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Few Companies from a small village such as Platt Bridge have been fortunate to have a Company so steeped in history. Here
is the story so far...OUR STORY.
The History Of St Nathaniels Boys Brigade
The 10th Wigan Company
"Seventy Glorious Years And Still Counting"
(This history is dedicated to the memory of my late teacher Clara Ashton, who was the first person to tell me about
The Boys Brigade in 1967)
History was made on September 3rd 1931, with the first meeting of the 1st Platt Bridge Boys Brigade Company. Mr Stuart Smethurst
was the first ever Captain, with Mr Arnold Woodcock and Mr Stuart Rigby his officers. At the first enrolment there were over
70 officers and boys.
In April 1934 Mr. Arnold Woodcock became Captain and Mr Peter Robinson followed him in 1937.
The first camp was held in 1932, and during the war years The 10th Wigan Company was the only Wigan Company to maintain the
tradition of Summer Camps.
Another first was the winning of the Area Council Drill Colour under the leadership
of WJ Thomas in 1936. Upon the formation of the Wigan Battalion in 1941, the 1st Platt Bridge Company became the 10th Wigan
Company. Our Captain Mr Robinson was appointed as a Battalion Vice President, as the influence of BB life in Platt Bridge
began to be felt further afield. The Battalion Band Shield was won for the first time in 1945.
The dawn of the
1950s saw a change of Captain, as Mr Bill Eatock was appointed in 1952. The 1950s were the decade that the 10th Wigan Company
embarked on their dozens of appearances in the Annual District Display at the Blackpool Tower Circus Arena and the current
Company took part in the 50th Anniversary Display this year at Blackpool. In 1954, the 10th Wigan Company had two of its members
gain the highest award in The Boys BrigadeThe Queens Badge. The two lads were William Busby and Norman Jones, thus being the
first in a long line of Queensmen in the Company.
In 1965, The Life Boys were amalgamated into the BB as the Junior Section and the Company Section now could form Seniors Groups.
In 1966, Mr Robert M. Busby became our 5th Captain and two years later we bought our first Dormobile van for the princely
sum of £25, just in time for camp! David Grundy, Neil Bailey, Barry Holding and John Govan became the first boys to gain the
Junior Section Gold Award in 1969 under the new badge system for that Section.
Out 40th Anniversary in 1971 was
celebrated in fine style, with trophies being won for First Aid, Football, Fishing, and BB Week. Many Old Boys returned by
invitation to find the Company very healthy and as usual many old yarns were told! The Company has always supported charities,
and in 1972 we did a great deal of work for the handicapped both practical and financial. Wigan Challenge Club in recognition
of our efforts gave the Challenge Club Shield that we annually present for Endeavour to us. The next new venture was in 1973
when Platt Bridge May Queen Carnival was born. As well as giving pleasure to many, it became a major fundraiser for many years
until its demise. The May Queen Carnival was revived again in 2001, with the Old Boys Band playing a major role in the crowning
ceremony and providing musical entertainment.
1974 saw Tom Westhead taking over the reigns as Bob Busby retired. The BB of the 1970s had wider spheres and the 10th Wigan
Company found itself entertaining lads from Northern Ireland in the National Table Tennis Competition. In 1976 the Brigade
extended its age limits and The Anchor Boys were formed. Continuing the theme of care for others the BB Seniors capped a years
fundraising by the presentation of a state of the art projector and accessories to the Fourways Handicapped Centre at Atherton.
In 1977 the Company climbed aboard the disco craze and formed its own mobile disco. From humble beginnings playing
in a youth club environment, word soon got round that The Anchor Disco was worth booking and thus a major fundraising method
was born. World spread throughout the North West with the disco appearing in hundreds of pubs, clubs, church hall and even
Anfield, home to Liverpool Football Club. Tribute must be paid to the early DJs Neil Thompson, Kev Walls and Andrew Hunt and
the later jocks and helpers David Jones, David Titley, Andrew Heyes, Phil Summers and Andrew McCoombes. Thousands have been
raised from 1977 to 1994 until Anchor Disco was mothballed and the Ovaltineys theme could no longer be heard. There is talk
of a comeback by Messrs Hunt & Titley so Anchor Disco may soon be appearing at a venue near you!
The company moved into the new day school in 1978 and this meant making many adjustments as we were for the first time limited
for space. This problem became all the more difficult when the Infants Department had to also use the New School due to a
fire in theirs. Mr Westhead was forced to retire in 1979 through ill health and his many years service, not only as Captain
was marked by the gift of a film strip projector to the Company following his death in the same year. This was one of the
many gifts both in kind and in money from the then very active Parents & Friends Association.
In 1979 Mr
David Jones was appointed to Captain, having served in the Life Boys, The BB Company and having held ranks of Warrant Officer
& Lieutenant. He was our first home grown Captain.
1981 was our 50th Anniversary Year and our new style marching
band was causing an absolute sensation wherever it played! Bookings for Carnivals were up 100 percent and under the direction
of Bandmaster Colin Clark, the band was victorious in Battalion, District and National Band competitions. 1981 really was
the boom year for the 10th Wigan Company with numbers at an all time high. The band won three trophies in 1981 to add to those
for soccer, drill, table tennis and cross-country. Camp has always had a place in our work and a special 50th Anniversary
Camp was held in Jersey. The younger sections also had special trips out as part of our celebrations. Another major coup in
1981 was the winning of a National BB TrophyThe Seniors Project. The winning entry was a slide presentation all about The
Co-Op Movement.
The Centenary of the BB was celebrated in 1983 locally, nationally and internationally. The Company
took full part in countless events and produced, true to form two Centenary Queensmen, Kevin Oldfield and Graham Price.
The late 1980s and during the 1990s has seen the Company become smaller in terms of numbers, as has been the national trend.
However the true spirit of Boys Brigade and the advancement of Christs Kingdom among boys is still very much in evidence.
Summer 2001, sees the Company embark on its first camp for several years, aided by two members of the Old Boys Association,
Andrew Vernon and Warren Goldsmith. A dedicated staff of Captain Chris Dutton, assisted by Betty Austin, Agnes SouthernNaylor,
Sue Wood and occasionally augmented by BB Old Boys are getting on with the job in admirable fashion and teaching the 23+ members
the right way
The influence of being in or having been in the Boys Brigade simply never leaves you! You can take
the boy out of Boys Brigade, but you cant take the Boys Brigade out of the boy! Friendships formed twenty to thirty years
ago in the BB ranks still flourish today in the Old Boys Association because of the shred experiences when the lads were in
the ranks. Two of our members David Titley and Andrew McCoombes have recently been accepted as officers in her Majestys Police
Force. No doubt having previously been BB members helped them during the interviews and will help them in their active service.
The same can be applied to all of us who have ever been in Boys Brigade. Hopefully through this website a little corner of
Platt Bridge BB life will resonate around the world and rekindle what your BB experience was like. Christian Fellowship is
still uppermost in BB life. Helping the lads and their families to come to know their Lord and Saviour in a real way must
always be our objective. In this respect we have always had support and encouragement from our Chaplains and clergy: Arthur
Dean, Robert Wilson, John Taylor, Bob Clarke, Brian Gregory, Anthony Greenhill and Kevin Krinks.
It is impossible to mention EVERY achievement by the Company or individuals, but it should be obvious that many people have
done much work with great dedication. We must look forward to the next 70 years with pride and with a sense of challenge to
help in any way we can, so that more boys may feel the privilege of forever being a member of Gods family in The Boys Brigade.
Thank you for reading this potted history and please get in touch with us if you are or were a member of The Boys Brigade.
If you have spotted anything missing or you want to add something then please contact the author, Andrew Hunt.
God
Bless You
From all members of the 10th Wigan BB Old Boys
© Andrew T Hunt June 2001
To contact us click on the link below.
Our E-Mail Address
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