This postcard arrived in my inbox a couple of weeks ago courtesy of Dave Middlehurst who recently posted it on his fantastic collection of images of North-West Morris teams on his Flickr site. (https://www.flickr.com/photos/15974550@N03/)
Up until now I have only been able to locate a couple of grainy newspaper images of this troupe, so you can imagine, it was a delight to receive it.
The troupe can be seen wearing the typical style of costumes worn by Cheshire Morris troupes in the 1920s and 1930s. They are carrying shakers, known as ‘Shilelaghs’, which they used in their dance. Whilst the names of some of the Bensonian dancers are known from various sources, no evidence can confirm whether those named were dancing in the 1929 season, so names cannot be put to the faces in the photograph. It is known that the young man in the centre leading the troupe was not Eric Benson, the troupe's founder. Eric, a man of quite small stature, is in second position on the men’s side.
1929 - Altrincham’s Bensonian Troupe of Morris Dancers’s Most Successful Year
1929 was by far the most successful year for this troupe in Morris dancing competitions at carnivals in the North-West. The photograph above celebrates that success in the form of trophies and certificates won during the season. Newspaper reports so far discovered indicate that the Bensonians gained at least nine first places in 1929. These were at Alderley Edge Carnival, Chester Autumn Sports and Carnival, Macclesfield Carnival, Morecambe Carnival, Rochdale Trades Council Carnival, Rudheath Carnival, Sale and Ashton upon Mersey Carnival, Stockport Carnival and Winnington Fete. A junior troupe also gained second place at Altrincham Carnival.
Assuming that the picture was taken at the end of the 1929 season, the cups on the photograph probably include the Whiston Cup from Macclesfield, the Carnival Cup from Sale and Ashton upon Mersey, the Challenge Cup from Alderley Edge, the Super Cinema Silver Challenge Cup from Stockport and the Silver Challenge Cup from Chester, all of which they are known to have won.
Reports of carnivals at Sale and Ashton upon Mersey and Chester in local newspapers provide us with a good indication about why this troupe was so successful:
At Sale and Ashton Carnival:
‘Their drilling, perfect rhythm and alignment were a joy to watch, and they had perfect understanding with their leader and discipline that carried them to success.’ (Altrincham, Bowdon and Hale Guardian, 21 Jun 1929, p.7)
At Chester Carnival:
‘The morris dancing troupes were so good that the judges found it extremely difficult to decide which was the best, and they supplied a touch of the picturesque to the proceedings. The silver challenge cup went to the efficient Bensonian dancers from Hale.’ (Altrincham, Bowdon and Hale Guardian, 9 Aug 1929, p.8)
Origins of the Troupe
The Bensonian Morris dancing troupe took part in carnival competitions between 1927 and 1932. A troupe was originally formed by Eric Benson who, in 1924, advertised in the Altrincham Express, not for Morris dancers, but for young men over the age of sixteen to form a gymnastic troupe, which would specialise in club swinging, sword swinging and pyramid forming. This troupe gave displays at Altrincham Conservative Working Men’s Club Smoking Concert in October 1925.
According to Roy Dommett’s notes on the Altrincham Morris Dance on the Morris Federation’s Website, the Bensonian Morris dancing troupe was formed in 1926. It learnt its morris dance from the Mobberley troupe who had previously been taught the dance as performed by the Cranford troupe of Knutsford by Mabel and Annie Pemberton. The Bensonian troupe began to make its presence felt in Morris troupe competitions from 1927. Though it performed primarily as a Morris Dancing troupe, it continued gymnastic pursuits throughout the whole of its period of activity and regularly took part in competitions in the entertaining troupe category. However, it was not as successful in winning prizes in this category as it was in the Morris dancing section.
Trouble in the Ranks
During its relatively short life the Bensonian troupe was subject to a significant amount of conflict which led to departures by members to dance with other Altrincham troupes:
• Frank Clegg, a former Mobberley dancer, who taught the Mobberley Morris dance to the Bensonian troupe, moved back from Mobberley to Altrincham, probably in 1926. There is no firm evidence that he danced with the Bensonians, and, if he did, it was not for a lengthy time as he was leading his own short-lived troupe, Oldfield Morris Dancers, in July 1928.
• Two of the female dancers for the Bensonians joined the Ashfield Morris Dancers about 1928, one of whom made clear that her action followed a quarrel within the Bensonian troupe.
• Dennis Whitney, an early member, broke away from the Bensonians to lead and train the dancers in the Ashfield troupe which was formed by his aunt Maggie Richardson, and which began winning prizes in 1928. Dennis soon deserted both the Ashfield troupe and his aunt. He was leading the Stamford Morris Dancers from Altrincham at Weaverham Rose Queen Festival in July 1929.
• Harold Hollingworth, who taught and led the Ashfield troupe after Dennis Whitney moved on, stated in a letter to researcher Lesley Edwards in 1981 that he became involved in Morris dancing as a result of disagreement amongst the adult supporters of the Bensonian Morris dancers which caused a split in the side.
• At Chester Autumn Sports and Carnival in 1930 the report in the Chester Chronicle expressed surprised that the Bensonians, who had won the competition in 1929, were unplaced. The Benosonian troupe was described as, ‘a youthful set of Morris dancers in white, orange and purple’. The Linotype troupe which was awarded second prize were described as, ‘a new group partly composed of Bensonians of last year’. (Chester Chronicle, 9 Aug 1930, p.4)
Although the Bensonian Morris dancers continued until 1932, they never recovered the level of performance attained in 1929 and, as far as yet been discovered, only won one more first place in carnival competitions.
Eric Benson
Eric Benson who founded the troupe lived an eventful early life. He was born Eric Bateman in Liverpool in 1903 but was admitted as Eric Bateman to the Chorlton Union Workhouse in Manchester, in 1909 and transferred to Styal Cottage Homes, a settlement of cottages, a hospital and a school built by the Chorlton Poor Law Union in Cheshire to house destitute children away from the city. He was described as an orphan on the 1921 Census and was boarding in Bolton at the home of his employer, a painter and plasterer.
By 1924 Eric had moved to Altrincham and lived as a lodger during the 1920s in various houses there and in nearby Hale. By 1939 he was a master housepainter and decorator and in 1944 he married a widow from Timperley. He became associated with a Congregational Church Youth Club in Timperley in the late 1930s and members of the church recall that he taught young people pyramid building and Morris dances. In 1976 Eric responded to an article in the local paper asking for ‘Elderley Morris dancers’ who remembered the old dances to come forward and teach them to the newly formed Bollin Morris who were aiming to revive the Cheshire dances.
Eric died in 1978 after demonstrating arm movements for the Altrincham dance at a Bollin Morris practice.
Thanks to Duncan Broomhead for drawing this postcard to my attention. Full details of sources and further information can be found in my book ‘Carnivals, Contests and Coronations – a Social History of Morris Dancing in Trafford before the Second World War’ available through the Shuffleback Press website https://www.shuffleback.co.uk.
The author would be delighted to receive any information or pictures of this troupe or any other Morris dancing troupes who came from the Trafford area. He can be contacted through the contacts page of https://www.shuffleback.co.uk .
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