Lives in Cricket No 51 - Rev ES Carter

Carter was a founding member in 1878 of a Soldiers Home and Institute for York equivalent to ‘a coffee house where healthful recreation and instruction could be provided’. In 1884 he became a patron of the Railway Servants Orphanage, the railways then as now being an essential and important transport hub in York. He subscribed to the York Poor Law Union, The York Dispensary and the York Temperance Society though he also gave support to the York Licensed Victuallers Association believing that Association worked to moderate excessive drinking in the city. Then he was also a committee member of the York Discharged Prisoners Aid Society which was very active in its support for former prisoners. The 1899 report, by way of example, recorded that 367 men and 154 women had been given financial aid in the past year and that 70 of those persons had also ‘signed the pledge’. Local York papers would, from time to time, mention his work for the Church Missionary Society and in 1885 he became President of the local York Missionary Society whose then stated aim was to promote missionary work at St Michael-le-Belfrey Church. He also supported the York Branch of the Colonial and Continental Church Society. Perhaps it was through the latter society that Carter in 1880 was able to spend a few weeks enjoying himself and church-going in Switzerland where very wealthy British people were able to spend some of their holidays. At one time he was a keen member of theYork Scripture Readers Society whose members would walk the streets of York ready to read extracts from the scriptures wherever groups of people could be attracted to stand and listen. In similar vein he supported the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, the York Auxiliary of the British and Foreign Bible Society, the York Branch of the Pastoral Aid Society, the Protestant Christians of the Spanish and Portuguese Church Aid Society and the Church of England Zenana (India) Mission Society. He was attracted by missionary work and one of the more unusual groups that he aided was the Navvy Missionary Society supporting itinerant workmen in the construction industry. He was sometimes referred to as the Mission Canon of York Cathedral. York 51