FAMILY PHOTOGRAPHS RELATED TO BERTHA RIGBY

The donor was born Bertha Pixton in 1901. Her father died when she was young and her mother left Manchester and moved first to Blackpool and then to Preston. After the donor and her mother, Elizaann, moved into Wignall St, Preston, she remembers they had so little furniture they had to pull out a bottom drawer to sit on. After leaving school at 13 the donor went to work as a finishing weaver at Horrockses' Mill, New Hall Lane, Preston. She stayed there till 1935. She refused to join the union and remembers that in the 9 week strike of 1932 when she was pregnant she was one of only 3 to turn up for work in the first week and although she was sent home she was given 2/3 of her wages as a gift from the employers. In 1935 she went into a fish and fruit shop in North Road, Preston until 1947 when she joined British Home Stores until her retirement. She was married in 1924 to James Rigby (coincidentally the same name as her maternal grandfather) after 7 years of his courting her. She was not enthusiastic at first, finding him 'common'.

The donor's mother, Elizaann was born in 1871, one of 3 girls, and lived in Congleton, Cheshire until her marriage. She was apparently from a quite well-to-do-family because she did not work until the age of 25, after her mother had died.