Mexborough and Swinton Times July 22, 1927

Reminiscent of Klondyke

This change in the organic life of Wombwell was accompanied by rapid increase in population.

A writer of 30 years ago says: “There was the guttural man from Durham, the witty one from Lancashire, the soft spoken from Staffordshire and the simple one from Lincolnshire. As a consequence the language spoken is peculiar, a burring Northumbrian marries a soft vowelled Devonian with the result that the language of their offspring is beautifully mixed. An out and out Lancastrian marries a drawling Lincolnian, and it would puzzle the wisest of philologists to determine the language of the children.”

The next 25 years of Wombwell’s history was marked by steady progress. There are few events of outstanding importance to record, all the time the town was grappling with its municipal responsibilities. The great problem was that of sanitation. Vital statistics testify to the vision of the Civic fathers displayed in that. On the whole the health of the town had been good. The birthrate had always been high and the death rate low. The inhabitants have much to be thankful for and not a little to be proud of.

In an article of this character will perhaps not be inappropriate to ask what people during the last of century at constituted Wombwell’s happiest and most successful era. Bearing all factors in mind one is inclined to think that the period 1894 to 1914 best fits that description, the period between the great ‘98 coal strike and the Great War.

During these to the case most of our important municipal assets – the Town hall, the public bath, the public couple library, the first public recreation ground in Kings Road – came into being and the period was productive of some of the soundest meant that ever entered our local municipal life.

There was no industrial trouble to speak off and the Boer war had little effect on the town and its inhabitants.

Two happy events by which this period was marked with a declaration of peace after the Boer War and the Coronation of King Edward. The latter event was celebrating Wombwell with joyous festivity.

The children of the town gathered in the marketplace, sang national hymns and afterwards marched to Kings Road where they took possession of the newly acquired recreation ground. Simultaneously Coronation oak trees were planted and the clock above the balcony of the Town Hall was set going for the first time. Mr W Washington the then Chairman of the council performing the ceremony. In a similar manner Wombwell demonstrating its unswerving loyalty to the town and constitution on the accession to the throne of King George, who passed through Wombwell in 1912.