Poignant ceremony marks centenary of Tipton factory explosion which killed 19 young girls

Dignitaries and relatives from across the borough came together to remember what is probably the darkest day in the area's history on Sunday.

A total of 19 girls, aged between 13 and 16, died as a result of injuries sustained in the LK Knowles metal works explosion on March 6, 1922.

Now, 100 years after the tragedy, a special ceremony has been held at Tipton Cemetery to remember those who lost their lives on that fateful day.

Crosses with the names of each girl killed in the explosion were laid by family members as a poignant tribute – and to ensure they would not be forgotten.

Wreaths were also laid by relatives alongside Councillor Richard Jones, deputy mayor of Sandwell, and other people wishing to pay their respects.

The service was held by the Friends of Tipton Cemetery, in partnership with Sandwell Council, who wanted to mark the poignant anniversary with a ceremony.

And a small exhibition provided by Sandwell Museums Service opened after the commemoration at Toll End Methodist Church, Bourne Avenue, Tipton.

The young girls had been employed illegally by John Walter Knowles at the site and had been tasked with dismantling live ammunition for scrap. And it was there, on Groveland Road just off Dudley Port, where the tragedy happened at around 11.45am.

The firm had employed about 50 girls and those who were not injured in the blast ran home – while those injured were taken to Dudley Guest Hospital, mostly in passing cars or lorries that had been flagged down.

The harrowing incident, which shocked the nation, even led to Clive Wygram, equerry to King George V, writing a letter of condolence on the King's behalf to the families of the teenage girls.

Knowles, who lived in Stourton, had secured a contract breaking up surplus rifle cartridges left over from the First World War so they could be sold for scrap. The work had been subcontracted to Knowles from Birmingham-based Premium Aluminium Company, which had been carrying out such work for some time under licence from the Home Office.

For a fee of £500, plus a half-share of any profits made, Premium Aluminium handed Knowles 160 tons of cartridges, and it fell to Knowles’ workforce to dismantle the cartridges, separating the copper casing from the lead bullets, and removing any trace of gunpowder so that they could safely be melted down.

But while Harry Andrews, chairman of Premium Aluminium, insisted his company only employed girls aged 18 or over and made sure the cartridges were broken underwater, Knowles was not quite so scrupulous.

Andrews paid his adult workers between £2 and £3 a week – about £121 to £182 at today’s prices – but Knowles paid his child labour force just 6s – the equivalent of about £18 today. And while the girls at Premium Aluminium had felt pads on their shoes to reduce the risk of sparks, and fireproof screens to separate them, Knowles did not bother with such matters.

John Knowles, a 55-year-old man of considerable wealth, and his manager, Ebor Chadwick, were charged with manslaughter, while Knowles’ wife Louisa Kate – technically the owner of the factory – was charged with the illegal storage of explosives.

During the trial at Stafford Assizes, it emerged that John Knowles had four previous convictions for offences under the Factory and Workshops Acts, and had served 18 months in prison for receiving stolen metal.

The court heard he did not have the required licence to handle explosives. John Knowles was found guilty, while Chadwick – who had been left deaf by the explosion – and Louisa Knowles were acquitted.

The Knowles’s voluntarily paid £10,000 in compensation to the victims and their families, about £640,000 at today’s prices. Mr Justice Shearman was withering while passing sentence on Knowles who was jailed for five years.

The girls killed as a result of the explosion were:

Laura Dalloway, 14, of 36, Upper Chapel Street, Tividale; Nellie Kay, 15, of 20, Great Bridge Street, West Bromwich; Mabel Weaver, 14, of 3, Victoria Terrace, Tipton; Annie Freeth, 15, of Farley Street, Great Bridge; Violet May Franklin, 15, of 17, Cleton Street, Tipton; Annie Elizabeth Florence Edwards, 15, of 77, A block, Munition Huts, Dudley; Annie Naylor, 14, of 162, Dudley Port; Priscilla Longmore, 13, of 337, Dudley Port; Lizzie Williams, 13, of Old Cross Street, Tipton; Edith Drew, 15, of Boat Row, Tipton; Edith Richards, 14, of 7, Factory Road, Tipton; Elsie Follows, 15, of 196, Dudley Port; Gladys May Bryant, 14, of 15, West Street, Dudley; Lily Griffiths, of Railway Street, Horsley Heath; Margaret Burns, 15, of Sheepwash Lane, West Bromwich; Hannah Hubbard, 16, of Dudley Port; Elizabeth Aston, 16; Lucy Edwards, 14; and Ethel May Jukes, 15.