War forced the trustees in1916 to retrench by selling off theold chapel, previously used asSunday School. Land had beenbought in 1913 behind the newchapel off Glebe Street. In 1920they erected wooden ‘temporary’buildings to house the homelessSunday School. Money was lostbecause of delay in a period ofrapid inflation. The buildingslasted over forty years.

Primitive Methodismin Wellington

Primitive Methodism was thebiggest Methodist offshoot in thenineteenth century, with nodifference in doctrine but moreemphasis on revival. HughBourne, the founder of PrimitiveMethodism, held one of hisearliest camp meetings on theWrekin in 1808, having beenstaying with Mary Fletcher atMadeley.

However, the early PrimitiveMethodists did not return to thearea before 1821. It is not clearwhen the first society wasfounded in Wellington, although itwas probably around 1822-3. Achapel was built , or more likelyconverted from a house, on thecorner of Tan Bank and FoundryRoad in 1826. In 1834 there werethree small societies listed:Wellington, Street Lane andArleston.

In 1835 a slightly larger chapelwas erected behind the first one,

costing £256 with a large debt. In1851 they reported a SundaySchool of 50, an afternooncongregation of 160 and anevening one of 260. Themembership was relatively smallwith only 41 members in 1865. Atthe end of the century the society,led by the Rev. William Hall andthe Trust Secretary Albert Jones,decided to expand and build newpremises.

Though with only 59 membersin 1896, they bought land close byon the corner of Tan Bank andJarratts Lane for £460. They thenwent on to build first a newChurch and then a new schoolalongside. The Church, costing£2,000, was opened in 1898, andthe school in 1906, both designedby Elijah Jones of Hanley.

Methodism since 1932The two Methodist churches inWellington remained separateuntil they were brought togetherby Rev. Peter de Visme in 1966.They decided to use the larger andmore imposing ex-Wesleyanbuilding premises for worship andTan Bank for Sunday School andYouth Work, perhaps a mistakesince a new building on one of thesites would have been possible.

The New Street building wastwice remodelled to make it easierto use. The side galleries wereremoved and new windowsinstalled in the first alteration in1953. A new communion area wasplaced in front of the old. In thesecond alteration in 1974, the pewsand floor were taken out andreplaced for multipurpose use ofthe building. The vestry was

turned into a kitchen. Theceiling was successivelylowered but it remained anold, too large, inconvenientbuilding.

Membership of Tan Bank,the former Primitive church,increased up to 1960 when itreached around 150 and metthe declining New Streetnumbers at a similar level.This was partly becausenewcomers coming in to thetown found Tan Bank

smaller and friendlier than NewStreet. The Rev Rex Hallam wasminister of the united church from1968 to 1984, longer than any ofhis predecessors.

His ministry was marked bythe emergence of several LocalPreachers, including Leon Murray,a Jamaican Methodist, whoarrived at the nearby railwaystation at 11 p.m. on a Friday inSeptember 1961 looking for afriend’s lodgings, to which he wasdirected by the Methodist ticket-collector, George Miles. ThatSunday he was welcomed at NewStreet by Bill Russell, who hadknown Leon’s father in Jamaicaearlier and George, who was aDoor Steward.

Eventually getting a job atSankeys, Leon, once a LocalPreacher, was sent to Conferenceand became the first black VicePresident of British Methodism in1983. He has remained active inboth local and connexionalMethodism ever since. He alsoserved as Chairman of the TelfordNew Town magistrates andDeputy Lord Lieutenant ofShropshire.

From the 1990s the problems ofthe New Street building becameobvious to all and a building fundwas started. The arrival of the Rev.Derrick Lander in 1999 led tocarrying the scheme through withextra grants from the circuit andconnexion. Leon Murray as Chairof the Building Fund also played amajor part. In 2004 the newChurch building was opened bythe Rev. Rex Hallam. Amultipurpose building with largestorage and energy saving, it hasbeen much in use by the wholecommunity ever since.

19

Tan Bank Primitive Methodist Chapel,c.1909, now a Muslim mosque.


CONTACT DETAILS

Please address general correspondence to:

Secretary: Joy Rebello, 6 Barnfield Crescent,Wellington, Telford, Shropshire, TF1 2ES.

Tel: 01952 402459. email: [email protected]

Other committee members of Wellington HistoryGroup are:

President: George Evans, 18 Barnfield Crescent,Wellington, The Wrekin, TF1 2EU.

Tel: 01952 641102. email [email protected]

Chairman: Allan Frost, 1 Buttermere Drive,Priorslee, Telford, Shropshire, TF2 9RE.


Treasurer: Phil Fairclough, 2 Arrow Road,Shawbirch, Telford, Shropshire, TF5 0LF.


DISCLAIMER: Every effort has been made to ensure that the information in this publication is correct at the time ofgoing to press. Wellington History Group cannot accept responsibility for any errors or omissions, nor do opinionsexpressed necessarily reflect the official view of the Group. All articles and photographs are copyright of the authorsor members of the Group and must not be reproduced without prior permission and due credit.

SCHOOLS BENEFIT

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Over the last few months,Wellington History Grouphas contacted schools and

colleges in the Wellington area anddonated copies of our magazine tohelp students with their studies.

In addition to the magazine,our chairman Allan Frost haskindly donated, free of charge,over 550 copies of his popularnovel Wrekin Wraiths, Rebels andRomans to encourage youngstersof all ages to read and take aninterest in local history.

As we have mentioned before,the work our Group is able to dohas been made possible by agenerous grant from Awards ForAll, without which we could nothave achieved so much in such ashort time.

Our offer of help to educationalestablishments is not confined toproviding copies of the magazineand books: we have also offered togive talks to class groups, assist incompiling source material anddevise town walks for thoseteachers wanting our assistance.

Wellington’s history over thelast 1300 years or so is not onlylong but extremely varied. There isalways something ‘new’ waiting tobe rediscovered.

We hope everyone, from pupilsto teachers, professional andamateur historians, towncouncillors and the publicgenerally (and not forgettingfamily history researchers), will

take an ongoing interest in ourtown’s past.

And where better to start thanwhen you’re at school?

As well as offering help toschools, several of our committee

Blessed Robert Johnson College Reading Group enjoy Wrekin Wraiths, Rebelsand Romans during their Friday lunchtime session.

members give talks on a range ofsubjects to groups, societies andclubs in the Telford area.

If you’re interested in bookinga talk, please contact our secretarywhose details are below.

Pupils at Crudgington Primary School proudly display copies of WrekinWraiths, Rebels and Romans and Awards For All balloons.

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