VOL. 36 NOVEMBER 2014 No. 4 AinsworthAinsworth brothers brothers from from Chorley Chorley Reproduced with kind permission from Chorley Borough Council Reproduced with kind permission from Chorley Borough Council THE LANCASHIRE FAMILY HISTORY & HERALDRY SOCIETY Formerly Rossendale Society for Genealogy & Heraldry (Lancashire) Inaugurated 1973. Registered Charity Number 513437 President: Steve Williams Vice-Presidents: Rodney Hampson, JimTopping, Terry Walsh, Bill Taylor, A.Derrick Walkden, Rita Hirst, Peter W. Joslin, Tony Foster, Margaret Purcell Visit our Website on www.lfhhs.org.uk Subscriptions: Ordinary Membership £14 Overseas Membership £16 Family Membership £15 UK Pensioners & Students £12 Renewals are due on the 1st January. Cheques should be crossed and made payable to Lancashire Family History & Heraldry Society and sent to the Membership Secretary. MEETING VENUES BLACKBURN Ewood Park Working Mens’ Club, 318 Bolton Road, Blackburn BB2 4HY & DARWEN First Thursday of the month at 7.30 pm. BURY Blackburne Hall, Church Hall, The Wylde, Bury BL9 0LA Second Wednesday of the month at 7.30 pm. CHORLEY Lecture Room, Chorley Library, Union Street, Chorley PR7 1EB Third Tuesday of the month at 7.30 pm. FYLDE St. Martin’s Church, Fleetwood Road South, Carleton, Poulton-le-Fylde FY6 7NL Second Wednesday of the month at 7.30 pm. HERALDRY St. Stephen’s Church Centre, Bird Street, Preston PR1 8DY GROUP First Monday of the month at 7.30 pm. HYNDBURN Accrington Library, St. James Street, Accrington BB5 1NQ First Tuesday of the month – 7.15 pm for 7.30 pm IRISH ANCESTRY 2 Straits, Oswaldtwistle BB5 3LU GROUP Saturday Workshops 1 pm – 4.30 pm as per Branch Programme. LANCASTER & The Church Hall, Church of the Good Shepherd, Torrisholme, Morecambe LA4 6NZ MORECAMBE Third Thursday of the month at 7.30pm LONDON & Brompton Library, 210 Old Brompton Road, London SW5 0BS SOUTH Five meetings a year on Saturdays at 2.00 pm (see Branch Programme) PENDLE & Colne Library, Colne BB8 0AP BURNLEY Third Wednesday of the month at 7.30 pm. PRESTON St. Leonard’s Hall, Marshalls Brow, Penwortham, Preston PR1 9HY Last Wednesday of the month at 7.30 pm. RIBBLE VALLEY Clitheroe Cricket Club, Chatburn Road, Clitheroe BB7 2AS Second Tuesday of the month at 7.30 pm ROCHDALE St. Andrew’s U.R. Church, Entwistle Road, Rochdale OL16 2HZ Last Wednesday of the month at 7.30 pm. ROSSENDALE Longholme Methodist Church (opp.Bus Stn) Bacup Road, Rawtenstall BB4 7NU First Wednesday of the month at 7.30 pm. CONTENTS Page 2 Branch Programmes Members’ Articles – 3 William and John Westall (Pt 2 of 2)– Pauline Grimshaw 10 Family Timelines – Mike Coyle 14 The Impact of WW1 on a Chorley Family – Jane Ainsworth 19 Deaths Notified 19 Notes and News 24 Book & CD Reviews 26 Members’ Interests 34 Branch News Pull out centre pages : Membership Renewal Form Cover Picture: Front: Ainsworth brothers from Chorley with kind permission from Chorley Borough Council Back Heraldry If you have a drawing suitable for the front cover, kindly forward to the Editor. Thank you. All contents of this magazine are copyright of Lancashire Family History and Heraldry Society and individual authors. No such content may be reproduced in any form unless prior permission to do so has been given by the Editor and the author/s concerned.. 1 BRANCH PROGRAMMES 3 Nov Heraldry at Muncaster Castle – Peter Marshall 4 Nov Hyndburn – For King and Country – Steve Williams 5 Nov Rossendale – The Silent Cities of WW1 – Mary Davison 6 Nov Blackburn & Darwen – Remembering – Denise North 11 Nov Ribble Valley – The Petres of Dunkenhalgh – Les Hardy 12 Nov Bury – Maritime Records – Bill Taylor 12 Nov Fylde – Blackpool’s Lost Buildings – Ted Lightbown 15 Nov Preston – Family History Beginners Workshop 10.30-12.30 S. Ribble Museum & Exhibition Centre, Church Road, Leyland 19 Nov Chorley – Animals at War – Graham Stirrup 19 Nov Pendle & Burnley – For King and Country – Steve Williams 20 Nov Lancaster & Morecambe – Morecambe Library 2-3pm 26 Nov Preston – Family History Quiz and Jacob’s Join 26 Nov Rochdale – All Quiet on the Western Front – Lynne Nield 1 Dec Heraldry – Christmas Party 2 Dec Chorley – Golden age of comedy Part 1 – Brian Halliwell 2 Dec Hyndburn – Christmas Party and Social Evening 3 Dec Pendle & Burnley – Christmas Festivities (ticket only) 3 Dec Rossendale – Christmas Party 4 Dec Blackburn & Darwen – Christmas Food – Mike Coyle - followed by branch Christmas Party 4 Dec Lancaster & Morecambe – Festive Meal in Morecambe 6 Dec London & South – Members Meeting. 9 Dec Ribble Valley – Christmas Party + Keith & Paul’s Photo Quiz 10 Dec Bury – Christmas Party 10 Dec Fylde – Jacob’s Join and Quiz 10 Dec Rochdale – to be advised 13 Dec Irish – Advice & Research, Oswaldtwistle BB5 3LU 13.00 – 16.00 hours 6 Jan Hyndburn – Workshop 8 Jan Blackburn & Darwen – War Memorials; Rescue, Restoration and Relocation – Mike Coyle 13 Jan Ribble Valley – Bits & Pieces Film Night – Ken Parkinson 14 Jan Bury – Workshop 20 Jan Chorley – Markets to Supermarkets: Exploring 200 years Of shopping – Dr Mike Winstanley 28 Jan Rochdale – To be arranged 3 Feb Hyndburn – Skeletons in the cupboard – Bill Taylor 5 Feb Blackburn & Darwen – Gold Dust; Three Wallace Wills – Bill Taylor 10 Feb Ribble Valley – Local Quarries – Gordon Taylor 2 11 Feb Bury – Roman Catholic Genealogy – Jim Lancaster 17 Feb Chorley – Working class attitudes to work in the e20C – Dr Elizabeth Roberts 25 Feb Rochdale – Research Evening 3 Mar Hyndburn – AGM and Lancs BMD – Tony Foster 5 Mar Blackburn & Darwen – AGM – From Falmouth to Blackburn – John Shorrock 10 Mar Ribble Valley – AGM and Hello Friends – Brian Stott 11 Mar Bury – AGM 17 Mar Chorley – A History of Blackpool Illuminations – Richard Ryan Illuminations Manager MEMBERS’ ARTICLES WILLIAM AND JOHN WESTALL (Part 2 of 2) By Pauline Grimshaw (6839) The Manse, Church Street, Kearsley, Bolton BL4 9DD William did not give up on education but continued his studies in such subjects as Latin and chemistry at evening classes run by Dr Bayley. Bayley’s evening classes became the fore-runner of ‘The Mechanics Institute’ a jewel in Accrington’s educational crown where working men of all ages could receive or extend their education. The imposing building in which it was housed until the latter part of the twentieth century is now an excellent local studies centre and an integral part of Accrington library. It says much for the thirst for knowledge, stamina and perseverance that the ordinary working man of that time possessed for it could be no easy matter to attend evening classes after a lengthy day labouring in a mill or a factory. William went to ‘cottage study and discussion groups’ in the evenings with his father and also to Sunday School where it was the custom for adults to attend as well as children. In time young William became a member of the Sunday School teaching staff with his own class of young men and eventually one of the Superintendents. This was no mean feat or sinecure in a school that had four hundred or so pupils. He was also asked to be the secretary at the Mechanics Institute but declined – probably from shortage of time! He was however on the Board of Directors. By 1855 he had become a regular lay preacher at Accrington and gradually over the next few years extended his range to other societies in the Lancashire Area becoming an experienced and much sought after preacher. In 1863 he was asked by the society at 3 Bolton to become their full time minister. He was ordained in 1865 after studying (on the job!) with Rev. Woodville Woodman at Kearsley. In 1868 he was invited to become minister of the Salford Society. In those days this would have been regarded as rather a prime appointment for Salford, although not as important as Peter Street, Manchester, had been one of the powerhouses of the early church in the Manchester Area. Yet the area in which the New Church Temple was situated was changing and was becoming no longer residential and so the congregation was slowly beginning to diminish in number. (Amazing that they had such problems in the 1870s!) In 1880 he moved to Middleton where he appeared to have been universally loved, respected and admired. I guess that this was the society ‘of his heart’ the society with which he had that really special relationship that perhaps only ever comes once in a ministerial career. He remained here as the minister until 1908 when in his eightieth year he finally retired due to the increasing frailty of his physical health! In 1910 he appeared at the Failsworth Conference for the final time when it is recorded that ‘There was the well remembered afternoon at Failsworth, in 1910, when to the surprise of everyone he entered the church.’ This incident created a profound impression and the spontaneous and affectionate welcome he received must have very greatly gratified him. His obituary written by Joseph Deans in the New Church Magazine lists his achievements and speaks of his sterling qualities. “Mr Westall signed the Roll as a member of Conference in 1863 and was actually a member of it for forty seven sessions. His services were frequently called into requisition as a member of the Examining Board. He was a member of the Conference Council in 1874 and again in 1886. He preached the Conference Sermon at Liverpool in 1880. He was President in 1885 at Derby, and in 1895 at Glasgow. (On both occasions he won the goodwill of all his fellow members by his modest and courteous demeanour, and by his close and careful attention to all the details of the conference business.) He was made an ordaining minister in 1882 and in that capacity officiated at many ordinations.