Days of Horror

When 16 year old, Thomas Oxford, began loading his cart with milk churns, he could never have envisioned the events that would take place later that same day.

Thomas was a farm servant living with John Clark, farmer, at a place known as Shuttleworth Hall that still is situated to this day in a place called Hapton.

It was around 6.30am in the morning on Saturday, 19th January 1889, when he left the Hall in the usual way, with his milk-cart fully stocked and ready to be delivered by going on his rounds by the way of Cheapside and Burnley Lane.

And by half-past nine, he had already finished delivering the milk and had made his towards Elm Street, just off Burnley Lane. Happy that the morning had gone as planned and relatively stress free, Thomas began on his journey back to Shuttleworth Hall when, coming from the direction of Burnley, another boy by the name of William McMenemy met up with him.

William, who was a little older and aged 18, was known as "Jimmy" to his friends, as he was rarely ever called by his Christian name of William.

"See thee, Tommy, look what a nice hammer I have found" William spoke as he pulled out a joiners hammer from his trouser pocket and handed it over to Thomas.

Impressed by the find, Thomas replied, "Ay, give it me." Thomas then offered William two pence for it, but William shook his head and turned down the offer.

Thomas placed the hammer into his cart box but no sooner as he had done so, William took it back out, remarking that it would come in useful as he put it into his trousers pocket and covering it with his waistcoat.

Both boys then got onto the cart and began to make their ways towards Ashfield Road but had to jump out and walk some way as there was a hill and the horse pulling the cart was beginning to struggle. As they did this, Thomas started to count the weeks earnings from the sale of milk. Nearing the Burnley Spinning and Weaving Company Mill, William hopped back into the cart whilst Thomas carried on walking up to the top of the street.

After counting the money, Thomas was about to put it back into his pocket, but William, who had been watching Thomas, said to him he had miscounted. Not sure, Thomas thought he'd better check and so began to recount the money. It would later emerge that Thomas was carrying £2 3s, the equivalent of just over £273 in today's value.

Thomas's return journey would normally see him make his way back along Burnley Road before turning right onto what is now known as Manchester Road. He would then normally have passed the Bridge public house before turning left onto Castle Clough lane and then towards Shuttleword Hall farm.

However, on this occasion, the two boys, after being talked into it by William, would instead make their way towards a place known as Stone Moor Bottom.

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Music;

Casual Desire – Ugonna Onyekwe – No Copyright Music

Contact – The Tower of Light – No Copyright Music

Another Day – Myuu – No Copyright Music

Jack Usher was a player many years ahead of others in terms of quality and his statistics back that up. After having joined Haslingden Cricket Club from Whalley, he soon established himself as perhaps one of the finest slow-left-arm bowlers that the Lancashire League had ever witnessed.

A native of Liversedge, Usher quickly made a name for himself at several Yorkshire clubs, including Heckmondwike, Holbeck and Holmfirth. It was in 1888 that he was asked to partake in a trial with Yorkshire County which ultimately led to him playing at Lords against Cheshire as well as the Yorkshire Colts at Sheffield.

At some point in the early 1890s, he left Yorkshire and moved to Lancashire where he would become a professional for Bacup in 1892 as well as Rishton in the Lancashire League. He would later move to the Ribblesdale League when he signed for Whalley and he would stay with them for five years, winning the Ribblesdale League Cup in the process.

In 1900, Haslingden would come calling for his services and despite them having one of the worst seasons recorded in Lancashire County Cricket the season before, Usher didn’t hesitate to sign for them.

Less than twelve months later, Usher would be pivotal in them winning the league for the first time in their history.

Both Church and Haslingden ended the 1900 season with the exact same points, both having played twenty-six games, winning seventeen, drawing six and losing three - with finally ending on forty points.

In the end, Haslingden would beat Church by 116 runs over two matches that began on Saturday 8th September and concluded on the following Monday, 10th September. Both innings would be played at Accrington in front of over 10,000 spectator's.

The scenes where incredible. Haslingden town center was brought to a near standstill as well-wishers and bystanders all took to the streets to welcome home their heroes. Setting off from Accrington and the scene of their triumph, the players all returned by stage coach drawn by six horses. Behind them came the waggonette carrying the committee and board members and as they all arrived at Hudrake, the Haslingden Temperance Band welcomed them by playing a vast number of songs, with one being, "See the conquering hero comes."

Perhaps the biggest scenes, however, occurred at the four junctions in the center of Haslingden and near to the Commerical Hotel where a sea of people, all laughing, shouting and cheering had congregated. Fireworks were then let off further down Blackburn Road.

The procession made its way around to Bury Road and Manchester Road and returned a short time later at the Commercial Hotel where the team and committee members were treated to an extravagant tea.

It seems everything was going well not only for Haslingden Cricket Club but also for that of Jack Usher. But the title triumph that had amazed everyone within the cricketing world had been overshadowed by controversy when back on Saturday, 18th August, 1900 - a match between Nelson and Haslingden, played over at the Seedhill Ground, resulted in serious accusations of attempted bribery from Usher to a Nelson player being made.

Ever since the death of her husband, Maurice, who had sadly passed away only two years prior in 1923; 82 year old Mary Ann O'Shea had lived alone at a place known as Tower Hill that was situated within the top end of a town called Haslingden, that lies within the boundaries of the Rossendale Valley.

Residing at number 11, Mary had lived in a pitifull and frightening condition. Her house was extremely basic, having just two rooms of which one included the basement.

Dampness, filth and grime had made living conditions a nightmare, not just for Mary, but for all of the other residents living at Tower Hill. And out of the 36 houses situated at Tower Hill, 16 of them had no real accomodation for food storage and a staggering 35 homes had no access for washing!

In fact, it was the basement that Mary would mainly use as she had suffered terribly from rheumatism and along with an ulcer on one of her legs, it had become too painful to walk up the stone steps to her other room.

From all accounts, Mary was a feeble old lady, often relying on the help of a single woman by the name of Margaret Flannagan, who would call on Mary to see how she was doing and if she needed any help.

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Not since 1849 when Frederick and Maria Manning had been found guilty of murder, had a married couple been sentenced to death by the justice system. But 85 years later, on the 17th October 1935, James Henry Mills and his wife, Edith Mills would succumb to the very same fate after being sentenced at the Lancaster Assizes for a murder so brutal and ghoulish in nature, that what you are about to read and hear will ask more questions than it will give answers.

On Sunday, June 30th 1935, little Helen Chester, who was just three years old, had spent the early evening playing with other children near to her home at number 22 John Bright-street, Blackburn. But when she failed to return home, her worried parents, Phyllis and Charles, after searching for her themselves, informed the police and shortly after 8pm, Helen was officially reported as being missing.

An intensive search was made in the surrounding district, both by the police and by civilians. Mill lodges, buildings and workshops were searched but nothing was seen of Helen. Canals and ditches were dragged and a police presence was also made on the River Darwen.

The search for her would continue throughout the next day, but it wouldnt be until Tuesday morning, just before 7.00 am, when a breakthrough would be made.

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Music :

Remnants - Myuu (free copyright sounds and music)

Casual Desire - Ugonna Onyekwe (free copyright sounds and music)

Contact - The Tower of Light (free copyright sounds and music)

Domestic abuse or “wife beating” was a prominent occurrence in Victorian England with many victims having to put up with abuse on a daily basis. It was socially acceptable for that period and was seen by many as nothing more than a lower class issue.

It’s been written in many publications that during the Victorian era, religion played a big part in culture and that for a woman to be virtuous and to serve god, they must follow the lead of her husband. This of course seemingly gave the nod for husbands to control and do whatever they deemed appropriate to their wives, which, in many instances, meant physical violence.

With that said, let’s get into today’s story and we are travelling way back to the early morning of Saturday, 19th August, 1899 and to the small town of Whitworth which resides between Bacup and Rochdale in the parish of Rossendale, England.

Ellen Dowdle, a 35 year weaver and mother to five children had spent a couple of hours working at the Whitworth Co-Op Mill, covering for another worker who was off sick. She had agreed to work three days a week, taking on four looms in doing so and with the promise of more work to follow.

By mid-morning, she was working alongside another mill employee when she spoke about being worried about going home, saying; “A fear there’s bound to be trouble for me” to which the other employee replied; “Oh don’t think that Mrs Dowdle; it’ll be dinner time soon an’ then the work’ll be done.“

Finishing work at around noon, Ellen made her way to Grove Terrace where she had been living for the past week with Mr and Mrs O’Brien after having left her marital home at 20 Copeland Street the week before, following a huge row with her husband, Michael.

She would stay there for much of the afternoon until around 3.00pm – when it was reported that after her husband called at the house, and after a short discussion between the pair, she was persuaded by Michael to return back home with him.

This would be the last time the O’Brien’s would ever see their friend, Ellen, alive ever again.