Mostyn Iron Works

Mostyn Iron Works Circa 1930 Courtesy of Coflein Mapping

 Mostyn Colliery was a coal mine in Flintshire, North Wales, that was owned in the later part of its operating life by the influential Mostyn family. The colliery was located at Mostyn on the banks of the River Dee.

When an ironworks was opened to produce iron using coal from Mostyn colliery in 1802, the company was renamed the 'Mostyn Coal and Iron Company'. In 1887 the Mostyn Coal and Iron Co was taken over by a Darwen (Lancashire) company to become the Darwen and Mostyn Iron Co Ltd. In 1927 A private company with two furnaces usually in blast at Darwen and two at Mostyn, on the North Wales coast. Known as a maker of spiegeleisen, ferromanganese, silicon spiegel, silicious iron and chrome iron, produced largely from foreign ores discharged from steamers at the furnace depots on the Dee. In 1951, business nationalised under the Iron and Steel Act; became part of the Iron and Steel Corporation of Great Britain. In 1959, Company sold to Barrow Hematite Steel Co by the Holding and Realization Agency.

Mostyn Iron Works Circa 1930 Courtesy of Coflein Mapping

The Mostyn furnaces would have been visible from Lowry's home at Inglewood, Caldy in the 1920s before the trees obscured the view in later years. The furnaces seem to have had a strong impact on the young Lowry's imagination. Later, the view across Burrard Inlet from Dollarton to the oil refinery must have reminded Lowry of the Mostyn furnaces of his youth.

Lowry refers to the furnaces in his early short story 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour': ""Over the Dee in Flintshire the furnaces glowed red." (Psalms & Songs Pg. 232)

Lowry makes several references in his novel In Ballast to the White Sea; the furnaces are visible from the Caldy Golf Club while Sigbjørn plays golf with his father "Dark clouds were blowing up from the sea, from the Point of Ayr: beyond, on the other side of the river in Flintshire, the Welsh mountains loomed leaden-grey: but the Mostyn furnaces were lashing vermillion against the angry sky, as though something, or the shadow of something, were there, gesticulating in the furnace light." and " Over in Flint against the Welsh mountains the Mostyn furnaces lashed red against the blackness." (Chapter V111); the smoke is apparent at Caldy before Sigbjørn leaves for Preston; "And outside a thick fog, as though all the smoke of Liverpool and Birkenhead, not to say of Chester and the furnaces of Mostyn, were hanging concentrated over the Wirral Peninsula. A gloomy prospect." (Chapter 1X) and finally the pilot sees smoke over Lancashire which echoes the furnaces; "Smoke-laden flames, in murderous competition, streaked ever higher in an obscene parody of the Mostyn furnaces which had once seemed to Sigbjørn to threaten the body of the night." (Chapter X111).

Songs of Second Childhood

Lowry refers to a collection of fictional sonnets in Dana's inner dialogue in Chapter 2 of Ultramarine when he is thinking of his Norwegian father; "..without a country. Like myself, like Herman Bang, like the ship, like my excellent father, the only surviving son, who is now in a home eating the buttons off the chair at clairaudient intervals, and composing a sonnet sequence, Songs of Second Childhood.... (Pg. 68).

Lowry would appear to be making a humorous allusion to William Blake's Songs of Innocence and of Experience or John Donne's Songs and Sonnets. Lowry's reference to Second Childhood relates to a later reference in Ultramarine when he quotes from the Descriptive Catalogue of the Liverpool Museum of Anatomy, which he utilised for the detail of the anatomy museum in Tsjang Tsjang (Dairen); ...The face of  an old BACHELOR, he became IDIOTIC and rapidly sank into second CHILDHOOD; what a fearful account he will have to give of himself at the JUDGEMENT DAY.... (Pg. 103). This quote relates to exhibit number 261 in the former Liverpool Museum of Anatomy, which Lowry visited sometime in the 1920's. (Gordon Bowker Pursued By Furies Pg. 40). Lowry has expunged from his quote the reference to masturbation as the full description begins as follows; " 261. - Face of an old bachelor; a confirmed onanist." (Descriptive Catalogue of the Liverpool Museum of Anatomy Pg. 33). Lowry is also alluding to the kind of Wesleyan books he probably read as a child informing of the dangers of masturbation; "The ..books on top of my brother's wardrobe .. already assured me, if they were true, that I had acquired certain habits and should have gone mad. So I had long got used to having no normal prospects. I looked for death at any moment." (Notes on manuscript to draft of 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour').

Lowry also made reference to the description from the catalogue in a letter to Conrad Aiken dated 14/9/1952 concerning the publication of Ushant:

What a fearful account he will have to give 
of himself at the judgement day!
OW, HOW IT HURTS!

the reference being to the sinister inscription upon the glass case containing a bepoxed Liverpudlian waxwork in the old Museum of Anatomy in Paradise (Street) outside which it also said: Man know thyself! (Collected Letters Vol 2 Pg. 597)

The above throws light on the possibility that Lowry noted down the inscriptions rather than using the catalogue. We should also note that Lowry indicates to Aiken that the inscription is about syphilis and not masturbation which is a mistake on Lowry's part - deliberate or forgetfulness is open to question.

Lowry's reference to Herman Bang relates to the writer's death during a lecture tour of the United States when he was taken ill on the train and died in Ogden, Utah - dying "without a country" in effect a self-imposed exile. A theme later taken up by Lowry himself but also by Herman Bang in his novel Denied A Country. However, Lowry may also be alluding to Bang's novel Ida Brandt, in which the character Ida works in a hospital for the mentally ill, looking after a patient in room "A" who writes all day. Bang's family also had a history of madness and disease.

Lowry's use of the 'clairaudient' - The power or faculty of hearing something not present to the ear but regarded as having objective reality - probably relates to his exposure to clairvoyance through his sister-in-law Margot (Gordon Bowker Pursued By Furies Pg. 39). This may have included theosophy - "As a very young child I was evidently somewhat clairaudient — so many children are.." NFT Theosophical Quarterly Magazine, 1929 to 1930 - (Pg.166). There are several references to the system of esoteric philosophy in his work.

Lowry also adapted the phrase used in Ultramarine to name the fourth section of his long poem The Lighthouse Invites The Storm' - 'Songs for Second Childhood'.

James Johnston Abraham The Surgeon's Log

Lowry refers to James Johnston Abraham's The Surgeon's Log in his short story 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour'; "Closing the dictionary I jammed it back next to The Surgeon's Log."

We must assume because of Lowry's mention of The Surgeon's Log that he had read the book. The Surgeon's Log was published in 1911 and ran to 31 editions with photographs.

Ship's surgeon and his first book

For an impecunious young man this was bad news as he could not afford to take the time off. He had agreed, after graduation, that he would not be a financial burden on his father who could well have afforded to help him out. Indeed, he had offered to buy him a practice had he not pursued the surgical route. The pathologist roommate came up with the idea of a sea voyage and he enlisted for a six month spell as a ship's surgeon on a 10,000 ton cargo ship which carried no passengers, sailing from Birkenhead. 

He had such a splendid time that he became somewhat of a bore about it upon his return and his pathologist friend persuaded him to write a book about his experiences. He did, and hawked it around nine publishers; they all turned it down. One day, when having afternoon tea in the Staff Room of St Peter's Hospital, Henrietta Street, Covent Garden, he looked out of the window. Across the road he saw the offices of Chapman & Hall, Dickens' publishers. He sent them the manuscript and the Managing Director, Arthur Waugh (Evelyn's father) accepted it. He had originally called it The Voyage of the Clytemestra, the name of his ship, but Waugh changed the title to The Surgeon's Log' and it became a bestseller on both sides of the Atlantic and was still selling steadily in the late 1950s, particularly in its Penguin form. It is a beautifully written descriptive travelogue, not dissimilar in style to that of Eric Newby.

It must have been a wonderful and restful experience which was what he needed. With only the crew to look after he had little medical work to do and was able to relax on deck in the tropics and go ashore in the ports. They sailed non-stop to Port Said, traversed the Suez Canal and then crossed the Indian Ocean to Penang. They sailed down the Malacca Strait to Singapore. From Singapore they sailed to Japan and visited Nagasaki, Moji and then by the Inland Sea to Kobe and on to Yokohama (and Tokyo). From there they sailed to the Dutch East Indies and thence home via Marseilles. J S Bingham A publisher, a bobbin-boy and the Society Presidential address to the Medical Society for the Study of Venereal Diseases, 28 April, 1995 at The Royal College of Physicians of London: Genitourin Med 1995;71:314-322

The appeal of such a book to the young Lowry is not surprising given that his work is littered with references to readings of books about ships and sea voyages. The apparent 'splendid time' had by Abraham may have convinced a young Lowry that he could replicate the experience and write up his own 'log'.

Lowry's 1927 voyage to the Far East followed a very similar route to one made by Abraham. Both Lowry and Abraham sailed on Blue Funnel ships and both disguised the name of the real ship they sailed on. They both had similar mixed attitudes to race and gender apparent in both the Surgeon's Log and Ultramarine which could be argued reflect white/European attitudes of the period though both temper their racism with sympathetic views to peoples they come across.

Abraham informs  the reader that he carefully logged conversations and details for later use which may have tied into ideas Lowry was having in the mid-1920s about being a writer. One major difference is that Abraham's book is an out and out travelogue whereas Lowry's Ultramarine is a far more complex text though Lowry was accused by early reviewers of the novel of adding 'local colour' to the novel.

Lowry's eventual log details a socially different class experience to the one detailed by Abraham who concentrated on the officers as opposed to Lowry's attempts to empathasise with the crew. Though Abraham does explore details of the Chinese crew's experience and life aboard the ship.

One possible major influence of The Surgeon's Log is providing Lowry with the title of his novel Ultramarine as Abraham describes the sea as ultramarine; "gazing dreamily out over a sea of ultramarine." (Pg. 189) and the sky as ultramarine; "smiling under a sky of purest ultramarine shading gradually to a pearly-grey as it touched the horizon." (Pg. 227).

The only similarity in 'plot' between the two books is comparison can be made between Horner's desire to rescue the Japanese woman Ponta from the 'tea-shop' in Kobe and Dana's fantasy of rescuing Olga from the brothel in Tsjang Tsjang (Dairen). There is also the possibility that the references to Moji in Ultramarine stem from Lowry's recollection from The Surgeon's Log, which features a visit to the port where his ship takes on coal (Pgs. 122-144).

James Abraham was born in Coleraine, County Londonderry, and was educated there and at Trinity College Dublin where he studied medicine. He practised in County Clare and was appointed Resident Medical Officer to London Dock Hospital and Rescue Home in 1908. In 1914 he travelled to Serbia, where he administered to the Serbian army and played a major part in bolstering morale. He coped with inadequate supplies, outbreaks of typhoid, scarlet fever, recurrent fever, smallpox and a typhus epidemic. He was the first doctor on location to diagnose typhus, and he and the Serbian Army Medical Corps managed to contain it. He was then called to the Middle East and latterly became a Harley Street specialist. He was created a Knight of St John Consulting Surgeon at the Princess Beatrice Hospital in London. He was a Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine, President of the Irish Medical Graduates' Association and in 1949 won the Arnott Medal. He was author of The Night Nurse (1913); Surgeon's Journal, Balkan Log and The Surgeon's Log, which ran to thirty-one editions. He was awarded an honorary Doctorate in 1946. The Dictionary of Ulster Biography 


Read a detailed obituary in Royal College of Surgeons of England Annals

Minerva

The Minerva was a prominent Belgian luxury automobile manufactured from 1902 until 1938.

In 1920, they started the production of luxury cars with the 20CV 3.6-litre four-cylinder and 30CV 5.3-litre six-cylinder models. The manufacturer's star rose not only in Europe, but in the United States as well where American film stars, politicians and industrialists appreciated the cars. The Minerva had the same quality as the Rolls-Royce, but was slightly less expensive. In 1923, smaller models were introduced; the 2-litre four-cylinder 15CV and 3.4-litre six-cylinder 20CV with standard four-wheel brakes. Read more on Wikipedia

The Lowry family had a Minerva sometime circa 1924. The model is not known. The family went in this car on their holiday to Devon in 1924. The car was driven by their chauffeur Coltman. (Gordon Bowker Pursued By Furies Pg. 32).  Lowry refers to the car in his short story 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour'; Our chauffeur, Featherstonhaugh, held the door of the Minerva open. The car drove away with them beneath the wet swaying nameless trees." (Psalms Pg. 228) and "Featherstonhaugh brought the Minerva round to the front door early while I was saying goodbye to the servants." (Pg. 232). Lowry then describes a drive taken by the narrator and his father driven by Featherstonhaugh from Caldy to Birkenhead Park Station.

Brown's Bioscope

A Bioscope shows started as fairground attractions consisting of a travelling cinema. The heyday of the Bioscope was from the late 1890s until World War I.

Bioscope shows were fronted by the largest fairground organs, and these formed the entire public face of the show . A stage was usually in front of the organ, and dancing girls would entertain the crowds between film shows

Films shown in the Bioscope were primitive, and the earliest of these were made by the showmen themselves. Later, films were commercially produced. Bioscope shows were integrated, in Britain at least, into the Variety shows in the huge Music Halls which were built at the end of the nineteenth century.

Lowry refers to Brown's Bioscope in his short story 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour';  "While the Argyle announced Harry Champion, Brown's Bioscope. It was melancholy to be bidding adieu to these familiar placards which were like friends." (Psalms Pg. 233). The Argyle Theatre claimed to be the first theatre outside London to show animated pictures, running electric cables through Birkenhead in 1896 to the theatre, where the films were projected onto a sheet. The bioscopes were still be shown at the theatre in the 1920s as can be seen in the advertisement from 1925 above.

Little Tich

Harry Relph (1867 – 1928), known on the stage as "Little Tich", was an English music hall comedian. He was noted for the characters of The Spanish Señora, The Gendarme and The Tax Collector, but his most popular routine was his Big Boot dance, which involved a pair of 28-inch boots, commonly called "slapshoes" in the days of vaudeville. He was also popular as a pantomime dame; in one season he appeared with Marie Lloyd and Dan Leno also in the cast. Read more on Wikipedia

Lowry refers to Little Tich in his short story 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour';  "An advertisement for the Hippodrome said Little Tich, 6:30, 8:30." (Psalms Pg. 233)

Harry Champion

William Crump (1865 – 1942), better known by the stage name Harry Champion, was an English music hall composer, singer and Cockney comedian, whose onstage persona appealed chiefly to the working class communities of East London. His most famous recordings include "Boiled Beef and Carrots" (1909), "I'm Henery the Eighth, I Am" (1910), "Any Old Iron" (1911) and "A Little Bit of Cucumber" (1915). Read more on Wikipedia

Lowry refers to Harry Champion in his short story 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour';  "While the Argyle announced Harry Champion, Brown's Bioscope. It was melancholy to be bidding adieu to these familiar placards which were like friends." (Psalms Pg. 233).

The Right Whale

A fictional pub in Lowry's short story 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour"; “Drawing near the Birkenhead dockside the pubs came thick and fast, with sea-sounding names here: ...... the Right Whale....” in ‘Enter One In Sumptuous Armour’ (Psalms Pg. 233).

Originally called Black Pan in the first draft of the story. However, Lowry changed the name due to the Herman Melville connection. Due to their familiarity to whalers over a number of centuries, the right whales have had many names. These names were used throughout the world, reflecting the fact that only one species was recognized at the time. In his novel Moby-Dick, Herman Melville writes:

Among the fishermen, the whale regularly hunted for oil is indiscriminately designated by all the following titles: The Whale; the Greenland whale; the black whale; the great whale; the true whale; the right whale

Blue Peter Pub

A fictional pub in Lowry's short story 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour"; “Drawing near the Birkenhead dockside the pubs came thick and fast, with sea-sounding names here: ...... the Blue Peter....” in ‘Enter One In Sumptuous Armour’ (Psalms Pg. 233).

Lowry may have chosen the name because of the connection to the sea - the Blue Peter is a flag which means in harbour: "All persons should report on board as the vessel is about to proceed to sea" - which would have appealed to Lowry as he may have drank in the pubs before he set out on his 1927 voyage to the East, or he may have been thinking of the nautical magazine Blue Peter which he used to read.

Coach & Horses, Greasby, Wirral

The Coach and Horses is a very old pub, definitely in business in 1832 (named on the Bryant map of that year) possibly dating as far back as 1725.

Lowry refers to the pub in his short story 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour'; "I noticed the pubs longingly. ..in Greasby, the Coach and Horses. I was sorry to be leaving the pubs behind though I had never entered one." (Pg. 232). Lowry refers to the pub in In Ballast to the White Sea; Sigbjørn passes the pub on his way to Birkenhead to catch the train to Liverpool on his journey to Preston; "Soon they had turned the dangerous Frankby corner into the Greasby road, passed the village green and the village cross, and roared into the straight. At the corner, by the Coach and Horses, he slowed down." (Chapter X1)

Coach & Horses in January 2009

Greasby, Wirral

Greasby is a large village on the Wirral Peninsula, England. The earliest known human settlement in Merseyside has been found at Greasby, dating from approximately 7000 BC. A rectangular floor of sandstone slabs and pebbles suggests regular use by the nomadic hunters of that period. Greasby was an Anglo Saxon settlement, as witnessed by the form of the name, Gravesberie, in the Domesday Book. Gravesberie derives from the Old English gräf and burh, recorded as meaning a "stronghold by a grove, trench, canal or wood". The name was Scandinavianised to Greasby, under the influence of Old Norse speakers in Wirral (gräf and býr, with býr meaning "settlement" or "farmstead").

After the Second World War the area expanded considerably, with significant residential development across previously agricultural land. This has resulted in Greasby becoming contiguous with the nearby settlements of Moreton, Upton and Woodchurch. Read more on Wikipedia

In the 1920's the main road to Birkenhead from Frankby went through Greasby. This is the route that the narrator takes in the short story 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour' from Caldy to Birkenhead;" There was a sea of mud round the farm yards. We splashed through little villages named Frankby and Greasby." and  "I noticed the pubs longingly. .....in Greasby, the Coach and Horses. I was sorry to be leaving the pubs behind though I had never entered one." (Pg. 232). Lowry also refers to the village in his novel Ultramarine when Dana and Janet go for a walk on the Wirral; " It was in Greasby they saw a horse in the stable - 'dreaming and warm'.. "(Pg. 42). Lowry is possibly referring to Greasby Hall Farm seen below.

Lowry refers to village in In Ballast to the White Sea; Sigbjørn passes through the village on his way to Birkenhead to catch the train to Liverpool on his journey to Preston; "Soon they had turned the dangerous Frankby corner into the Greasby road, passed the village green and the village cross, and roared into the straight. At the corner, by the Coach and Horses, he slowed down." (Chapter X1).

Lowry also refers to the village in a letter to Carl Brown dated April 1926; "I walked to Greasby looking for the dog which had gone in the other direction - but I sang all the way." (Collected Letters Vol 1 Pg. 9).

Frankby, Wirral

Frankby is a hamlet on the Wirral Peninsula, England and is located between Greasby and West Kirby. The name Frankby come from the Old Norse Frankis-byr, meaning "Franki's/Frakki's (Frenchman's) farm". The "by" suffix, included in neighbouring place names such as Greasby, Irby and Pensby, applies to settlements believed to be Viking in origin. The settlement of Frankby was mentioned in the Domesday Book entry for neighbouring Greasby. Frankby was formerly a township in the West Kirby Parish of the Wirral Hundred. Read more on Wikipedia

Lowry refers to the hamlet in his short story 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour';" There was a sea of mud round the farm yards. We splashed through little villages named Frankby and Greasby." and  "I noticed the pubs longingly. In Frankby there was the Farmer's Arms - Caerwyle (Lowry's spelling) Ales and Stout." (Pg. 232).

Indian Motocycle

Indian motorcycles were manufactured from 1901 to 1953 by a company in Springfield, Massachusetts, USA, initially known as the Hendee Manufacturing Company but which was renamed the Indian Motocycle Manufacturing Company in 1928. The Indian factory team took the first three places in the 1911 Isle of Man Tourist Trophy. During the 1910s Indian became the largest manufacturer of motorcycles in the world. Indian's most popular models were the Scout, made from 1920 to 1946, and the Chief, made from 1922 to 1953. Read more on Wikipedia

Lowry refers to the company's motorcycles in his short story 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour'; "Fine motorcycles whizzed by or splashed past us:....I watched for the blue Indian, an American make, which we usually encountered at nine fifteen in Upton, just before we reaching the Ring o' Bells just before the. I had never got rid of a childhood impression that its rider was somehow identified with the machine, that together it was a real Indian who lived somewhere in a hollow." (Psalms Pg. 233) and "As we left Upton the blue Indian slanted by, a little late to-day, almost half-past nine." (Pg. 233).

Sunbeam Motorcycles

Sunbeam was a British manufacturing marque that produced bicycles and motorcycles from 1912 to 1956.

Sunbeam was founded by John Marston making bicycles and, on the suggestion of his wife Ellen, Marston adopted the trademark brand "Sunbeam". The Sunbeam Motor Car Company Ltd was founded in 1905. However, suffering from a slump which hit car making, Marston was pushed into making motorcycles from 1912 onwards. Following in the tradition of their bicycles, the motorcycles were of high-quality, usually with a single cylinder, and known as the "Gentleman's Machine". Sunbeam motorcycles performed well in the early days of the famous TT (Tourist Trophy) races in the Isle of Man. After the First World War the Marston company was sold to a consortium. In 1919, the consortium became part of Nobel Industries Limited. In 1927 Nobel Industries amalgamated with Brunner Mond Ltd. to form Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI). Read more on Wikipedia

Lowry refers to the company's motorcycles in his short story 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour'; ""Fine motorcycles whizzed by or splashed past us:....two Sunbeams with laminated spring forks." (Psalms Pg. 233). Lowry's brother Wilfrid was given a present of a Sunbeam motorcycle for his rugby triumphs. Wilfrid took Lowry and his other brother Russell for rides around the Wirral. (Gordon Bowker Pursued By Furies Pg. 23). Russell later inherited the motorcycle off Wilfrid and he took Lowry for rides to the cinema etc (Pg. 27). Later refers to a Sunbeam in his short story 'Elephant and Colosseum'; " .... upon the countenance of the great George Dance, as in the Isle of Man he negotiated Ballig Bridge, when it seemed he was going to win the Senior Tourist Trophy motorbicycle race upon a Sunbeam with one cylinder." (Pg. 204).

Rudge-Multi

Rudge Whitworth Cycles was a British bicycle and motorcycle manufacturer that resulted from the merger of two bicycle manufacturers in 1894, Whitworth Cycle Co of Birmingham, founded by Charles Henry Pugh (1840-1901) and his two sons Charles Vernon and John, and Rudge Cycle Co of Coventry. Rudge motorcycles were produced from 1911 to 1946. The firm was known for its innovations in engine and transmission design, and its racing successes. Their sales motto was "Rudge it, do not trudge it."

Selling re-badged Werners in 1909, the company went on to produce their first motorcycle in 1911, a single-cylinder F-head (IOE - inlet over exhaust), 500 cc bike. In 1912 the belt drive 499 cc Rudge Multigear was released, using variable groove-depth pulleys to gain 21 forward gear ratios, and a top gear as high as 2.75:1. (The Zenith Gradua and 1907 FN 244 cc single used a similar system.) In 1913 a 750 cc Multigear was released. In 1914 Cyril Pullin won the Isle of Man TT on a Rudge Multigear. Together with the Zenith-Gradua this was one of the first continuously variable transmissions (CVT).

In 1915 a 1000 cc using a Jardine four-speed gearbox was released, followed by a 1000 cc Multigear. In 1923, they introduced an in-house manufactured 4-speed gear box to replace the Jardine gearbox, and Multigear production ended. Read more on Wikipedia

Lowry refers to the motorcycle in his short story 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour'; "Fine motorcycles whizzed by or splashed past us: ... a Rudge-Multi, with their involved gearshifts......." (Pg. 233)

Zenith Gradua

Zenith Motorcycles was a British motorcycle manufacturer established in Finsbury Park, London in 1904. Zenith motorcycles used engines from various suppliers, including Precision, Villiers and JAP. Under chief engineer Frederic "Freddy" Barnes, Zenith developed the "Gradua" gear, a variable pulley which adjusted the length of the drive belt by sliding the rear wheel backwards or forwards in the slots. This gave Zenith a great advantage which competitors claimed was unfair and many clubs banned the Gradua Zeniths, who simply included the word "Barred" in their badge. In the 1930s Zenith hit hard times and closed down production. Read more on Wikpedia

Lowry refers to the motorcycle in his short story 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour'; "Fine motorcycles whizzed by or splashed past us: a Zenith Gradua...." (Pg. 233)

James Street Station, Liverpool

James Street station on far right with its hydraulic tower

James Street railway station is located in the centre of Liverpool, England, and situated on the Wirral Line of the Merseyrail network. James Street is an underground station; access is via lift from James Street and, at peak times, via a tunnel from the India Buildings on Water Street.

The station opened as the original terminus of Mersey Railway Tunnel in 1886. In 1892 the tunnel was extended to Liverpool Central station. By this time, there were trains from Liverpool to Birkenhead Park and Rock Ferry stations in Birkenhead. The line was electrified in 1903. Through trains to West Kirby and New Brighton commenced in 1938, when the former Wirral Railway routes were electrified. There were originally two platforms, either side of a twin-track tunnel.  The station building was destroyed in WW2. Read more on Wikipedia

Lowry refers to the station in his short story 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour'; "At Birkenhead Park we left the car. ....We took the Mersey Underground Railway. My father was getting off at James Street: we said goodbye, under the sea, without ceremony. I went on to Central." (Pg. 233). The journey made by the narrator of the story may have been a familiar one to Lowry as he is on his way back to school probably using the same route as Lowry did - by car from Caldy, underground to Liverpool Central station and main line train to the Leys School.

Birkenhead Park Railway Station

Birkenhead Park railway station is situated in Birkenhead, Wirral, England. It lies on the Wirral Line 31⁄2 miles (5.6 km) west of Liverpool Lime Street on the Merseyrail network.

The station was opened on 2 January 1888, as a joint station between the Wirral Railway and the Mersey Railway. It replaced the Wirral Railway's original terminus at Wallasey Bridge Road (close to the present-day Birkenhead North station), becoming an interchange between their line to West Kirby and the Mersey Railway's new line to central Liverpool. On the same day, the Wirral Railway's new line to Wallasey Grove Road opened, which was extended to New Brighton later that year.

Lowry refers to the station in his short story 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour'; "At Birkenhead Park we left the car. I said goodbye to Featherstonbaugh, giving him one of the half-crowns that had already taken shape from my father's eyes that morning....We took the Mersey Underground Railway." (Pg. 233). The journey made by the narrator of the story may have been a familiar one to Lowry as he is on his way back to school probably using the same route as Lowry did - by car from Caldy, underground to Liverpool and main line train to the Leys School.

Lowry also makes another possible reference to the station in his novel Ultramarine when Dana recalls his time with Janet; "His whole being was drowning in memories, the smells of Bikenhead and of Liverpool were again heavily about him, there was a coarse glitter in the cinema fronts, children stared at him strangely from the porches of public-houses. Janet would be waiting for him a the Crosville bus stop, with her red mackintosh and her umbrella, while silver straws of rain gently pattered on the green roof..."Where shall we go? The Hippodrome or the Argyle? ..... I've heard there's a good show on at the Scala - (Pg. 27)

If Janet (Tess) was coming from her home in 26 Thirlemere Street in Liscard then she could have taken a Wallasey Corporation bus from Liscard across Birkenhead Docks to Park Station, which was the terminus of Crosville buses in 1927 in Birkenhead. This would have been logical if Hilliot (Lowry) travelled to meet her either using the steam train from West Kirby Station, which terminated at Park Station in the 20's before electrification in the 30's; or he travelled by Crosville bus 108 from West Kirby.

Argyle Theatre, Birkenhead

The Argyle Theatre was opened in December 1868 in Argyle Street, Birkenhead, initially as the Argyle Music Hall.

The theatre had seating for about 800, with pillars in the auditorium and long, narrow galleries running down either side. Its name was changed in 1876 to the Prince Of Wales Theatre and for several years plays were performed, before the name "Argyle" was eventually restored.

The owner and manager between 1888 and 1934 was Dennis J. Clarke, a local councillor, shrewd businessman and entrepreneur, with a keen eye for talent. He was both popular and well respected and was responsible for helping launch numerous showbusiness careers. Established artistes such as W.C. Fields, Dan Leno and Marie Lloyd performed during the early years of the theatre's life. Stars such as Charlie Chaplin, Bud Flanagan & Chesney Allen, Harry Lauder, Stan Laurel, George Formby (Senior) and Eric Morecambe & Ernie Wise performed at the Argyle Theatre at the beginning of their careers. The comedian, actor and ukelele player George Formby (Junior) made one of his earliest performances at the Argyle Theatre in 1921. In this instance, he was not a success and was booed off stage.

In addition to the wealth of talent performing at the Argyle in person, it had other claims to fame. Clarke stated in 1896 that his theatre's vitagraph display was the first such display of moving pictures in England, outside of London. The Argyle also had the distinction of being the first theatre to host radio broadcasts. On 21 September 1940, the theatre received a direct hit during the Blitz of World War II and never re-opened. However, the shell of the building remained in situ until 1973, when finally it was demolished.

A large, decorative stone sign that was once attached to the Argyle Theatre's exterior was removed to the Williamson Art Gallery in Birkenhead for preservation, prior to demolition. The inscription on the sign read: "Argyle Theatre Of Varieties. Two Performances Nightly". A department store car park now occupies the site. Read more on Wikpedia

Lowry refers to the theatre in his first novel Ultramarine; "His whole being was drowning in memories, the smells of Birkenhead and of Liverpool were again heavily about him, there was a coarse glitter in the cinema fronts, children stared at him strangely from the porches of public-houses. Janet would be waiting for him a the Crosville bus stop, with her red mackintosh and her umbrella, while silver straws of rain gently pattered on the green roof..."Where shall we go? The Hippodrome or the Argyle? ..... I've heard there's a good show on at the Scala - (Pg. 27)

Lowry also mentions the theatre in 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour': "While the Argyle announced Harry Champion, Brown's Bioscope. It was melancholy to be bidding adieu to these familiar placards which were like friends." (Psalms Pg. 233).

Hippodrome Theatre, Birkenhead

The Hippodrome Theatre, originally known as Ohmy's Grand Circus, was built in Grange Road, Birkenhead in 1888. This venture was not successful and within 2 years it became the Gaiety Music Hall which lasted until 1898 when it became The Metropole Music Hall. In 1908, it was totally renovated, having been closed for three years becoming known for its drama productions.

Dennis J. Clarke, who ran the Argyle Theatre, took over in 1916, and changed the name to The Hippodrome. In 1934 it was sold to the Birkenhead Co-operative Society and replaced by a store.

According to Lowry's biographer, Gordon Bowker, Lowry cherished the memory of a visit to The Hipprodrome with his family to see a production of Shakespeare's Richard II in the early 20's. (Pursued By Furies Pgs.16-17 )

Lowry refers to the theatre in his first novel Ultramarine; "His whole being was drowning in memories, the smells of Birkenhead and of Liverpool were again heavily about him, there was a coarse glitter in the cinema fronts, children stared at him strangely from the porches of public-houses. Janet would be waiting for him a the Crosville bus stop, with her red mackintosh and her umbrella, while silver straws of rain gently pattered on the green roof..."Where shall we go? The Hippodrome or the Argyle? ..... I've heard there's a good show on at the Scala - (Pg. 27); "A little imagination and this was home. One of those Saturday nights with Janet at the Birkenhead Hippodrome. Twice nightly, 6:30, 8:40! Two two-and-fours please! The first house. The orchestra tuning up, like tired men snoring in different keys. The gathering rush of the falling curtain. When there is a fireproof screen of the proscenium opening it must be lowered at least once during every performance to see that it is in proper working order..." (Pg.98).

Lowry did attempt to write musical hall songs and this is documented in his interview with the Liverpool Echo before he set sail for the Far East in 1927. Lowry may have held ambitions to one day have his songs played at the likes of the Hippodrome. He certainly gave these ambitions to the character Hugh, another of Lowry's many alter-egos, in Under The Volcano; Hugh recalls the "advertisments for music halls up north. Birkenhead Hippodrome: twice nightly 6.30, 8.30..." and  "But above all there were his songs, which would now be published. What did anything matter when back home at that very Birkenhead Hippodrome perhaps, they were being played and sung, twice nightly, to crowded houses?" (Pg.168). Lowry also mentions the theatre in his short story 'Enter One In Sumptuous Armour': "An advertisement for the Hippodrome said Little Tich, 6:30, 8:30." (Psalms Pg. 233)