John Picken Dixon, cotton in Marton and the myth of a tunnel between the tower and Winter Gardens

Marton historian Philip Walsh takes a look at a Lancashire Cotton Manufacturer and philanthropist John Picken Dixon

Marton Parish Church built in 1908/1909 with the new war memorial given by Mrs Dixon in 1921

Myths about a maintenance tunnel between Blackpool Tower and the Winter Gardens, and the Tower resting on cotton bales, sometimes resurface. The council has consistently refuted the tunnel myth. The cotton bales myth originated from (Sir) John Bickerstaffe, Tower Company chairman, who jokingly stated the Tower was built on "bales of cotton", referring to the numerous Lancashire cotton mill workers holidaying in Blackpool. These workers and their employers significantly contributed to the town's prosperity.

One such mill owner was John Picken Dixon, born in Broughton, Manchester in 1851, who visited Blackpool with his parents as a ten-year-old. Speaking to members of Marton Institute some 50 years later, Dixon recalled the Bridge of Peace near to the Lane Ends Hotel on the Promenade.