IT never ceases to amaze us but when Bygones asks, inevitably one of our readers responds.

When we appealed recently for stories of local sportsmen and women, Ian Lomax got in touch to tell us about his father.

Harold Lomax, who was born in Marsh House Lane, Darwen, in 1913, was the town’s outstanding swimmer over three decades but was accomplished, too, at a variety of other sports, including football and cross-country.

In 1926, when he was 13, he won the Darwen schools’ swimming championship, while also playing wing half for St James School and Darwen schoolboys football teams.

He later played for the then top amateur team Marsh Villa.

While a member of Holy Trinity Church Lads Brigade, Harold ran for the Darwen CLB cross-country team, one of the best in the north and at the age of 15, was a leading member of the Darwen team which won the all-England CLB swimming championship.

One day, he swam in a heat of the championship, dashed by taxi to run in a 100-yard sprint and then finished fourth in a three-mile race!

When Darwen’s Peel Baths opened, he was the town’s swimming champion – and met his future wife Catherine, known as Kitty, who was the ladies’ swimming champion.

He became a school swimming instructor there, teaching a generation of youngsters before the war.

Harold joined the army in 1939 and after completing initial training with the RASC, was selected for the physical training corps.

While in the Army he played football for the brigade, rugby at battalion level, swam for various teams, performed in an acrobatic comedy duo at service concerts and wrestled.

After demob, he rejoined the Army in 1947 and spent the next two years in Germany, even turning out for a German polo team.

He won the breaststroke, backstroke and freestyle titles in the Army Swimming Championships which took place in the Olympic Pool in Berlin in 1948 and coached a regimental boxing team.

When he returned to East Lancashire he joined the Gas Board. Kitty had worked in the canteen at the Royal Ordnance in Blackburn during the war and later became a weaver.

In his spare time Harold was a swimming instructor at Brinscall Swimming Club and coached many promising individuals in Blackburn and Darwen.

Ian also recollects him coaching in Yorkshire and that Anita Lonsbrough, who won gold in the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome, was one of his pupils.

In later years he took up golf – and won the Captain’s Prize at Rishton, when he was 55 – as well as darts and snooker.

Harold’s first swimming lesson as a schoolboy was given by a former Darwen personality, Bob Almond – ballroom dancer, composer, orchestra leader, publican and versatile sportsman, who was reputedly the fastest 50-yard swimmer in England.

One day in Peel baths he showed Harold how to hang on to the side of the baths and develop his leg action.

  • If you have any old photos or stories you would like to share with our readers, we would be very happy to hear from you.

You can contact Gill Johnson on 01254 298223 or email gill.johnson@nqnw.co.uk