1853 Quiz … Spot the Mistakes

On January 6th 1928 the Ilkeston Pioneer published an article — “1853-1928. The ‘Pioneer’s’ 75th Birthday“.
As its title suggests, the piece outlined some of the newspaper’s contents and progress since its inception on January 1st 1853. However it seems to contain quite a few mistakes. I wonder if you can spot them ?

The article recorded that …
The ‘Pioneer’ was founded by the late Mr. John Wombell, who retained control of it for nearly 35 years. It then passed into the hands of Mr. Cornelius Brown, of Newark, for four years, the ‘Ilkeston Pioneer’ Printing Co.Ltd., acquiring it in 1891, for a period of ten years.In 1902 the proprietorship was taken over by Mr. Edwin Trueman, who had been its editor for more than ten years previously, and whose connection with the ‘Pioneer’ dated from 1862. For as time it was leased to Messrs. Wilfred Edmunds Ltd., of Chesterfield, but in 1915 it reverted to the ‘Ilkeston Pioneer’ printing Co. Ltd., and Mr. Edwin Trueman was Editor until his death in 1923. The present Editor is Mr. A. J. Trueman.

Places of Worship

After a couple of paragraphs the article continued ... It will be appropriate, we think, on this occasion, to give a brief historical local perspective. In 1853 the only places of worship in the town were St. Mary's; Wesley, South Street; Cotmanhay Church; Independent Chapel, Pimlico; P.M. Bath Street; Independent Chapel, Pimlico; Baptist, South Street; and Unitarian Chapel, High Street.--

Questions 1 and 2. The list of places of worship in 1853 doesn’t seem to be complete — can you add the two chapels missing from the list ?

(Clues 1 and 2, if you need them)

local government

The article continued ... As far as local government is concerned, much could be written. The only light that guided the villagers at night was that of the moon and stars. In 1857 a motion that the streets be lighted was turned down, and the Highway Board continued to reject such proposals. It was altered after a poll of Ilkestonians. This Highway Board was formed in 1849 and came to an untimely end in 1864, when a majority of the ratepayers voted in favour of the adoption of the Local Government Act. A long squabble followed, the Queen's Bench being frequently appealed to by those who preferred the old Highway Board to the proposed Local Government Board. At a stormy meeting presided over by Dr. Norman, it was decided that this new Board consist of 18 members, and the first election took place on July 11th, 1864 ... the following were elected-- Messrs. E. S. Whitehouse, Wm. Ball, Dr. G.B. Norman, M. Hobson, I.Warner, Jos. Carrier, B. Wilson, J. Taylor, I. Gregory, W. Sudbury, Amos Tatham, S. Richards sen.,R. Skeavington, Edward Severn, Wm. Attenborough, Henry Ash, Aaron Aldred and Jos. Severn. At the first meeting Dr. Norman was elected chairman, and he retained the position until he left the town in 1859. He died eight years later.

Question 3. “…. the Highway Board, which was formed in 1849 ….” — the original source for this formation date might well be Trueman and Marston (History of Ilkeston) who state ‘(The Highway Board) was first formed about 1849, and corresponded to the old Surveyors of the Highway elected by the parishioners’.[p238]
What alternative date has been suggested for its formation ?

Question 4. The list of the 18 original members of the Local Board is almost correct. The last member is ‘misnamed’ … whose name should appear there ?

Question 5. (Dr. Norman) retained the position (of Chairman of the Local Board) until he left the town in 1859.
As the article points out, the Local Board was formed in 1864 which means that Dr. Norman left Ilkeston five years before the formation of the Board of which he was a consistent chairman !! (I suspect a typo here)

Question 6. In what year did Dr. Norman resign as Chairman of the Local Board ?

Question 7. In what year did he leave Ilkeston ?

Question 8.In what year did he die?

This Board gave to Ilkeston the Town Hall (1866), the Sanatorium (1888), and provided an effective sewage and sewage farm system. It bought the old Gasworks and improved them, and bought the old Waterworks, and extended the water supply.

Question 9. Why couldn’t the Local Board have built the Sanatorium, as the article states ?

Question 10. In what year was a temporary ‘isolation hospital’ set up ?

Question 11. And where was it ?

Question 12. When was a Cottage Hospital for Ilkeston built ?

Question 13. And where was it ?

Wesleyan Chapel

The Wesleyan Chapel (later South Street Sunday Schools) was opened in 1873 ...

Question 14. Where was the Wesleyan Chapel which was opened in 1873 ?

Question 15. What happened to this chapel when the new Wesleyan Chapel was built in 1896-1898 ?

Question 16. So when were the “South Street Sunday Schools” opened ?

The present Baptist Chapel in Queen Street was built in 1883 -- ----

Question 17. In what year was the Baptist Chapel in Queen Street opened ?

Question 18. What happened to the old Baptist Chapel in South Street eventually ?

Question 19 And what did this enable the Baptists to do ?

Question 20. And when was this ?

1853 Quiz … Spot the Mistakes

Dave Johnson