Part 2 of the story of fire which destroyed Olympia Skating Rink and Cleveland Hosiery Works in 1931
Hinckley District Past and Present have taken a look at a fire which struck a town skating rink and hosiery works in 1931 as reported in The Hinckley Times all those years ago
CRASH WAKES SLEEPERS Her younger son slept peacefully in the front bedroom for the greater part of the time the fire raged, and was only awakened when the wall fell. A man in bed in a house some 300 yards away was startled by the crash which shock his bed with violence.
Mrs Robertson, mother of the Parish Church organist, had an alarming hour or two, but when it was all over she recovered her composure and was smiling and well. She was taken for safety to a neighbour’s house.
GROPING THROUGH FILLED WITH SMOKE
Mr J.E. Matkin, the well known local electrician, who also lives nearby, was on his way home past the rink when he heard that the fire had broken out. “I went inside” he told a “T&G” (Times & Guardian) representative “and found the place filling with smoke. After a while I noticed flames at the foot of the partition separating the rink from the factory, and after that they spread rapidly.
“When I got into Cleveland Road on my way home, the smoke was so dense that I could hardly tell whether I was on the road or pavement. The street lamp, as often was the case, was unlighted, and I had difficulty finding my house”
STREET
MANUFACTURERS STORY
Mr Robottom, partner in the firm of Messrs. Robottom and Taylor, hosiery manufacturers, whose factory is adjacent to the rink, marvels how his premises escaped with so little damage.
He told The Hinckley Times & Guardian that some little damage had been done in the office. The woodwork around the window was charred very badly and that the heat had broken every piece of glass, in fact the curtains around the window had disappeared altogether. It was very fortunate, he said that the wind was blowing in the opposite direction, otherwise all hopes of saving the factory would have gone.
As it was some of the articles in the office were burned, but in the stockroom close by were many hundred dozens of silk goods, and a mere spark might have ignited these. The flames evidently leaped into the office because certain samples of hosiery were burned, but the greatest damage was done by the water. Mr Robottom was at the performance of “The Pirates of Penzance” at the Baptist Church when the first news of the fire was received. It was then reported to be at Messrs. Atkins Bros. Factory and Mr Robottom stayed until the end of the performance. It was not until he walking through the streets that he learned of the fact that his own factory was in danger.
When arrived at the factory, he went to the phone with a view to ringing up the water surveyor. The receiver was so hot, however, he was unable to use it. Pieces of glass flew across the office as the windows broke, causing Mr Robottom junr to make a hurried exit. Mr Lance Marshall of Rugby Road Hinckley the floor manager at the rink stated he was going around the building at the conclusion of the session as was the custom to see everything was all right. He had switched a number of lights off and noticing nothing wrong, returned to the office to bid goodnight to the principals of the company, when he noticed a ruddy glow in the windows at the far end of the rink.
He drew Mr Bailey’s attention to the light, and together they went to a pair of double doors which separated the rink from the hosiery factory. On opening the doors a cloud of smoke and flames shot out. Mr Bailey made to go into the room but Mr Marshall held him back.
“NARROWEST SQUEAK HAD”
Acting Captain Cowell of the
I EVER
Nuneaton Brigade, who was near the wall when it fell, stated in an interview “I had one of the narrowest squeaks I have ever had. When we arrived at Hinckley I went to look for the captain of the Hinckley Fire Brigade. I heard a rumble and the crowd shouted. I looked up and saw the wall falling over. It was a case of “Run for your life”. The water supply was not very good. The Nuneaton fire engine was pumping from Regent Street through 1,900 feet of hose”.
An eye witness gave a vivid description of the scenes as the wall fell. “I felt the crowd sway back,” he said “and the whole side of the building swayed and crashed towards us. Luckily no one was hurt.
The wall came out in a solid piece and it looked as though one could lift it back into place.”
SPARKS
The brigades remained at work until the early hours of the morning, and subsequently relays of firemen were upon the scene against emergencies. Fireman Gallagher and Townsend, of the Hinckley Brigade were slightly hurt, the former wrenching a knee and the other his ankle.
Among the interested spectators at the fire were the cast of “The Pirates of Penzance” which was performed by the Baptist Amateurs last week. They had just concluded their performance on Saturday when they heard of the fire and without waiting to remove their greasepaint or costumes, the majority dashed down to the scene of conflagration.
Mr Robottom, one of the partners in the firm of Robottom and Taylor, whose property was threatened, turned up in the policeman’s uniform which he wore in the opera.
Office papers and a few samples were saved, but all the machinery, stock furniture, fittings and more than three hundred pairs of skates, including many belonging to patrons were destroyed.
A telegraph pole in the street at the corner of the building caught fire near the base but this outbreak was quickly extinguished, though the danger of the pole falling caused the firemen to warn residents on the opposite to be on alert. A number of
The colour posters in the feature are available to buy from Jaspers with proceeds to our local good causes.
local telephone lines were disconnected.
The skating rink was built 20 years ago at the time when the skating boom started.
It had an inglorious beginning, for part of the framework of the iron roof was blown down during a fierce gale at the time when Hinckley and the rest of the nation was mourning The death of King Edward.
Since then the rink has been used for various purposes, boot factory, hosiery factory, meeting place, dance hall, boxing hall etc. The maple floor was said to be one of the best in the Midlands and during the political life of the late A.E. Hawley many fancy dress balls were held there.
Many leading political speakers including Lord Willoughby de Broke, Mr F.D. Acland, Lord Denbigh, and Mr E Smith, have all addressed meetings there.
The hall was also the scene of some of the biggest boxing matches staged in the district, including the famous battle between “Togo” Bolesworth and Sherwood. Since reopening as a rink last winter, many fancy dress skating carnivals have been held there in addition to a number of dances and boxing matches. About fifty were employed by the Cleveland Hosiery & Co, and unfortunately they will be thrown out of work. Hundreds of people who had retired for the night hurried to the scene half dressed. One man was noticed to be wearing a bowler hat and carpet slippers. He had no collar or tie. Later he discovered he was without his false teeth.
Thousands of people visited the scene on Sunday morning, including the majority of the Urban District Council. Fortunately the wind was from the north otherwise nothing could have been done to save the Factory of Messrs. Robottom and Taylor.
In the factory of Messrs Robottom and Taylor an army of amateur firefighters stood prepared with chemical extinguishers to charge the flames had they broken through the rink wall. At one time there was a foot of water in the office and much damage done to stock and fittings.