THE APPALLING CRASH AT MOSCAR, SHEFFIELD - 25th AUGUST 1907 - An Update

 One of the oldest articles on my site is the account of  the tragedy that occurred at Moscar, Sheffield on 25th August 1907 in which three people died at the scene and five were badly injured, 

The Sheffield Daily Independent dated Monday 26th August 1907 carried the headline

"APPALLING SMASH NEAR MOSCAR, MOTOR CHAR-A-BANC  DASHED INTO WALL. THREE KILLED, MANY OTHERS INJURED. SICKENING SCENES"

Under the headlines the paper revealed that the char-a-banc was proceeding past a carriage and a pair of horses when it hit a telegraph pole, causing it to skid and then crash into a stone wall. A man with a little boy, aged seven on his knees was killed instantly and another man was killed by being thrown from the vehicle. A person who was passing by on the road tried to run away but was caught by the crashing vehicle and pushed through a stone wall. He suffered a broken right leg and severe head injuries.

For many years I could not locate the final verdict of the subsequent inquest as it was adjourned so that the injured could attend and give evidence. 

A couple of days ago a a reader of this article was kind enough to contact me and send me two cuttings. The first was from the Sheffield Daily Telegraph of 2 October 1907, and the second from the Stockton & Thornaby Herald 5 October 1907. 

Given the evidence that was put before the inquest and reviewing the circumstances surrounding the crash, a verdict of accidental death was the only one that was available to the jury.

  

Christopher Thompson (1799-1871) - A Sheffield Artist

 Until I discovered this old cutting in Sheffield's Grapevine Magazine I had never heard of  Christopher Thompson but the painting his ancestor pointed to is certainly familiar to me and others who are interested in Sheffield's historical past.

Here are a few details of Christopher's life that I have located on Ancestry. The first two are from the 1851 and 1861 censuses and the last entry for Christopher's burial is from Sheffield records Online.

1851 Census

Name Christopher Thomson Age 51

Estimated Birth Year abt 1799 Relation Head

Spouse's Name Hannah Thomson

Gender Male 

Where born Hull, Yorkshire, England

Civil parish Sheffield Ecclesiastical parish St James Town Sheffield CountyYorkshire Country England

Registration district Sheffield Sub-registration district West Sheffield ED, institution, or vessel 08

Household schedule number 211 Piece 2338 Folio 242 Page number 55

Household Members (Name) Age Relationship

Christopher Thomson 51 Head

Hannah Thomson 57 Wife

Frederick Thomson 23 Son 

James Thomson 10 Son

Sarah Thomson 16 Daughter

Mary Thomson 13 Daughter

Maria Simpson 14 Visitor

Frederick First 19 Lodger

1861 Census

Name Christopher S Thompson

Gender Male Age 61

Relation Father-in-law

Estimated Birth Year 1799

Spouse's Name Hannah Thompson

Where born Hull, Yorkshire, England

Civil parish Sheffield Ecclesiastical parish Carver Street Town Sheffield County Yorkshire

Registration district Sheffield Sub-registration district West Sheffield ED, institution, or vessel 16

Household schedule number 88 Piece 3478 Folio 99 Page number 16

Household Members (Name) Age Relationship

Wilfred Thos Dewsnap 36 Head

Rosina Dewsnap 35 Wife

Charles H Dewsnap 3 Son

Christopher Ths Dewsnap 1 Son

Christopher S Thompson 61 Father-in-law

Hannah Thompson 60 Mother-in-law

Sarah Thompson 27 Sister-in-law

Mary Ann Thompson 23 Sister-in-law

BURIAL RECORD

BIRTH 1799

DEATH 20 Jan 1871 (aged 71–72)

BURIAL Sheffield General Cemetery Sheffield, Metropolitan Borough of Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England

PLOT H2 91 MEMORIAL ID 220624277 · 

Age: 72, Occupation: Artist, Last Residence: 92 Devonshire Street, 22 Jan 1871 is the interment date

Thomas DEWSNAP Razor Smith, Hollis Croft age: 71, buried: 13 Apr 1856

Thomas Christopher DEWSNAP Son of Wilfred Thomas Dewsnap, Caster, 81 Division Street

age: 1y 10m, buried: 21 Dec 1856

Christopher THOMPSON Artist, 92 Devonshire Street age: 72, buried: 22 Jan 1871

Thomas Jarvis THOMSON Painter, 36 Orchard Street age: 29, buried: 10 Oct 1851

Hannah THOMSON Widow, 92 Devonshire Street age: 71, buried: 3 Feb 1871

burial no: 1600 grave no: H2 91

death date: 01 Feb 1871

burial date: 03 Feb 1871

name: Hannah Thomson age: 71 description: Widow residence: 92 Devonshire Street

minister: George Sandford

burial type: consecrated

burial no: 1576

grave no: H2 91

death date: 20 Jan 1871

burial date: 22 Jan 1871

name: Christopher Thompson age: 72

description: Artist residence: 92 Devonshire Street

minister: George Sandford

burial type: consecrated

Sarah THOMSON Spinster, 109 Victoria Street age: 76, buried: 10 Aug 1910

His wife Hannah died less than 2 weeks after Christopher after a lifetime of being "wearied by poverty" 

The End of a Bowling Green Prince of Wales Ecclesall Road South Sheffield - July 1939

For those readers who are not familiar with the Prince of Wales it is situated on the corner Carternowle Road and Ecclesall Road South in the Ecclesall district of Sheffield.

I have avoided calling it a public house as it is in effect a restaurant that happens to sell drinks as a side line. Its main function is to sell food to its customers pure and simple.

It has no architectural significance as the premises have been renovated several times in the last thirty or so years. The original name was the Prince of Wales and was named after the future King Edward V11. But in the late C20th the Prince of Wales name was ditched and it became firstly The Woodstock and then more bizarrely The Baltimore Diner. Unusual names to say the least!

But for most of its existence it was a large public house serving the local community. And it appears that it was also a hotel

And on 11th July 1939 this report appeared in the local press 

   

According to the report it had one of the oldest bowling greens in Sheffield that must have been laid down in 1752.

The car park is still there and when I drove past it last month, the entrance to the car park had a pot hole that was certainly up there with Sheffield's best!