The past is another country, they do things differently there.’ Just how different is made clear by these new accounts of our local history; be it sporting, social or industrial.
Workington 1 – Manchester United 3. Just one of the many gems from ‘Reds Remembered’, Tom Allen’s excellent definitive history of Workington A.F.C. January 1958 and Workington’s Clive Colbridge scores in front of 21,000 at Borough Park to give the home team a 1 – 0 lead at half time, only to be sunk by a Denis Viollet hat-trick in the second half. Just weeks later that memorable team of Busby’s is tragically undone in the snow and ice of Munich. Tom Allen’s follow-up book to ‘The Team beyond the Hills’ mixes the dramatic with the routine to give a rounded comprehensive history featuring a chronological account of The Workington Reds since 1884, together with key players’ biographies and a shed full of stats. After two seasons of improving fortunes this timely book is an appropriate reminder of the long and distinguished footballing heritage in Workington, an ideal gift for every Reds’ fan.
The Workington skyline and town centre have changed radically in recent years. ‘Bygone Workington’ (volume 2) by Keith Wallace is a fascinating pictorial record of how it once was, from the 1880s to the 1980s. The book has more than 150 photographs including street scenes, team photos, works outings, school line-ups and buildings that are now long gone. There is no thematic structure or chronological order to the images which encourages the reader to progress through the book picture by picture. This demonstrates the diversity of Workington life, in work and at leisure, over that hundred year period; the clog shop on Pow Street in 1890, men digging for coal on the Quay during the strike of 1912, the John Peel Ales mural at the top of Wilson Street, a British Steel football team of 1968. In total there are more than 1,000 local faces for you to recognize.
On the coast, south of Workington, is the harbour and parish of Harrington, whose Local History Group has published its fourth review of ‘interesting happenings’ from Harrington’s past. This issue contains 20 articles on such varied topics as ‘The Harrington Wesleyans’, ‘The Lowca Light Railway’, and the ’Harrington Horticultural Society’. The group is to be commended for sustaining this programme of local publishing over a five year period and to such a high standard. All four volumes are well illustrated with photographs, reproductions of original documents and contemporary maps.
Still further south on the West Cumbrian coast is the former site of the MARCHON Chemical Works at Whitehaven. Former employee of 30 years Alan Routledge has compiled a detailed history of the company from its inception in 1939, through the merger with Albright & Wilson, to the final act of corporate vandalism by Huntsman in June 2005. It is a tale of initiative and innovation, of a skilled and dedicated workforce, of regional and national government intervention and retraction, and ultimately of duplicity and betrayal. In just 60 years MARCHON became an international leading player in its field, employing 2,300 at Whitehaven and many more world wide, only to be stripped of its customer base by foreign owners and finally reduced to nothing but rubble. ‘Marchon – the Whitehaven Chemical works’ contains many photographs of the staff employed over the years, telling the human side of this industrial tragedy. It is a sobering account of how even the biggest and most prestigious of large local employers can fall away, leaving nothing to show for its efforts but the memories of the generations who worked to make it a success.
This article was first published in the 'Times & Star' in December 2005. Copyright remains the property of The Derent Bookshop.
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