From the Archives …

Report to the annual church meeting for the year ending Easter, 1924

Council Members: Mr WN Addey, Rev F Appleton, Mrs F Appleton, Miss Banham, Mrs Elmhirst, Mr WE Fowkes, Mr GA Habbeshon, Mr HL Humphrey, Mr L Humphrey, Mr WC Johnson, Mr R Littledyke, Mr F Morland, Mr EN Taylor, Mr F Thompson, Mr EH Wakefield, Mrs Wakefield, MTR Whitelock, Miss B Wright, Mr AW Wright, Miss E Elmhirst, Mrs Whitelock.

Electoral Roll – The Electoral Roll has been revised in accordance with the Constitution, and a copy is now presented to this meeting.  It contains the names of 952 Parochial Electors.

Banham Memorial Hall – The Building Fund has increased to just over £800, invested in War Loan.  The Committee submitted to the Council a tentative design by Mr Arthur Whitaker for a Hall at an estimated cost of £2,900, but the council did not feel justified in adopting provisionally a scheme which would involve so great an expenditure.  The Committee will reconsider the question of design, and will continue its efforts to increase the Building Fund.

Sunday Schools – an encouraging development is the opening of a Primary Department under the direction of Miss Wright in the Mixed School.  The Department is conducted on modern educational principles, and provides admirably for the younger children for whom the Infants’ School in Park road is too far distant.  There is urgent need of more teachers in the Boys’ and Girls’ Departments to fill vacancies caused by retirements.  The number of scholars is approximately 145 Boys, 165 Girls; Bible Class Members, 100 – totals 410.  An important step was taken by the teachers in the purchase of an excellent piano for £47.  of that sum £39 was lent and has yet to be found, and the need provides an opportunity for others than the teachers to show their practical interest in our Sunday Schools.  A mutually beneficial agreement with the Education committee has been made, whereby the Sunday School piano (on the upper floor) may be used for Day School purposes, and the Day School piano (on the ground floor) for Church purposes.

Swaithe Mission – Last year’s Report spoke of the necessity for larger accommodation than that afforded by the Mission Room.  Towards the end of the year the use of that room was brought to an end by the tenant of the house, who required it for his own purposes.  A good Army Hut was bought for £68 by means of funds raised in the Mission, donations and loans, and a site, at a nominal rent, was kindly granted by Mr CE Smith of Swaithe Hall.  This hut was inaugurated as the “Swaithe Mission Hall” on Sunday, March 30^th, when a large congregation filled the building for a service conducted by the Vicar, the lesson being read by Mr Fowkes and the music being led by the organist and choir of the Parish Church.  About £35 is needed to repay the money lent to defray the cost of erection and equipment.

Girls’ Friendly Society – Meetings for Members have been held twice weekly, on one evening (under Miss Banham’s guidance) for work in preparation for a Sale, the proceeds of which are to support a bed in a Missionary Hospital; on the other for devotion, education or recreation.  Interesting lectures were given by Mrs Dransfield, Mrs Elmhirst, Mrs Fryer, Mrs Wakefield, Miss Smith, Miss Woffinden and Miss Wright.  The candidates, numbering 80, show a slight increase.  Their weekly meetings have been occupied in games, singing, sewing (for the bed in the Mission Hospital), and Missionary and other talks.  Thanks to the good work of Mrs Buckley, Miss Banham and Miss Wright, these gatherings have been greatly appreciated by the girls.

Missionary Enterprise – The number of CMS Magazines now in circulation is 147 monthly.  A study circle on the text book, “Women Workers of the Orient,” was conducted.  Miss Irene Gregory has been giving a monthly Missionary address at the Children's Sunday morning service in the School. An interesting Lantern Lecture was given by Mrs. Wakefield, describing the work in China, and showing pictures of Funing Hospital, in which one of the beds is already supported by this Parish. At the Diocesan Missionary Festival, held at Sheffield in June, our Choir supplied its full proportion to the massed Choir, and the Parish was represented by a party of 35.

Parish Magazine – Under Mr. Taylor's vigorous management the Parish Magazine more than paid its way during the first year of its restored existence. The circulation has steadily increased to about 450.

Finance – The £40 fixed by the Council as the Parochial Contribution to the Diocesan and Central Funds for 1923 (as against the £100 at which the Parish was assessed by the Ruri-decanal Conference) was attained, but only by the gifts of a few donors supplementing the collections in Church. Church expenses showed an increase of £17 over the previous year, mainly accounted for by repairs, including the making good of a breach in the north wall of the Churchyard, and books, including a supply of new Prayer and Hymn Books for the use of visitors. Under Special Objects the payments were £3 less than in 1922. For the present year the position is one of uncertainty. The income from the Church Trust property on Worsborough Common will largely be absorbed in meeting municipal requirements for road making. On the other hand, a -Free-will Offering Scheme has been launched with the two-fold object of providing a steady income for the Memorial Hall Building Fund, and also for meeting the general needs of the Church with a special view to the Diocesan quota. Mr. W. N. Addey has undertaken the secretaryship of the scheme, and has secured 52 members, contributing the equivalent of about £1 10s. Od. per week. If this scheme were more widely taken up a reliable income, sufficient to meet all our needs, would be assured.

Interdenominational Christian Council – A Special joint Committee, representative of the various Denominations, organised a united procession of the Sunday Schools on Whit Monday. The undertaking was successfully carried out, and obviously made a favourable impression on the minds of the inhabitants generally. As a sequel to this co-operative venture, a permanent Council was created by the governing bodies of the several denominations to secure common and united prayer and action upon spiritual, moral and social questions, and to bring Christian principles to bear upon such questions. This Council is composed of representatives of this Church and St. James', Worsborough Bridge; of the Wesleyan, Wesleyan Reform, and Primitive Methodist Churches, and of the Salvation Army.

General – The congregations on Sundays have continued to show a slight increase, though they represent a lamentably small proportion of the nominal Church inhabitants of the Parish. The Council would specially appeal to the large body of Parochial Electors on the Roll not to forsake "the assembling of ourselves together." The candidates presented for Confirmation were 5 males and 13 females. The small number of those seeking Confirmation is a cause for concern, for apart from it there cannot be a full growth either in personal spiritual life or in the corporate life of the Church. The average number of Communicants per week was 30.5, or practically the same as last year. An impressive Service was held on Armistice Day, when the Church was quite filled with a congregation representative of the District Council, Ambulance and Fire Brigades, and Friendly Orders. Such a gathering suggests a thought of the possibilities of common worship and of the inspiration to be found in a great congregation.

The Council would conclude this Report by asking its constituency, that is, the Parochial Electors, as well as the congregation in general, to join with it in thankfulness to Almighty God for every token of His Presence and Blessing in the past year, and in the prayer that the coming one may be marked by inward growth in grace and outward activity in every work of faith and labour of love to which He shall call us in the fellowship of His Church,

F. APPLETON, Chairman.

A. W. WRIGHT, Secretary. 31^st MARCH, 1924.

Memories of the Worsbroughs by Revd Howard Ansell

My first official visit to Worsbrough was in 1966, when I was still finding my way around South Yorkshire and learning the language.  I had come into teaching by accident, having left Lichfield Theological College after a very unhappy year there and arrived at Mexborough Grammar School because I had married a girl from Sheffield who was homesick!  I stayed until 1970, when I became Head of English at Penistone Grammar.  After part time training with the North West Ordination Course, I was priested in 1977, and after eighteen months as curate of Chapeltown I was asked by Bishop Gordon Fallows to take on the Worsbroughs, as he thought I was tough enough for the job!  It was not going to be easy, as Colin Hill had been there for about seven years and was very popular with the church people, and my family had been happily settled for thirteen years in Chapeltown.  However, I was immediately struck by the warmth and generosity of the congregation, as large working parties gutted the then vicarage, opposite the church hall, and redecorated it from top to bottom.

My memories of those four years are quite sketchy, as life was unbelievably busy.  Carol was still teaching in Chapeltown, but became very ill and had to have a hysterectomy, my mother down in Ramsgate went rapidly downhill after my father’s death and needed full time care, and the children were learning to cope with the survival problems which vicarage children usually had in those days.  Of course, the pits were still open but in serious decline, the railway line and many other businesses had closed down, and there was an air of dereliction and hopelessness throughout the parish.  Arthur Scargill, who was a national figure at that time, lived just behind the vicarage on Yews Lane, and so dodging reporters of all kinds and nationalities was an occupational hazard.

As I have no real contact with the parish now, I will give you the names of the people I remember most clearly, some of whom may still be around.  The wardens were Raymond Hampshire and Terry Kilburn.  Ray was our elder statesman, and his wife Marie ran the Mothers Union.  Terry worked for the Coal Board and was a valuable support to me and my successor until his untimely death.  My other valuable support was Pat Vaughan, who kept the keys, cleaned the church, wrote up all the records, ran the Girl Guides, and kept me on my toes – quite a difficult job, as I was still very inexperienced.  The organist was Ron Langdon, a saintly man who followed in his father’s footsteps, giving an immense amount of time and energy to creating and running a large choir, with real choirboys gathered from the back streets of Worsbrough.  The boys were regularly bribed with sweets from Percy, Gwen and Frank, and given occasional superb parties by Madge, Ron’s wife.  Ron sadly died not long after moving away from the parish.  The secretary was Audrey Hawes, who lived outside the parish, and now runs a hotel in Blackpool.  The treasurer was Derek Firth, who ran an engineering company, and grew magnificent dahlias.  The magazine, a monthly affair, was put together by Ann Wigglesworth, who lived with her aunt on the edge of the cutting.  The Church Lads Brigade was run with military precision by Malcolm and Kathryn Crowther, and the Sunday School was run by Hilda Hinde, including trips to exotic places like Mabelthorpe and Hornsea.  And then there were May and Mildred, Jean, Molly and Sally, who brightened my days with their cheery smiles and their willingness to help anyone do anything at any time.  There must of course be many more, but remembering even this lot for me is a triumph!

St Thomas’s was always a ‘church on the move’ – because of the amount of coal which had been dug out from under it.  The Coal Board strapped it and propped it, but yawning gaps appeared, and disappeared, from day to day.  However, nothing ever fell off, and eventually it always settled back on an even keel – unlike Chapeltown, which I gather has been condemned.   One old lady whom I visited regularly, always nagged me about the church bell which was never rung, because the frame was rotten.  When she died, she left sufficient money for the bell to be restored, retuned and re-hung on a very expensive metal frame.  Getting it down and up again, and removing half a ton of extract of pigeon from the loft was quite a problem!  Apart from this venture, I don’t think we attempted anything else of a structural nature during my time.


Visits were always popular with the congregation.  Apart from Hilda’s trips to the seaside, the Wives group and the MU would trek off to stately homes, gardens, and even on one occasion to Windsor Castle.  The choir liked to go on RSCM courses, and often came home full of enthusiasm and new music.  The PCC had at least one weekend away at Scargill, where, in company with other PCCs they ruminated over the problems and challenges – mainly financial – which they constantly faced.

Life for me was of course the endless round of funerals, weddings, and baptisms, with all the associated home visits, which I always felt I should do myself.  Trips to the factories and the pit were quite rare, but always rewarding.  Of course I always had to make my annual visits to the pubs for their Christmas carols and their harvest festivals, which sometimes made it a bit difficult to find my way home afterwards.  My first innovation in the church was a short family service before the main rather formal communion, which was welcomed by those with small children, but viewed with suspicion by everyone else.  The other was an annual Christingle service, quite rare in those days, which filled the church to overflowing.

Last of all there were my three friends from my teaching days, Dave Malkin, Les Foweather and Brian Ivett.  They seldom ever set foot in church, but their contribution to the artistic and creative life of the area was immeasurable.  Their best work – indeed, the best thing which has ever come out of Worsbrough – was ‘A Miner Too Many’ – a play written and researched by them about an actual Worsbrough family who lived and died in the pit disaster recorded on the monument in front of the church, and whose family history they traced in the church records.  It was performed in the school hall by children who were descended from the families they were depicting, to audiences of miners and ex miners who were gripped by the reality of the presentation, which included the creation of a coal face on stage, and an explosion with real explosives!  Their most spectacular project was a re-enactment of the Mystery plays in Worsbrough village churchyard, with the help and co-operation of all the schools, churches, factories, the NCB, and the Angels and Ministers of Grace!  I still remember the crucifixion scene under blackening storm clouds, when, as Christ on the cross said ‘Eli, Eli …’ a quite natural thunderbolt crashed to earth quite near, followed immediately by torrential rain.  On one moved!

Although I enjoyed my time at Worsbrough, and still like to visit Barnsley as a tourist, yet I never felt that I fitted in.  I was a young southern ex teacher with a Cambridge degree who didn’t smoke, drink beer, breed pigeons, or go to football matches, so although I was tolerated, yet I was never accepted, and my children had quite a tough time at school.  Therefore, when I was offered in 1983 the chaplaincy of a huge hospital with a small country parish in Essex, I felt I couldn’t refuse.  However, as I settled into my new job, the news that the miners strike was tearing my old parish apart gave me many sleepless nights.  However, no one is indispensable, and in the fullness of time a new man came, and parish life continued as it always had, and no doubt always will.

I wish you all well, and I thank you for giving me this opportunity to revisit places and faces which I had almost forgotten.

And now …

I’m getting older and more crotchety, and Carol is maturing gracefully.  She has had one cataract done, is eagerly awaiting the other one, while I remain as fit as a fiddle – apart from collapsing at a Mothers’ Union dinner and doing a blue light dash to the hospital.  I can, however, still manage Steep Hill (Lincoln) at a brisk pace without pausing – but of course, all my brain cells went years ago.  Stephen and Jackie are still in Ramsgate producing children – number three is on the way – Simon has just moved to a much happier Roman Catholic School in Dagenham, and Katie has decided to forsake the delights of Sheffield and move back down to London.

Howard Ansell

The reminiscences of Revd SB Priston

Vicar of Worsborough Dale 1942-55

The hand written account which is reproduced here was written by Mr Priston himself for Arthur Wright and used as a source for his ‘Short History of St Thomas’ Church’.

The Revd SB Priston came to Worsboro’ Dale in 1942 after 5 years in the large and very busy London ‘working class’ parish of Walham Green – 12 years of varied experiences in many parts of South Africa, three years of further varied experiences in South America and 16 years in a typical English country parish.  He had also done much School Teaching, School Examining and School Inspection.  But, with all this varied experience, he was hardly prepared for the problems of Worsboro’ Dale in Wartime!

The earlier records of the very long incumbency of Canon Banham, and the consequent difficulties encountered by Mr Appleton will have indicated that Worsboro’ Dale with its awkward shape, strong Nonconformist tradition and rapidly increasing population could be a very hard parish in which to begin the complete reconstruction which became more and more obviously necessary as the tremendous impact of the War on Social and Religious life in the West Riding began to take effect.  Fortunately, Mr Bowden had laid a solid financial foundation and had given sound Catholic teaching, even if this were not altogether appreciated or understood by the Congregation.

In the post-war Worsboro’ Dale there was no longer a strong nucleus of fairly rich, highly educated, socially prominent, leisured and zealous Church people, to help the Vicar and Church Officials in the Parish Organisations and in support and maintenance of the Church Schools and Sunday Schools.  It became necessary for the whole body of Church members to make new plans and schemes in many directions.  And there were now very few helpers with the leisure, technical knowledge, and financial ability to implement these schemes.

The financial situation rapidly deteriorated, firstly because although rather more actual money was being raised, the income needed in post-war inflation was more than three times in actual cash what would have been sufficient when the pound sterling still had its pre-war value.  Conditions were made even harder because really all the Church and Parish Investments presented by former parishioners or accumulated in more prosperous times, had unfortunately been invested either in Railway Stock or War Loan.  Both these sources of capital and income began to lose their former cash value at an alarming rage.  Parish Capital was reduced by more than £1,000 and Church income decreased by more than £60 a year.  Allowing for the much lower value of money in the 1950’s, it might be said that the Church lost in all several thousand pounds.  However, the new Vicar felt that financial matters were really the business of the Parochial Church Council, and tried to encourage them to deal with all these perplexities.

Meanwhile, as Parish Priest, Mr Priston turned his attention to those matters which were his own special concern – the adapting the Teaching, Services, Music and Ritual of the Church to the completely changed circumstances of Post-War Yorkshire.

The first improvement that became obviously necessary was to adopt the ‘Sung Parish Communion’ as the chief morning service.  The reasons for doing as thousands of other parishes were doing at this time, were thoroughly explained to the Congregation, and a large majority eventually voted that the change should be made.  Unfortunately a few of the old members of the Church were upset by the change and some of them left the Church.  But, on the other hand a considerable and increasing number of young people who, in the absence of teachers, could no longer be provided for in Sunday School or Bible Class, were brought into the ordinary services of Worship with the rest of the Congregation.

During and just before the War, the Church had become exceedingly dirty.  A big campaign to raise £650 for a through cleaning and redecoration was started.  The work done by the very skilful and understanding decorators, Messrs Kirkland Bridge, was most successful and much admired.

The next matter that worried the Vicar and those Church people who understood that position, was the lamentable neglect of proper dignity and reverence in connection with the Sacrament of Holy Baptism.  It became evident that not only was much careful and very simple teaching necessary, so that people should understand the tremendous solemnity of the Baptismal Service; but it was also clear that the method of administration needed to be brought into obedience to the plain words of the Prayer Book.

There was at first considerable opposition from those who had formerly regarded Holy Baptism as a purely private and personal concern, those who had regarded it as a kind of magical mumbo-jumbo – and those who had no idea that it had any meaning at all.  But eventually with the loyal co-operation of the Organist, Mr Alfred Wright, the Choir and the Servers – and the use of the Baptismal Cope which had originally been presented for the baptism of the Vicar’s son Christopher – a beautiful, dignified and impressive ritual and ceremonial in strict accordance with the Book of Common Prayer, was evolved.  Baptisms, from that time onwards, always took place as directed by the Prayer Book, at one of the ordinary Sunday or Holy Day Services.

The Vicar and his wife (formerly on the stage) had had considerable experience in organising and producing Church Plays.  It was not easy to do this at Worsboro’ Dale, as the Church Hall was utterly unsuitable, and there were considerable prejudice and other difficulties about using the Church.  But, by the enthusiasm of the Church Officials and many young people, these difficulties were overcome; and some really magnificent Church Plays were eventually presented to the Glory of God and in the presence of crowded congregations on three or four days in each of the years: 1953 – ‘On the Road to Bethlehem’, 1954 – ‘The New Crusade’, and 1955 – ‘The Gladdening Light’.  The two latter had to be largely re-written by Mr Priston in order to make them intelligible to and suitable for Worsboro’ Dale people.  This was necessary because the main purpose of the plays was to teach both the players themselves, and the Congregation a great many things about the Bible and about church History, which they badly needed to know, but had hither to very little opportunity to learn.

Coincidentally with these Church Plays, the Church was also discussing and preparing for the reconstruction of the Chancel.  St Thomas Church was the one and only Church designed by its architect.  While he was surprisingly successful in regard to its outward appearance, which is beautiful and much admired, he was not so successful with the interior.  He was hampered, of course, by the prevailing ‘Imitation Gothic’ tradition of the early Victorian era.  Then, his already far too narrow Chancel was further obstructed by the enormous pulpit set up by someone’s misguided generosity.  Here again the Vicar wished to follow the modern – and most ‘evangelical’ – trend, which seeks to place the altar where it can be plainly seen and easily approached by all members of the Congregation.  Suitable plans were drawn up by the very distinguished Diocesan Architect, Mr George Pace.  An Aumbry for the ‘Reserved Sacrament’ was also provided by a bequest of Miss Harriet Banham, daughter of the first Vicar.  Most of the rest of the money came from bequests of Mr A Waterton and Miss E Elmhirst.  These plans were finally accepted by the Congregation and approved by the Bishop and the result is undoubtedly a great improvement.  The reconstruction entailed the removal of the Choir to the West End.  That is the proper place for a choir; but it is unfortunate that it was not possible to remove the Organ also.

The Revd SB Priston, having reached the age of 75, was finding the burden of the growing parish too heavy.  When it was proposed to add St James Church and most of its Parish to Worsboro’ Dale, he felt that it was time to accept an offer from his old College of a country parish, and in July 1955 he left Worsboro’ Dale for Marwood in Devonshire.