January 1904

The death occurred of Mr John Cave, founder and head of John Cave & Sons, at the age of 82 years.

Owing to the inadequate office accommodation in the Vestry Hall, the Rushden Urban Council resolved to apply for a loan of £1,750 to demolish it and erect a new building on the site.

February 1904

A four‑wheel vehicle, being driven down Queen Street, broke in half and threw the horse to the ground.

Mr Madin, the town surveyor, submitted four original designs for the Free Library on the site adjoining the Green.  The one selected by the committee had a flat roof intended to be used for reading purposes on a summer’s evening.

March 1904

An accident occurred to the engine of a train to Rushden, near Sanders Lodge.  The eccentric rod broke and pierced the boiler, allowing the water to escape.  Most of the passengers walked on to their destination.  A fresh engine was despatched from Wellingborough and which pushed the train forward to Rushden.

The premises in Glassbrook Road occupied by Messrs Hewitt, Smart, Sharpe & Co and Messrs James Hyde & Co were completely burnt out.  The Fire Brigade devoted the major portion of their efforts to the protection of the adjoining property when it had been found it was a hopeless task to try and subdue the flames.  Renewed calls were made for the Council to replace the old manual engine with a steam fire engine.

April 1904

Work on the bank at the Sywell reservoir fell behind schedule.  The contractor advertised for more men to augment the 110 men already employed on the works.

Foundation stones were laid at the new Wesleyan Chapel in Park Road on the corner of Griffith Street.

A failure occurred with the tablet instrument at the junction where the Rushden branch line diverged from the main Midland Railway system, thus preventing any train passing onto the branch until Mr Jones, the station-master at Higham Ferrers, could walk through the whole section and declare it safe for traffic.  The result of the late arrival at Higham Ferrers meant that the train was also late on its return journey.  There were about a dozen passengers for Kettering, and, as these lost the connection at Wellingborough, the Company ran a special train to Kettering.  The passengers included one for Market Harborough, who was accommodated with a rug at Kettering station and allowed to have a few hours’ sleep, and subsequently an express train was stopped and he was able to complete his journey.

The Park Road Baptist Choir took first prize for town and village choirs in the sixth Northamptonshire Musical Competitions.

May 1904

The Succoth Chapel, High Street, Rushden, celebrated its centenary.  The cost of the original building in 1803 was £208.

June 1904

Mr Carnegie was approached with an amendment to the original plans for the Free Library and he agreed to increase his donation to £2,500.

A pony belonging to Mr G.H.Skinner, and in the charge of a young man outside the Restaurant, High Street, Rushden, started for home with its cart before the driver got in.  The pony never stopped till it reached Mr Skinner’s gate having passed several wagons and negotiated the turns near the Church quite safely.

The Local Government Board Inspector conducted a public enquiry in respect of the proposed replacement of the Vestry Hall by new Council offices.  There was much opposition to the suggested scheme.

Work at the Joint Water Board site at Sywell was progressing well despite poor weather.  A substantial amount of banking had been put in and the brickwork of the filter beds had been completed.  The pipes of the rising main had been laid from opposite the service reservoir to within about 50 feet of Rhyholme Bridge, and from the bottom of Doddington Hill to within a few feet of the gate at the pumping station.

July 1904

A startling incident occurred at the residence of Mr Charles A.K.Green at the corner of Crabb Street and High Street South.  A domestic servant went to light the gas stove in order to warm some milk for the baby, and an explosion occurred.  The door of the stove was blown off, the kitchen windows blown out and part of the ceiling was demolished.  The side of the girl’s face was burnt but not seriously.  Mr and Mrs Green were away at the time.

A scarcity of water resulted in the lack of water in the mains for several days in the higher parts of Rushden.  As the buildings in those parts were mostly new and no wells existed, the occupiers had to beg water from their more fortunate neighbours.  The Council sent the water-carts round every day.

August 1904

A fire occurred at the Glassbrook Road factory of Messrs Hyde and Co. Ltd.  Discovered about 2am by a policeman, a message was sent to the police station and from thence by telephone to the telephone exchange and on to the fire station.  The caretaker at once (2.16am) called the Fire Brigade by the electric calls.  At 2.21 five men were on their way to the scene with the hose-cart, and the engine followed at 2.30, horses having been procured from Mr Jas.Sargent’s livery-stables in Duck Street.  Meanwhile the flames had been checked with buckets of water and, on their arrival, the Brigade cut away a portion of the roof to gain better access.  Damage was estimated about £150.

Despite the strong opposition expressed at the inquiry held by the Local Government Board’s Inspector, the Board agreed with the majority of the Councillors that the Vestry Hall should be pulled down and new municipal buildings erected on the site.

Good progress continued to be made at the Water Board scheme at Sywell, about 1,330 cubic yards of puddle had been put into the trench and wall in the last month and was now about 12 feet below top bank level.

September 1904

A demonstration of the use of the “Emergency” fire extinguisher was given in Mr Franklin’s grounds opposite the Victoria Hotel.  A wooden structure, seven feet high, was saturated with paraffin and set alight.  When the wood was well alight and the heat so intense as to drive the spectators backwards, the demonstrator took one of his tubes, about 1½ feet in length, and sprinkled the liquid contents over the blazing mass.  The result was that within 5 seconds the flames had been extinguished.

A serious slip occurred in the embankment under construction at the new reservoir for the Higham Ferrers & Rushden Joint Water Board at Sywell.  The Engineer, Mr Middleton, was notified and returned from abroad.

Rushden Feast was celebrated with a great number of attractions, including a grand cricket match, a dog show, a flower show at the W.M.C., and many social gatherings.  The attractions at the fair in Mr Franklin’s grounds included swings, shooting galleries, roundabouts, Aunt Sallies, boxing booths, etc.  Special attention was given to Thurston’s switchback and cinematograph exhibition, but the most popular rendezvous was Bostock’s and Wombwell’s combined menagerie in Mr Marriott’s field.

A valuable horse was killed on Feast Sunday in an accident near the Railway Inn, High Street, when a trap was in collision with a brake.  The shaft of the trap penetrated the chest of one of the horses attached to the brake, inflicting injuries of a terrible character, and from which the animal died.  The value of the horse was estimated at £35.

Messrs Nurrish, Nurrish & Pallett’s factory on the Shirley Park Estate, between the railway station and the gasworks, was entirely destroyed by fire.  The fire was visible for many miles and attracted a crowd numbering 2,000 or 3,000.  160 people were thrown out of work.

October 1904

In view of a recommendation that the Urban Council erect new offices on a site on the corner of Newton Road and Park Road and sell the Vestry Hall to the Rector and Churchwardens, the Free Library Committee recommended that the proposed Library site fronting the Green be abandoned in favour of a site in Newton Road adjacent to the proposed municipal buildings.

November 1904

The subscribers to the Free Library Site Fund were canvassed regarding the proposed change of site for the new Library and the overwhelming majority voted in favour of the site in Newton Road.  Messrs Lilley and Skinner, the owners of the originally selected site adjoining the Green, agreed to release the committee from any obligation.

December 1904

The Wellingborough and District Tramways Company announced their intention to seek parliamentary powers to obtain land at Raunds, Wollaston, Burton Latimer, Harrowden, Bozeat, and other places with a view to create a network of tramways around Wellingborough, Kettering and Rushden.  The scheme would make a wide circle including Olney, Wellingborough, Earls Barton, Kettering, Rushden and Raunds.