A
POTTED HISTORY OF HOW TODMORDEN
LOOKED AFTER ITS OWN
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The
Select Vestry
In
the early days Todmorden & Walsden was a small township
adjoining the other similar townships of Stansfield and Langfield.
Each of these three districts ruled themselves and they were
quite separate informal administrations. Once the ancient
medieval manorial system became defunct, small townships such
as these were governed by a committee of mainly self-appointed
local individuals with money and time on their hands. These
men were drawn from the freeholders, ratepayers and clergy.
They could be described as "the Gentlemen, Clergy and
principal inhabitants". They appointed officers from
within their own ranks to serve as: |
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Constable,
who looked after the law and order, checked weights and measures,
collected the taxes and organised volunteers for the local militia;
Overseer, who looked after the poor of the township and distributed
relief at his own discretion; Surveyor, who took care of
the highways; and Pinder, who was responsible for stray animals.
For
certain matters, such as the amount of the rates to be levied, all
Ratepayers were invited to attend the meetings, which often became
rowdy. Notices were put up outside the Church, such as the following
notice that appeared in March 1838:
Notice
to the ratepayers of the township
Notice
is hereby given that a meeting of the ratepayers of the township
will be held in the Old Church Todmorden on Thursday 22nd March
at 3 o'clock in the afternoon for the purpose of nominating fit
and proper persons for the several offices of Church Warden, Overseers
of the Poor, a Select Vestry, and Constables. Also for the ratepayers
of the hamlet of Todmorden to appoint Surveyors of the Highways
for the said hamlet for the ensuing year.
Todmorden
March 12th 1838
William
Ormerod - Church Warden
William
Stansfield - Overseer
Thomas
Bottomley jnr - Overseer
John
Shackleton - Overseer
John
Woodhead and Abraham Crossley - Constables
John
Barker and Jonathan Uttley - Surveyors
The
following is an extract from the minutes of the meeting following
the above notice:
At
a meeting held today pursuant to the above notice, Mr. James Fielden
in the Chair, it was resolved:
1.
That James Fielden, Dobroyd, William Scholfield, Todmorden, and
Robert Fielden, Inchfield Fold, are proper persons for Church
Wardens in the coming year.
2.
That Mr. William Crossley, Knowlwood Mill, Mr. William Helliwell,
Friths Mill, and Mr. William Robinson, Stones, are proper persons
for Overseers of the Poor for the year ensuing; and John Shackleton
be continued Assistant Overseer at the salary of last year.
2.
That the following persons form a Select Vestry:
William Stansfield, Bridge End
Thomas
Bottomley junior,
John
Barker, Edge End
William
Ormerod
Jonathan
Uttley
Thomas
Sutcliffe, Midgelden,
John
Mills
William
Scholfield, Todmorden
William
Sagar
John
Greenwood, Watty Place
James
Scholfield, Church Street
Edward
King
Abraham
Ormerod,
John
Barker, Barewise
Thomas
Law, Deanroyd
Thomas
Bottomley senior
William
Fielden, Clough
John
Stansfield, Moorhey
William
Crowther, Watering Trough
Abraham
Crossley, Gauxholme Stones
Henry
Lord, Southgrain
3.
That Robert Greenwood, Watty Place, John Greenwood, Shade, and
Charles Chambers, Todmorden, are proper persons for Constables
for the hamlet of Todmorden for the ensuing year; and John Fielden,
Henshaw, John Lord, Knowlwood, and Abel Marland, Strines Mill,
are proper persons for Constables for the hamlet of Walsden for
the year ensuing.
4.
That John Lord, Saunderclough, be appointed Surveyor of the Highways
for the Hall side of the hamlet of Todmorden and that Robert Law,
Height Top, be appointed Surveyor of the Highways for the Scaitcliffe
side of the hamlet of Todmorden for the ensuing year.
James
Fielden, Chairman.
The
men frequently held their meetings at the Church Vestry, hence the
name Vestry meetings, or the Select Vestry. Everything was informal,
yet the important things got done, and most of the men were public-spirited
enough to put the township before personal requirements. Not all
meetings were held in the vestry, however. In 1801 a meeting resolved
that:
Obstructions
to town's business having heretofore occurred at the meetings
held at public houses, by admitting liquor into the room and several
talking at once, in future no liquor be brought into the room
until after business. All persons to stand when they speak (except
the clerk and chairman) and only one to speak at once.
In
1802 John Crossley of Scaitcliffe was appointed Treasurer to the
township, and be allowed £20 a year plus expenses. He only
lasted 4 months before resigning. James Haigh of Gauxholme, James
Scholfield of Todmorden, Thomas Ramsbottom and Heyworth Heyworth
were other notables on the committee at that time.
In
February 1804 they ordered:
In
consequence of the disorders at the Fair held on Good Friday and
the day before, the said fair to be postponed to the Tuesday and
Wednesday of the following week.
They
frequently concerned themselves with the requirement to raise volunteers
for the militia. In 1808 a vestry meeting was held and resolved
that:
a
band of music be procured to attend at Samuel Hanson's, the White
Hart Inn, Todmorden, when the names of all such persons will be
taken as are mindful to serve their King and Country as volunteers
in the local militia, and that all expenses be paid out of the
Poor Rate.
The
expenses were £5.19s.2d. The number who volunteered was 70;
43 from Todmorden & Walsden, 19 Stansfield, 4 Langfield, 3 Wadsworth,
1 Erringden. Sergeants Slater and Marsland made the arrangements.
Mr.
Joseph Knowles of Bank Bottom was one of the Select Vestry. When
he died in 1868 his obituary read:
Mr.
Knowles was born in Wainfleet in Lincolnshire in 1793. He came
to reside in Todmorden in 1827 having previously resided at Hebden
Bridge for some years. He was on the Select Vestry for some time
before the new Poor Laws were introduced. He was Constable one
year, Overseer one year, and Guardian one year. He collected the
subscriptions for lighting the town with gas 18 years consecutively
before the Local Board was introduced, and was otherwise a useful
man for the town in which he lived.
(more
about Joseph Knowles HERE)
In
1832 the first Board of Health was augmented. 16 men were appointed
to this board, including medics Heyworth Heyworth, James Taylor,
Joseph Crossley Taylor, George Naylor, James Hardman and Thomas
Gledhill. The Board's first decision was that from its allocated
funds £60 should be set aside and given to the Overseer for
the prevention and cure of Cholera. There had, at that time, been
just one fatal case of the disease in Todmorden. He was a butcher
who came from Burnley to Todmorden market. He had died in the cellar
of the York Tavern, York Street. Although this had caused a great
deal of alarm locally, no other cases had been reported and the
disease seemed restricted to the larger towns.
A
small extract from the 1837/38 Overseers' Accounts shows one type
of work they were involved with:
29th
September 1837
Payment
of £5 to Jonathan Ogden of Oldham while under a suspension
order there (Oldham) as he has lost his leg in a factory.
7th
April 1838
Payment
of £2 to Mary Haigh of Dean. (Mary was a single mother)
7th
March 1838
Paid
13 shillings to Dr. Taylor of Todmorden Hall for visiting and certifying
as to the state of:
Mary
Baron of Newgate
Mary
Crossley of Lineholme
Martha
Haigh of Southgrain
The said certificates to be returned
with the Lunatic's List to the Magistrates.
*
As
the township grew, so did the responsibility, and it was decided
that Todmorden and Walsden should have separate governing bodies
in the form of a committee of local ratepayers in addition to the
Select Vestry. The Walsden meetings were held at the Hollins Inn
whilst the Todmorden ones were at the Royal George Inn. They managed
the smaller local issues, highways and collection of rates. They
each had an unpaid Surveyor, normally a local farmer, who would
supervise road repairs and spend his allocation of funds as best
he could.
The
life of the Select Vestry was coming to an end. The office of Overseer
was in danger of being superceded by the Board of Guardians, although
Todmorden itself violently opposed this for over 40 years. The rank
of Constable was also drawing to a close with the coming of the
Police Force, and the vastly increased population and with it the
demand for housing, footpaths, lanes, drains, sewers and lighting
was becoming too much for the small committee to handle.
The
Todmorden Local Board
1860
saw a full public meeting at the Oddfellows' Hall in Todmorden,
which resolved to adopt the Local Government Act of 1858. Todmorden
& Walsden, together with Langfield and a portion of Stansfield
joined together to form the Todmorden Local Board. After local boundaries
were agreed upon, it was decided that there would be four wards;
Todmorden, Walsden, Langfield and Stansfield; and that each of the
4 would elect 4 representatives. The first meeting of the newly
elected Todmorden Local Board took place at the Golden Lion Inn
25th. July 1861. The elected members were:
Richard
Ingham
Joseph
Knowles
Peter
Ormerod
Charles
Sutcliffe
Edmund
Whitaker
Robert
Fielden
Samuel
Fielden
John
Fielden
Joshua
Fielden
William
Sutcliffe
Jonathan
Barker
Edward
Lord
Thomas
Barker
Josiah
Lord
William
Houlding
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Hallroyd
House
Bank
Bottom
Pex
House
Pavement
Sandholme
Inchfield
Clough
Ashenhurst
Stansfield
Hall
Lowerlaithe
Millwood
York
Street
York
Street
Dale
Street
Cheapside
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Manufacturer
Gentleman
Manufacturer
Surgeon
Sizer
Pickermaker
& Manufacturer
Manufacturer
Merchant
Merchant
Corn
Miller
Millwright
Machinist
etc.
Book
Seller
Gentleman
Show
Dealer |
John
Fielden was elected as Chairman. Mr. W. Greenwood of Ridge Street
was appointed Collector for the Local Board and Mr. John Horsfall
of Dale Street the Surveyor (after the original Surveyor, Mr. Latham,
resigned)
The
Board was responsible for all local issues, and its responsibility
was extensive. It had to organise the laying and repair of pavements,
construction of drains and sewers, street lighting, building plans
and much more. Some examples of their resolutions, from the minute
books, are shown below:
March
1863
Reported
that property owners in Salford refuse to pay for the paving in
Salford on the grounds that the road has been open to the public
since 1835. The Board do not consider this to be a public road,
and since one of the property owners had paid for that portion outside
his works, this established the fact it is not a public thoroughfare.
No
payment has been received from property owners at Salford. Resolved
that legal proceedings are taken against them and ascertain whether
they were liable for the repairs or not.
June
1863
Notice
to be given to owners of property in lower Millwood to construct
necessaries or water closets and ash pits to their houses and to
cleanse the streets adjoining their houses.
May
1864
Gauxholme
Fold in a filthy state. The property owner, Dr. Hardman, must abate
the nuisance there.
September
1866
There
is a new sewer at Gauxholme Fold. The Surveyor, Mr. Hedley, seems
to spend his time amongst pigsties, middens, slaughterhouses, privies
and manure heaps. Joshua Fielden moved that the drainage system
be immediately looked into. A vote was taken and the motion was
lost by 5 votes to 6. Joshua Fielden said they should be thinking
of what needs to be done, rather than who will pay.
January
1867
Dr.
Hardman, proprietor and owner at Gauxholme, has not responded to
a request to link his drains to that of the Board. Dr. Hardman said
his own drain was sufficient and any nuisances were the tenants'
responsibilities, not his. The nuisance in question were necessaries
which once went into an open drain at Dancroft. This drain has now
been built over and the nuisance oozes through the walls of the
property there and spreads everywhere. The Board resolved to take
proceedings against Dr. Hardman.
May
1868
The
Board passed a resolution allowing Mr. Buckley to build back-to-back
houses, previously not allowed under local byelaws. Many of his
houses still stand.
The
Board was very successful, and by the end of its life it had built
the market hall, an infectious diseases hospital and had purchased
three gas works for the town. It was also during the life of the
Board that the Town Hall was built, although this certainly was
not a smooth operation.
The
Town Hall
At
the end of 1860 it was resolved to form a company for building a
Town Hall. The first meeting of the new company was held at the
Golden Lion when it was agreed the capital should be £15,000
to consist of £5 shares.
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The
company obtained the land on which the Mechanics' Institute
was standing and architect James Green was commissioned to
design the building. The plans involved having a market hall
on the ground floor with the public hall above. The building
would be built right over the River Calder, thus being partly
in Lancashire and partly in Yorkshire, the river being the
boundary line between the two counties. It was thought this
would help to bridge the gap between those rival counties.
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Todmorden
District News July 15th. 1858 |
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The
drawing shows the original design for the Town Hall as prepared
by James Green about 1860 |
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The
river was culverted and building commenced. The foundations, cellar,
and ground floor were constructed, but then problems arose. The
company had run out of money as only about half of the shares had
been sold. The potential investors were keeping their hands in their
pockets. This period in the history of Todmorden and district was
dark. The American Civil War meant no raw cotton, and without that
the mills couldn't operate. A substantial number of mills were forced
to close and many more businesses went bankrupt. None of the town's
merchants had money to invest. In addition to this, there were legal
problems with the owners of the land, and the costs of the project
had increased dramatically. The company was forced to wind up with
the Town Hall still a shell.
The
building was sold at auction in January 1866 and was purchased by
John Fielden of Dobroyd for £5,500. He and his two brothers,
Samuel and Joshua, commissioned their favourite architect to re-design
the building. It cost the brothers about £54,000 to finish.
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Lord
John Manners, the Postmaster General opened it on 3rd April
1875 at the same time as the unveiling of the statue of John
Fielden MP. The ceremony took the form of a procession, in
pouring rain. The town was decorated with bunting and there
were several triumphal arches. An estimated 4000 people watched
the opening ceremonies and special trains ran from the surrounding
districts. |
The
above engraving is from the Illustrated London News
and is the only known pictorial record of the event.
Reproduced
here by kind permission of Roger Birch |
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In
the evening there was a banquet in the Hall at which about 360 local
tradesmen and residents attended at the expense of the Fielden brothers.
The brothers presented the Hall to the people of Todmorden in 1891.
For
further information on the Town Hall and the Opening Day, please
click HERE
Todmorden
Urban District Council
In
1894 the Local Board and the residents of the town applied to the
Queen's Privy Council for the grant of a Charter of Incorporation.
In October, the Privy Council notified its acceptance, indicating
that formal acknowledgement would take some time. For the interim
period, Todmorden became an Urban District Council. An election
took place for the Coucillors, although there was a distinct lack
of local interest resulting in a very low turnout of voters. The
council held its first meeting on December 31st 1894. The Urban
District Council lasted just 21 months because on June 6th. 1896
the Charter arrived from the Privy Council and Todmorden became
a Borough in its own right. It was to be governed by elected councillors
led by 6 Aldermen and a Mayor.
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August
22nd 1896 was set aside as Charter Day. The inhabitants of
the town celebrated the granting of the Charter in "right
royal fashion". The town was decorated lavishly, and
at night was brilliantly illuminated. There were bands and
processions, including schools, trades and friendly societies,
volunteers, cricketers, footballers, cyclists, and representatives
of every organisation in the town. |
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Shopkeepers
displayed banners outside their windows and triumphal arches
were erected around the town.
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Todmorden
Borough Council
The
first Municipal Elections for the Borough of Todmorden took place
2nd. November 1896. There were to be 3 councillors and an alderman
for each ward. The aldermen were selected initially from those who
had served previously on the Local Board or Urban District council
in order to give continuity. They were selected from within the
council and were not necessarily subject to public election. The
successful candidates were:
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LANGFIELD
WARD Ernest Hirst
Avon
Villas
373
votes |
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TODMORDEN
Samuel
Starkie
Watty
Place
330
votes |
(No Photograph) |
LANGFIELD
WARD
James
Feather
District
Councillor
Halifax
Road
290
votes |
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TODMORDEN
Abram
Crossley
District
Councillor
(Alderman)
Wellington
Road
299
votes |
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LANGFIELD
WARD
James
E. Mitchell
District
Councillor
Halifax
Road
225
votes |
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TODMORDEN
George
Dawson
Rochdale
Road
254
votes |
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LANGFIELD
WARD
Robert
Gibson
Cliff
Villas
202
votes |
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STANSFIELD
WARD
Sugden
Sutcliffe
District
Councillor
(Alderman)
Glenroyd
House
384
votes |
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WALSDEN
WARD
John
Dugdale
District
Councillor
Copperas
House Terrace
318
votes |
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STANSFIELD
WARD
Caleb
Hoyle J.P.
(Mayor)
Roomfield
House
379
votes
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WALSDEN
WARD
Smith
Starkie
District
Councillor
Rochdale
Road
307
votes |
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STANSFIELD
WARD
J.
I. Sutcliffe
Stansfield
Hall
343
votes
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WALSDEN
WARD
James
Dugdale
District
Councillor
Holly
Bank
303
votes |
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CENTRAL
WARD
Fred
Ashworth
(Alderman
and
Deputy
Mayor)
Todmorden
Hall
452 votes |
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CORNHOLME WARD
T.
Greenwood
District
Councillor
Mutterhole,
Eastwood
370
votes |
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CENTRAL
WARD
W.
S. Hollinrake
White
Hart Hotel
362
votes
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CORNHOLME
WARD
Thomas
Banks
District
Councillor
(Alderman)
Portsmouth
353
votes |
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CENTRAL
WARD
William
Jackson
District
Councillor
(Alderman)
Byrom
Street
343
votes
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CORNHOLME
WARD
Jackson
Sutcliffe
District
Councillor
(Alderman)
Lineholme
327
votes |
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CENTRAL WARD
Thomas
West
District
Councillor
Stansfield
Road
292
votes
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The
following men were also elected:
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J.
Greenwood |
Edward
Lord |
William
Ormerod J.P.
of
Scaitcliffe |
J.
Bracewell |
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Caleb
Hoyle |
A
few days later, the elected council chose its Mayor. On 12th
November 1896 at the Todmorden Petty Sessions His Worship
the Mayor of Todmorden, Alderman Caleb Hoyle, took the oath
and his seat as a Magistrate for the West Riding and the County
of York. Mr. Dan Sutcliffe was appointed as the Town Clerk.
Dan
Sutcliffe |
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The
first Mayoral Church Parade was held at Todmorden on 15th. November
1896. The Mayor invited the Town Council, the Magistrates, the School
Board, the Board of Guardians, the Police, the Fire brigade, the
Officers of the Corporation, the Town Clerk (Mr. Dan Sutcliffe),
the Deputy Mayor (Alderman Fred Ashworth) and the G. Company of
Volunteers accompanied by the Regimental Band from Rochdale, to
go with him to a service at the Wesleyan Methodist Chapel, York
Street. There was an imposing parade, in which the Todmorden Brass
Band joined, witnessed by a large concourse of people, culminating
in a service at the chapel. An excellent sermon was preached by
the Rev. J. I. Britten of Southport, the minister who had married
Mr. And Mrs. Hoyle. The choral part of the service was all that
could be desired especially with the addition of the bands to the
accompaniment. Two or three people fainted owing to the overcrowded
state of the chapel. The National Anthem was played at the close
of the service, and the bandsmen were invited to a dinner provided
at the Drill Hall, and which they thoroughly enjoyed.
*
From
1888 onwards the Borough became, for administrative purposes only,
part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, although the postal address
remains as Lancashire for the part of the old township that was
in the Parish of Rochdale. On March 31st 1974 Todmorden became part
of the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale, West Yorkshire, although
the town does retain some authority in the form of its own Town
Council with limited powers.
The
Town Hall is almost always closed in current times. It is used for
Todmorden Town Council meetings and the occasional exhibition. This
has to be a shame.
Bibliography
and acknowledgements
Betty
Savage for the 1838 township minutes
Annals
of Todmorden compiled by Dorothy Dugdale
Todmorden
Town Hall, a History and Guide by Christian Jackson and David Morritt
Todmorden
Centenary compiled by A. S. Marshall and D. O'Neill assisted by
Paul Rigg
for Todmorden Town Council
The
Development of Todmorden 1700-1896 compiled by Mrs. E. M. Savage
(The
above books are all available from the Tourist Information Office
in Todmorden)
and
Roger
Birch for allowing the use of some of his photographs
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