Congregation
Introduction, Foundation of the parish, The church, The presbytery, The clergy, Parish, Congregation, Spiritual, Education, Social and economic, Some notable events, Acknowledgements
In his report of 1868, Fr Rodgers states that at his best estimate there were then about 150 Catholics living within the parish boundaries, of which only 21 lived within two miles of the church. The greatest numbers were at High Coniscliffe, followed by Staindrop, then Gainford, Piercebridge and Aldbrough, with farm-servants scattered about in the country areas. At the time he wrote his report Easter communicants totalled 89 with more to come. He comments that a large proportion of his congregation were single men and women in employment as servants. In addition he was responsible for a mission station at Evenwood where there were between 150 and 200 Catholics.
Working from the registers of baptisms and deaths, it would look as though the number of parishioners remained fairly stable until about 1930. In the 1860’s, 70’s and 80’s when the birth rate was high, baptisms maintained a steady average of about 7.5 per year and deaths 2.5. From 1890 through to 1930 the yearly average of baptisms reduced to 4 and that of deaths increased marginally to 3. In the 1930’s and 40’s there appears to have been a reduction in the Catholic (and perhaps general) population of the area, possibly caused by the mechanisation of agriculture. In 1938, the first year in which the Diocesan summary figures for St Osmund’s do not include those for St Peter’s, the Catholic population of the parish was reported as 105 and the number of regular attendees at Sunday Mass as 70. There were only 20 children of school age living in the parish. This reduction is borne out by the figures for baptisms and deaths over the two decades – averages of 2.3 per year for the former and 1.4 for the latter.
In the 1950’s and 60’s there was a revival in numbers, probably due to younger people, many with families of ‘post war baby boom’ children, moving into the new housing being built, particularly in Gainford itself. In 1960 the Catholic population of the parish was reported as 155, Mass attendees as 122 and schoolchildren as 51. By 1966 these numbers had increased further, to 205, 155 and 60 respectively. The annual averages of baptisms over the two decades had increased to nearly 5, with deaths at 2.4.
As the children of school age in the 50’s and 60’s grew to maturity, they tended to move away from the Gainford area and the Catholic population started to decline again. By the end of the 70’s it had reduced to about 180, of whom some 35 were children of school age, and it has stabilised around these numbers. As the motor car came into increasing general use, parishioners were freer to attend Mass in adjacent parishes, perhaps at a time more convenient to them, and many did so with a consequent decline in the number attending St Osmund’s, which by the early 80’s had reduced to about 70. In the last few years there has been a revival, with the average Sunday Mass attendance now nearing the 100 mark.
Between the time of the foundation of the parish and the present there has been a significant shift in the social composition of the congregation. In 1868 Fr Rodgers reported that his parishioners were very poor, with most of them working as servants. Today the majority of parishioners are of the managerial or professional class.
Bearing the above in mind, it is not surprising that only three of the older generation (60+) of today’s congregation were born in the parish, and two of those from the same family, although as those children of the incoming families of the 1950’s and 60’s who were born in the parish and who have stayed here themselves have children, families with two generations baptised at St Osmund’s are now emerging. What is surprising is the outcome of an analysis made of the entries in the registers of Baptism (begun in 1861), Marriage and Death (both begun in 1874). It had been assumed that in the 19th century the population would have been fairly static. However, out of over 100 different surnames appearing in the Baptismal register before 1900, only five are of families where baptisms of two successive generations of the same family (including children of married daughters) took place at St Osmund’s and just three, which cover 3 generations. There are none more than three. Descendants of some of the earlier families, which lapsed at some stage, may, of course, still be living in the area. Many of the names appearing in the 19th century registers are of Irish origin, perhaps indicating a large transitory Irish immigrant element.
The five families with two generations of children born in the parish, with year of first baptism and latest baptism, marriage or death, were: - Graham of Piercebridge (1861-1953), Cox of Gordon Gill (1864-1889), Kent of Staindrop (1879-1964), Hickey of Gainford (1886-1948) and Queenan of Gainford (1893-1956). Those of three generations were: - Hall of Gainford (1861-1930), Snailham of Gainford (1862-1982) and Stainthorpe of Moor Row, Barforth (1868-1905). Some of these families were probably in the area well before the foundation of the parish. However the one with the longest span in the lifetime of the parish came from Lancashire: -
Thomas Snailham, his wife Ellen and family (then of at least one son) moved from Preston in about 1850, and their two youngest children were baptised at St Osmund’s after the register was started. Thomas had a market garden, which his son Christopher later continued.
Christopher married Margaret Susanna Learmouth, perhaps elsewhere since their first child, although baptised at St Osmund’s, had been born at Scarborough the previous year. A further ten children were baptised at St Osmund’s. Of his children who married, three continued to live in Gainford, Thomas Robert (married to Elizabeth Corrie, two children baptised here), John (married to Isabella Young, seven children baptised here) and Elizabeth Alice (married to Martin Hardy, no children). She was the last survivor of the Snailhams to live in Gainford, dying in 1982 at the age of 99. She used to tell of how, in her younger days, she would walk the nine miles into Darlington with produce to sell on the market and then walk back again. There was a direct rail service from Gainford to Darlington, but presumably the profit on market garden produce was not enough to also cover the rail fare, particularly with eleven children in the family to be supported!
Over the decades many parishioners will have played a much bigger part in the life and well being of the parish than simply coming to Mass on a Sunday, some in the little known and less obvious ways. It would be invidious to attempt to single out names, but they would be known to the discerning parishioners of the time.
