FIFTY YEARS AGO THIS WEEK (26th OCT. - 1 NOV. 1970)
This week's stories include a fire at a Rainhill supermarket that was probably caused by fireworks, fears over the safety of Billinge Hill, a claim that sacked Pilkington workers had been blacklisted and the first female rugby league team in St Helens is formed, as well as two new Sutton youth clubs.
We begin on October 27th when a mother told St Helens Juvenile Court that her son had been truant from school because he did not have any shoes to wear. The lad had only attended on 56 occasions out of a possible 354 but he and his mother also blamed illness and being marked absent when late as other reasons for poor attendance. The case was adjourned until December.
A fire at a supermarket in Rainhill on the 28th was thought by experts to have been caused by children playing with fireworks. Station officer Vincent Quinn of Lancashire County Fire Brigade based at Whiston said shortly after the blaze: "We are considering the theory that the fire was started by children throwing lighted fireworks onto rubbish at the rear of the premises near the loading bay."
The damage at Reynolds Supermarket on Warrington Road was estimated at £7,000, around £120,000 in today's money. An elderly couple were trapped in their flat over the supermarket but were led to safety by firemen. Later in the week the St Helens Reporter would describe the space at the rear of the building as like a "scene from the blitz", adding:
"The charred remains of hundreds of cereal packets and other stock accumulated outside, as the staff and other helpers cleared the debris from the store room. The fire raged through the store room, order room and hardware section, destroying an estimated £4,000 worth of stock and blackening and damaging the interior to such an extent that it was practically unrecognisable when the staff began salvage operations early on Wednesday." A few days earlier the HQ of Prescot Rifle Club in Pottery Lane, Whiston – that had been founded in 1906 – had also been gutted by fire.
The November edition of the Sutton Parish Church magazine was published this week and the Vicar of Sutton, the Rev. Paul Conder, announced a new initiative. In an attempt to halt the drift of young people away from his church, two new youth clubs were being held on Thursdays.
The SS Club (standing for "Sunday School") would be held from 6pm to 7:30pm and would be for children aged six to eleven. Then from 8pm until 9:30pm the SY Club (standing for "Sunday Youth") would take over and be for those in church organisations, choirs and congregations aged eleven to fifteen. "The sooner the Church realises that it is in a missionary situation and trains up its young people to play their part in bringing others to Christ, the healthier it will be", wrote Mr. Conder.
It was revealed this week that Billinge Council had called in a geologist to check whether landslides from a local quarry could cause Billinge Hill to collapse. Large cracks had appeared in the rock face of Beacon Quarry and the councillors wanted an assurance that the Hill was still safe for the public to enjoy. A four-foot movement of rock and slate was threatening a further collapse and the danger area had been fenced off and warning signs put in place.
The lead story in the St Helens Reporter on the 30th was a claim that sacked Pilkington workers were being blacklisted. Councillor John Potter was one of the leaders of the breakaway Glass and General Workers Union, which had its base in Greenfield Road. He told the paper: "This blacklist is definitely in existence. Because of it our members are being deprived of their livelihood. I have a list in my files of 21 of our members who have applied for jobs – all have been turned down." This was not a new claim by Cllr. Potter who had previously said: "Men are being refused jobs all over south-west Lancashire. It is disgusting that a man's right to work is being interfered with in such a manner."
The Reporter's campaign for "ladies only" rooms in pubs was having some success, with journalist Valerie Belshaw describing how the Bull and Dog in Marshalls Cross (shown above) had launched its first such evening.
"It was a rip-roaring success”, said licensee Joe Ledger. "I thought your campaign was such a good idea and my wife, Rita, and one of my regulars, Mrs. Hazel Hatton, persuaded me to give it a try. It was a rainy, cold night, but we had almost twenty women here. They sat in the room, drew the curtains and drank and chatted. When they were going home I heard a lot of them say they were looking forward to coming next Tuesday and making more new friends."
The changing face of the council's Youth Employment Service was highlighted by the paper's report on a careers convention at Mount Carmel School. It was the first to be held at an all-girls school in St Helens and senior careers officer Brenda Potter described the importance of such events: "In the past career organisers have tended to hide themselves under a bushel. Today it is essential that pupils are given the most up-to-date developments. Nothing should be hidden from them."
It might still only be October but some St Helens' businesses were already thinking of Christmas. Slinn's decorating supplies of Peter Street, Westfield Street and Baldwin Street had this large advert in the Reporter: "Christmas Papering! Trust R. S. Slinn – Est. 1894 and still the leader in St. Helens. No Seconds! No Misprints! No Short Rolls! No City Slickers! The bright and breezy shop – Biggest choice in St. Helens. Cut prices all the way!"
Helena House (pictured above on the right) was advertising the opening of their Xmas Grotto in their Baldwin Street basement on November 7th: "Santa Claus will be waiting to greet you in his magic cave after you have had a wonderful ride on his Gnome's Chariot through Fairyland. Lovely gifts for boys and girls of all ages."
'The Place' at 57 Ormskirk Street was describing their venue as "St. Helens Only True Disco For The Young" which was open five evenings a week from 7pm. On Monday, Thursday and Friday there was a "Top of the Pops Disco", Wednesday was "Blues Night" and Saturday was "Dave's Party Disco Night".
There was another 'Wedding Bells and Beautiful Brides' advertising feature in the Reporter aimed at those planning to get hitched. The advertisers included J. Brunskill & Associates at the YMCA Buildings in North Road, opposite the Capitol, who claimed to be "the town's leading wedding photographers". Barkers were promoting their wedding flowers with premises in Kirkland Street, Duke Street and a stall in the Market Hall.
Vogue Hairfashions of Church Street (above Coombes) were offering wigs, hairpieces, colouring and tinting. Jewellers and silversmiths Rimmer and Welding of 25 Duke Street said they had all the newest designs in wedding rings with 22ct. gold rings costing from £7 to £30.
C. A. Critchley "The Hoover Centre" of Church Street had this rather unusual wedding ad, which I expect would be considered sexist if published today: "Congratulations gentlemen! Now keep her young with Hoover Home Aids. Hoover Junior Cleaner only £26 when you part exchange your old Hoover Upright with foot switch.
"Hoovermatic De Luxe automatic cleaning 3kw heater. Only 73 gns. When you part exchange your old Hoovermatic. PLUS a second honeymoon with our Free – Stay – Holidays." Exactly what the latter entailed was not explained. Red Rose Caterers of Columbia Road, Prescot, was advertising their catering services as were Sayers who said: "Weddings are a piece of cake…"
There was also a short advertising feature concerning St Helens Town's new social club, which had just been opened in Hoghton Road in Sutton.
The Reporter also revealed that the first female rugby league team in St Helens had been formed but it had one big problem – they had no one to play against! The seven-a-side team of under-21s was attached to St Helens Rugby Club and wanted to play other teams in the town. But none so far had been formed. Barbara Harris from Mill Brow in Eccleston said she had not been able to persuade other girls to take up the sport:
"Many of them said they were scared of getting injured or looking silly, but we've had a practice game and it was good fun. There's nothing dangerous about it." Saints coach Jim Challenor had proposed the idea after helping to form a girls' team in Warrington two years earlier. He told the Reporter: "I think any fresh idea is a good one, so long as they don't ask me to coach them."
The Reporter also wrote that Eccleston Parish Council had agreed to allow a company to provide them with four bus shelters in return for granting the firm permission to place adverts on them. Two shelters were to be sited on the south side of St Helens Road (on the Grapes Hotel forecourt and to the west of St James Road). The others were to go on the north side of St Helens Road to the east of Burrows Lane and to the east of Portico Lane.
On the 31st the Thatto Heath and District Ornithological Society held their annual show at the Town Hall with over 500 birds squawking away. ”Birdmen Flock to the Annual Show", was the inevitable headline in the Reporter. And finally the only advertised Halloween event was a dance on the 31st at the Peter Street Club "to the Joe Soap Sound Plus Disco". Admission was five shillings.
Next week's stories will include the gipsies that threatened an invasion of St Helens town centre, Father Christmas arrives in style at Oxleys, the days when cigarettes cost four a penny and criticism of the slum clearance scheme in St Helens.
We begin on October 27th when a mother told St Helens Juvenile Court that her son had been truant from school because he did not have any shoes to wear. The lad had only attended on 56 occasions out of a possible 354 but he and his mother also blamed illness and being marked absent when late as other reasons for poor attendance. The case was adjourned until December.
A fire at a supermarket in Rainhill on the 28th was thought by experts to have been caused by children playing with fireworks. Station officer Vincent Quinn of Lancashire County Fire Brigade based at Whiston said shortly after the blaze: "We are considering the theory that the fire was started by children throwing lighted fireworks onto rubbish at the rear of the premises near the loading bay."
The damage at Reynolds Supermarket on Warrington Road was estimated at £7,000, around £120,000 in today's money. An elderly couple were trapped in their flat over the supermarket but were led to safety by firemen. Later in the week the St Helens Reporter would describe the space at the rear of the building as like a "scene from the blitz", adding:
"The charred remains of hundreds of cereal packets and other stock accumulated outside, as the staff and other helpers cleared the debris from the store room. The fire raged through the store room, order room and hardware section, destroying an estimated £4,000 worth of stock and blackening and damaging the interior to such an extent that it was practically unrecognisable when the staff began salvage operations early on Wednesday." A few days earlier the HQ of Prescot Rifle Club in Pottery Lane, Whiston – that had been founded in 1906 – had also been gutted by fire.
The November edition of the Sutton Parish Church magazine was published this week and the Vicar of Sutton, the Rev. Paul Conder, announced a new initiative. In an attempt to halt the drift of young people away from his church, two new youth clubs were being held on Thursdays.
The SS Club (standing for "Sunday School") would be held from 6pm to 7:30pm and would be for children aged six to eleven. Then from 8pm until 9:30pm the SY Club (standing for "Sunday Youth") would take over and be for those in church organisations, choirs and congregations aged eleven to fifteen. "The sooner the Church realises that it is in a missionary situation and trains up its young people to play their part in bringing others to Christ, the healthier it will be", wrote Mr. Conder.
It was revealed this week that Billinge Council had called in a geologist to check whether landslides from a local quarry could cause Billinge Hill to collapse. Large cracks had appeared in the rock face of Beacon Quarry and the councillors wanted an assurance that the Hill was still safe for the public to enjoy. A four-foot movement of rock and slate was threatening a further collapse and the danger area had been fenced off and warning signs put in place.
The lead story in the St Helens Reporter on the 30th was a claim that sacked Pilkington workers were being blacklisted. Councillor John Potter was one of the leaders of the breakaway Glass and General Workers Union, which had its base in Greenfield Road. He told the paper: "This blacklist is definitely in existence. Because of it our members are being deprived of their livelihood. I have a list in my files of 21 of our members who have applied for jobs – all have been turned down." This was not a new claim by Cllr. Potter who had previously said: "Men are being refused jobs all over south-west Lancashire. It is disgusting that a man's right to work is being interfered with in such a manner."
"It was a rip-roaring success”, said licensee Joe Ledger. "I thought your campaign was such a good idea and my wife, Rita, and one of my regulars, Mrs. Hazel Hatton, persuaded me to give it a try. It was a rainy, cold night, but we had almost twenty women here. They sat in the room, drew the curtains and drank and chatted. When they were going home I heard a lot of them say they were looking forward to coming next Tuesday and making more new friends."
The changing face of the council's Youth Employment Service was highlighted by the paper's report on a careers convention at Mount Carmel School. It was the first to be held at an all-girls school in St Helens and senior careers officer Brenda Potter described the importance of such events: "In the past career organisers have tended to hide themselves under a bushel. Today it is essential that pupils are given the most up-to-date developments. Nothing should be hidden from them."
It might still only be October but some St Helens' businesses were already thinking of Christmas. Slinn's decorating supplies of Peter Street, Westfield Street and Baldwin Street had this large advert in the Reporter: "Christmas Papering! Trust R. S. Slinn – Est. 1894 and still the leader in St. Helens. No Seconds! No Misprints! No Short Rolls! No City Slickers! The bright and breezy shop – Biggest choice in St. Helens. Cut prices all the way!"
'The Place' at 57 Ormskirk Street was describing their venue as "St. Helens Only True Disco For The Young" which was open five evenings a week from 7pm. On Monday, Thursday and Friday there was a "Top of the Pops Disco", Wednesday was "Blues Night" and Saturday was "Dave's Party Disco Night".
There was another 'Wedding Bells and Beautiful Brides' advertising feature in the Reporter aimed at those planning to get hitched. The advertisers included J. Brunskill & Associates at the YMCA Buildings in North Road, opposite the Capitol, who claimed to be "the town's leading wedding photographers". Barkers were promoting their wedding flowers with premises in Kirkland Street, Duke Street and a stall in the Market Hall.
Vogue Hairfashions of Church Street (above Coombes) were offering wigs, hairpieces, colouring and tinting. Jewellers and silversmiths Rimmer and Welding of 25 Duke Street said they had all the newest designs in wedding rings with 22ct. gold rings costing from £7 to £30.
C. A. Critchley "The Hoover Centre" of Church Street had this rather unusual wedding ad, which I expect would be considered sexist if published today: "Congratulations gentlemen! Now keep her young with Hoover Home Aids. Hoover Junior Cleaner only £26 when you part exchange your old Hoover Upright with foot switch.
"Hoovermatic De Luxe automatic cleaning 3kw heater. Only 73 gns. When you part exchange your old Hoovermatic. PLUS a second honeymoon with our Free – Stay – Holidays." Exactly what the latter entailed was not explained. Red Rose Caterers of Columbia Road, Prescot, was advertising their catering services as were Sayers who said: "Weddings are a piece of cake…"
There was also a short advertising feature concerning St Helens Town's new social club, which had just been opened in Hoghton Road in Sutton.
The Reporter also revealed that the first female rugby league team in St Helens had been formed but it had one big problem – they had no one to play against! The seven-a-side team of under-21s was attached to St Helens Rugby Club and wanted to play other teams in the town. But none so far had been formed. Barbara Harris from Mill Brow in Eccleston said she had not been able to persuade other girls to take up the sport:
"Many of them said they were scared of getting injured or looking silly, but we've had a practice game and it was good fun. There's nothing dangerous about it." Saints coach Jim Challenor had proposed the idea after helping to form a girls' team in Warrington two years earlier. He told the Reporter: "I think any fresh idea is a good one, so long as they don't ask me to coach them."
The Reporter also wrote that Eccleston Parish Council had agreed to allow a company to provide them with four bus shelters in return for granting the firm permission to place adverts on them. Two shelters were to be sited on the south side of St Helens Road (on the Grapes Hotel forecourt and to the west of St James Road). The others were to go on the north side of St Helens Road to the east of Burrows Lane and to the east of Portico Lane.
On the 31st the Thatto Heath and District Ornithological Society held their annual show at the Town Hall with over 500 birds squawking away. ”Birdmen Flock to the Annual Show", was the inevitable headline in the Reporter. And finally the only advertised Halloween event was a dance on the 31st at the Peter Street Club "to the Joe Soap Sound Plus Disco". Admission was five shillings.
Next week's stories will include the gipsies that threatened an invasion of St Helens town centre, Father Christmas arrives in style at Oxleys, the days when cigarettes cost four a penny and criticism of the slum clearance scheme in St Helens.
This week's stories include a fire at a Rainhill supermarket that was probably caused by fireworks, fears over the safety of Billinge Hill, a claim that sacked Pilkington workers had been blacklisted and the first female rugby league team in St Helens is formed, as well as two new Sutton youth clubs.
We begin on October 27th when a mother told St Helens Juvenile Court that her son had been truant from school because he did not have any shoes to wear.
The lad had only attended on 56 occasions out of a possible 354 but he and his mother also blamed illness and being marked absent when late as other reasons for poor attendance. The case was adjourned until December.
A fire at a supermarket in Rainhill on the 28th was thought by experts to have been caused by children playing with fireworks.
Station officer Vincent Quinn of Lancashire County Fire Brigade based at Whiston said shortly after the blaze:
"We are considering the theory that the fire was started by children throwing lighted fireworks onto rubbish at the rear of the premises near the loading bay."
The damage at Reynolds Supermarket on Warrington Road was estimated at £7,000, around £120,000 in today's money.
An elderly couple were trapped in their flat over the supermarket but were led to safety by firemen.
Later in the week the St Helens Reporter would describe the space at the rear of the building as like a "scene from the blitz", adding:
"The charred remains of hundreds of cereal packets and other stock accumulated outside, as the staff and other helpers cleared the debris from the store room.
"The fire raged through the store room, order room and hardware section, destroying an estimated £4,000 worth of stock and blackening and damaging the interior to such an extent that it was practically unrecognisable when the staff began salvage operations early on Wednesday."
A few days earlier the HQ of Prescot Rifle Club in Pottery Lane, Whiston – that had been founded in 1906 – had also been gutted by fire.
The November edition of the Sutton Parish Church magazine was published this week and the Vicar of Sutton, the Rev. Paul Conder, announced a new initiative.
In an attempt to halt the drift of young people away from his church, two new youth clubs were being held on Thursdays.
The SS Club (standing for "Sunday School") would be held from 6pm to 7:30pm and would be for children aged six to eleven.
Then from 8pm until 9:30pm the SY Club (standing for "Sunday Youth") would take over and be for those in church organisations, choirs and congregations aged eleven to fifteen.
"The sooner the Church realises that it is in a missionary situation and trains up its young people to play their part in bringing others to Christ, the healthier it will be", wrote Mr. Conder.
It was revealed this week that Billinge Council had called in a geologist to check whether landslides from a local quarry could cause Billinge Hill to collapse.
Large cracks had appeared in the rock face of Beacon Quarry and the councillors wanted an assurance that the Hill was still safe for the public to enjoy.
A four-foot movement of rock and slate was threatening a further collapse and the danger area had been fenced off and warning signs put in place.
The lead story in the St Helens Reporter on the 30th was a claim that sacked Pilkington workers were being blacklisted.
Councillor John Potter was one of the leaders of the breakaway Glass and General Workers Union, which had its base in Greenfield Road. He told the paper:
"This blacklist is definitely in existence. Because of it our members are being deprived of their livelihood. I have a list in my files of 21 of our members who have applied for jobs – all have been turned down."
This was not a new claim by Cllr. Potter who had previously said: "Men are being refused jobs all over south-west Lancashire. It is disgusting that a man's right to work is being interfered with in such a manner."
The Reporter's campaign for "ladies only" rooms in pubs was having some success, with journalist Valerie Belshaw describing how the Bull and Dog in Marshalls Cross (shown above) had launched its first such evening.
"It was a rip-roaring success”, said licensee Joe Ledger. "I thought your campaign was such a good idea and my wife, Rita, and one of my regulars, Mrs. Hazel Hatton, persuaded me to give it a try. It was a rainy, cold night, but we had almost twenty women here.
"They sat in the room, drew the curtains and drank and chatted. When they were going home I heard a lot of them say they were looking forward to coming next Tuesday and making more new friends."
The changing face of the council's Youth Employment Service was highlighted by the paper's report on a careers convention at Mount Carmel School.
It was the first to be held at an all-girls school in St Helens and senior careers officer Brenda Potter described the importance of such events:
"In the past career organisers have tended to hide themselves under a bushel. Today it is essential that pupils are given the most up-to-date developments. Nothing should be hidden from them."
It might still only be October but some St Helens' businesses were already thinking of Christmas.
Slinn's decorating supplies of Peter Street, Westfield Street and Baldwin Street had this large advert in the Reporter:
"Christmas Papering! Trust R. S. Slinn – Est. 1894 and still the leader in St. Helens. No Seconds! No Misprints! No Short Rolls! No City Slickers! The bright and breezy shop – Biggest choice in St. Helens. Cut prices all the way!"
Helena House (pictured above on the right) was advertising the opening of their Xmas Grotto in their Baldwin Street basement on November 7th:
"Santa Claus will be waiting to greet you in his magic cave after you have had a wonderful ride on his Gnome's Chariot through Fairyland. Lovely gifts for boys and girls of all ages."
'The Place' at 57 Ormskirk Street was describing their venue as "St. Helens Only True Disco For The Young" which was open five evenings a week from 7pm.
On Monday, Thursday and Friday there was a "Top of the Pops Disco", Wednesday was "Blues Night" and Saturday was "Dave's Party Disco Night".
There was another 'Wedding Bells and Beautiful Brides' advertising feature in the Reporter aimed at those planning to get hitched.
The advertisers included J. Brunskill & Associates at the YMCA Buildings in North Road, opposite the Capitol, who claimed to be "the town's leading wedding photographers".
Barkers were promoting their wedding flowers with premises in Kirkland Street, Duke Street and a stall in the Market Hall.
Vogue Hairfashions of Church Street (above Coombes) were offering wigs, hairpieces, colouring and tinting.
Jewellers and silversmiths Rimmer and Welding of 25 Duke Street said they had all the newest designs in wedding rings with 22ct. gold rings costing from £7 to £30.
C. A. Critchley "The Hoover Centre" of Church Street had this rather unusual wedding ad, which I expect would be considered sexist if published today:
"Congratulations gentlemen! Now keep her young with Hoover Home Aids. Hoover Junior Cleaner only £26 when you part exchange your old Hoover Upright with foot switch.
"Hoovermatic De Luxe automatic cleaning 3kw heater. Only 73 gns. When you part exchange your old Hoovermatic. PLUS a second honeymoon with our Free – Stay – Holidays."
Exactly what the latter entailed was not explained.
Red Rose Caterers of Columbia Road, Prescot, was advertising their catering services as were Sayers who said: "Weddings are a piece of cake…"
There was also a short advertising feature concerning St Helens Town's new social club, which had just been opened in Hoghton Road in Sutton.
The Reporter also revealed that the first female rugby league team in St Helens had been formed but it had one big problem – they had no one to play against!
The seven-a-side team of under-21s was attached to St Helens Rugby Club and wanted to play other teams in the town. But none so far had been formed.
Barbara Harris from Mill Brow in Eccleston said she had not been able to persuade other girls to take up the sport:
"Many of them said they were scared of getting injured or looking silly, but we've had a practice game and it was good fun. There's nothing dangerous about it."
Saints coach Jim Challenor had proposed the idea after helping to form a girls' team in Warrington two years earlier.
He told the Reporter: "I think any fresh idea is a good one, so long as they don't ask me to coach them."
The Reporter also wrote that Eccleston Parish Council had agreed to allow a company to provide them with four bus shelters in return for granting the firm permission to place adverts on them.
Two shelters were to be sited on the south side of St Helens Road (on the Grapes Hotel forecourt and to the west of St James Road).
The others were to go on the north side of St Helens Road to the east of Burrows Lane and to the east of Portico Lane.
On the 31st the Thatto Heath and District Ornithological Society held their annual show at the Town Hall with over 500 birds squawking away.
"Birdmen Flock to the Annual Show", was the inevitable headline in the Reporter.
And finally the only advertised Halloween event was a dance on the 31st at the Peter Street Club "to the Joe Soap Sound Plus Disco". Admission was five shillings.
Next week's stories will include the gipsies that threatened an invasion of St Helens town centre, Father Christmas arrives in style at Oxleys, the days when cigarettes cost four a penny and criticism of the slum clearance scheme in St Helens.
We begin on October 27th when a mother told St Helens Juvenile Court that her son had been truant from school because he did not have any shoes to wear.
The lad had only attended on 56 occasions out of a possible 354 but he and his mother also blamed illness and being marked absent when late as other reasons for poor attendance. The case was adjourned until December.
A fire at a supermarket in Rainhill on the 28th was thought by experts to have been caused by children playing with fireworks.
Station officer Vincent Quinn of Lancashire County Fire Brigade based at Whiston said shortly after the blaze:
"We are considering the theory that the fire was started by children throwing lighted fireworks onto rubbish at the rear of the premises near the loading bay."
The damage at Reynolds Supermarket on Warrington Road was estimated at £7,000, around £120,000 in today's money.
An elderly couple were trapped in their flat over the supermarket but were led to safety by firemen.
Later in the week the St Helens Reporter would describe the space at the rear of the building as like a "scene from the blitz", adding:
"The charred remains of hundreds of cereal packets and other stock accumulated outside, as the staff and other helpers cleared the debris from the store room.
"The fire raged through the store room, order room and hardware section, destroying an estimated £4,000 worth of stock and blackening and damaging the interior to such an extent that it was practically unrecognisable when the staff began salvage operations early on Wednesday."
A few days earlier the HQ of Prescot Rifle Club in Pottery Lane, Whiston – that had been founded in 1906 – had also been gutted by fire.
The November edition of the Sutton Parish Church magazine was published this week and the Vicar of Sutton, the Rev. Paul Conder, announced a new initiative.
In an attempt to halt the drift of young people away from his church, two new youth clubs were being held on Thursdays.
The SS Club (standing for "Sunday School") would be held from 6pm to 7:30pm and would be for children aged six to eleven.
Then from 8pm until 9:30pm the SY Club (standing for "Sunday Youth") would take over and be for those in church organisations, choirs and congregations aged eleven to fifteen.
"The sooner the Church realises that it is in a missionary situation and trains up its young people to play their part in bringing others to Christ, the healthier it will be", wrote Mr. Conder.
It was revealed this week that Billinge Council had called in a geologist to check whether landslides from a local quarry could cause Billinge Hill to collapse.
Large cracks had appeared in the rock face of Beacon Quarry and the councillors wanted an assurance that the Hill was still safe for the public to enjoy.
A four-foot movement of rock and slate was threatening a further collapse and the danger area had been fenced off and warning signs put in place.
The lead story in the St Helens Reporter on the 30th was a claim that sacked Pilkington workers were being blacklisted.
Councillor John Potter was one of the leaders of the breakaway Glass and General Workers Union, which had its base in Greenfield Road. He told the paper:
"This blacklist is definitely in existence. Because of it our members are being deprived of their livelihood. I have a list in my files of 21 of our members who have applied for jobs – all have been turned down."
This was not a new claim by Cllr. Potter who had previously said: "Men are being refused jobs all over south-west Lancashire. It is disgusting that a man's right to work is being interfered with in such a manner."
"It was a rip-roaring success”, said licensee Joe Ledger. "I thought your campaign was such a good idea and my wife, Rita, and one of my regulars, Mrs. Hazel Hatton, persuaded me to give it a try. It was a rainy, cold night, but we had almost twenty women here.
"They sat in the room, drew the curtains and drank and chatted. When they were going home I heard a lot of them say they were looking forward to coming next Tuesday and making more new friends."
The changing face of the council's Youth Employment Service was highlighted by the paper's report on a careers convention at Mount Carmel School.
It was the first to be held at an all-girls school in St Helens and senior careers officer Brenda Potter described the importance of such events:
"In the past career organisers have tended to hide themselves under a bushel. Today it is essential that pupils are given the most up-to-date developments. Nothing should be hidden from them."
It might still only be October but some St Helens' businesses were already thinking of Christmas.
Slinn's decorating supplies of Peter Street, Westfield Street and Baldwin Street had this large advert in the Reporter:
"Christmas Papering! Trust R. S. Slinn – Est. 1894 and still the leader in St. Helens. No Seconds! No Misprints! No Short Rolls! No City Slickers! The bright and breezy shop – Biggest choice in St. Helens. Cut prices all the way!"
"Santa Claus will be waiting to greet you in his magic cave after you have had a wonderful ride on his Gnome's Chariot through Fairyland. Lovely gifts for boys and girls of all ages."
'The Place' at 57 Ormskirk Street was describing their venue as "St. Helens Only True Disco For The Young" which was open five evenings a week from 7pm.
On Monday, Thursday and Friday there was a "Top of the Pops Disco", Wednesday was "Blues Night" and Saturday was "Dave's Party Disco Night".
There was another 'Wedding Bells and Beautiful Brides' advertising feature in the Reporter aimed at those planning to get hitched.
The advertisers included J. Brunskill & Associates at the YMCA Buildings in North Road, opposite the Capitol, who claimed to be "the town's leading wedding photographers".
Barkers were promoting their wedding flowers with premises in Kirkland Street, Duke Street and a stall in the Market Hall.
Vogue Hairfashions of Church Street (above Coombes) were offering wigs, hairpieces, colouring and tinting.
Jewellers and silversmiths Rimmer and Welding of 25 Duke Street said they had all the newest designs in wedding rings with 22ct. gold rings costing from £7 to £30.
C. A. Critchley "The Hoover Centre" of Church Street had this rather unusual wedding ad, which I expect would be considered sexist if published today:
"Congratulations gentlemen! Now keep her young with Hoover Home Aids. Hoover Junior Cleaner only £26 when you part exchange your old Hoover Upright with foot switch.
"Hoovermatic De Luxe automatic cleaning 3kw heater. Only 73 gns. When you part exchange your old Hoovermatic. PLUS a second honeymoon with our Free – Stay – Holidays."
Exactly what the latter entailed was not explained.
Red Rose Caterers of Columbia Road, Prescot, was advertising their catering services as were Sayers who said: "Weddings are a piece of cake…"
There was also a short advertising feature concerning St Helens Town's new social club, which had just been opened in Hoghton Road in Sutton.
The Reporter also revealed that the first female rugby league team in St Helens had been formed but it had one big problem – they had no one to play against!
The seven-a-side team of under-21s was attached to St Helens Rugby Club and wanted to play other teams in the town. But none so far had been formed.
Barbara Harris from Mill Brow in Eccleston said she had not been able to persuade other girls to take up the sport:
"Many of them said they were scared of getting injured or looking silly, but we've had a practice game and it was good fun. There's nothing dangerous about it."
Saints coach Jim Challenor had proposed the idea after helping to form a girls' team in Warrington two years earlier.
He told the Reporter: "I think any fresh idea is a good one, so long as they don't ask me to coach them."
The Reporter also wrote that Eccleston Parish Council had agreed to allow a company to provide them with four bus shelters in return for granting the firm permission to place adverts on them.
Two shelters were to be sited on the south side of St Helens Road (on the Grapes Hotel forecourt and to the west of St James Road).
The others were to go on the north side of St Helens Road to the east of Burrows Lane and to the east of Portico Lane.
On the 31st the Thatto Heath and District Ornithological Society held their annual show at the Town Hall with over 500 birds squawking away.
"Birdmen Flock to the Annual Show", was the inevitable headline in the Reporter.
And finally the only advertised Halloween event was a dance on the 31st at the Peter Street Club "to the Joe Soap Sound Plus Disco". Admission was five shillings.
Next week's stories will include the gipsies that threatened an invasion of St Helens town centre, Father Christmas arrives in style at Oxleys, the days when cigarettes cost four a penny and criticism of the slum clearance scheme in St Helens.