I is for Incorporation of the Borough

Back in 2021 my book, 'A-Z of Loughborough' was published. In it I cover lots of different aspects of Loughborough's history through the letters of the alphabet, and in many cases I was spoilt for choice. Today I am sharing one of the entries from that book, in honour of the letter 'I'!

On 15th August 1888, the clerk to the Local Board, John Jarrett, received word that Queen Victoria had agreed to grant a Charter of Incorporation to the town. The charter became operational on 7th September, and on 15th September Jarrett and the Chair of the Local Board, George Hodson, travelled to London to receive the charter. On their return, the occasion was marked by a supper for the members of the Local Board and the ringing out of the bells of the parish church. The importance of this charter to the town was enormous.

In the fifteen years prior to 1888, the growth and progress of the town had been rapid, and local manufacturers had benefitted enormously from the construction of the waterworks in 1870, championed by the Reverend Fearon. Thus, hosiery and related companies could compete effectively with those in other towns, and hosiers Cartwright and Warner doubled the size of their factory, while the Nottingham Manufactury built the largest Midlands hosiery factory in Loughborough. The Falcon Works brought a new trade to the town.

The town boundaries were set to include the optimum acreage, and ran south of a line leading from Parks Farm, across Park Lane to Forest Lane, and along the boundary of Burleigh Park to Ashby Road. Parts of Knightthorpe were excluded, while parts of Thorpe Acre were included. The Borough Corporation was able to make its own byelaws and control the running of committees like the local Sanitary Authority. Loughborough was divided into three wards, Storer (North Ward); Burton (South Ward) and Hastings (East Ward). At the country-wide local council elections on 1st November 1888, six councillors in each ward were appointed to form the town council.  The first council meeting was held on 9th November, at which the first mayor and a group of aldermen were elected.

The appointment of Mr Joseph Griggs, Liberal, as mayor was unanimous: Griggs was highly respected by his fellow citizens, and trusted by those with other political beliefs. He was a man of genial temperament, a very capable businessman and sure to establish some worthy mayoralty traditions. In the early part of 1889, the mayoral robes and chain were displayed in shop windows in the Market Place, and a children’s fancy-dress ball and a banquet at the Town Hall was hosted by the mayor and his wife. Guests came from the neighbouring towns of Leicester and Nottingham.

Twenty-five years of Incorporation were celebrated in November 1912. The services of all the past mayors was praised, with special mention being made of the current Mayor, Walter Coltman, who was the youngest mayor to date, and who had been most satisfactory and successful, earning well-deserved popularity. He was re-elected, unanimously.

At the jubilee banquet in the Town Hall in 1938, the Chair of the county council praised the success of the local college, and Loughborough’s industries – hosiery, perfumes, chemicals, bells and lifting tackle. The Mayor, Alderman Lacey said that he had been told that there was no town or city in the country that didn’t contain a product from Loughborough!

In the centenary year, 1988, the Loughborough Echo published a commemorative book of newspaper articles from the previous one hundred years, and local sculptor, David Tarver, created a sculpture, featuring a swan, cygnets and a frog within a maze, which stands in Queen’s Park.

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 This post is one in a series of posts in the ‘April A-Z Blogging Challenge’

 

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Posted by lynneaboutloughborough

With apologies for typos which are all mine!

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Dyer, Lynne (2024). Incorporation of the Borough. Available from: https://lynneaboutloughborough.blogspot.com/2024/04/I is for Incorporation of the Borough.html [Accessed 10 April 2024]

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