Wigan Album
Wallgate
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Photo: Keith
Item #: 31686
The above photo would have been taken on the same day, 23rd November 1932 in Wallgate. The newspaper had the following caption accompanying the photo.
“ The streets of Wigan were thronged with crowds, and the Prince was greatly interested in the shawls worn by the women. Here he opened clubs for the unemployed man and women which have been erected under the auspices of the Wigan council of Social service.
The Prince went to the men’s Service Club in Wallgate. The route was lined with ex-Servicemen, and among them was Mr Norman Harvey. V.C., of Earlestown, near Wigan, who won the decoration at the age of 18 in the Great War, and claims to be the youngest V.C. in the country.”
Norman Harvey VC enlisted again in WW2 - and was killed in action in Palestine on February 16th 1942.
He was 19 when we won his VC. As in Wigan, St Helens honoured its VCs by laying tablets (his is outside Earlestown Town Hall) and naming streets (his is a Close) - but they also had a modern statue commissioned for him, which is in Mesnes Park, Newton-le-Willows. It's worth seeing - or Googling.
The big chap with the bald head and moustache, who can be seen over the prince's left shoulder is Edward Stanley, 17th Earl of Derby, who would have been there in his capacity as Lord Lieutenant of Lancashire.
I wonder who the priest is ( if he is a cleric). This would be a time when Mrs Simpson was becoming important in Prince Edward's life, he hated all the pomp and fuss surrounding his duties, yet supposedly had sympathy for the working class. Eventually leading him to famously remark " something should be done" on one visit to Wales. I would imagine he had a great empathy with the ex- servicemen lining the routes, having served in France.
The man to the right of the Prince is Canon Thicknesse who, at the time, was Chairman of the Wigan Council of Social Service. Also in the group, somewhere, was Mr Allen Parkinson MP for Wigan in 1932.
A side story to the visit is the tale of little Edna Dawber of Mort Street. She had been waiting for a couple of hours to see the Prince and he stopped to talk to her. She offered her Union Jack and it was accepted since it was missing from its usual place on the Royal car’s bonnet. It was attached to the bonnet and the following day it was returned to her with a letter of thanks. Edna said that she was going to have the flag framed.
Keith, I love that story, so sweet....
Veronica, I think the Prince of Wales actual words when he saw the deprivation on his visit to Wales were "Something will be done " - an empty promise if ever there was one.
True Derek - it took beyond the 2nd WW...The Prince of Wales' thoughts then were definitely elsewhere, unlike his brother George V1.
I think the comment was: 'Something MUST be done...'
Whichever word it was, he was in trouble for 'interfering'by the politicians....
Wars are costly and it didn't help in the 30's Depression years...awful times for the working classes.
Think you are right,Jarvo.