1944-1945, John Holland, Mayor of Wigan

1944 JOHN HOLLAND (1887-1967)

John Holland was born on 24 March 1887.

According to the 1901 census the family was living at 16 Careless Lane, Ince.  John’s father Daniel, aged 59, was a ‘colliery furnaceman below ground’; his mother Elizabeth was 62. The parents were living with 6 children: John was 14 and a grocer’s errand boy.

By 1911 Daniel was a widower; there were two unmarried daughters at home (28 Clegg Street), as well as John, who by now was an assistant in a grocer’s shop.

On 18 July 1911 John married Sarah Elizabeth Gould at St Mary’s Ince. Their son Jack was born on 25 December 1911. 

The 1921 census describes John as a general dealer in Hope Street, with the family’s home address at 100 Manchester Road, Ince.

Before going into business in partnership in Hope Street he was local secretary of the Nat Union of Distributive and Allied Workers.  He later became managing director of J. Holland (Wigan) Ltd, wholesale grocers in Great Acre.  In 1929 he served as Chairman of the Brit Fed of Wholesale Confectioners.

In 1930 John was elected to serve as a Labour councillor for St George’s ward.  His service to the council lasted 37 years.

He was elected as a magistrate in 1935, subsequently becoming chairman of the bench and of the licensing bench.  From 1937 to 1938 he served as deputy mayor.

By 1939 the family was living at 271 Wigan Lane.

John was elected mayor in 1944, during World War ll, and served as chairman of the Civil Defence committee.  The minutes of the committee meeting on 18 January 1945 recorded the receipt of a letter from the mayor of Bootle, thanking the town for the hospitality shown to children evacuated to Wigan who had now returned home.  I am satisfied that the children have been happy and well cared for during their stay in the reception area, and that Bootle owes a debt of gratitude to those who, in past years, have cared for so many of its children.

John became an alderman in 1950.

John was keen on several sports:  he was a life member of Gathurst golf club after having been captain and president; his wife Sarah won the ladies’ cup there three times. He was a member of Bellingham bowling and tennis club, a keen supporter of Wigan Rugby League club, and vice president of Wigan Cricket club.

On 11 January 1967 John died at his home on Wigan Lane. The Lancashire Post, paying tribute to him, recorded that at the time of his death he was a member of the Baths, Finance and Mayoral Selection committees and chairman of the Fire Brigade and Licensing committees.  He had been a pioneering chairman of the Gas committee until nationalisation in 1949, and was chairman of the Watch committee from 1949.

Sources:

Wigan Council minutes of meetings November 1944-October 1945

• Ancestry
• Wigan Observer 14 July 1961
• Lancashire Post 11 January 1967
• Wigan Observer 13 January 1967