WHEN my autumn edition of the parish magazine dropped through the letterbox I was interested to see the image of a scallop shell beside the list of those who had been baptised at St James’ Church, Whitehaven.

It reminded me of an old 1942 copy of a St James’ Church magazine someone once gave me, which was called The Scallop Shell and carried a similar image on the front.

My new magazine costs 50p; the 1942 version was 2d – not a bad rate of inflation over 77 years I’d say!

The seashell, especially the scallop, is the symbol of baptism in Christianity and the scallop is also linked to the apostle and first Christian martyr, St James. He used it to beg for food and water during his pilgrimage to spread the word – even the poorest people could fill a small shell.

Those people who today walk the pilgrim’s route to Santiago de Compostela in Spain where lie James’s remains, often tie a scallop shell to their backpacks.

Despite having been published almost eight decades apart there are quite a few similarities between these two parish magazines, each giving us a list of clergy and church staff, a timetable of weekly services, and a letter from the vicar of the time – now the Rev Robert Jackson, back then the Rev Denis Tyndall.

Alongside the magazine’s contents there were of course the adverts, which can make for some interesting reading.

In the 1942 edition we have Skinner’s wallpaper warehouse, trading from Roper Street and Duke Street in Whitehaven; on Lowther Street there was Mitchell’s tobacconists at 56, Parnaby’s furniture at 21 (below the Oddfellows Hall), and Johnston & Court jewellers at number 32… all names that will ring a distant nostalgic bell for many.

There are reminders too in the advertising that these were the war years. Cumberland Motor Services’ announcement from the managing director T Meageen tells us that, despite fuel restrictions “during the Emergency all essential service have been maintained daily” and that passengers who could travel between 9am-3pm would be “doing a national service, helping the workers to Go To It and maintain output.”

TG Cunningham was offering a service as military tailor and, “when things look upside down” it seemed a John Peel pale ale would help you “keep your pecker up”. The Whitehaven News advertised to say “in peace or war” it was always at our service.

The grocer C Walker of 9 George Street urged townsfolk to “spend wisely, spend locally and keep the home fires burning”. His stirring wartime message was: “History is being made before our eyes and our destiny is being refashioned hour by hour… It is to your country’s interest that business should go on as usual.”

Other familiar names appearing in the church’s September 1942 advertising columns were Wandless’s chemist of 2 King Street, Hambling’s butchers of 55 Roper Street, Gillit’s gramophone and wireless store at St Nicholas Chambers and Wallace’s shoes offering Moccasin, Nordic, Grenson and Clark’s quality brands, from their shop at 79a King Street. Peter Dansie’s was selling tobacco, cigarettes and fancy goods, Cyril Moore’s could “easily solve your furnishing problems” and there was all types of ironmongery to be had from Alfred Barlow’s on Lowther Street.

Keirs were then operating from Aikbank Garage (where their phone number was 45!), Batty’s were offering choice confectionery and wedding cakes and Whitehaven’s “super entertainment theatres” the Queens and the Gaiety were ‘presenting the finest talkie programmes’.

Mark Taylor’s cycle store was still on King Street as were Birkett’s menswear and Partington’s butchers. Pattinson’s extolled the quality of their Beacon brown flour to home bakers and E Moorhouse and Malcolm McGill were offering their services as builders. And of course you could still get a private hire car from Bie, Conaway & Co of Station Garage.

A large part of the editorial columns are given over to an account of a first for St James’ Church, the Parish Camp at Bassenthwaite – “not just a holiday” but a means of strengthening the bond between fellow worshippers. The boys slept in Bassenthwaite School while the girls were accommodated in the parish rooms. Despite the inevitable rain there was running, climbing, riding, swimming and boating on the lake. And all were kept well fed, despite the fact a stray dog ate the whole week’s rations of cooking fat.

A cricket match between the vicar’s side and the curate’s team held at Whitehaven Playground was reported on in detail and there were plans announced for the annual united service for Whitehaven’s Anglican churches, of which, at that time, there were five – St James, St Nicholas, St Peter’s, Holy Trinity and Christ Church…. How times change.