Or rather a working class woman's world was  a different world to that of  a lady of means. Twelve hours a day working in the Mill and then home to care for their families with no Automatic Washing machines, Dishwashers and Vacuum cleaners it really must have been a case of  " A woman's work is never done ".  Here are various newspaper articles and stories regarding some of the women of Bacup and Stacksteads.

Bacup Times October 1896

A Sad Occurrence At Broadclough - Three Deaths In One House

An extraordinary and very sad occurrence took place early this week in Hargreaves Street, Burnley Road

On Monday, Mrs Wrigley, aged 62 died having been indisposed for some time . In the evening of the same day her daughter, Mrs Ginty, who resides with her, was in Bacup making arrangements for the funeral, and early on Tuesday morning and was confined. The chid was still born  and Mrs Ginty died between eight and nine o'clock , so that there were three deaths in one house, grandmother, mother and child. Mrs Ginty is 33 years of age, and leaves four sons from 4 to 14. The husband is a fire beater at Shepherds No1 Mill, and a collection was made among workpeople there, which realised over £5, with which the children have each been provided with a new suit of clothes. All three will be interred at Bacup Cemetery.

Bacup Times September 1911

A Woman's Ankle Fractured

An unfortunate accident occurred last evening, in Back King street,

as the result of which a elderly woman named Mary Ann Sutcliffe, wife of John Sutcliffe fractured her right ankle. Excavations are at present taking place in Back King street, for the laying of the corporation water mains and in coming out of a house, Mrs Sutcliffe slipped and fell into a open trench. She was carried into the house of a neighbour, and Dr Shaw was immediately sent for and he set the limb. Before ordering her removal to Rochdale Infirmary.

Take a  tour of Bacup after the midnight hour

A midnight Visitation

Written by a reporter for the Bacup Times in 1903

paints a picture of life lived in a cellar dwelling

 and the thoughts of the writer about the lack of hygiene and care some

 Bacupian mothers gave to their babes in arms.

Stir About and Potatoe Pie

Just two of the meals typically eaten by the working class of Bacup.

Take yourself back about 130 years and imagine if you will :- The mill close by is about to stop and release the work people to their morning meal. In the house are two or three young children, mother is just about to pour the porridge form a large iron pan into a large brown earthenware dish that sits in the centre of a sturdy wooden table scrubbed almost white from mothers daily "set to". Around the table are as many brown mess pots as there are members of the family, over two years of age. In these utensils which hold about a pint, skimmed milk as been poured. In comes the father and five or six  lads and lasses, four or five sit down on chairs while the younger children stand

( they grow while they are standing ) it used to be said. The father dashes his spoon into the porridge dish and lifts as much as he can, the children put in their spoon and take out a little at once, then place the spoon into the milk dish and so they go on dipping first into the porridge dish then into the milk dish until it is all used up, and then of they go back to the mill until noon.

At noon  a similar scenario took place this time the meal is Flour Porridge, poured onto a large dish plates with a piece of butter or brown sugar poured in the middle. Sometimes after the flour porridge there would be a piece of  bread and butter, bread and treacle or bread and cheese. On baking day there would be a Potatoe Pie made in the large brown dish about 7lbs or 8lbs in weight, mostly without beef or mutton though sometimes with the odd bone. Then a little currant or mint cake for afters. On another day Stir About comprising of meal, bacon fat, salt and pepper and partly boiled like porridge. The next baking day there might be a "Collop Mowfin" or cake measuring about 15-18 inches across on which were placed rashers of Bacon, the cake being cut in wedge shape slices. The younger children and the half timers having to be satisfied with the fat that had run from the rashers. Saturdays and Sundays might see a bit of fish or beef but this was very rare.

A Bacupian mum with her children ..note the footwear of the family all wearing clogs.

Sadly some Mothers who had perhaps been widowed had no alternative but to leave their children in someone else care more often than not it would be a neighbour who probably had enough children to look after of her own never mind anyone else. Mothers quite often gave their children a mixture that contained some kind of drug which acted as a sleeping draft so that the child would  sleep while she worked. Sometimes this proved fatal to the child other cases such as the one below were not unknown. But with no other means of supporting her family a woman sometimes just simply didn't have a choice.

Upstairs Downstairs

 Servant Girls

If you were single then you could always go into service usually at the age of 14 when you could legally leave school where you would have spent some of your time learning needlework, cookery, and laundry work.

 Its is interesting to note that during the night the Census was taken in 1901 only two servants are shown as being present at The Holmes (home of the Shepherd Family). This could suggest that only two servants were employed at that time or that only two servants lived in their house with them. They are "Elizabeth Evans" aged 25 Cook and General Domestic from Llangollen Wales. "Sarah Elizabeth Edwards" aged 27 Nurse & Domestic from Flintshire.

Servant Girls from the Shepherd Family Of  Holmes Mill.

Picture Taken 26th November 1902.

The sad story of a servant girl abandoned in trouble appeared in the Bacup Times of 1920.

Bacup Times May 1920

SENTENCE FOR CONCEALMENT OF BIRTH

At the Manchester Assizes on Tuesday  Rose Whittaker 27 Domestic Servant, pleaded guilty to concealment of birth at Blackpool on May 20th. Mr Goldie said prisoner was employed as a laundry maid at a boarding house from May 2nd. She was taken ill on the night of May 20th, and a lady doctor was called. She at first denied that a child had been born, but afterwards admitted it. The child was born dead, and its body had been concealed under a mattress.

Mr Griffith said prisoner was a native of Bacup, and had been in service at Darwen and Blackburn. She had been deserted by the man who wronged her. Her parents were dead and her brothers were in the Colonies. Destitute and alone, she had tried to conceal her shame. She had always been of good character, and was a good worker. Her  employer was willing to take her back into her service.

Taking into consideration that she had been in custody since May 20th, Mr Justice Rigby Swift passed a nominal sentence of two days imprisonment and she was at once dismissed.