Events to appeal to Boltonians and all members of the Society

Ian RobinsonIan has taught history in several secondary schools throughout a forty year career in education.  He has a passion for the history of his home town, Bolton, where he has lived all his life.  Inspired by the story of his mother's life, Ian's first book, "The Town that Vanished", was launched with a talk at Bolton Library in December, 2018.

Taking Mass Observation's ground breaking study of Bolton between 1937 and 1940, as its starting point, the book examines what this important mill town once was, and just as compelling, what it has become. Ian has been so pleased at the response to his first book, that he has now begun  work on a second book which will look at the history of Bolton's people through ten milestone days, a project he hopes to complete over the next two years.

Bolton was the centre of a ground breaking investigation into the daily lives of ordinary working people.  For two years wherever Boltonians went - the pub, the shops, the cinema, the football match - they were secretly observed.  The result: 40,000 documents and 800 photographs which provide an unparalleled, vivid record of one Lancashire mill town at its peak.  The investigators called Bolton "Worktown" - a type of industrial town defined by working class communities and a particular way of life.

At the time, Worktown seemed permanent and enduring but before the twentieth century ended, it had all but disappeared.  In The Town that Vanished, Ian Robinson uses the Worktown investigation to frame the story of what the town of Bolton once was and, just as compelling, what it has become.

This book is for anyone who feels a nostalgic yearning for Worktown's cobbled streets, corner shops, pubs, cinemas, towering mills and smoking chimneys; who wants to know more about why they all vanished; and who are we inclined to believe when landmarks like the Odeon cinema, the Palais dance hall and Burnden Park were demolished this once proud northern town lost its soul.

• Date: 8th January 2025
• Wednesday 7.30pm
• The Town that Vanished
• Speaker: Ian Robinson
• Meeting at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club & Online via Zoom
• Attendance in person at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club - no booking required
• Zoom - Booking required - tickets now available via Eventbrite.
• Members of MLFHS – free, Non-Members of MLFHS - £5

Please note: All events are subject to last minute changes due to circumstances beyond our control.  Please check our monthly Newsletter and Facebook page for any last minute changes, as that is the only way we can contact people.

Brian Groom, journalist and historian, returns with a series of pen portraits of fascinating personalities from Manchester and Lancashire, including Bolton. Originally from Stretford, Brian spent most of his career at the Financial Times, where he did senior jobs including political editor and assistant editor, but he also launched and later edited Scotland on Sunday, the Scotsman’s Sunday paper.

Brian spoke to us in February 2024 about northern England’s history and culture, based on his best-selling book Northerners: A History, from the Ice Age to the Present Day. This talk is based on his latest book, Made in Manchester: A People’s History of the City that Shaped the Modern World. He will cover figures from John Dalton and L.S. Lowry to Emmeline Pankhurst and Victoria Wood, including Boltonians such as Samuel Crompton, Ian McKellen, Hylda Baker and Jason Kenny. Brian now lives in Saddleworth.

Please note, this event will include our Bolton General Meeting, which typically takes about 10 minutes and includes the nominating of, and voting for our new 2025-2026 committee. All are welcome and zoomers can also vote if members. More information to be announced nearer the time on our Facebook page and monthly free to all newsletter 'Bolton Genies'.

• Date: 5th February 2025
• Wednesday 7.30pm
• Manchester, Bolton and Lancashire Portraits
• Speaker: Brian Groom
• Meeting at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club & Online via Zoom
• Attendance in person at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club - no booking required
• Zoom - Booking required -  tickets will be available from 9th January.
• Members of MLFHS – free, Non-Members of MLFHS - £5

Please note: All events are subject to last minute changes due to circumstances beyond our control.  Please check our monthly Newsletter and Facebook page for any last minute changes, as that is the only way we can contact people.

The Story of Operation Freshman, and the previously unknown role of Flight Lieutenant Donald Higson, Bolton´s own Hero of Telemark

Dr. Bruce A. Tocher was born in Forfar, Scotland and is a graduate of Aberdeen University. He has a PhD in Geology and was a lecturer at Plymouth Polytechnic and Aberystwyth University for 10 years before moving to Norway to join their largest oil & gas company, Statoil. He spent 20 years there working in their Research & Development Division, before taking early retirement in 2016. He then spent two years as an International Trade & Investment Senior Executive with Scottish Enterprise before deciding to focus full time on military history, in particular Operation Freshman. 

Bruce, who is based in Stavanger, Norway has spent five years researching this topic with the aim of publishing a new book on the raid. One of the key aims of the book project has been to trace the families of the 48 soldiers and airmen who took off for Norway on that fateful evening of the 19th of November 1942. The idea is to tell the story of these incredibly courageous young men through their lives, and the lives of their families, rather than more conventional histories which focus primarily on the events themselves.  Since the start of 2020, the project has managed to establish contact with relatives of 38 of the 48 soldiers and aircrew who took part in Operation Freshman, and in 2022 he guided 67 Freshman family members on an 8 day tour of Freshman sites in Norway to mark the 80th Anniversary of the raid.

He has lectured extensively on the subject, as well as actively contributing to museum exhibitions, including the new Heavy Water exhibition at the NIA Museum in Vemork. This year has seen the publication of a post on Operation Freshman on the Imperial War Museum website, an appearance on Norwegian TV (NRK), and most recently he was interviewed for the BBC Scotland radio programme - Good Morning Scotland.

• Date: 5th March 2025
• Wednesday 7.30pm
• Donald Higgins - Bolton's Hero of Telemark
• Speaker: Bruce A. Tocher
• Meeting at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club & Online via Zoom
• Attendance in person at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club - no booking required
• Zoom - Booking required -  tickets will be available from 6th February.
• Members of MLFHS – free, Non-Members of MLFHS - £5

Please note: All events are subject to last minute changes due to circumstances beyond our control.  Please check our monthly Newsletter and Facebook page for any last minute changes, as that is the only way we can contact people.

• Date: 2nd April 2025
• Wednesday 7.30pm
• Dating by Detail
• Speaker: Steve Gill
• Meeting at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club & Online via Zoom
• Attendance in person at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club - no booking required
• Zoom - Booking required -  tickets will be available from 6th March.
• Members of MLFHS – free, Non-Members of MLFHS - £5

Please note: All events are subject to last minute changes due to circumstances beyond our control.  Please check our monthly Newsletter and Facebook page for any last minute changes, as that is the only way we can contact people.

Lower Brazley Hall, The Family, The Hall, The Legacy.

A few lifetimes ago there was a fine mansion in Horwich, filled with a bustling, growing family. But few people in Horwich know their fascinating story or the history of their house, Lower Brazley Hall.

This family is the Ainsworths and the story begins when the two brothers, both cotton barons, moved to the area at the time when the Industrial Revolution was beginning to change village, town and landscape forever. They were the leaders of their time bringing industry and work and triggering events and building programmes that are familiar to our townsfolk to this very day.

Their story is one of spiritual commitment, business, philanthropy, family life and civic service. Sadly, it was changing fortunes, tragedy and loss that eventually brought a close to their presence in Horwich and Rivington, but their footprint remains.

How I became interested? Over the years my wife, Joanne told of the story by the older residents of the estate in which she grew up. The Story was of a Hall of mansion proportions and each summer the Lady of the Hall with her daughters invited the young ladies of the area into the gardens to take tea and cakes.

Fast forward to early 2020, I was flicking through a book about St Catherine’s Church (Horwich) while on duty at the Heritage Centre, there was a piece about the Ainsworths who were major benefactors of the Church in the late 19th century. The very next day a friend sent me a photo of a single remaining gatepost for the Hall. Rapid research then followed before the Covid lockdown stopped all external travel etc. This allowed me to trace relatives and provided time for me to put together a first draft of a book about the Hall, the Family and their lagecy in Horwich.

• Date: 7th May 2025
• Wednesday 7.30pm
• Lower Brazley Hall and the Ainsworths of Bolton
• Speaker: Derek Cartwright
• Meeting at Farnworth & Great Lever Golf Club & Online via Zoom
• Attendance in person at Farnworth & Great Lever Golf Club - no booking required
• Zoom - Booking required -  tickets will be available from 3rd April.
• Members of MLFHS – free, Non-Members of MLFHS - £5

Please note: All events are subject to last minute changes due to circumstances beyond our control.  Please check our monthly Newsletter and Facebook page for any last minute changes, as that is the only way we can contact people.

Red Moss at Bolton was the scene of a grisly but significant discovery in the 1940s, namely the head of a woman, and possibly the oldest human remains ever recovered in the Bolton area.

On a November day in 1943, a Dutchman by the name of Egbert Krikken set out to his work as a peat digger on Red Moss. He was working somewhere towards the moss’s boundary on the Blackrod side, when he uncovered a human skull, complete with red hair, from beneath the peat.

The find was reported to the police, and once it became clear that the skull was ancient, the question would have arisen as to why the head had been deposited there. In the intervening years, it has become clear that this was a ‘bog body’, a sacrificial victim of religious beliefs from the Bronze and Iron Age. Fifty years after its discovery, the skull would become a rallying point in the effort to save the whole of Red Moss from destruction.

This talk is about the discovery, its significance for Bolton and for our past as whole, and about its sad loss.

• Date: 4th June 2025
• Wednesday 7.30pm
• Red Moss Girl, Boltons Own Bog Body
• Speaker: Maggy Simms
• Meeting at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club & Online via Zoom
• Attendance in person at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club - no booking required
• Zoom - Booking required -  tickets will be available from 8th May.
• Members of MLFHS – free, Non-Members of MLFHS - £5

Please note: All events are subject to last minute changes due to circumstances beyond our control.  Please check our monthly Newsletter and Facebook page for any last minute changes, as that is the only way we can contact people.

Parish registers are much more than simply the names and dates which are so valuable for family historians. For most places they are the first record we have that covers the community as a whole, and they help us to reconstruct key aspects of local history.

Bolton's first register runs from 1573 to 1661, and it reveals fascinating detail about the town and its people four centuries ago. In this talk we consider issues such as mortality and health, illegitimacy, population size, finding a partner, and of course the terrible events of the 1640s, with the siege and the notorious massacre.

• Date: 2nd July 2025
• Wednesday 7.30pm
• Revealing the town and its people: Bolton's first parish register 1573-1661
• Speaker: Dr Alan Crosby
• Meeting at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club & Online via Zoom
• Attendance in person at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club - no booking required
• Zoom - Booking required -  tickets will be available from 5th June.
• Members of MLFHS – free, Non-Members of MLFHS - £5

Please note: All events are subject to last minute changes due to circumstances beyond our control.  Please check our monthly Newsletter and Facebook page for any last minute changes, as that is the only way we can contact people.

Stephen Irwin - Stephen, a historian, recently retired after more than 17 years as the Education Officer for Blackburn Museum, and he has entertained and enlightened many with his depth of knowledge about Lancashire history over the years, visiting most kinds of educational establishments plus giving interviews on the radio.

Late seventeenth century England was a dangerous place, people lived life without a safety net and political and religious violence were an ever present threat. Yet it was also a time when a recognisably modern Britain was born. The talk traces these themes through the rise to prominence of a couple, born into impoverished families but destined to be two of the most powerful subjects in the realm.

• Date: 6th August 2025
• Wednesday 7.30pm
• Britain's First Power Couple:The Life and times of Mr & Mrs Churchill
• Speaker: Stephen Irwin
• Meeting at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club & Online via Zoom
• Attendance in person at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club - no booking required
• Zoom - Booking required -  tickets will be available from 3rd July.
• Members of MLFHS – free, Non-Members of MLFHS - £5

Please note: All events are subject to last minute changes due to circumstances beyond our control.  Please check our monthly Newsletter and Facebook page for any last minute changes, as that is the only way we can contact people.

Sarah is an inspiring young genealogist whose journey into family history began at a young age, thanks to her beloved grandfather. Due to his medical challenges, Sarah was chosen as the grandchild to help him share and preserve their family's stories—a role that sparked a lifelong passion. Through him, she discovered tales of their family's origins in Bolton, England, where her ancestors worked in the textile industry and attended Bolton's New Jerusalem Church. Eager for more, her ancestor James Beswick converted to the Latter-Day Saints faith in Manchester and, in 1854, joined an exodus to America on the Marshfield. Over time, he was joined by his wife, other relatives, and friends from the area, many of whom made their way to Utah through various handcart convoys, leaving behind a legacy rich with harrowing yet deeply inspirational stories.

Now at 21, Sarah has become a renowned genealogist in her own right. A frequent presenter at RootsTech—having spoken in 2021, 2022, 2024, and with an upcoming talk in 2025—she’s also shared her expertise at numerous other conferences and societies. Sarah’s specialties span the United States, the United Kingdom, African American heritage, and DNA research, and her work extends internationally, including projects in Denmark, Italy, Eastern Europe, Armenia, and the Philippines.

Sarah brings her skills not only to conferences but also to initiatives like the 21 Day Family Connections Experiment and as a team member of the Hidden Branch Team. She is currently pursuing both her Accredited Genealogist Credential with ICAPGen, focusing on the American Southwest, and a genealogy degree at BYU. Having completed her level one exams, Sarah awaits the results from her level two and three exams, reflecting her dedication to the highest standards in genealogical research.

Sarah will be presenting live from Utah, USA, and we’ll be streaming her talk in our club room for an immersive experience. It will also be accessible via Zoom for those wishing to join from home. Questions are encouraged and will be managed by our host to ensure an interactive and engaging session.

• Date: 3rd September 2025
• Wednesday 7.30pm
• The Beswick Family Story: Hidden Histories of Green Street and the New Jerusalem Church
• Speaker: Sarah Day
• Meeting at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club & Online via Zoom
• Attendance in person at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club - no booking required
• Zoom - Booking required -  tickets will be available from 7th August.
• Members of MLFHS – free, Non-Members of MLFHS - £5

Please note: All events are subject to last minute changes due to circumstances beyond our control.  Please check our monthly Newsletter and Facebook page for any last minute changes, as that is the only way we can contact people.

David’s 'love affair with John Wesley' essentially began in 1989 when he purchased (with someone else's money, he adds) around 4 acres of Westhoughton – at Wingates industrial Park – in order to build a new UK HQ for the company of which he had stewardship as MD.

For their 'Grand Opening Banquet' after the formalities at the new premises, they hired their new neighbours, Wingates Band, and thus began another very long and deep love affair for David. In researching the history of the band, he soon discovered its Methodist links, with Methodism in the district having its roots in Wingates in the wake of Wesley's two sermons there in 1784 and 1785.

He has remained fascinated by Methodism (despite being raised in a very disciplined Anglican family!) and everything it meant to so many people for so long.

Prompted by the establishment of the Cornerstone Church in Westhoughton two years ago (a merger of the one remaining Methodist church in the town and the sadly-closed United Reformed Church – affectionately known locally as 'The Bethel' – Westhoughton Local History Group (WLHG) was invited to participate in a Heritage Weekend, profiling the history of the two churches, and linked to its 'new era’.

This prompted him to take a project 'off the back-burner', and to complete an illustrated essay on 'The History of The Wesley Stone' (the open air pulpit from which Wesley preached in Wingates), which has stood outside Westhoughton Methodist Church for decades.

David was also invited to give two talks about the history of Methodism in Westhoughton. Over the ensuing two years, the story has evolved, and he has talked directly to WLHG on the topic, and then to Horwich Heritage, and more recently to The Triangle Community Church in Bolton.

In the process, David has done more research on Methodism across Bolton (including Horwich, Westhoughton, Blackrod and Adlington – although the last-named is not in Bolton!), and continued other elements of research for his own stimulation – including visiting the marvellous Museum of Primitive Methodism in South Cheshire, and the Independent Methodists Archive in Wigan.

• Date: 1st October 2025
• Wednesday 7.30pm
• JOHN WESLEY'S LOCAL LEGACY: The History of Methodism in Bolton and District (1748 – 2025)
• Speaker: David Kaye
• Meeting at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club & Online via Zoom
• Attendance in person at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club - no booking required
• Zoom - Booking required -  tickets will be available from 4th September.
• Members of MLFHS – free, Non-Members of MLFHS - £5

Please note: All events are subject to last minute changes due to circumstances beyond our control.  Please check our monthly Newsletter and Facebook page for any last minute changes, as that is the only way we can contact people.

Many family historians will tell you that they feel that someone is guiding them in their researches; those strange co-incidences and happenings whilst searching.

For Mike there have been many instances, either on his own or with his daughter, when he really felt someone was helping. Some would say a sixth sense, some would say just good research or good planning or just luck. Can we be really sure that there isn’t a guiding hand from the past?

His guiding hand is Bernard, his ‘lost’ granddads brother and the talk tells of the man and his fate, and his influence over Coyle family research.

• Date: 5th November 2025
• Wednesday 7.30pm
• Great Uncle Bernard on my Shoulder
• Speaker: Mike Coyle
• Meeting at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club & Online via Zoom
• Attendance in person at Great Lever & Farnworth Golf Club - no booking required
• Zoom - Booking required -  tickets will be available from 2nd October.
• Members of MLFHS – free, Non-Members of MLFHS - £5

Please note: All events are subject to last minute changes due to circumstances beyond our control.  Please check our monthly Newsletter and Facebook page for any last minute changes, as that is the only way we can contact people.