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Extracts have
been selected from The Parish Magazines to illustrate various
aspects of life in Tickhill from 1891 to 1901. The first theme,
to do with
renovating
St Mary’s,
has echoes of the major fund raising project which began in 2007
to undertake essential repairs to St Mary’s. An extract
follows:
January 1896
We are deeply indebted to Miss Alderson, who
has added to her already long list of benefactions to the
Church, a new stained window over the Chancel arch, and the
promise of renovating the Chancel walls.
The local
National Schools are the second theme. The schools, the Infants’ School on
Tithes Lane and the Senior or Mixed School on St Mary’s Road
(then called
Back Lane),
attained consistently high standards in the various annual
inspections they faced, for example:
June
1897
Drawing Report – ‘The award which has
been made in respect of the instruction in Drawing given in the
above named School, during the past year, is EXCELLENT’.
In contrast to
today’s Welfare State, many people in the 1890s, whose lives
were affected by accidents, illness, disability or general
frailty, depended on
charity to help them survive. Able-bodied people too
sometimes faced hardship when extreme winter weather disrupted
outdoor work. In the third theme we can see how Tickhill people
helped each other and benefited from bequests made many years
previously, as in the Candlemas Dole:
February
1893
£ s. d.
6 Families receive ...………0
5 0
14 ,, ,, ………..0 1 6
119 ,, ,, ………..0 1 0
____ _________
139 Families ……… … £8
10 0
[One shilling
‘s.’ is the equivalent of 5p. There were 12 old pennies ‘d.’ in
one shilling.]
Two further
themes,
celebrations
and
leisure, show how local
people, often with very limited free time, made great efforts to
enjoy special national occasions and local diversions organised
by public spirited individuals. Here is a note about the
Bicycling Club:
September 1897
Several enjoyable runs have been made. On Bank
Holiday, August 1st, the route was to the Dukeries,
by way of Worksop. After visiting Clumber and Thoresby,
Edwinstowe was reached about 3-30. After tea, a pleasant ride
home through Welbeck Park brought to a close a very enjoyable
day.
A final section,
a
miscellany, brings together
a diverse range of news items. Some show how individuals’
efforts were valued. Several items reflect the ever present need
to raise money for the Church and individuals, as in the
following example about the Clothing Club:
December 1893
Our Club still continues its career of
usefulness. During the present year, the numbers on the books
have been as follows: Women 150, children 44, of which 145 women
and 39 children have received benefit. The total sum deposited
amounts to £150 8s. 1d., from the beginning of January to the
end of October. Voluntary subscriptions in aid of bonus, £21
19s. 6d. Total, £172 7s. 7d. The bonus allowed this year has
been 3/- on each adult’s card, and 1/- on each child’s card. On
Nov. 6th the distribution of added up cards took
place, and the members proceeded to the respective shops of
Messrs. Jarvis & Jenkinson, whose goods we have reason to
believe have given every satisfaction.
From 1891 to
1894 the Magazines usually consisted of just one page attached
to a nationally-produced supplement entitled Home Words for
Heart and Hearth, between twenty-two and twenty-four pages
long. Unlike the modern Parish Magazines which are A5 size, the
ones used for this publication were about quarto size, that is a
little less than A4. The monthly magazines cost 1d (about ½ p).
Each year the subscribers could have the twelve monthly issues
bound into one volume at a cost of 1/- (5p). The illustration
below shows the front cover of a Parish Magazine in January
1895, one of the very few included in the bound volumes.
Advertisements also featured in the Magazines to help defray
printing costs. The back page of the January 1895 Magazine is
also shown below.
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