Some history on Heswall in the county of Cheshire

Cheshire | Heswall

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© Image from author's photographic archive. DO NOT COPY

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"On Monday morning, a young man named Albert Osborne, aged 25 years, who lived with his father, Francis Houghton Lawton, at Heswall, near West Kirby, Cheshire, committed suicide by shooting himself through the neck. The deceased, it is said, was of eccentric habits, and he and his father, who is a small farmer, were the only occupants of the cottage in which they resided. It appears that on Monday morning the father found his son lying in a pool of blood in the scullery of the house, with a gun by his side. The unfortunate young man, who was shot through the neck, was dead. A constable was called in, and the old man was removed from the premises. The stock of the gun was damaged, caused, it is supposed, by its rebounding against the wall, as indicated by a mark on one of the a stones. It is thought that the deceased fired the gun off by forcing the trigger with the aid of the ramrod at full arm's length from his head. No cause has been assigned for the young man committing the shocking act except his disordered mental condition. An inquest was held on the body yesterday, at the Black Horse Hotel, Heswall, before Mr. Henry Churton, coroner. Francis Houghton Lawton, father of the deceased, stated that he lived at the Lydiate Farm, Heswall. The name of his son was Albert Osborne, and he was born out of wedlock. On Sunday the deceased was firing the gun [an old-fashioned double-barrel], and he shot through the window and shutter. Witness was so much annoyed at his son's conduct that he did not fall asleep until about three o'clock in the morning. The deceased slept in the same bed with him. When he [witness] awoke he missed the deceased, and immediately went downstairs to look for him. He did not, however, find him, and returned to bed. Between ten and eleven o'clock in the forenoon witness again went downstairs, and made another search. On going into the scullery he discovered the body of his son lying in a pool of blood on the a floor. The gun was across the body, and the ram-rod beneath it. Witness did not hear the report of a gun in the house during the night. He had never heard his son talking about committing suicide or anything of the sort. Mrs. Smith, a neighbour, deposed that she heard the report of a gun about 20 minutes past ten o'clock on Monday forenoon, but took no notice of it, although it seemed to proceed from the deceased's house. Edward Broster, who also lives at Heswall, said he saw the deceased at a quarter-past nine o'clock on Monday morning, and spoke to him. He appeared to be in his usual health, but more dull, if anything. Dr. Russell stated that on examining the body of the deceased he found a gunshot wound through the right side of the neck, the shot having come out at the back. The arteries were divided, and the haemorrhage would be so great that death would be instantaneous. This being the whole of the evidence, the jury returned a verdict that the deceased committed suicide whilst in a state of insanity."
"Shocking Suicide At Heswall's Death"
Liverpool Mercury : November 28th 1883 Page 7

"The funeral of Mr. John Duncan Rutter, of Heswall, aged 21 years, who was accidentally killed on the railway near Birkenhead while performing his duties as a shunter - as reported in our last issue - took place at the parish church, Heswall, on Sunday. It is against the practice of the Rector to allow interments to take place on the Sabbath, but an exception was made in the present instance owing to the sad circumstance attending the death, and to the fact that it would give many of the fellow employees of the deceased an opportunity of attending. The result was a most striking and imposing demonstration of sympathy and respect, the funeral being by far the largest which has taken place in Heswall. Over 275 persons took part in the procession from the residence, and the church - which will seat about 500 persons - was crowded to the doors, several hundred persons in addition remaining in the churchyard. A detachment of the Heswall Lodge of the Ancient Order of Shepherds, to which the deceased belonged, led the way, bearing the crooks of the Order, and on reaching the churchyard entrance formed upon either side of it, and linked the crooks together so as to form a kind of avenue, under which the long procession passed. The service was most impressively read by the Rector, the Rev. T. H. May. Many of the railway officials appeared in uniform."
"The Sad Fatality To A Heswall Man : Impressive Scenes"
Cheshire Observer : February 4th 1893 Page 3

"On Friday afternoon week a sad accident occurred in Mr. James Kitchen's stone quarry in Thurstaton Road, Heswall. There were about a dozen men employed in the quarry, including a man named Richard Goodwill, 49 years of age, who belonged to Birkdale, near Southport, and was lodging with Mr. T. Forshaw, of Heswall. About four o'clock a youth [Joseph Woodcock] was wheeling shoddy at the top of the bank above the quarry, when the wheel of the borrow caught against a stone and overturned, and a stone weighing about a hundredweight fell out, rolled down the bank, and toppled, into the quarry, first striking a ledge, and then descending among the workmen. A shout of warning was raised, and the men instinctively rushed hither and thither to avoid the falling rock. A quarryman named Davis, who was standing on the very spot where the stone eventually fell, sprang aside and narrowly escaped death, but in the confusion Goodwill ran in and took his place, and was felled to the ground by the rock, which struck him with terrific force on the head and fractured his skull in a shocking manner. Drs. Blunden, Yeoman, Ceasar, and Main were quickly in attendance, but the injured man was past human aid, and he was carried to the Sandon Arms Inn, where he expired about eleven o'clock the same evening. His wife and son arrived from Birkdale immediately afterwards. An inquest was held at the Heswall Hotel on Monday, before Mr. H. Churton. Frederick Bamford, the quarry foreman, gave evidence as to the accident, and the son having identified the body, a verdict was returned of "Accidentally killed."
"Shocking Fatality In A Quarry"
Cheshire Observer : August 10th 1895 Page 8