The Worralls of Whalley Range

Having been contacted by a couple of descendants of the Rickards family, the subject of a number of my recent posts on this Blog, I have been taking a fresh look at some wider family members.   

Henry Worrall was the husband of Louisa Rickards; whose divorce was central to one of the posts referred to above.  The Worrall family of Whalley Range owned a substantial dyeing company, with a huge dye-works on Worrall Road, Ordsall Lane, Salford and a smaller one at Midgehole a hamlet in Calderdale, near Hebden Bridge, Yorkshire. 1

 

Crimesworth Dye Works

This factory was renamed “Crimsworth” when acquired by the Worrall family a name also later used by Henry Worrall for his mansion on Upper Chorlton Road, Whalley Range.

Henry Worrall’s father James was a lifelong friend of Charles Hilditch Rickards, (his wife Louisa’s uncle). They were friends from childhood 2 in the Pendleton area of Salford fostered by their attendance at the same school, Manchester Grammar, and in 1857 they shared in joint enterprise to develop property around the Ordsall Dye Works. 3 They were both, also, heavily involved in public affairs, both men served as governors of their Alma Mater. James Worrall was also elected as the Mayor of Salford for 1861/2.

Crimsworth Upper Chorlton Road

Henry’s father and his elder brother, also named James both resided in large houses in Whalley Range. In 1871, James Sr., his wife, Anne (née Leigh), five sons (James Jr., Edward, Henry, George Wyatt, and Charles Francis) all occupied “Woodland” on Whalley Road. The household also included four servants. After his son James’s marriage to Jane Gibbons at St. Paul’s Church, Hastings, Sussex on the 13th December, 1875, James Worrall Sr, moved to “Oldfield” further down Whalley Road to accommodate his eldest son’s growing household. By the time of the 1881 census, this included, besides his wife, three young daughters, (Florence Anne, Katherine Mary, and Edith Jane) and no less than five servants.

James Jr. moved out to West Hall, High Legh, Knutsford, Cheshire 4 and after his father’s death on the Sunday the 13th July, 1890 only his brother, Henry, remained in Whalley Range.

Edward Worrall, James Sr’s second son, moved to Leicestershire and took up farming and in the June quarter of 1876 he married Harriet Adcock, the daughter of Richard, a local farmer, in Gaulby, Leicestershire.

The couples only child, Dorothy Hester, was born on the 6th October, 1889 at Wing, Rutland. In due course she went on to marry, on the 7th November, 1912 at St. Peter’s Church, Wing, her cousin Philip, the eldest son of Henry Worrall and his first wife, Louisa Rickards. Thus, providing a neat point to end as Philip has also appeared in a previous post, here.

Pictures: Crimsworth Dye Works – 11th September, 2000 by David Martin; the geograph project. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license, https://creativecommons.org/license/by-sa/2.0/deed.en and Crimsworth Upper Chorlton Road m 40768 A. H. Downes Courtesy of Manchester Libraries Information and Archives Manchester City Council, http://images.manchester.gov.uk/index.php?session=pass

Notes: -

1) The Worrall family’s wealth is best displayed by some of their probate records. On his death, in 1890, James Sr left an estate of £347,465 (£45,502,332 today). James Jr. died on the 10th April, 1930 in Tenterden, Kent leaving an estate of £473,011 (£31,617,914). Henry died on the 10th March, 1939; his estate was valued at £114,351 (£7,643,670 today).

2) The childhood friendship of James Worrall and Charles Hilditch Rickards was described in a book, “Recollections of My Old Homes” written by Anne Rickards; Charles Hilditch’s sister. 

3) The details of this enterprise were disclosed in the Lancaster Gazette, 14th March, 1857 edition.

4) In the 1891 census a son, James, had been added and the four children were all living in the house at High Legh. In the absence of both their parents they were in the care of a governess, Sarah J. Wilson and SEVEN other servants. 

James and his wife, Jane, were visiting his brothers George Whyatt (described as a musician), with whom they were staying, and Edward at Wing, Rutland.

All that remains is for me to thank Peter, one of the descendants of the Rickards for the loan of “Recollections------” book.