Lt-Col Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

Henry Fishwick (9 March 1835 – 23 September 1914) was a British soldier, politician and

antiquary An antiquarian or antiquary () is an fan (person), aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artifact (archaeology), artifac ...

.''Henry Fishwick'', ''Manchester City News'', 26 September 1914 After a military career, he became a

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

Councillor (1871–1914) and twice Mayor of

Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, at the foothills of the South Pennines in the dale on the River Roch, northwest of Oldham and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough ...

(1903–05). He was also author and editor of several books on Lancashire and was a founding member of three of the county's historical societies.

Background

Fishwick was the son of Henry Halliwell Fishwick of Brownhill,

, and was born on 9 March 1835. At the age of eighteen, he became the secretary of the Rochdale branch of the

Young Men's Christian Association YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...

.''Transactions of Lancashire and Cheshire Antiquarian Society'', 32 (1914), pp. 305–306.

Soldier

Fishwick was one of the earliest supporters of the

Volunteer Force The Volunteer Force was a citizen army of part-time rifle, artillery and engineer corps, created as a popular movement throughout the British Empire in 1859. Originally highly autonomous, the units of volunteers became increasingly integrated ...

movement in Rochdale and, when a corps was formed, he joined as a Lieutenant (1860). He was later promoted to Major, and then commanding officer. From 1871, as

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

, he was attached to the Eighth (King's) Regiment (stationed in

Salford Salford () is a city and the largest settlement in the City of Salford metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, Salford had a population of 103,886. It is also the second and only other city in the metropolitan county afte ...

Politician

Fishwick entered local politics in 1871, when he was elected to Rochdale Town Council. He served as a

Councillor (1871–1914), and was Chairman of the Library and Art Gallery Committee (from 1881). He was a Member of the School Board (1870–1903), serving as chairman (from 1897), and then a Member of its successor, the Education Committee (1903–14), serving as chairman. In 1909, he was elected President of the Association of Education Committees of England and Wales. He was twice elected Mayor of

(in 1903–04 and 1904–05), also serving as a borough

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judici ...

and county JP for

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

, and was a prominent

Freemason Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

. In 1906, he was honoured with the Honorary

Freedom of the borough The Freedom of the City (or Borough in some parts of the UK) is an honour bestowed by a municipality upon a valued member of the community, or upon a visiting celebrity or dignitary. Arising from the medieval practice of granting respected ...

, and was known as the ‘Father of the Council’. In 1911, Fishwick was honoured by a Public testimonial presented by Lord Sheffield.

Antiquary

Fishwick was a frequent contributor of papers on various subjects to ''Transactions of Rochdale Literary and Scientific Society'' (1880–6) and ''Transactions of

Lancashire and Cheshire Antiquarian Society The Lancashire and Cheshire Antiquarian Society is a historical society and registered charity founded, on 21 March 1883, for the study of any aspects of the area covered by the Palatine Counties of Lancashire and Cheshire (and succeeding local ...

'' (1884–1910). He edited several volumes for the

Chetham Society The Chetham Society "for the publication of remains historic and literary connected with the Palatine Counties of Lancaster and Chester" is a text publication society and registered charity (No. 700047) established on 23 March 1843. History Th ...

and

Record Society of Lancashire and Cheshire The Record Society of Lancashire and Cheshire is a text publication society that publishes historical documents relating to the traditional counties of Lancashire and Cheshire. It became a registered charity (No. 500434) for public education ...

, and was the author of several parish histories: ''Goosnargh'' (1871), ''Kirkham'' (1874), ''Garstang'' (1878–79), ''Rochdale'' (1889), as well as other works. Fishwick was a member of several societies: Manchester Arts Club (Founding Member and chairman);

(Council Member, 1875–1901, and Vice-President, 1901–14); Rochdale Literary and Scientific Society (Founder Member (1878), President and Vice-President);

(Founder Member, Vice-President, 1878–95, 1904–14, and President, 1895–1904);

Historic Society of Lancashire and Cheshire The Historic Society of Lancashire and Cheshire is a historical society and registered charity founded for the purpose of "collecting, preserving, arranging and publishing such Historical Documents, Antiquities…Specimens of Ancient and Medi ...

(Council Member, 1880–1914);

(founding member, Council Member, 1883–1914, Vice-President, and President, 1897–98); and

Lancashire Parish Register Society The Lancashire Parish Register Society is a text publication society and registered charity which was founded for the "purpose of printing the registers of the ancient parishes" in Lancashire and has published more than 175 volumes, CDs and CD- ...

(founding member and President, 1897–1914). He was elected a

Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

of the Society of Antiquaries and the

Royal Historical Society The Royal Historical Society, founded in 1868, is a learned society of the United Kingdom which advances scholarly studies of history. Origins The society was founded and received its royal charter in 1868. Until 1872 it was known as the Histori ...

Family

Fishwick married the daughter of Dr W. H. Bullmore of

Truro Truro (; kw, Truru) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Cornwall, England. It is Cornwall's county town, sole city and centre for administration, leisure and retail trading. Its ...

, Cornwall, and they had four children: one son (who emigrated to Canada) and three daughters, including Janet Fishwick (d.1944). Fishwick lived at The Heights, Rochdale until his death on 23 September 1914.

Select bibliography

*
The History of the parochial Chapelry of Goosnargh in the County of Lancaster
'' C. Simms, Goosnargh, 1871. *
The History of the Parish of Kirkham in the County of Lancaster
''

, Old Series, 92 (1874). *
Lancashire and Cheshire Church Surveys 1649–1655
''

, 1 (1878). *
History of the Parish of Garstang in the County of Lancaster
''

, Old Series, Part I: 104 (1878); Part II: 105 (1879). *
A list of Lancashire wills proved in the Archdeaconry of Richmond 1547 to 1680
'.

,10 (1884). *
The History of the Parish of Poulton-le-Fylde, in the County of Lancaster
',

, New Series, 8 (1885). *
A list of Lancashire wills proved in the Archdeaconry of Richmond 1681 to 1748
'.

,13 (1886). *
The History of the Parish of Bispham, in the County of Lancaster
'.

, New Series, 10 (1887). *
The History of the Parish of St Michael-on-Wyre in the County of Lancaster
'.

, New Series, 25 (1891). *
The Note Book of The Rev. Thomas Jolly, A.D. 1671–93
'.

, New Series, 33 (1894). * ''Pleadings and depositions in the duchy court of Lancaster''.

,
Part 1: ' Henry VII and Henry VIII
'' 32 (1896); ''Part 2: Henry VIII,'' 35 (1897);
Part 3: Edward VI and Philip & Mary
', 40 (1899). *
The History of the Parish of Lytham in the County of Lancaster
'.

, New Series, 60 (1907). *
The Survey of the Manor of Rochdale in the County of Lancaster, Parcel of the Possessions of The Rt Worshipful Sir Robert Heath, Knt, His Majesty’s Attorney-General, made in 1626
'.

, New Series, 71 (1913).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fishwick, Henry 1835 births 1914 deaths People from Rochdale Volunteer Force officers King's Regiment (Liverpool) officers Freemasons of the United Grand Lodge of England Mayors of Rochdale 19th-century English historians 20th-century English historians Victorian writers English antiquarians Antiquarians History of Lancashire Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London Record Society of Lancashire and Cheshire Lancashire and Cheshire Antiquarian Society Chetham Society Historic Society of Lancashire and Cheshire Lancashire Parish Register Society