ROSSENDALE FAMILY HISTORY SOCIETY
AFTER the Research Night in March, the Annual General Meeting took place on the first Wednesday of April.
When the formal business was completed two members, Rita Hirst and Michael Hiluta, gave a very interesting and wellresearched talk on the now largely forgotten Robert Scott, VC (1874 – 1961). In 1900 he won the Victoria Cross, the most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy, together with his fellow comrade in 1st Battalion The Manchester Regiment, Private James Pitts, when defending Caesar’s Camp near Natal during the Second Boer War.
The two held their post for 15 hours without food or water, even after Private Scott was wounded.
They gathered up the weapons and ammunition from their many dead comrades to maintain the position while the Boers were extremely close to them.
Robert didn’t rest on his laurels however, but served in the forces during both the first and second world wars.
In between he became a policeman in Kilkeel, County Down, where he was eventually buried.
His father James had originated from that area of Ulster before moving to England and working as a beamer, later winder, in Haslingden.
The family were Protestants, unlike many who came to Haslingden at that time, so Robert was baptised at St James’ Church, Haslingden.
According to the censuses the family lived at various addresses in the town: Cob Castle, Hutch Bank, 26 Sunnybank Street and 14 Pilling Street. The latter was the address where he was when he joined the Manchester Regiment and where a plaque was placed to him, perhaps mistakenly as his birthplace, but it is more likely that he was born in Havelock Terrace.
He married Alice Grimshaw of Delph Street in 1907 and had two daughters.
During WWI he was orderly room sergeant at the regimental barracks in Ashton.
After WWII he served in the security ground staff of the RAF.
When the war was over he worked in the Civil Service.
Certainly he can be said to have lived a life of service.
He was honoured in other ways – he appears on a cigarette card in the James Taddy series of VC heroes and he is honoured in the song with the tune of ‘Tramp, tramp, tramp, the boys are marching’.
The chorus goes: Shout boys, shout the news so glorious, Haslingden the proud VC has got. Let us dance and sing. Let the hills around us ring with the praises of our hero Robert Scott.
The meeting for July 5 will be a very important one as it will present the St James the Less WWI Project. You may know that the church has erected a newly commissioned monument in a small garden near the road frontage of the church grounds. A great deal of research work has been done by the two presenters, Tony Farrell and Tony Ronnan, on the church members who died in WWI.
We hope this meeting will appeal to many locals who don’t belong (yet!) to the FH Society.