Earby Chronicles Edition 68 SPRING 2013 SOCIETY AIMS: to raise awareness, EARBY MAY DAYS foster an interest Part 1 : In the Beginning – Stephanie Carter and facilitate £1.50 research into the heritage of Earby & Lodged in the Archives of the Society are copies of programmes of district including past Earby May Day celebrations, and using these as my main source, I Thornton in hope to present a series of short articles which will revive memories of Craven, Sough, these happy times of long ago. In this first piece let us recall Earby’s first Kelbrook, Harden, May Days of 1947, 1948, 1949 and 1950. Hague and Salterforth. OFFICIALS Chairman &NRCC Rep : Bob Abel phone 01282 843850 Vice Chairman & Edi- tor of Chronicles: Stephanie Carter Phone 01756 794099 Secretary : Margaret Brown phone 01282 843932 Treasurer & Archi- vist : Wendy Faulkner phone 01282 863160 Programme Secretary Vacant Archivist: Margaret Greenwood phone 01282 843394 Web Site / IT Vacant Committee: Trevor Tattersall Mary Corteen Colin Dalby www.earbyhistory.co. Recent talks & features uk Page1 Earby May Days Part 1—Stephanie Carter Page 5 Short History of Salterforth Inghamite Chapel Part 1—Colin Dalby £2.50 Page 14 Two Old Relics—An Old Earbyer Members of 1 Society free Earby Chronicles Earby District Social and Festival Committee, with chairman Bert Cross and secre- tary Harold Waterworth, was created to arrange a programme of entertainment “of a very high educational and recreational standard” to achieve the aim of the May Day Festival “to revive family spirit among our citizens who had been drawn into close co-operation during the years of war and the desirability of that continued community of interest in the days of peace”. Firstly a May Queen had to be chosen; at the dance held in the Albion Hall in March 1947 there were 22 entries, from whom Miss Margaret Halstead was selected. (She is the mother of local joiner and undertaker Martin Foster). Her attendants were to be Joan Crewdson, Vera Greenwood, Vera Butterworth, Joan Greenwood, Netta Hargreaves and Joyce Blackey. Page Boys and Sherwood Foresters were also to be in attendance on the day, before which a programme of events was drawn up. The first souvenir programme fea- tured a depiction of Earby’s Old Grammar School, the first of many interesting frontpieces. May 3rd brought sleet, rain and high winds to Earby, and owing to the state of the field at the Recreation Ground off Skipton Road, several of the planned activities were cur- tailed. The celebrations began with a procession starting at Linden Road and headed by Earby Prize Brass Band. There followed an assortment of tableaux, children in fancy dress and decorated horses. The first prize in the decorated horses section went to AJ Birleys of Albion Mill. On the Rec, Mrs Drayson, wife of the local MP, performed the crowning cere- mony and praised the Festival Committee for their success in reviving old traditional May festivities. There was maypole and country dancing, accompanied by the Band, a safety first display and a show by the Craven Motor Club. The day concluded with dancing until 11.45 to the Troubadours Band in the Albion Hall, the admission to which was 2/6d. The Craven Herald reported one year later that Margaret Halstead had been a credit to the town, undertaking numerous engagements involving public speaking. Margaret had been surprised at what she had learnt and said “You may think you can’t do a thing but when the time comes and you have to, then you find you can”. The management and em- ployees of Johnsons Fabrics Ltd, where Miss Halstead was on the office staff, presented her with a weekend case to mark the end of a successful reign. 1st May 1948 heralded a fine day for the crowning of Miss Netta Hargreaves. The 6d souvenir programme was decorated with flowers, and ten tableaux formed the backbone of the procession. Sunday and day schools were represented along with the Allotment Holders Association and Kelbrook Young Farmers Club who used a model cow to represent their theme. A Bonnie Babies tableau was entered by the Food Office and trade displays by local Margaret Halstead Netta Hargreaves 2 Earby Chronicles firms played a prominent part in the procession. The new May Queen and her retinue wore silk dresses made from material woven by Newbridge Mill in Earby. Children from the mod- ern school, conducted by Miss Millicent Turner, sang a selection of songs before and after the crowning, whilst Barnoldswick Brass Band accompanied a large scale maypole dance performed in front of the new May Queen. A safety demonstration was staged by West Rid- ing Police and the evening was rounded off with a whist drive and dancing to Les Rhodes and his band in the Albion Hall. Pauline Hands Betty Priestley The merry month of May 1949 saw Miss Betty Priestley crowned Queen, assisted by her retinue, page boys and Sherwood Foresters. The chairman of the Festival Committee was Bert Cross with secretary Dick Shaw, and the Festival Committee continued with their aim in 1950 to revive the merriment of old time May festivals. In medieval days May Day had been kept as a great public holiday. It was a festival to celebrate the return of Spring, with maypole dancing, crowning of the May Queen, with hobby horses, archers and other lively festivities. Miss Pauline Hands was Earby’s May Queen and the event attracted the usual large crowd. EARBY 100 YEARS AGO 1913 Information gleaned from Craven Herald by Stephanie Carter January It is proposed to form a Dickens Society with Mr S V Heap as president; membership to be limited to 25. To celebrate the birth of Dickens on 7th February a dinner is to be held in Loth- ersdale. To celebrate the opening of the Premier Tent (Earby) of the Independent Order of Rechabites a social was held in Coronation Hall. Brother William Pawson presided over a splendid attendance and a capital programme was gone through – songs, recitations and addresses on the work of the Order. Mr Amos Nelson who resides at the Manor and is a well known Nelson manufacturer, when motoring home on Saturday evening found the road between Thornton and Earby impass- able, the snow having drifted in places. The car became stuck and had to be abandoned and Mr Nelson proceeded home on foot. Co-operative tea and concert A tea promoted by the Earby Industrial Co-operative Society was held in the Coronation 3 Earby Chronicles Hall. About 250 sat down to tea after which a capital concert was given by The Western Op- eratic Concert Company. Councillor D Aldridge, president of the Society, presided over an attendance of about 400 persons. Successful year at Conservative Club and the Baptist At Homes reported. On Sunday morning several wagons were derailed at Earby station with both main lines be- ing blocked. The breakdown gang from Skipton was notified and after several hours hard work the lines were cleared. Farewell sermon by Rev C W Townsend, Baptist minister, who leaves for Burnley. February “The erstwhile little village of Earby is rapidly blossoming into a thriving industrial centre. A few decades ago it was a quiet village with a few hundred inhabitants – “far from the mad- ding crowd” - and excepting that it was the junction for a “city” named “Barlick”, it was sel- dom heard of. Now it has 6000 inhabitants, most of whom have tastes out of the ordinary, and is governed by a go-ahead Urban District Council. Political clubs housed in palatial premises represent the three great parties – Liberal, Conservative and Labour. A Naturalists Society, whose members are clever and enthusiastic, and various religious bodies with nu- merous loyal adherents almost complete the tale – and yet a few of the men “of light and leading” and of literary tastes got together recently and formed a Dickens Society with Mr S V Heap as president, and Mr Willie Watson , elocutionist and raconteur, as secretary. Saturday last was set aside for an inaugural banquet at the Cross Keys Inn. “The Immortal memory of Dickens” toast was proposed by the president in an eloquent speech…” General ‘urposes Committee of Earby UDC agreed to the purchase, with the help of public subscriptions, of a new fire engine from London – a second hand machine from Messrs Shand, Mason & Co for £225. Annual distribution of certificates and medallions by Earby Ambulance & Nursing Division by Mrs Birley at Albion Hall. Inspection of Earby Ambulance Division Royal Naval Sick Berth Reserve at New Road School by Inspector General R W G Steward RN on behalf of the Admiralty – 15 members in charge of S V Heap. Parade of 6th WR Cadets C Co Earby – Dress – full dress uniform, rifles, carbines, drums, bugles and side arms. All men to attend this drill. Recruits and men now serving. March Mr S V Heap admitted to Hon Serving Brother of Order of Hospital of St John of Jerusalem. Wesley Guild Easter outing The sun was shining pleasantly as the members of the Wesley Guild assembled at the sta- tion at 9.00am on Easter Saturday. The party of 53 journeyed by train to Bell Busk, after- wards walking through Airton and Kirkby Malham. They climbed up Kirkby Fell and Rye Loaf Point which were partly covered in snow. Descending into the valley they had a walk of four or five miles before reaching Settle. Rain descended about 4.00pm and there was a constant downpour all evening. The party had tea served at Hoyle’s Temperence Hotel, and afterwards held a social hour together.