76 - The Nuthall Family
When we meet the Nuthall family in 1871 William and Ann (nee Harrop) have 2 young children and a lodger named Rachel.
William was at the very beginning of the formation of the Wesleyan Band of Hope, which was part of the temperance movement. In April 1870 William had given a speech at the tea meeting for the group, which already had 75 members.
Just a year later in April 1871, 180 people took part in the tea meeting, which began in the Wesleyan School Room (the Signol Centre now) and then moved to the chapel over the road. The meeting began with a song named "Thousands that fill a drunkard's grave" and the choir sang "Home, home". William, who was the secretary of the group, read out the following report:
"The committee have very great pleasure in laying before this meeting their report and statistical account for the year. The year has been one of toil to establish in this neighbourhood the institution the first anniversary of which we are met this evening to celebrate; nevertheless the success has been somewhat satisfactory, we will hereafter appear, consequently the committee desire to express their heartfelt gratitude to their friends and supporters, especially to the Great Fountain of all good. Upwards of 20 public Band of Hope meetings have been held during the year, the result of which is the registry of 167 names as members. Some six months ago the committee undertook to distribute amongst those members attending the public meetings gratuitous temperance literature, towards which project the Rev. J. Hall, Marple Bridge, subscribed a free lecture, and John Lees Buckley, Esq., half a sovereign; up to the present about 216 periodicals have been distributed. The committee deeply deplore the enormous ravages that are being made upon society by the drinking system of this country, and are determined to do their utmost to oppose the onward march of the drink traffic, to snatch from the great devourer the tens of thousands of immortal souls that are now being prostrated under the darkening shadow of the tyrant King Alcohol, and fling around the rising race such safeguards as will preserve them in the good, and prevent them from becoming victims to the evil. The income for the year amounts to £6 9s. 10d., expenditure £5 14s. 8 1/2d., leaving a balance in hand of 15s. 1 1/2d."
We know that William continued to fight for temperance throughout his life as in March 1892 his name is mentioned in an article about the Order of the Sons of Temperance.
William is listed as "Hatter" on the 1871 census but he was in fact a hat manufacturer. In 1879 he joined with a man named Booth to form Nuthall, Thornley and Booth. They based the company at Cheapside Hatworks in Hyde. A letter that he wrote to the newspaper in March 1886 argues that he wasn't aware of any workers losing their wages, but goes on to say that if a new machine takes away work from men, that's okay.
In 1890 he left Hyde to begin his own hat business at Bankfield Mills, Heaton Norris. An article suggested that the 300 employees were disappointed to see him go and clubbed together to buy him and Ann silver gifts. William said that in some businesses there was constant antagonism between the "masters and men" but that this didn't need to be the case. Ironically, just a few years later his workmen were on strike due to low wages.
The 1901 census tells us that William was working as an agent selling caps and in 1911 he was an agent selling children's hats. He died at Manchester Royal Infirmary in 1915 aged 70.
Ann passed away on 6th January 1931 in Longsight, which is where son William was living and working as a commercial traveller for a piano company.