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Some notes on Ackworth High Streetby R.R. WaitesAckworth is a large village divided into four main parts, namely High Ackworth - centred around the church and village green, Low Ackworth - stretching down Station Road, Moor Top and Brackenhill. The street referred to in these notes is that of High Ackworth and the properties between the village green and Ackworth Friends' School. |
This was a brick-built property with slated roof and is shown in both photographs on page 22 of the recently published book "Old Ackworth in Photographs". It was a butcher's shop owned by the North family who also traded as butchers in Bell Lane. When they closed this shop, it was vacant for some time and then became a fish & chip shop. It was finally demolished when the three stone houses to the rear were pulled down. One of these was occupied by a member of the North family. The site has now been developed with a detached house of a Georgian design.
This property was used as a laundry and was run by Mrs Harrison and her daughter. She was still working in the late 1910 - 1920 period and had baskets of laundry sent to her from, among other places, Badsworth Hall. At this time, Mr Ted Morten, son of Joseph Morten, delivered newspapers and parcels from Pontefract, where he lived. Delivery was by horse and trap and, when he was called up for military service in the First World War, my brother Colin, who was then aged 15 or 16, had a donkey as a pet. He took over the parcel delivery on (I think) three days a week. I was around 8 or 9 at that time and occasionally (along with School friends) did the trip in holidays or on Saturday mornings. I recall collecting laundry baskets from Mrs Harrison for delivery to (I think) people in Mayor's Walk.
There was a grocer's shop in this property run by the Beetham family until a few years ago. William Henry Beetham was a Special Constable during the First World War and his shop was known for the good quality goods he kept. His son Charlie carried on the business until it closed. The name on the fascia was in white porcelain figures or letters and were a good example of that period of lettering.
This again was a sweet shop occupied by Harry Harrison and his wife Zena (Hague), a daughter of the School farmer. He was killed when standing over the entry of an unexploded bomb at Allotts Farm, (off Went Lane). Walter North (warden) was also killed and a child on the roadway on its way to Sunday School (Aug 1940). Police Sergeant Aspinall was also hurt. Mrs Harrison's two daughters still live in the village.
This was run by Mr & Mrs Pearson. Mr Pearson was also a 'roadman'. Amongst the things they sold was lemonade which was made by Littlewoods in Featherstone. One of their daughters married a son of the Littlewoods. They finally altered South Milford Hall which the family still run as a restaurant.
During the sinking of the colliery, a Captain Protheroe and his wife lived at the Old Hall as he was employed on the project and, I think, was the first Manager. He then lived in this house and Barclays opened a branch in the left-hand front room on Fridays from 10 to 12am. This was only for a while until it was transferred to Bell Lane. For a time, he and his wife stayed with grandfather at the Old Hall.
This was run by Mr Harrap (relative of butcher at No 8) prior to 1914. It was then run by Mrs Brook (mother of Jack Brook and Joyce Charlesworth) Later it was occupied by Mr & Mrs Haisley and later was altered into a private house. The shop was the room nearest the Almshouses.
This was occupied by Mr Thomas Harrap as a butcher's shop. He had a 'cold' room which was very rare at that time. There was also a slaughterhouse attached and my father killed his beasts along with Mr Harrap. They shared their labours on a Wednesday night after they had bought the cattle at Wakefield Market in the morning. They were brought by rail to Featherstone Station and walked from there to Ackworth. Wednesdays were a long and tiring day!! Mr Harrap retired and lived in the next door house (see 9) The business was carried on by Mr Newton Harrison. He later bought a butcher's business in Blackpool. The business was then taken over by Mr Cuttle for a few years. During this time the property became very dilapidated. The business was closed down and the building demolished.
This house was occupied by Mr Ted Lumley who worked with stained glass. He also brewed beer for sale. His daughter, Gertrude, kept house for him. He painted the ceiling of the left-hand ground floor room with allegorical figures and cherubs. After Miss Lumley's death my cousin lived in the house for a time and I recall admiring his work. Mr Harrap (see 8) retired there along with his wife. They let part of the house to Miss Fowler who was Head Mistress of Bell Lane Infants School. The room with the painted ceiling was in her part of the house. She said that she thought the ceiling was oppressive and had it painted over!! Mr Harrap died in 1938.
This property was known as Rose Cottage and was occupied by Mr & Mrs Hurst who carried on a business as Painter and Decorator. He and his wife had ten daughters and one son, all of whom were successful in their own ways.Mr Hirst was noted for being able to paint with both his right and left hands at the same time and was quite a character.Mrs Hirst was noted for her well kept garden. The property was finally pulled down when Mr Lancaster built his bungalow and his Monumental Mason's shop.
To the front of Rose Cottage was the village smithy and this was run by Mr Fred Robinson who lived in Jubilee Terrace. He used to shoe the local farmers' horses and these stood outside the Smithy to be watched by the school children. It was a privilege to be allowed to "pump the bellows" and see the fire become red-hot. The anvil was also a thing of great interest as also was the hooping ring which was sited in front of the building. No doubt he hooped the wheels sold by Fryers a few doors away.
The door to the end room abutting the highway was approached by "mounting steps" similar to the ones outside St Cuthberts Cottage near the church Lychgate. For a short time it was used by Edgar Waites as a second-hand Furniture Store, moving from a building of Moor Top Hill after he finished with the family grocery business in Bell Lane.
This was the roadside room of Priory House and was separated from the house and was a lock-up Saddler's Shop run by Mr Louis Hall of Priory Cottage. He ran the shop and was also a practising Saddler making saddles and all other hunting tack. He had three sons and one daughter. When Mrs Hall died he re-married and his second wife was the niece of Mr Justice Shearman. Louis Hall owned the shops 16, 17, 18 and the houses between and the four properties to the rear of the same. Another of his sons was an artist who emigrated to Canada where he became official artist to Royal Canadian Railways.
The house was known as Sydney Place and was occupied by Mr Fryer who was the village carpenter and joiner and also carried on the business as undertaker. He had two sons, George and Clifford who were both in the business and two daughters, Marion and Margaret. The former kept house and the elder Margaret was a schoolteacher who lived to be 102. Clifford's family finally went to live in Scotland.
The mill was not used for many years and was derelict and the buildings were occupied by Mr Robinson (smithy) and his sons who ran a business as scrap merchants. It was demolished it and a bungalow was built on the site using materials from the original building.
This building was occupied by Mickelthwaites as an Outfitters Shop. It was a double-fronted shop with the door in the centre. Around 1913, it was altered into a Working Mans Club due to the sinking of Ackworth Colliery around 1910-1912. The Steward was Mr Clarke and he and his wife carried on the business. When the club closed, it became the Social Centre and during the War it housed soldiers who came there from Dunkirk. Part of the building was used as a District Library. Recently it has been converted into three seperate dwellings.
This house and shop was run as a grocers shop by T.W. Waites in the early years of the century. The business was then carried on by Mr Charles Cuttle for some years and then by a member of the Rowley family of Carr Bridge. Mr and Mrs Wright took over and the Post Office was transferred to this address.
This shop was run by a Mr Rice as an outfitters and he allowed W.J. Waites to take over the property and open a butcher's shop. In 1916 W.J.Waites vacated the property and we came to Ladywell House. A Mr Barnsley from Hemsworth took over. His wife was on Hemsworth Rural District Council. They had a son Lancelot who did the cycle repairs. It was taken over by Mr Devine who did plumbing.
Run by Mrs Hillaby who was a daughter of Joseph Morton who was 80 in 1913 and was a local character. Her brother Ted Morton (2) delivered papers and was the carrier between Ackworth and Pontefract before being called up in WWI. Colin Jackson Waites carried on with the carrier part (see 2) for a period. Mr Morton took up again on his return from the Forces. Mrs Hillaby's daughter Beatrice lived with her and helped in the business.
Run by Mrs Horncastle and after the family moved to Doncaster the business was taken over by the Holt family. Mr Holt had worked in a sweet factory and made some of the toffees. It later became a Painter & Decorators business run by Mr Dodd, who bought the property and demolished it to build Avondale.
This was run by Bernie Morton, another son of Joseph Morton and brother of Mrs Hillaby (18) and Ted (2). It was afterwards taken over by Mr Williams and became parcels office for the Yorkshire Traction Bus Company (started 1914) It later became a shop dealing in groceries, cigarettes etc and run by Mr & Mrs Clark. It was bought by Mr Dodd (19) who demolished it and it became part of Avondale and the garden was the site for the bungalow.
The first shop of W.J. Waites from 1910 to around 1916 when he went into No 17. It was later used by Mr Kenneth Macaulay as a joiners and undertakers and was used as at various times as a store. It was a two-roomed single-storied property and was demolished by Mr Dodd. The site is now part of the bungalow messuage.
Earlier the garage of Ladywell House was used as a joiners shop and at one time Horncastles had the shop part (now dining room) of Ladywell as a China Shop. In 1916 it was opened as a butchers shop by W.J. Waites and was closed in 1932 and converted into the dining room in 1936. The outbuildings were used 1920 -1932 as a base for a haulage business run by his son, C.J. Waites with horse drawn and motor vehicles. From 1932 -1936 C.J. Waites carried on a cattle haulage business from the outbuildings.
Before being renamed Welton House it was known as Barff Cottage as Thomas Barff and his wife lived there. It is said that when his wife died Mr Hirst and his wife, son and daughters went to live with him and when Mr Barff died they took over. Originally, this was part of Ladywell messuage and details can be seen in the deeds. Haggis Hirst carried on a business as a tailor and he made suits for all the local gentry. He and his two sisters lived together and Florence Hirst was the last to die. The property then was sold to Mr Lee and occupied by his son, George Lee and his wife, Nancy, who was a Parish councillor.
The postmistress was a Miss Barley and then Mrs Asquith took over near the end of WWI. When she moved to the house (26) it was closed and became a private house.
Mr Denton, his wife and daughter lived in this house. He had his flat cart and horse stabled at the end of the cottages built by Peter Waites in mid 19th Century (G).
When Mrs Asquith moved here from No 24 she brought the Post Office business with her.
The headmistress in the early years of the Century was Miss Manley who lived in Jubilee Terrace. She was a disciplinarian and was nicknamed 'Old Mother Blacklock' - (Cockroach!) as she always wore long black skirts. Later the Head was Miss Cathy Paley and in 1929, Miss G.W. Waites. During the Second World War there was a scheme called 'War Weapon Week'. Outside the school was a target showing the amount collected and it was altered daily.
Elm House was occupied by Mr Thresh who came from Wakefield and around 1913 Dr Oyston left Graystones (D) where he had lived and practised from his new home. He later had an assistant, a Dr Proul (Prawl?) who was a refugee. When he retired he handed over to Dr Himes who had as his assistant a younger man, Dr Gardner who took over the practice early in the Second World War and later Dr John McRoberts took on the practice and lived there until his retirement in Sept 1974. He sold the property when it was divided into two properties. This adjoining property was occupied by "Neddy" Parkinson and his sister. Mr Parkinson had cows which he "tented" on the wayside verges on Long Lane and at milking time he brought them onto the village green. He wore the traditional smock and sat on a three - legged stool. Mr Gutteridge the postman lived here some years later. Mr & Mrs Freeman lived in this house and had a newspaper delivery for both the morning and evening papers. The latter came on the 7pm train into Ackworth Station from Leeds.
These nurseries were opened by James Lamprey and his wife and they lived in the end house of Alexandra Terrace. His family descendants are still in the business.
"Greystones". Before Dr Oyston lived here a relative of Henry Fernandez of Ackworth House lived here and practised as a doctor. The house was taken over early in 1915 for the use of Belgian refugees. There were seven. Mr & Mrs Boon and their daughter, Mrs Van Este and her husband and two sons, Francois the elder and Marcel. They were from Antwerp and were diamond cutters. The other person was a man who acted strangely and the village people said "He's a spy" He did not stay long. The Belgians liked goats' milk and my parents kept a goat and gave them the milk. Mr Van Este made and carved a bed for my parents for which they gave him £5 and he also did an oil painting of the Old Hall for £1. They returned to Belgium in 1919. Both the boys, Francois and Marcel, went to the Quaker School. Later the house was occupied by Mr and Mrs Austin. He was a master at Hemsworth and Mrs Austin used part of the house for a private Junior School. When she left it was carried on by Miss Gladys Kitchell. Bought by Ackworth School, it was made into flats but later reverted to a house occupied by Miss Cooper, music teacher in Pontefract.
This house was occupied by Mr Schofield, a bonnet maker who left and went to live in North Street in Leeds where she must have carried on her work. Her family opened the business in the Headrow area which became the very famous store which incorporated the old Theatre Royal but which has become defunct and now forms the new shopping complex.
"Bobby" Pearson lived in this house followed by P.C. Boston who retired to Charlestown. Later the Police house was the right-hand house of the brick-built semi-detached houses nearby.
These houses were pulled down around 1938. They were built by Peter Waites to let to poor people for one shilling a week. Peter was a farmer and cordwainer (shoemaker) and owned the properties at the rear.
John Beckett Simpson came to live here but did not farm a great deal as he was born independent. The property was eventually sold to Ackworth School who in turn (around 1963) sold it to the builders who developed the estate.
This once formed part of Ladywell and was sold to a Mr Dawson, a Wakefield businessman. He in turn sold to Miss Beech who retired to Scarborough. Father Broderick bought it in 1920 for use as a convent but this did not materialise and the library was converted into a Roman Catholic Church.
Part of Ladywell House. Reputed to have been a well for pilgrimage until Reformation times when the early part of Ladywell was built over it. Part of the original building of the present garage is reputed to have been the site of the well house keeper (All according to Father Broderick who was the first priest to the church he converted in Eagle House around 1921)
Mrs Neville - a widow of the famous Neville family lived here before she went to live at Rogerthorpe Manor. She was a small dignified lady and had a remarkable upright carriage. She visited church and always wore her widows' weeds with her Mary Queen of Scots bonnet faced in white and decorated with pearls. Her daughter was Mrs Gordon who lived in Cedar Lawn off Purston Lane who later remarried to Ralph Narde-Aldam.
Miss Grimshaw lived here. She was a cousin of Mrs Ledbetter, the wife of Mr Ledbetter who was Headmaster at Rawdon School when RRW went there in 1919. The school closed in 1920 and Mr Ledbetter came to teach at Ackworth. Miss Grimshaw was a character. She bred goats and also kept guinea pigs and also bred blue Persian cats. She was quite a force in the Agricultural Society and also showed her goats at the Annual Show.
This was a single room approached up four or five steps onto a landing. It was occupied by Mrs Sykes, mother of Mrs Newton Harrison, butcher (8). Raby Castle was one of two such buildings in Ackworth. I cannot remember the name of the other one - it was in a passage between the houses in "Clickham".
See "M". This was a very small house down a passage off Clickam which is opposite to Church Farm in Purston Road near the Rectory
This house was occupied by Miss Graham who had a maid Lillian. She was a great church worker and had sales for the Lenana Mission. In the garden there was large garden ornament which was later to be found the Norman font removed when the alterations were carried out on the Church and later replaced in its present setting in the church.
Major Arundel lived in Arundel House with his daughter Phylis. He had a solicitors' practice in Pontefract. When he died his daughter went to live in East Hardwick. She was quite a character and became interested in religion and converted to the Roman Catholic faith. A Mrs Silver took over the property and lived there with her son and a Major, her nephew. Mr & Mrs Elliott lived there in the early years of the war. His father was manager at Glass Houghton Colliery where he also lived. Mr & Mrs Launder also lived there. He dealt in Antiques.
Mrs Fox lived on the Green with a daughter and later her second daughter joined them on retiring. Mrs Fox, during the early 1920's attended church in her Victorian clothes, bonnet & "bustle" always in black. When my father died in Sept 1932, the second daughter wished that as he had been in the choir for 52 years, he should have a choral service and asked to be allowed to play the organ at the service to "show her respects". A gesture greatly appreciated by the family.
Mr Smith was gardener at Ackworth Park and when the mansion was vacant in the early years of the Great War he also looked after the empty building. It was at this time he allowed mother (Catherine Waites) to take friends to look around the mansion. I recall seeing a large room with full mirrors (based on Versailles) and also the central heating ducts in the floors, the tiled bath and, outside, the laundry with the table roller (mangle) and also the "gas house" and small gas holder. The fountain in the grounds would be turned on for a few minutes but the "bowl" was empty. Around 1923-24 this was bought by Mrs Hinchcliffe who was building the house in the park where I suppose it is still in situ. We would walk on the footpath at the side of Manor House passing on the right the "John Gully" graveyard and further on the pond in which the fish were kept, a stone constructed enclosure. In the copse on the left there was the "Icehouse" which was also always included in the visit In the roof area of the mansion was a specially constructed cock-fighting pit presumably built when John Gully occupied. A family tale was one of a Scholey, a forebear who went from the Old Hall to have a meal with John Gully and after imbibing told Gully he thought he could lift the belt from him"!! Mr Smith's daughters, Kate and Ethel lived with him. Kate taught at Bell Lane and Ethel at the school on the Green. Another daughter married Mr Blackburn of Carlton who owned and ran the ladies outfitters in Beastfair, Pontefract.