KNOTTINGLEY HOSPITAL SUNDAYS
FROM FAIRS, FESTIVALS, AND FROLICS,
KNOTTINGLEY, circa 1840 – 2003
Volume One (2003)
By Dr TERRY SPENCER B.A (Hons), Ph d
PAGE TWO
In spite of all incentives and for whatever reason fund-raising at
Knottingley underwent a regressive phase between 1909-1918. The
situation was exacerbated during the Great War which saw the nadir of
giving by the townspeople. In part the decline was caused by even
further demands upon the charitable instinct of the inhabitants as
provision of comforts for local troops was added to the myriad causes
already in existence. More significantly, the enlistment of the young
men of the town deprived the Infirmary Committee of voluntary assistance
and income. The adverse effect may be seen from the public notice
concerning the 1916 demonstration with its plea that "people are
earnestly requested to help to the utmost." (71)
and again the following year when H.L. Lyon, Chairman of the P.G.I.
Management Committee, stated a need for more workers all year round and
appealed from the public platform for helpers to come forward. (72)
Something of the deprivation in personal terms is seen in a reference by
the local M.P. to the loss of Lt. Arthur Barnell, a keen worker for the
cause before the war and Barnell’s loss typified a general pattern both
locally and nationally. (73) In a financial context loss is seen in the
fact that in 1915 only £70 was collected, with less than £4 coming from
the licensed premises which only a few years before had provided at
least 50% of all income. (74)
Knottingley’s decline is all the more apparent when compared with the
effort of Brotherton. In 1915, Brotherton raised £76, six pounds more
than Knottingley had managed and the following year Brotherton collected
£130 compared to Knottingley’s £97. Again, the difference was due to
public house contributions with more than £100 being raised in
Brotherton pubs and only £25 at Knottingley despite the fact that the
latter had more than three times the number of licensed premises. (75)
In an attempt to redress the balance, Mr. Handel Booth M.P., speaking
at the demonstration held in Charles Elliott’s field at Womersley Road
in 1916, offered 3d. of his own money for every shilling saved by any
pub which raised £20 or more. (76) In addition, Mr. Lyon promised a
medal to any pub which collected in excess of £5 and in 1918, offered a
challenge cup to be presented annually to the public house or club with
the highest amount, the cup to be retained permanently by any house
which won it for three successive years. (77) The purpose of these
measures was to encourage collections on a regular basis, the secret of
Brothertons success. Thus, little Brotherton set the pace for its larger
neighbour and Knottingley responded to the challenge.
In 1918, with the Mayor of Pontefract, Cr. Oswald Holmes, in
attendance at the Banks Garth cricket field, the people of Knottingley,
by the Mayors own admission, gave him a message to take back to
Pontefract. The reason was
"a record which redounds to the credit of all concerned" in the
form of £281-11-4d., more than £200 in advance of the takings of the
previous year and "a record for Knottingley or any place in the
district."
Apart from the example and challenge afforded by Brotherton which was
duly acknowledged by the Chairman, Mr. Horace Bentley, the reason for
the remarkable recovery was ascribed as being due to an increased sense
of public awareness and responsibility by the townspeople. (78)
Within the constraints of the income of the labouring poor there had
always been awareness and responsibility. In the twenty years following
the reconstitution of the local Infirmary Committee in 1897 the sum of
£1,132-18-9d.,a per capita average of £33-13-0 per annum, had been
disbursed to Pontefract Dispensary. Leeds Infirmary had received
£133-7-0 or £12-2-5 per person, as an annual average sum and the total
per capita annual average for both institutions was £84-4-0 (79)
Horace Bentley was undoubtedly right, however, in that the grim
unfolding of the Great War, then entering its final phase, had
heightened awareness of the need to make more effort, from moral
conviction as well as practical necessity. On a psychological level the
brutal horror of the war with its broken minds and bodies, shattered
lives and mass slaughter had engendered a resolve on the part of the
survivors to shape a better world. In addition, the growing sense of
relief that the end of the conflict was in sight doubtless triggered a
feeling of joy and thanksgiving which was manifest in the contributions
to the Hospital Fund.
On a more mundane level, more thorough organisation of public house
collections gave practical benefit to the cause for in 1918 licensed
houses, which now included the Hill Top Workingmens’ Club (which was to
be joined shortly afterwards by those of Foundry Lane, British Legion
and National Association of Discharged Soldiers & Sailors) contributed
£144-1-9 or 51% of the record total. (80)
The following year the record was again broken. A large gathering at
Banks Garth was informed by the Hon’ Secretary of the local Committee,
Mr. G. W. Reynolds, that in 1919 a total of £477-6-5 had been amassed as
against the final tally of £301-14-8 the previous year. Of the new
record amount 55% came from public house collections with the Red Lion
at Kellington donating more than £100 and the Wesleyan Brotherhood
subscribing £101-6-0 compared to £38 in 1918. Cr. Reynolds referred to
the unsuccessful attempt by Pontefract to eclipse Knottingley’s effort.
The final sum collected in 1919 was almost £500, a record amount that
was considered to be unbeatable by any other neighbouring township. (81)
The spectacular financial outcome had been achieved by reorganisation
of the system of collecting in licensed premises and workplaces from
late 1917, the efficiency of which was acknowledged by George Reynolds
who as Secretary had been instrumental in the process of reorganisation.
(82)
Amid the vicissitudes of war more subtle changes affecting the nature
of the annual demonstration had occurred. The presence and participation
of the local clergymen on a regular basis from the turn of the twentieth
century underlined the religious origin of the demonstrations and this
link was further emphasised by the musical content of the annual
proceedings, consisting of selections of sacred music and popular hymns.
In deference to its quasi-religious nature the event customarily began
with the singing of the 23rd Psalm to the tune ‘Old Hundred’.
Similarly, from the final decade of the nineteenth century the event
provided a platform for the political elements within the local
constituency with the Borough Member and quite regularly his prospective
opponent present, together with local councillors from Knottingley,
Pontefract and other neighbouring townships. While the occasion was not
one of overtly political nature, merely providing a meeting ground for
the elected representatives, their political opponents and the
constituents, it is interesting to note how an increasing emphasis was
placed upon the political aspects of health care from the 1920s.
In a broad context the trend is discernible from the war years with
patriotic fervour expounded by parliamentary and governmental
propagandists. For instance, the public address of Mr. Handel Booth
M.P., were characterised by strident anti-German oratory and similarly,
in 1916, Booth’s sentiments were echoed by Mr. Philip Doherty, a
representative of the Ministry of Munitions who employed such rhetoric
in order to emphasise the need for increasing war production.
Significantly, ‘Old Hundred’ was replaced by the National Anthem at
demonstrations during the war and for some time thereafter. (83) While
such sentiments were publicly acceptable and understandably so in the
context of the period, they were nonetheless a departure from previous
observance and influenced the nature of future events to a degree.
With the widespread support of the Labour Party in the 1920s, opinions
regarding state provision of medical services became more polarised with
doctrinaire views based upon party politics increasingly expounded.
Speaking from the platform in 1920 the Rev. T.A.H. Thomas said that as
a result of the war the public attitude towards hospitals was changing
with camps in favour of voluntary or state aided schemes. Regardless of
the pros and cons of the political theories which informed public
attitudes on the issue, the reverend gentleman drew attention to the
financial plight of nurses who were receiving only £12 a year at that
time, less than small boys were earning in local factories. To underline
the disparity it was stated that out of their meagre income the nurses
had to pay for their own uniforms. (84)
In 1921, Mr. Tom Smith, the prospective Labour candidate, joined the
platform party at the cricket field and used the opportunity to broach
the subject of hospital waiting lists (plus ca chance…???) which he
stated had grown following the passing of the National Insurance Act and
local hospitals were unable to clear because they were debt ridden.
Smith also attacked bad housing conditions, claiming them a major factor
in the spread of disease. (85)
The following year George Reynolds, remarking on the adverse effect of
the beer tax on public house collections, expressed regret at the
absence of the sitting M.P., Mr. Walter Forrest, claiming that his
presence at the demonstration might have inclined him to support
reduction of the impost. Smith capitalised on Reynold’s comment,
claiming Forrest was "somewhat afraid of meeting his constituents."
Smith’s fervour for state funding was however, attacked obliquely by
the attendant Mayor of Pontefract, Cr. Moxon, who alluded to the
advocates of such a system and said it would mean costly, extravagant
bureaucracy. The concept
"stank in their [i.e. opponents’] nostrils. We’ve had enough of it and
we don’t want any more." (86)
Tom Smith was an M.P. in 1923 when he appeared alongside his political
opponent, Major Braithwaite, D.S.O., M.C., the prospective Unionist
candidate. George Reynolds in stating that Pontefract Dispensary
required £3,000 in order to make it "the most up to date in the
country" again expressed the hope that the institution would remain
a voluntary one rather than a state aided service. However in admitting
that Knottingley
"had passed through a period of depression as never before"
one senses a note of reluctant acceptance of the inevitability of
state control in the face of future economic depreciation. Smith, for
his part blamed unemployment for the decrease in contributions that year
and said parliament could have done more by exempting tax from money
donated to hospitals. (87) Thereafter throughout the remainder of his
tenure as an M.P. which (with one hiccup when he was briefly unseated by
Brigadier General C.R. Ingham-Brook, C.M.G., D.S.O.) lasted until 1935,
Smith refrained from making political points. One reason, perhaps was
the reconstitution of the local Infirmary Committee in 1926 but more
probably because the severe economic situation consequent upon the world
wide depression made obvious the impracticality of state funding for a
comprehensive health care system. By the late 1930s however, the cry for
a government sponsored health service had been taken up by hospital
administrators as well as many politicians. At the 1938 demonstration Mr
D.J. Richards, Secretary/Superintendent of the P.G.I., said the
government could do more to help hospitals. Richard’s assertion was well
founded. More than a decade earlier it had been stated that an average
administration cost of £2,000 had risen by 50% by 1924 and that £4,000
per annum would be required in the near future as Pontefract Infirmary
sought to adapt to meet the needs of an ever increasing population. (88)
Faced with an exponential increase in demand it was obvious that
voluntary funding was incapable of meeting future need. Income from
voluntary sources was subject to the vagaries of general economic
circumstances and even in its most prodigious efforts failed to meet the
necessary level of expenditure. A crisis in the financial administration
of hospitals and allied institutions was clearly evident when the
outbreak of war in September 1939 placed the desired remedial action in
abeyance for the duration and a little beyond.
The year 1920 saw a downturn in receipts as the police forbade local
public houses to hold raffles to boost contributions. A glimpse of the
effect of the ban is seen by comparison of some public house
contributions in 1919 and 1920, viz:-
| Name of Pub |
1919 |
1920 |
|
£ |
s |
d |
£ |
s |
d |
| Aire Street Hotel |
21 |
2 |
6 |
1 |
13 |
7 |
| Cherry Tree Inn |
7 |
13 |
3 |
2 |
1 |
3½ |
| L & Y Hotel |
14 |
10 |
11½ |
7 |
4 |
10½ |
The overall effect was a deficit of about £120 on the amount collected
the previous year which it was claimed would have been exceeded had the
pubs had complete freedom.
Not all public houses showed a deficit in 1920 however. The Lime Keel
Inn, which was described as a ‘pioneer’ in collecting for the P.G.I. and
had received more medals than any other local pub, raised £24 compared
to £17-5-10 in 1919. Similarly, the Sailors Home, which had donated
£5-6-9 in 1919, raised its contributions to £18-11-71/2. Increases such
as the above reflected the fervour of the individual licensees, a fact
acknowledged in the award of medals to Mrs Downing of the Lime Keel and
Mrs Lavin of the Sailors Home. The starkest reduction in contributions
was seen in the case of the Red Lion, Kellington, which fell from more
than £100 in 1919 to a mere £2-1-0 in the succeeding year. Perhaps the
reason for the decline is to be found in a change of tenancy with a less
enthusiastic tenant taking over the Inn?
Despite a decline in the overall sum collected, 1920 was nevertheless
a successful year, one which Secretary George Reynolds "doubted if
any other township would beat."
The street collections along the processional route set a record of
£9-0-5 and the year was also the first of a series of successive years
marked by the individual effort of schoolgirl, Kathleen Mary Roberts,
who collected the sum of 10 guineas and received a brooch from Mr Horace
Bentley, Chairman of Knottingley’s Infirmary Committee in recognition of
here effort. (89)
Adults involved in the administration of the local fund raising effort
were rightly mindful of the need to encourage the participation of the
younger generation. When, in 1919, Boy Scout, George Ella, took part in
the en-route collection, his effort was recognised by one of the regular
collectors, Mr J. Chapman, who generously declined to accept the medal
awarded for the highest sum collected in the parade in order that the
prize could be bestowed upon the youngster. (90) The award was therefore
the precursor to the prize received by Miss Roberts who in 1923 received
a wristlet watch for collecting £8-17-11 while the runner-up, Master
George Hall, who collected £7-18-0., received a silver pen knife. (91)
In recording the achievements of those mentioned above it is
appropriate to digress in order to note the developmental pattern and
contribution made to the cause by young people in later years. Pride of
place in 1924 went to Miss Elsie Broughton who received a box of hankies
while Kathleen Roberts and George Hall received scent and a watch
respectively. (92) Miss Broughton continued to dominate individual
collections in the years immediately following and by 1928 had amassed a
combined total of £60. Retiring that year, Miss Broughton waived her
right to a medal in favour of newcomer Master Thomas Miller. (93) For
three successive years thereafter, Thomas Miller won the medal, together
with a wrist watch in 1929. (94) In 1933 Miss Dorothy Asquith won the
medal and a watch and received the medal again the following year. (95)
In 1935 the recipient of the medal and watch was Miss Muriel Brooks,
who, in 1936 was one of four schoolgirl collectors who collectively
raised £26-8-0 of which Miss Brooks attained the highest amount with
£17. (96) Achieving the hat-trick in 1937, Muriel then yielded the prize
to Miss Irene Cawthorne in 1938. (97)
Proving the benefit of early recruitment was John Firth who at the age
of four won the prize for the highest sum collected by a child in 1940
and again the following year when he was presented with a model railway
engine, an appropriate prize for John lived in the gatehouse at the
Womersley Road railway crossing. (98) A fellow recipient of the prize in
1941 was Master W. Bagley. From 1942-1944 George Tennant won the first
prize and John Firth was the runner-up. (99) In Victory Year, 1945, Roly
Tennant, brother of George, was first with John Firth again a prize
winner. (100) The two final years of Infirmary Sunday fund raising were
the preserve of Miss Pamela Kellett. In 1944 Pam won the award for the
best street collection and repeated her success in 1945 before taking
the prize for the best individual collection in 1946 and 1947 with a
young Eric Horton a fellow recipient in the former year. (101)
The valuable contribution of Pam Kellett and her sister Marjorie in
collecting money for local charities cannot be overstated. For more than
a decade during the war and in the immediate post war period, the
talented ‘K’ Sisters were the predominant fund raisers in the area,
specialising in raising money for Pontefract General Infirmary. The
girls are warmly remembered by many of the older inhabitants of
Knottingley more than half a century later. (102)
Nor in paying tribute to the dedication of those casually associated
with Hospital Sunday should one ignore a Mr Selway. A regular hand with
a collecting tin along the processional route in the years immediately
preceding the Second World War, Mr Selway, on leave from the R.A.F. in
1941, joined the parade with his collection tin and with the sum of
£1-8-0, won the prize for the highest sum collected for the second time
in his years of association with the cause. (103)
A notable team effort in 1920 was the effort of the Wesleyan
Brotherhood which raised in excess of £100 for the second successive
year and was to go on to complete a hat-trick of centuries the following
year.
A prominent figure on the platform at that time was Alderman T.J.
Sides, Mayor of Pontefract and Managing Director of Carter’s Knottingley
Brewery Co. Ltd., who offered a silver cup, valued at 10 guineas, to be
competed for by the Company’s houses (which constituted the majority of
the public houses in Knottingley) and retained by any house winning it
for three successive years. Addressing the public in 1920, Sides,
mindful of the slight decline in the sum contributed, stated that as
wages in the locality had increased, he had hoped to see a corresponding
increase in workers donations. In order to ensure a future increase,
Sides suggested that Sunday School teachers initiate a system of
collection amongst their scholars. Receiving the silver Lyon Cup in his
capacity as Secretary of the Hill Top Workingmens’ Club, G.W. Reynolds
responded to Sides remarks, stating that the workingmen did well "and
that they [the committee] ought to have more from the other side [the
employers]." (104)
Sides disparagement of the workers efforts was put into perspective in
1922 when, again in the presence of Sides, Reynolds while describing the
Knottingley people as "second to none", reported that workpeoples’
donations were down a s a result of wage reductions for which there had
been no corresponding reduction in the cost of living, leaving him to
wonder "how working people had managed to subscribe so well to obtain
within £14 of the previous year."
The ‘knock-on’ effect of the deteriorating economic situation was also
seen in reduced public house contributions, although the high rate of
tax on beer was a contributory factor. Also, the Wesleyan Brotherhood
with a contribution of £79 fell short of £100 for the first time in
recent years. Even so, the Hon Treasurer of the Knottingley Infirmary
Committee, Cr. Jackson Morris, comparing the effort of fund raising as a
‘Christ like’ activity, was able to announce that for the third
successive year the overall total would exceed £400. Two elements in
this success were the increased emphasis given to collecting in the
surrounding rural areas, particularly the villages of Beal and
Kellington which resulted in a fivefold increase in rural contributions,
and an anonymous cheque for £30 sent "in order to augment the
splendid total which Knottingley raises for the hospitals year by year."
(105)
In 1924 Hill Top Workingmens’ Club won the Sides Cup outright, being
the highest contributors among the licensed premises for the third year
with successive totals of £4-4-2, £38-18-4 and £62-9-2.
The Chairman remarked that the people of Knottingley " taught
Pontefract every year what could be done by organisation and set a fine
example for Brotherton and Ferrybridge despite bad trade."
Nevertheless, one statistic quoted reveals the deficiencies arising
from the dependence upon voluntary funding. Leeds Infirmary had received
242 patients from Knottingley at a total cost of £600 and had received a
mere £146 from the town of which sum £125 was donated by the local
committee. Even to reach the goal of £500 would not be a cost effective
exercise. In reviewing this obvious and long standing deficiency Mr H.L.
Lyon, presiding, revealed the fact that "In the old days a feeling
existed that Pontefract got all it wanted and therefore all the money
should go to Leeds."
While the statement bespeaks the community’s awareness of the debt
owed to Leeds Infirmary and a desire to do all possible to minimise it,
it seems somewhat surprising that maximisation of the effort should be
advocated at the expense of the local Dispensary for not only was there
an equal awareness of debt owed to that institution but, arising from
statistics quoted at the annual demonstration, knowledge that the
Dispensary undertook treatment at a financial loss. Acknowledging that
both institutions were hard up Lyon suggested that 75% of contributions
be sent to Pontefract to help fund the recent extension. Lyon also
expressed regret that the name of the Dispensary had been changed and
gave his opinion that in this respect the Infirmary authorities had made
a mistake. (106)
Like all outdoor events Infirmary Sunday was a hostage to the weather
yet the August date usually endured favourable conditions over the
years. An exception occurred in 1925, however, when much needed rain
following a period of prolonged drought fell inopportunely, drenching
Knottingley Silver Prize Band and accompanying persons in their march
round the town prior to the demonstration. The event was therefore held
in the Town Hall where soaked but undeterred the bandsmen played a
musical selection at the start of the proceedings instead of during the
event and then departed for their respective homes and a change of
clothes. One positive outcome of the Band’s determination to complete
the processional route was that people showed their appreciation of the
marchers by producing a record sum for the on route collection with Mr.
A. Westerman collecting the sum of £6-4-71/2. In thanking the band for
its loyalty to the cause the Secretary of the local Infirmary Committee
recalled similar weather two years earlier when William Bagley (since
deceased), had made up a shortfall of £9-10-0 in the gate receipts
Appreciation for the band "who were always ready to assist" had
been expressed on that occasion and deservedly so for the cause (and
indeed, the town) had no more dedicated body of men. For more than half
a century, led principally by the diminutive but stout-hearted
bandmaster, Samuel Marshall, the band gave its services free of charge
making its fiftieth appearance at the 1946 demonstration on which
occasion the Pontefract General Infirmary Committee presented two briar
pipes to Marshall as a token of appreciation for unparalleled service.
(107) Heavy rain also marred the demonstration in 1932 when the event
was transferred to the Town Hall. Fortunately on this occasion the rain
commenced in time for the parade to be cancelled and thereby prevented
the bandsmen from a further soaking. In referring to the role of the
Band in passing it is worth recalling the somewhat singular
circumstances of 1917 when for some inexplicable reason instead of
leading the parade the Prize Band brought up the rear of the procession.
(108)
It is somewhat ironic that diminished receipts due to the heavy rain
in 1925 occurred in the year which witnessed the opening of a new
in-patient wing at the P.G.I. The new wards were named after Mary, the
Princess Royal, and Mr. Marshall, a local confectionery manufacturer,
who was the current chairman of the P.G.I. Management Committee. There
was local disappointment that no recognition had been given to the town
of Knottingley which during the six most recent years had donated
£2,000. (109)
Crisis occurred in 1926 following the resignation of Secretary, George
Reynolds, for personal reasons. The local Committee looked leaderless
and doomed. As in 1890 a town meeting was called in the hope of
appointing a new committee. The meeting was chaired by Mr. Horace
Bentley on the evening of Thursday, 13th May, 1926, and attended by
about 60 persons. Mr. A. Berry, K.U.D.C. Accountant and shortly
afterwards Clerk to the Council, was appointed Secretary, pro tem, and
it was decided to circularise all clubs, workplaces, schools, and social
organisations and request representatives to serve on a newly formed
Infirmary Committee. (110) As a result a new Committee was subsequently
formed with only ten weeks in which to prepare for the annual
demonstration.
The new Infirmary Committee consisted of Cr. J. Jackson J.P.,
President, Cr Jackson Morris, Treasurer, Cr E. Jackson, Chairman and Mr
A Pickard, Secretary. Other prominent members and supporters were Mr
S.B.Bagey, Mr.H.Bentley, Cr A Macdonald and Rev. J.Bennetts, the
Wesleyan Minister. (111)
Contrary to expectation the change in the management gave a spur to
events at Knottingley and the event was crowned with success. A large
gathering in the Cricket Field was informed that £383-6-4 had been
raised compared with £419-19-81/2 the previous year and was a creditable
reflection on the new Committee and workers. Overall, a record £760 was
collected in 1926 beating the previous highest amount of £485 (112) The
sum raised was all the more creditable for being obtained at a time when
the effects of the General Strike had caused widespread distress within
the local community with soup kitchens being set up to feed the children
of many impoverished working class families. The revival was marked by a
150% increase in workplace subscriptions and a rise of 50% in private
donations while an appreciable increase in public house and club
donations was also discernible. On an individual level the year was
notable for the presentation of a silver cup to Miss Broughton who had
collected £11 and a significant effort by Mr J.G. Westerman who
collected £37-7-0 in a single day’s activity. A novel feature was an
award to ‘Rover’, a retriever dog belonging to Mr A. Rush who had
assisted his owner in the collection of money for the Infirmary. (113)
An interesting aspect of the addresses delivered from the platform was
the growing demand made on hospital services due to the rise in
accidents arising from the increased volume of road transport.
In presenting the annual report of the P.G.I. Management Committee in
1927 the Hospital Chairman revealed that the institute had a deficit of
£900 over the previous year. It is also significant that the effort of
the members of the Knottingley Infirmary Committee and the townspeople
who supported them were singled out for congratulation. (114)
Phoenix like the reborn administration flourished. In 1928 £950 was
collected, breaking all previous records. Mr W.H. Marshall on behalf of
the P.G.I. stated that for its size Knottingley was better organised
than anywhere else in the country. In a year of all round improvement
special thanks were accorded to both Bandmaster Marshall and the Silver
Prize Band and also to the fairground showpeople for their continuous
support since 1896.
The effect of the opening of the new 15 bed wing at the P.G.I. in
1925, making a 40 bed capacity, was seen in statistics quoted at the
1928 demonstration. Viz:-
| Date |
Pontefract Patients |
Leeds Patients |
|
IN |
OUT |
IN |
OUT |
| 1925 |
25 |
--- |
69 |
143 |
| 1927 |
61 |
291 |
26 |
85 |
and the swing from Leeds Infirmary to Pontefract Infirmary continued
during the following decade so that by 1936 Pontefract Infirmary had 144
in-patients and 350 out-patients referred from the neighbourhood of
Knottingley compared to 25 and 86 respectively, who received treatment
at Leeds. (115)
Noting the increasing recourse to the local hospital the former
Chairman of the P.G.I. Management Committee, Mr H.L. Lyon, mentioned en
passant, that when he had retired from the Chairmanship in 1925, £500
had been raised, a record sum which was thought to be unique and would
not be matched again. Of the current sum of £950 he hoped 80% would be
allocated to Pontefract, particularly as there was more scope for
fund-raising at Leeds with its dense population and catchment area. In
the event it was decided to split £750 between the two institutions and
use the balance to engage a district nurse to attend cases at
Knottingley not referred to the P.G.I. (116) The return of the district
nurse to the town restored a necessary service lost due to lack of
financial provision almost a quarter of a century earlier. (117)
The year 1928 was also significant in that for the first time in many
years two bands participated in the demonstration. The Salvation Army
Band which had made a solitary appearance 39 years before now returned
and the following year the pre demonstration parade was split into two
processions commencing as separate entities at either end of the town
before joining together as they approached Banks Garth for the
demonstration. Thus a new feature was launched which with only slight
modification of one of the routes, was to provide the pattern for two
decades, ending only with the obsolescence of Infirmary Sunday in 1948.
In 1928
Knottingley Silver
Prize Band accompanied by contingents of the local St Johns
Ambulance Brigade, the Church Lads Brigade and Girl Guides, marched from
the Railway Hotel through Hill Top and along Weeland Road while the
Salvation Army Band together with the Boy Scouts and the Girls Life
Brigade travelled from the Low End of the town via Aire Street and Cow
Lane, both meeting at Banks Garth.
At the venue the Secretary of the local Committee, Mr A. Pickard, was
able to announce that at a time when unemployment had reached a level
hitherto unknown, the town had achieved a long desired ambition by
raising over £1,000 in the past year, thereby breaking all records. The
total represented a percentage increase of 350 over the sum raised the
first year following the reorganisation of the Committee. Apart from the
labours of the Committee, the success owed much to the dedication of
local individuals such as Mr J. Hanson who had served as a gate steward
since 1890 and whose contribution was honoured that year and who was
still recorded as providing stalwart service in 1932. (118)
A further change announced the following year was the award of the
Sides Cup and two medals for the two largest club boxes with effect from
1930 as it was considered that public houses could not be expected to
compete with local clubs whose large regularised memberships provided
more opportunity for fund raising than was afforded by the more casual
clientele of the pubs. The situation was clearly evident in 1929 when
three of the top four places were occupied by workingmens’ clubs. The
N.A.D.S. & S Club was awarded the Lyon Cup and winners medal for
£29-4-3. By comparison the Rd Lion, Kellington, occupied third place
with £8-10-5 and Foundry Lane Club ironically, a former public house –
the Jolly Sailor – was fourth with £8-9-91/2. (119)
Attainment of £1,000 set the trend for future years. In 1931 a further
record was set amidst severe trade depression and mass unemployment with
£1,133 being collected. Despite unparalleled economic adversity the
townspeople made a superhuman effort, falling slightly short of the
target sum. However, the Chairman, Mr A. McDonald made up the deficit to
ensure attainment of the desired goal. Again, in 1932, when £989-9-8 was
reached the amount was rounded off by Mr S.B. Bagley. (120)
With only one exception the years 1930-1943 saw sums raised in excess
of £1,000, viz:-
| YEAR |
TOTAL |
YEAR |
TOTAL |
|
£ |
|
£ |
| 1928 |
760 |
1936 |
1,100 |
| 1929 |
965 |
1937 |
1,130 |
| 1930 |
1,133 |
1938 |
1,070 |
| 1931 |
1,108 |
1939 |
1,066 |
| 1932 |
1,000 |
1940 |
1,220 |
| 1933 |
988 |
1941 |
1,350 |
| 1934 |
1,010 |
1942 |
1,800 |
| 1935 |
1,008 |
1943 |
2,250 |
For a community of about 7,000 people the figures above are quite
remarkable, particularly in an era of unprecedented socio-economic
adversity. While it is true that from 1927 an annual carnival and sports
supplemented annual takings by the Infirmary Committee the additional
sums came from the restricted incomes of the local inhabitants. Just how
hard the potential income of the Infirmary was hit by high level
unemployment is shown by reference to various sources of donation during
the years of depression. Less people in work meant a smaller workforce
to subscribe to the cause either generally or more particularly via
workplace donations. Likewise, less money to spend resulted in a decline
in public house and club takings while local firms, feeling the
adversity of trade depression, contributed less to the funds raised.
In 1934, Mr W. Dickinson took over from Mr A. Pickard as Secretary of
the local Infirmary Committee. the change appears to have been a
temporary measure for the following year the post was filled by Mr J.W.
Underwood who retained the office and filled the demanding duties of
Secretary until the disbandment of the Committee in 1948.
An innovative feature introduced in 1927 was the placement of a giant
barometer on the front of the Town Hall in order to inform the passing
public of the rate of increase in hospital subscriptions. So successful
was the measure that it was revived during the Second World War as a
means of indicating funds subscribed in the annual War Savings Weeks.
The ‘barometer’ was erected by permission of the Council and the formal
ceremony marking its use was presided over by the K.U.D.C. Chairman, Cr.
John Jackson, J.P., accompanied by Mr M. Lyon, the P.G.I. representative
who set the indicator. The ceremony was distinguished by the presence of
the ever reliable Silver Prize Band who entertained the assembled public
with musical selections. (122) A ‘reverse borrowing’ took place in 1936
when the Infirmary Committee adopted an idea first used in 1929 to raise
funds for the provision of playing fields within the town. At that time
the compilation of a ‘mile of pennies’ had been a novel feature. Seven
years on the Infirmary Committee reintroduced the concept as a ‘mile of
sixpences’ in order to assist the financing of the P.G.I. extension.
(123)
A widening of disbursements was a notable feature of 1936 for apart
from £502 and £200 donated to Pontefract and Leeds hospitals, £150 was
given to the Knottingley Nursing Association and incidental payments of
£4-19-0 to the Royal Bath Hospital, Harrogate, and £21-15-10 to the
P.G.I. to provide new tables for the board room, were also made. (124)
The collection of £1,000 plus in 1940 was all the more remarkable
because of government restrictions on fundraising activities such as the
Carnival and Sports and special events such as dances, concerts and
whist drives arising from the exigencies of war. Even when in subsequent
years a degree of adaptation to war time conditions permitted a more
relaxed and settled existence the demands of the war effort with its
emphasis on National Savings provided competition for charitable causes
by vying for peoples’ money.
The inter war years had witnessed the development of Council housing
along Womersley Road and the beginnings of the Broomhill estate close
by. In order to capitalise in these centres of population it was decided
that the 1940 parade route be altered with the Salvation Army Band and
its accompanying contingent commencing the march from the top of
Womersley Road instead of from Low Green. (125) The following year the
Silver Prize Band took the new route while the Salvation Army Band
marched along the route from the Railway Hotel, Hill Top. For reasons
unknown, in 1943 the Salvation Army Band covered the Womersley Road
march and retained this route ever after.
The demonstration of 1943 proved to be the apogee of the Infirmary
Sunday movement at Knottingley for that year the record sum of £2,250
was obtained. In a large measure the attainment of that sum was produced
by a myriad activities launched under the joint aegis of the Council,
local Services Welfare Association and the Infirmary Committee. The fact
that full employment ensured full pockets while wartime austerity
imposed constraints upon consumer so ending proved a boon to local
charities. (126)
The penultimate year of the war saw a total of £2,150 raised. A joyful
feature of that years event was the introduction of the Carnival Queen,
Miss Peggy Lowther, and her attendants to the gathering, a sure sign of
public belief in a brighter future, the Carnival having been in abeyance
since 1940. (127)
Victory year, 1945, marked a near challenge to the record of 1943. By
the time of the demonstration a sum approximately equal to the 1943
total had been secured and outstanding pledges suggested the attainment
of a new record. Alas, it was not to be, the final total of £2,236
falling £14 short of the record. (128) It has always seemed a source of
wonder to the writer that one of the wealthy local dignitaries did not
emulate the action of William and Stanley Bagley or A McDonald in
earlier years and donate a sum sufficient to crown Victory Year in a
fitting way.
The years 1946 and 1947 saw a decline in contributions. The landslide
election of a Labour government in 1945 with its manifesto pledge
implement the recommendations of the Beveridge Report and establish a
National Health Service engendered a degree of anticipation
characterised by a relaxation in public donations. Thus in 1946 the sum
raised was £1,091, followed by £1,218 in 1947, neither sum to be
despised as a effort by a community suffering from fatigue induced by
sacrificial demands created by six years of grim and brutal warfare.
(129)
Although the event of 1947 had a retrospective air in anticipation of
the imminent National Health Service it was by no means certain at that
date that the demonstration would be the last in a link of such events
commencing in 1884. Thus, having outlined the provisions of the National
Health Service Act to the large crowd in attendance, Professor R.E.
Tunbridge O.B.E., of Leeds, appealed for continued support in order to
hand over the existing system to the new administrators as ‘a going
concern.’ (130)
As events transpired the 1947 Infirmary Sunday was the last ever. In
retrospect one can see that (largely because of the uncertainty at the
time) the final demonstration was an anti climax to the whole cycle. It
must be noted, however, that such feeling was not apparent in the
attitude and conduct of those present upon that occasion, the present
writer being an eye witness to the event.
For over 60 years Knottingley’s Hospital Sunday was a supreme
manifestation of individual endeavour encapsulated in community action.
Today, whatever the perceived deficiencies of the National Health
Service, society has the assurance of health care to which generations
before the mid-twentieth century could only aspire. Yet in obtaining
such a degree of security, society has lost the spirit of mutual
assistance and community pride which gave Knottingley of yore its unique
vibrancy and character and today’s inhabitants are the poorer for that
loss.
In conclusion, it must be noted that for each person mentioned in this
study there are hundreds of others whose efforts, either by a self
denying desire for anonymity or the caprice of time, are unrecorded in
the annals of the town. The contribution of the nameless ones if of no
less value for being neglected nor is the debt of gratitude owed to them
by succeeding generations.
Memento et valete ac plaudite.
"Gaiety was undimmed even by the burden of trade depression. Almost
every house and cottage was decorated from end to end of the straggling
town. The Flatts, as usual, were garlanded….The procession would have
done credit to a much larger town."
Pontefract & Castleford Express 15th July, 1938
"Can you think back to the Carnivals
and garland threaded streets?
Jimmy Hollingworth was the leading man
Behind these decorative feats."
"Carnival Day’s approaching,
Let’s shout ‘hip, Hip, Hooray’,
With comic bands and stalls and stands
We’ll have a lovely day…
….The streets are trimmed from end to end
The curtains all washed clean
The big day is upon us
A local beauty Queen
Howards Field is the rendezvous
Where everyone will meet
When the Queen and her procession
Have passed the bottom of your street."
Frank Chambers
‘Memories of Old Knottingley’ & ‘A journey Around Old Knottingley’
Carey J Chambers (ed)
Dr. Terry Spencer
Reproduced with the kind permission of Dr. Terry Spencer
Knottingley's Hospital Sundays is copyright ©Terry Spencer 2003
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