~ Social Problems ~
Apart from the 'hospital' at Bow Bridge which could obviously only accommodate a small number of poor people, we have no knowledge of any other home for the destitute in the parish of Dalton until the workhouse2 at Billincoat1 was opened in 1735. The first page of the account book is inscribed 'The workhouse for Dalton Opened June 11th 1735 By Mr. Hinde To Serve ye poore & Blinde'. On the next page, the names of the 'Directors for the poore house of Dalton' for that year are given as 'Mr. Tho: Atkinson, Mr. Rich: Postlethwaite, Mr. Wm: Matson, Mr. Tho: Richardson, Mr. Wm: Berry, Mr. Fran: Barker, Mr. John: Shaw, [and] Mr. Tho: Bankes'.
Derelict cottages at Goose Green4. This building was formerly the 1825 workhouse3.
The workhouse cottages, converted into two houses (taken in 2000). Photo by kind permission of Ian and Shirley Collins.
Whenever possible, workhouse5 children1 were placed in the care of local tradesmen, sometimes in lieu of repayment of a debt as was the case with John Addison who on 18 May 1741 'agreed to keep & maintain Thomas Park's Child now in the Workhouse of Dalton sufficiently with meal drink & apparel for two years & to deliver up the same Child in as good Repair in Clothing as Shee is now Delivered to him & for payment & satisfaction he the said John Addison to be acquitted of a debt of five pounds with interest due from him to the parishioners of Dalton...'. The accounts include weekly entries showing food and materials purchased, and opposite each entry, the weekly amount of yarn spun by the inmates together with its value. In Christmas week 1740, two additional purchases ('raisings 6d. shuger 4d.'), suggest that a Christmas pudding had been made. The frequent mention of 'hops', 'wort dish & barrel' shows that beer must have been brewed on the premises. There are a number of other interesting entries, such as: 'Bleeding ould Dolly 0. 0. 6d.'
Poverty, as always, caused many problems. It made men lie, cheat and steal when otherwise there would have been no need to. But perhaps one of its most tragic manifestations lay in the fact that in many homes children were left alone because both parents had to work. In his diary, William Fisher3 records several instances of unsupervised children being burned or scalded to death. Many of the older children2 had to work in the fields, sometimes with tragic consequences as can be seen from the following extract of the same diary: 'July 27, 1826: A little girl of Robt Kendals of Barrow17 having been sent from the shearing field for a piece of fire to light her grandmothers pipe was so dreadfully burned that she died a few Days afterwards it is supposed that she had covered the fire with part of her dress and in running it had ignited...'.
In the same entry from his diary, Fleming2 comments on the morality of the townspeople, particularly the children, at the time William Close3 was establishing his practice as a surgeon and apothecary in Dalton: 'He [Close] noted the ignorance and dissolute behaviour of the local children, for which their parents were responsible, their own ignorance and despondency being carried to their children. To remedy this, or even to attempt to stop its further growth Mr. Close attempted to distract some of these children from their idle habits and educate2 them to use their time usefully, for idleness generates many vices. Much good resulted from the establishment. A reformation of manners was in the main due to the doctor's efforts. The time that used to be spent in idleness and mischief, was now appropriated in usefulness and pleasing amusements...'. Just how reliable Fleming's comments are is questionable, for criticism of others is by no means uncommon in his writings. Earlier in this particular account, in a brief biography of William Close he has been unjustly critical of his education and intelligence. Perhaps the following description of Close is nearer the truth.
One would have assumed that the inevitably busy life of a country doctor would leave little time for other interests; but, in William Close's4 case nothing could be further from the truth. He was also an artist, writer, local historian, musician and inventor. Among his drawings which have survived are sketches of the castles at Dalton, Gleaston and Piel2, which with a number of others, are all included in the 86-page supplement which he wrote and included in his own revised edition of West's2 Antiquities of Furness.
On Sunday 27 June 1813, after having suffered from consumption for some considerable time, William Close5 died. He was only 38. On the Tuesday following his death, he was buried at Walney3 under an ash tree in the north-west corner of the chapel4 burial ground, having been borne there, as was then the custom, by eight men, each of whom was presented with a pair of high-legged boots. By his own request, his grave was nine feet deep, and no memorial stone ever marked the place.
In an attempt to restrain the riotous conduct it was decided that a lock-up1 should be built, and on 6 August 1828, the Four and Twenty2 ordered that such a building should be immediately built in the workhouse9 yard. It was about 1840 when the Sunday hirings ceased at Dalton, but the lock-up continued to be used for some time after this.
In the latter part of the century when the Whit Tuesday procession became a popular event, another group of disreputable characters appeared on the scene. Today, nothing would be known about this group of men who called themselves the Slonk Club1, were it not for the fact that by their idiotic and disgraceful behaviour in the Whit Tuesday processions they asked for, and received, a good deal of adverse comment in the local press. The following account, taken from the Dalton News, 7 June 1884, gives some idea of their activities:
In 1841, law and order was maintained in Dalton by a single constable2, P.C. William Robinson. Where the constable's office or residence was situated at this time cannot now be determined; but it is reasonable to assume that it was quite close to the lock-up3, probably on Goose Green7. After the lock-up had been closed down, it is almost certain that the next place to be used for the detention of prisoners2 was a stone building, which can be seen today close to the ginnel behind Beddall's newspaper shop. Presumably this would be about 1850, and it may be that the police station1 was situated in Market Street, quite close to the new cell.
Unveiling the cenotaph on Saturday, 25 November 1922.
As may be expected in a mining10 town, there were many cases of drunkenness, wife-beating, gambling etc., brought before the court3; but of course, many other crimes were dealt with too. For example the Dalton News reported on 20 May 1899 that 'a tramp named James Royle was sentenced to 14 days imprisonment3 at Lancaster for sleeping out in a barn belonging to Mr. James Atkinson on Sunday night'. The following case, which was tried on 29 April 1899, was reported in the Dalton News of that date: 'At Dalton on Saturday before Mr. Ed. Wadham2, Phyliss Smith, a tramping hawker was charged in custody with telling fortunes to Miss E. Jones of Dalton, in order to impose on her. Miss Jones stated that the prisoner called to her house in Nelson Street, and offered for sale a quantity of lace, of which she bought to the value of 1s. 6d. After she had bought this, the accused then promised to tell her fortune. For this she offered her threepence and sixpence, but the prisoner refused and asked for 2s. 0d., and eventually she gave her that amount. She then asked her to place the coin on her hand, and after making several crosses upon it the prisoner "breathed" on the complainant's hand, and asked her to wish three times. After going through this performance, she asked for another sixpence, and added that if she did not give it to her she would have bad luck for seven years and a day, but if she gave it to her she would have a sovereign for it the same evening. The amount was forfeited, and the prisoner again asked her to wish three times, and consequently she left the house ... Mr. Wadham, in delivering sentence said it was a serious offence, and he was afraid it was not the first time she had carried on the practice. He did not intend dealing harshly with her, and fined her 2s. 6d. and costs or seven days in default. (A voice from the court: "Thank you sir, thank you") ... He considered the complainant should have more sense than to listen to her'.