A place with royal links

That mining relic is what prompted Tony Kelly of Billinge Road, North Ashton, to reach for his pen.

Grabbed by sight of that joyous party scene, pictured down French Street, Toll Bar, in the early 1950s, Tony writes: "The colliery in the background was the Alexandra Colliery, sunk in 1867 by Pilkington Brothers and named in honour of the then Princess of Wales. Princess Alexandra visited the colliery during its sinking.

"By the time that party photo was taken, the colliery had been closed for several decades but remained in use up to 1968 as a pumping pit for the nearby Ravenhead Colliery," adds Tony.

It appears that the district was so honoured by the royal visit that other features of the area were named after her - Alexandra Terrace, Alexandra Drive and Alexandra Street.

Sadly, one other local feature has recently bitten the dust. Says Tony: "The magnificent Alexandra pub stood on the corner of Crossley Road and Cairo Street. It's now demolished and the area it stood upon is occupied by new houses."

And he signs off: "Something I remember from my schooldays is that, about 10ft up on a house wall in Cairo Street, was a sandstone plaque with an inscription.

"This commemorated a local hero or gave an explanation as to why Cairo Street was so named. Has any other reader go some details about this?"

Several other customers of this column kindly wrote in after spotting the French Street celebration 'knees-up' but opinion is still split as to whether this was staged to celebrate the Festival of Britain (1951) the Coronation (1953) or VE Day (1945).

And there's some confusion about that pithead gear, some saying it was Ravenhead and others, like Tony Kelly, plumping for the Alexandra.

Bill Rattigan of Eastham Crescent, Clock Face writes: "This was typical of the street parties to celebrate the Festival of Britain. I helped with our local one in Gaskell Street, Parr, in 1951."

But Mrs L. Burrows of Portico Avenue, Eccleston Park, submits that it was a 1953 Coronation do. And she claims that she and her two daughters were there for that occasion.

"There are many old neighbours from French, Roby and Thompson streets featured in that picture and if I remember correctly the party was organised by a Mrs Kenny and Mrs Landers with the help of others. They collected each week towards the cost of the party." Jim Mayor of Clock Face Road, St Helens, backs up the Coronation submission, and provides few memory-jerking names from his boyhood. The faces he recognises from being a 14-year-old are as follows: Betty Waine, Mesdames Finney, Kenny, Henebery, Holmes, Friar, Orme, Renwick, O'Brien, Davies and Tracey; Millie Traverse, Gordon Renwick, Messrs. Kenny and Henebery. Among the younger generation were Kenneth Kenny, Tony Finney, Keith Holmes, Glyn Friar, Jimmy Mayor and Chris Gaskell.

Mrs L.M. Feeney of Thatto Heath, who names that pictured pithead gear as having belonged to Ravenhead Colliery, says: "I know a little bit of local history about it."

Land-buying by a Scot named John MacKay had far reaching results for St Helens, she adds. In 1765 he leased Thatto Heath common-land from the Crown and seven years later bought Ravenhead Farm from the Archbishop of York.

He proceeded to mine in the district, which came to be known as Ravenhead, and he assured his customers: "No part of the Kingdom will be better supplied for coals."

He then persuaded the British Cast Plate company to build their factory at Ravenhead, leading to the birth of the St Helens glass industry.

Mrs F. adds: "A Frenchman, Jean de la Bruyere, was brought over from St Gobain to manage the Ravenhead glassworks. He is buried at Windleshaw Abbey, Dentons Green, and French Street was named in his honour."

MANY thanks to all who have chipped in to this lively topic.

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