Last Thursday having just exercised my democratic right I came across this sculpture at the entrance to the Barlow Moor Road council estate.
I asked two workers nearby about its significance and was informed that it was to celebrate the fact that it was the advent of the railway which led to the development of Chorlton-cum-Hardy.
This art work, which includes additions from some of the local residents, has been “christened” Willy by them.
Coincidentally the name of the last station master at the old Chorlton station was, apparently, William.
Such a lovely piece of work and its contribution to the preservation of our area’s heritage is well worth applauding.
In doing so I thought I might also delve into the newspaper archives to seek out some stories of Chorlton-cum-Hardy’s railway past. What follows are the results of this search.
In common with stations nationwide Chorlton-cum-Hardy witnessed its fair share of tragic deaths either by accident or most commonly by suicide. I have discovered reports of three such incidents.
The first of these I’ve recorded on a previous occasion on this blog but as I am now able to add considerably to the story I will start with it.
On Saturday 2nd September, 1899 James William Smith, a joiner of 20, Oxford Street , Old Trafford, stepped off the platform at Chorlton-cum-Hardy station into the path of an approaching train and was killed instantly.
At the inquiry into this event, held at the Lloyd’s Hotel on the following Monday, evidence was given by both his wife, Mary and a workmate, Thomas Holroyd, that a recent change in his working pattern had been affecting Mr. Smith’s mental state so much so that he had left his job site in Bolton at lunch time on the Friday prior to his death and had not returned to work. It was further stated that his problem was purely imaginary and Mr. Smith had indeed been a valued employee of Thomas Heywood and Company. A verdict of suicide while insane was reached.
The other two cases of suicides on the railways of Chorlton-cum-Hardy occurred within 20 months of each other in 1932-3. On Friday 29th April, 1932 Lilian Beatrice Ringrose’s decapitated body was discovered on the line close to the station. Mirroring this tragedy on Thursday, 28th December, 1933, the body of James Harding, 21, of 52, Keppel Road was also found dead on the line.
Miss Ringrose was the 21 year old daughter of Walter Ringrose (1) a master tailor of 113, Upper Chorlton Road, Whalley Range. Newspaper accounts of her inquest describe symptoms of severe mental illness viz. hallucinations, paranoia and delusions. It was also reported that she had previously received treatment in Cheadle Royal Hospital and had shown signs o recovery, however her illness had returned to tragic effect.
The coroner read out part of a long letter found on the body to illustrate the girl’s state of mind “I am doing this to save you and prove the innocence of us all”. At the request of the parents of the dead girl no further content of the letter were made public.
His father also a James, a hotel waiter, having passed away, most likely in the West Derby district of Liverpool in the December quarter of 1918, Mr. James Harding lived with his widowed mother, Susan (née Mound) at 52, Keppel Road. (2) He is buried in the same grave as his mother and her parents –H 2152 in the consecrated section of Southern Cemetery, Manchester.
A less traumatic recurring occurrence the Chorlton-cum-Hardy station staff were faced with was the flooding (3) which happened periodically following exceptionally heavy rainfall. Two spectacular examples of this took place on 25th July, 1901 and 17th July, 1947.
Both of these incidents were extensively recorded.
The Manchester Evening News, 1901 report was particularly detailed (and quite amusing!) while in 1947 the Illustrated London News printed a very revealing photograph with the by-line “The Permanent Way Becomes a Canal” showing a train ‘ploughing’ through the flood water at Chorlton-cum-Hardy Station.
Being unable, for copyright reasons, to use this photograph I went on a stroll along the “Fallowfield Loop” in search of more evidence of the area’s railway past and took these photographs of Bridge 29 – “Jacksons” bridge with its plaque.
The current plaque dates only from 2002 when it was placed there by “Sustrans”, the cycling promoting charity, after it had converted the derelict line, which had finally closed in 1988(4), to a traffic free cycle and waling route. It does record, however, that the bridge was built in 1891 by the evocatively named “Manchester Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway”
Tony Goulding © 2019
Location; Chorlton
Pictures; Tony Goulding, 2019
NOTES
1) Lilian Beatrice’s mother was Elizabeth Annie Elkington (née Horsfield) who had herself suffered some form of mental illness and spent time in an asylum as a young woman. Her first husband John Sidney Valentine Elkington had also taken his own life in June, 1898; apparently he had been so distressed by his young wife’s illness that he drowned himself in a local canal near his home in Bow in the East End of London.
2) James also had two sisters Doris born – June quarter 1916 died in infancy and Elizabeth, born 20th August, 1913. She married William Henry Flowers, a motor fitter at Saint Clements Church, Chorlton-cum-Hardy on the 8th June, 1935.
3) A significant problem area whenever one of these deluges occurred was the Old Trafford Tunnel which on these occasion was said to more resemble a conduit.
4) The line’s last passenger services ran in 1969 when it became freight only.
This art work, which includes additions from some of the local residents, has been “christened” Willy by them.
Coincidentally the name of the last station master at the old Chorlton station was, apparently, William.
Such a lovely piece of work and its contribution to the preservation of our area’s heritage is well worth applauding.
In doing so I thought I might also delve into the newspaper archives to seek out some stories of Chorlton-cum-Hardy’s railway past. What follows are the results of this search.
The first of these I’ve recorded on a previous occasion on this blog but as I am now able to add considerably to the story I will start with it.
On Saturday 2nd September, 1899 James William Smith, a joiner of 20, Oxford Street , Old Trafford, stepped off the platform at Chorlton-cum-Hardy station into the path of an approaching train and was killed instantly.
At the inquiry into this event, held at the Lloyd’s Hotel on the following Monday, evidence was given by both his wife, Mary and a workmate, Thomas Holroyd, that a recent change in his working pattern had been affecting Mr. Smith’s mental state so much so that he had left his job site in Bolton at lunch time on the Friday prior to his death and had not returned to work. It was further stated that his problem was purely imaginary and Mr. Smith had indeed been a valued employee of Thomas Heywood and Company. A verdict of suicide while insane was reached.
Miss Ringrose was the 21 year old daughter of Walter Ringrose (1) a master tailor of 113, Upper Chorlton Road, Whalley Range. Newspaper accounts of her inquest describe symptoms of severe mental illness viz. hallucinations, paranoia and delusions. It was also reported that she had previously received treatment in Cheadle Royal Hospital and had shown signs o recovery, however her illness had returned to tragic effect.
The coroner read out part of a long letter found on the body to illustrate the girl’s state of mind “I am doing this to save you and prove the innocence of us all”. At the request of the parents of the dead girl no further content of the letter were made public.
His father also a James, a hotel waiter, having passed away, most likely in the West Derby district of Liverpool in the December quarter of 1918, Mr. James Harding lived with his widowed mother, Susan (née Mound) at 52, Keppel Road. (2) He is buried in the same grave as his mother and her parents –H 2152 in the consecrated section of Southern Cemetery, Manchester.
Both of these incidents were extensively recorded.
The Manchester Evening News, 1901 report was particularly detailed (and quite amusing!) while in 1947 the Illustrated London News printed a very revealing photograph with the by-line “The Permanent Way Becomes a Canal” showing a train ‘ploughing’ through the flood water at Chorlton-cum-Hardy Station.
Being unable, for copyright reasons, to use this photograph I went on a stroll along the “Fallowfield Loop” in search of more evidence of the area’s railway past and took these photographs of Bridge 29 – “Jacksons” bridge with its plaque.
The current plaque dates only from 2002 when it was placed there by “Sustrans”, the cycling promoting charity, after it had converted the derelict line, which had finally closed in 1988(4), to a traffic free cycle and waling route. It does record, however, that the bridge was built in 1891 by the evocatively named “Manchester Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway”
Tony Goulding © 2019
Location; Chorlton
Pictures; Tony Goulding, 2019
NOTES
1) Lilian Beatrice’s mother was Elizabeth Annie Elkington (née Horsfield) who had herself suffered some form of mental illness and spent time in an asylum as a young woman. Her first husband John Sidney Valentine Elkington had also taken his own life in June, 1898; apparently he had been so distressed by his young wife’s illness that he drowned himself in a local canal near his home in Bow in the East End of London.
2) James also had two sisters Doris born – June quarter 1916 died in infancy and Elizabeth, born 20th August, 1913. She married William Henry Flowers, a motor fitter at Saint Clements Church, Chorlton-cum-Hardy on the 8th June, 1935.
3) A significant problem area whenever one of these deluges occurred was the Old Trafford Tunnel which on these occasion was said to more resemble a conduit.
4) The line’s last passenger services ran in 1969 when it became freight only.
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