The Poulton Savings Bank
Quick Facts
Founded
23 February 1822. The Preston Savings Bank was established the same month and the Kirkham Savings Bank was established in August 1823. Locally, these were preceded by Eccleston in 1818 and Leyland in 1821, and the Lancaster Savings Bank was opened in 1813.
Objects and Rules
The objects were to encourage ordinary working people to save surplus funds so that they could be drawn when they were needed, such as at Christmas, for rent days, or when they had no income and needed their savings.
All Savings Banks fell under statutory control from 1817 with the wonderfully named Act to encourage the Establishment of Banks for Savings in England. The Poulton Savings Bank was therefore subject to the rules enshrined in this Act and in subsequent amendments to this legislation.
Venue
The bank started operating from the Golden Ball Inn, but the trustees, probably including the Vicar, constructed permanent premises in 1839 on church land at Vicarage Road, where it still stands at the junction with Chapel Street.
Opening Times
The bank was only open to the public for one hour during Market Day. Up to 1850 this was every alternate Monday from 2 to 3 o’clock in the afternoon, but from that year it was every Monday from 1 to 2 o’clock in the afternoon.
Management
The accounts list three types of named officials. These were the Secretary, the Treasurer and, in later years, the Auditor.
The secretary was also referred to as actuary, although the latter term is now exclusively applied to insurance. Two men can be identified as secretaries, Richard Parkinson probably took up the position in the late 1820s, and was succeeded in the 1850 by his son George Parkinson. The post of Secretary appears to have been vacant at the time of the 1849 AGM.
The earliest Treasurer we can identify is Giles Thornber in 1846. We do not have the 1847 and 1848 accounts but his son John Thornber was in the post from 1849 until his death in 1857. The post was then held by William Hodgson, from 1857 until the bank closed in 1862.
The accounts from 1850 until 1860 also name the Auditor as William Whitehead junior, who may have been a maternal cousin of George Parkinson the secretary. There is no named auditor in the 1861 accounts which were the last ones published before the bank was wound up.
The bank named officials did not have full control of the bank as this was shared with a board of Trustees who were local men and mainly professionals.
Passbooks and Interest
Savers were issued passbooks in which all transactions were recorded. Another of the changes in the year to 20 November was that savers were asked to leave their passbooks with the Secretary during the first week of November so that they could be compared with the ledger and for the writing up of interest; the passbooks could be collected from the first banking day in December. Percentage interest was expressed as currency, e.g. three pounds, eight shillings, and fivepence-farthing (3.4125%) at 20 November 1829.
Withdrawal Notice
Initially this was a fortnight, bearing in mind that the bank only transacted business every other Monday (Market Day), but the bank stopped applying this to withdrawals up to £5 from the year to 20 November 1850.
Accounts
The accounts were made up to the 20th November of each year as determined by statutory rules for all savings banks. They had to be published, and appeared in the Preston Chronicle for the year to 20 Nov 1846, with a gap for the next two years, but for all future years up to 20 Nov 1862.
Meetings
The bank held Annual General Meetings at which the accounts were presented to the savers, and trustees and officials were appointed or reappointed. These were probably originally held at the Golden Ball Inn and at the Savings Bank on Vicarage Road from 1839. For the years that the accounts can be seen, the AGM was held as early as 1st December and no later than Christmas Eve, so November and December must have been frenetic months.
Closure
The trustees gave notice in August 1862 that the bank would cease to operate, having been in business for just over forty years. The reasons given were the death aged only 36 of the secretary/actuary, George Parkinson, the resignation of William Hodgson as treasurer, and competition from the new Post Office Savings Bank. The trustees further recommended that savers move their balances to the Post Office, providing a certificate so that the savers did not have to withdraw their balances in cash. A few savers may have decided to transfer to the Preston Savings Bank, but the new Post Office account gave savers much more flexibility. The only remaining legacy of the bank is its building on Vicarage Road, opposite the Thatched House Tavern.
More Information …
Depositors
Savers were referred to as depositors. Although the accounts were not published in the Preston Chronicle until 1846, we are able to see an extract of the 1829 accounts, just seven years in from the establishment of the bank. An early expert on local savings banks was barrister John Tidd Pratt. He was a student in 1817 when the first laws relating to them commenced, and was soon afterwards a consultant helping the UK Government in drafting legislation, particularly that involving the poor and the working classes. His 1830 book The History of Savings Banks in England, Wales, and Ireland devotes half a page to the Poulton Savings Bank, including a summary of the deposits held on 20 November 1829. The bank had 270 individual depositors with balances totalling £9,274, 15 shillings, and three farthings; this averaged £34, 7 shillings each of which the largest individual balance was £233, 3 shillings and a farthing, a considerable amount for a humble trader or worker. The bank also held funds for two Friendly Societies, totalling £268, 12 shillings, and eightpence three-farthings. The Friendly Societies, together with Charities, were allowed to save in these local savings banks on the basis that they were not-for-profit and usually assisted the local community.
Thirty-two years later, in 1861, there were 865 depositors together with 6 charitable societies and 8 friendly societies, and the bank held a total of £30,822, 18 shillings, and five pence; 4 of those individual depositors held average balances of £206, one shilling, and eightpence.
Trustees and Officials
As the bank had a lifetime of just over forty years, there were many changes in the trustees. We have to rely on the accounts available between 1845 and 1861 to identify these men, bearing in mind that there were probably no female trustees. We should also bear in mind that the Trustees selected had all volunteered their time but, so far as taking or repaying money, the bank only operated an hour per fortnight until 1850, after which it was an hour per week.
Known trustees were:
Richard Banks was probably a land owner living at Lane End Street in Layton; he served in 1855 as a trustee.
Doctor Robert Harrison Bowness was the local GP and a nephew of Elizabeth Thornber, the wife of Giles Thornber; he lived and had his surgery on Tithebarn Street and served as a trustee in 1850 and from 1854 until 1861, also chairing the AGM in 1858.
John Bryning (listed as Brining) was a Carleton farmer on Mill Lane; he served as a trustee in 1855, 1858, and in 1861.
William Butcher seems to have been a Poulton “bricksetter”, probably more advanced than a standard bricklayer. In 1861 the name and trade was shared by a 77-year-old and his 40-year-old son who both lived at the Green, now split into Higher and Lower Green. This person served as a trustee in 1854 and in 1856.
William Catterall was the innkeeper at the Railway Hotel; he served as a trustee in 1850.
John Cocker was a general practitioner at Victoria Street in Blackpool; he served as a trustee in 1855.
Robert Dunderdale was an ironmonger on Market Place; he served as a trustee in 1849 and in 1851, then from 1853 until 1861, chairing the AGM in 1856.
William Elletson was an attorney on Breck Road. He served as a trustee in 1849, 1850, 1853, and in 1854, chairing the AGM in the last two years.
Richard Hall is difficult to identify, but may have been a farmer at Hail Nook in Out Rawcliffe; he served as a trustee in the years 1850, 1853, and in 1854.
William Hodgson, the grandfather and early guardian of Sir William Hodgson, was a “landed proprietor” living on Bull Street (now Blackpool Old Road); he served as a trustee in 1851 and in 1852, and was the treasurer from 1857 until his resignation in 1861.
The Reverend John Hull was the vicar at St Chad’s and, unlike his two immediate predecessors, Nathaniel Hinde and Charles Hesketh, resided in Poulton at the Vicarage. He served as a trustee in 1846, 1849, 1853, 1855, 1857, 1860, and in 1861, chairing the AGM for the last four of those years.
Frederick Kemp had been appointed land agent to Sir Peter Hesketh Fleetwood (formerly plain Peter Hesketh) in 1824. When Sir Peter was away, which was most of the time, he managed Sir Peter’s land transactions, including the critical period from late 1834 to 1840 when the Preston and Wyre Railway was being set up. Sometimes unfairly accused of abusing his position, it seems that he had a better head for business than his employer, his investment and knowledge helping firms in both Poulton and in Fleetwood. In 1861 he lived at Queen’s Terrace in Fleetwood, the town that he had helped to found. He served as a trustee from 1853 until 1861, with the exception of the years 1857 and 1859.
Richard and George Parkinson were father and son, living on Sheaf Street (now Hardhorn Road). Richard was a former farmer until he became a maltster, whilst George was coal merchant, retaining this business and succeeding to his father’s maltster business. Parish baptisms suggest Richard moved from Thornton between George’s birth in 1826 and that of Richard’s daughter Margaret in 1829. It was probably around the time of Richard’s move to Sheaf Street that he became secretary/actuary of the Bank. He still held this post in 1846, but was not listed in the 1849 AGM. The post of secretary/actuary was taken over by Richard’s son George, then aged only 24, in 1850. William continued in the post whilst running both his coal merchant and maltster businesses. In 1862, aged only 36, George died, his father having died aged 75 in 1852. George’s early death was given as one of the reasons for disbanding the bank, coupled with the resignation of William Hodgson as treasurer and the success of the new Post Office Savings Bank.
George Singleton was probably a landed proprietor living in Bispham; he served as a trustee in 1855 and in 1857.
James Smith was probably a landowner who lived at Trunnah Road in Thornton; he served as a trustee right from 1853 until 1861.
Giles Thornber was the local magistrate as well as being a qualified attorney and a farmer. He served as treasurer in 1846 and as a trustee in 1851 and 1852.
John Thornber was the third son of Giles Thornber and was a qualified attorney like his father. He served as a trustee in 1846 and was the treasurer from 1849 to 1856. He died whilst in office.
Paul Harrison Thornber was the fourth and youngest son of Giles Thornber, following the family profession of attorney. He was keenly involved in the business of the town, acting as the town clerk. For the fourteen years that we have lists of the trustees from the AGM, his name is only omitted from 1852, and he chaired the 1859 AGM.
James Valiant was a master saddler in Queens Square; he served as a trustee in 1858, 1860, and in 1861.
Richard Whinnerah was a farmer at Fleetwood Farm, having been brought up at Bourne Hill Farm; he served as a trustee in 1854 and from 1856 until 1860.
William Whitehead jr. was the son of elderly landowner William Whitehead senior and lived with him at Lawsons Farm in Thornton. He was an accountant and served as the auditor from 1850 until 1860.
Robert Hankinson Williams lived on Leckonby Street in Great Eccleston and was a magistrate doctor and dentist; he served as a trustee in 1861.
William Williams is difficult to identify, but he may have worked on the railways. He served as a trustee in 1855, 1856, and in 1858.
National Debt
The bank earned its interest by lending to the Government, thus helping to manage Britain’s National Debt. A large part of the National Debt probably originated with the Napoleonic Wars, and would have increased to fund the Crimean War. The interest earned by the bank was passed on to its investors, after deducting its expenses and putting aside a small amount to reserves. The investors were mainly working people or pensioners, but also included local charities and friendly societies.
Venues
The bank had no premises of its own when it opened in 1822, like many other towns, and operated for convenience from the Golden Ball public house. Access to the Savings Bank was heavily limited, as it only operated from 2 to 3 pm on the alternate Mondays when the town had its Market Day.
After 17 years of banking at the Golden Ball, it was agreed that the Bank should have permanent premises. The town’s then current Vicar was the Reverend John Hull, and he had taken a special interest in the affairs of the town. He was heavily involved with the welfare of the town and agreed to have the bank built on “Glebe” land, that is, on land owned by St Chad’s. That is how the “Savings Bank” came to be built with the vicar’s agreement in 1839. The building also provided a venue for the local Bible Society, a Reading Room that was not on licensed premises, and residential accommodation for one family.
