A gathering was held in Town Hall Square on 6th September 1930 to mark the 150th anniversary of the founding of the Sunday School movement by Robert Raikes in 1780. The photograph taken by George A. Shore.
Robert Raikes (1735-1811) was credited as the Founder of Sunday Schools. He founded his first school in St Catherine Street in Gloucester in July 1780. 1930 marked 150 years (a ter-jubilee or third jubilee being three times fifty years – the biblical definition of ‘jubilee’) since the movement was started. There were celebrations celebrating the anniversary held around the country throughout the year.
George A. Shore was a popular Keighley-based freelance photographer who simultaneously ran his photography business alongside running a carpet and linoleum store in Keighley market. Examples of his work exist from the 1930s and 1940s, and included outdoor events such as Keighley Gala, the coronation of King George VI, Victory street parties at the end of the Second World War, theatre productions, weddings, and landscapes. Many of his photographs were commissioned by and printed in the Keighley News. His original prints could be embossed “G. A. Shore” or stamped on the back in a circle “Geo. A. Shore”. In his other lines of business, Shore was an early member of Keighley Road Club and used to deliver rolls of carpet and linoleum via his motorbike and sidecar, aided by assistant Sam Scaife. Shore died in 1946.
The photograph is probably taken from a second floor window of a building on Cooke Street, looking across to North Street. There is a stage on the very left of the photograph from which the crowd is being addressed via speakers. Many of the crowd appear to be holding sheets – possibly hymn sheets – possibly for “Sabbath Schools are England’s Glory,” an old-time hymn, first sung in a Lancashire United Methodist School, which the National Sunday School Union republished for use in the Raikes Ter-Jubilee celebrations.
Also shown is the front cover of a booklet containing hymns and music to be sung at the Haworth and District Celebration of the Sunday School Centenary, to be held at Marsh Bottom, Haworth, on Saturday 14th August 1880. The beautifully designed cover includes a portrait of Robert Raikes.
Both items were donated in 2019 by Susan Hyde on behalf of her father, Hubert Spencer.
