Sales
of Work or Garden Fetes were organised by the Parochial Committee to raise funds.
They were held in the Church grounds every year on a Saturday in May, June or
July from the mid 1950s to the late 1980s. Typically, marquees were hired from
Blacks of Greenock and erected on the Thursday. A Jumble Sale would usually be
held on the Friday evening. At the Fetes, some volunteer stall-holders would sell
baking, drapery, plants and refreshments while others would persuade patrons to
'gamble' on roll-a-penny, housey-housey, wheel of fortune and the bottle stall.
Occasionally, a tiny two seater bus from Dodds of Troon would be hired to give
children a ride round the grounds. It
was customary to invite a personality to open the Fete. Such well-known people
included:
- Bishop Joseph McGee shown holding the
microphone stand in the top photograph
on 9 July
1955 A
newspaper report is given below.
- Sir Patrick Dollan, former Lord Provost of Glasgow
on 20 July 1956 A
newspaper report is given below.
- Monsignor John Power in 1957
-
Provost James Dorrian in July 1959
- Raymond Boyd,
Scottish Television presenter on
26 June 1965
- Lady Veronica Maclean, wife of Sir Fitzroy Maclean,
Member of Parliament for Bute and North Ayrshire
on 28 June 1969
- Bobby
Lennox, Celtic Football Club and Scotland
in
1970
- William McCrindle, managing director of the
McCrindle Group of engineering, manufacturing
and
shipbuilding on 12 June 1971
-
John Mulveney, stage and television personality on
10 June 1973
- Roy Aitken, Celtic Football Club and
Scotland shown
on the left of the bottom
photograph on 28 May 1988
Since the 1990s, Sales of Work have been replaced
by bingo, car boot sales, parish socials and good as new sales for fundraising.
Other Sales of Work photographs may be seen
from the Pictures
page.
The
following report is from The Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald of 15 July
1955.
ST. PETER'S SALE OF WORK
£450 Raised
for New Presbytery Building Fund
A most successful sale of work was held
in the grounds of St. Peter In Chains Church, Ardrossan, last Saturday afternoon.
The weather could not have been better, and the layout of the sale was very attractive,
the well-stocked stalls in the shade of the trees acting as a considerable magnet
to patrons.
The stalls included those selling provisions, fruit and vegetables, bakery and confectionery, drapery, 'white elephant and jumble', books, and fancy goods, while other incentives to spend money were the various games, wheel of fortune, housey-housey, hoop-la, putting, fortune telling, treasure hunt and the refreshment tents which offered teas and ices which were a necessity on such a day.
The sale was opened by His Lordship the Bishop of Galloway, the Right Rev. Joseph McGee, D.D., who explained in his address that the object of the sale was to help in the fund to build a Presbytery beside the Church. Introducing the Bishop, Treasurer Dorrian said that they were greatly honoured in having his Lordship with them. His Lordship had consented to come at a certain inconvenience, and, by so doing, he had conferred a great favour on the parish.
Bishop McGee began his speech by saying with a smile that he heartily congratulated the committee on the choice of such a lovely day for the sale - that sort of day only occurred once in twenty years.
"You have here a most beautiful Church", continued his Lordship, "and one which people from all over will come to see. It is unfortunate that we do not have a Presbytery beside the Church as is the system in this country, a system which has many advantages as the parishioners know where to find their priest easily, and the priest as the custodian and guardian of the Holy Sanctuary should reside beside his Church. We should never be content with anything temporary or second rate, and in Ardrossan it is more than fitting that the Presbytery we propose to build should be in keeping with the Church. The architect who designed the Church has also designed the Presbytery, and it will enhance the Church and the site. I am perfectly sure that you will support your parish priest and the Parochial Committee so that soon after the Presbytery is built it will be paid for and free of debt. I hope that you will loosen your purse-strings and that the hopes of the committee will be exceeded."
Rev. L. Fischer, in thanking the Bishop for his presence and for opening the fete, said that the weather that day was not the result of luck, but of prayer. He also thanked all who had helped in any way with the fete and all those who were present.
The
sale realised at total of over £450, an amount which reflects great credit
on the work of the organising secretary, Mr J. McGrattan, and on all those whose
enthusiasm made the sale such a success.
The
following report is from The Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald of 26 July
1956.
SAINT PETER IN CHAINS GARDEN FETE
Despite the inclement weather - there was a blustery wind and almost continuous rain - the annual Sale of Work held in the grounds of Saint Peter in Chains Church, Ardrossan on Saturday last in aid of the building fund attracted a good turnout of members and friends of the Church and throughout the afternoon, there was a brisk buying at the various stalls. In addition, there were games and teas and ices were served.
The Sale was opened by a former Lord Provost of Glasgow, Sir Patrick J Dollan, DL, LLD, JP who was introduced by the Reverend L W Fischer. Other members of the platform party were the Reverend C Matthews, the Reverend J N Maxwell of Saint John's Stevenston, Treasurer James Dorrian, Mrs O'Hare and Mr J McGrattan.
Father Fischer, after commenting on the unfavourable weather conditions, said that although Sir Patrick has just recovered from illness, he was very anxious to come and open the Sale.
Sir Patrick, added Father Fischer, always had a soft spot in his heart for Ardrossan and had been very pleased with the progress made in the Parish.
Declaring the Sale open, Sir Patrick recalled that last year they collected £490, the Salt on that occasion being opened by the Bishop of Galloway. Sir Patrick also mentioned that he had been a temporary parishioner in Ardrossan for several years and had come to love the Church very much. Architecturaly, it was one the most pleasing Churches in the West of Scotland. It was very simple in design and acoustically it was perfect. Many churches in Scotland could very well copy the design and layout of Saint Peter in Chains with great advantage to themselves.
Sir Patrick congratulated the members of the Church on having started the building of such a fine Presbytery and jocularly remarked that if news of the Presbytery got around the West of Scotland and into their various ecclesiastical colleges, there would be more candidates for the priesthood wishing to come to Ardrossan than anywhere else. A priest's house, he added, ought to be the best of its kind and he hoped that when the Presbytery was built, they would start without delay on the building of a hall which was so richly deserved and for which they had such an ideal site. He also urged the laity to subscribe more to the Church than they had been doing in the past.
In wishing the Sale of Work every success, Sir Patrick handed over to Father Fischer the sum of £50, a gift from an anonymous donor.
Father Fischer thanked Sir Patrick for opening the Sale and urged the people to go round the stalls and buy what they could.
The
Sale, we are informed, realised £320, a sum which considering the unfavourable
weather conditions on Saturday last, reflects great credit on the organisers and
on all taking part.
Patrick
Joseph Dollan was born in Ballieston, Glasgow in 1855. In 1912, he married Agnes
Moir (1887-1966).
He was Lord Provost of Glasgow between 1938 and
1941. He was knighted for war services in 1941. Sir Patrick died in 1963.
Return
to report.