PHOTOGRAPHS RELATED TO THE BOOTH AND KNOX FAMILIES

James Knox, born in 1944, is the son of James and Winifred Knox. His father's family is Scottish, his forefathers being mainly shepherds in the border county around Newcastleton. Winifred was born in Marple Bridge in 1917. She was one of the 5 daughters of Arthur and Polly Booth, both of whom were deaf. Arthur was born in Compstall in 1876. When he was 7 he had an infectious disease which resulted in permanent loss of hearing. He completed his education at the residential school for the deaf in Derby. There he was taught the trade of painting and decorating to enable him to join the family business which was run by his father, James Booth. The firm had been started by Arthur's grandfather, John Booth who began it in 1862 at the onset of the Lancashire cotton famine. There was high unemployment in the Marple area which relied heavily on the local cotton mills for work. In 1865 he was killed when he fell from a scaffold at Oakwook Mill, Romiley. He left a wife and 8 children whose circumstances were later so poor that they almost starved to death. Arthur's wife, Polly was born in Hulme in 1874. She was deaf from birth. She received no special education and as a result was dumb and illiterate. Arthur was a keen photographer and probably did some professional work in addition to working in the family business.

Arthur's mother, Ann Booth was the second wife of James Booth. His first wife, Ann, had died soon after their first child was born in 1875. He married Ann Lomas, a Compstall mill girl, a year later. Ann's parents, William and Mary Lomas both worked in Compstall cotton mill, where her father was an overlooker.