Tales of Old Todmorden

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Lydgate around 1900:
the building directly in front of the viaduct, called Arch View, was once a school for the children of factory workers at Robinwood Mill which can be seen towering beyond. Lydgate Methodists held their first meeting here before erecting Mount Olivet Chapel in 1865.
Code no 091RD HBLSS

Further extracts from the book by John Travis published in 1896. The text has been slightly edited:

A Singular and Somewhat Strange Circumstance

Philip Crowther, a shoemaker of Knowlwood, who had been a soldier formerly, went quarterly to Rochdale to draw his pension, a sum of about £3, on a certain Monday.

He was known to come as far on the road towards home as near the Shanty Huts at Holme, and was then rather the worse for some drink taken in on the way. But he never landed home again and no further trace of him was ever found.

"Lifeboat Saturdays" were a regular event in Todmorden until July 7 1906 when the last - pictured here - took place. Officials of the charity, started nearly 10 years earlier to support the R.N.L.I., line up in front of the lifeboat "Busbie," manned by a crew from Fleetwood who paraded to Holme fields for the demonstration. 204RD HBLSS

The conclusion then, and later arrived at, was that some of the navvies, seeing his condition, beguiled him into one of the huts and discovered that he had money. Afterwards, for the sake of obtaining the little in his possession, stupefied then buried him in the Holme Tip, where at that date works were going on day and night and fresh dirt was being constantly deposited.

More tales in "Milltown Memories," including how "Old Jimmy" found shelter in a coffin - and the man who "swirted" bees!

Read the full story in Milltown Memories, issue 13. If this or other stories stirs a memory, we'd be happy to know - send us your memories and comments.