1895 - started his education at Victoria Park School in Rusholme, Manchester.

1904 - began work with a Manchester firm of accountants.

1905 - started evening classes at the Manchester Municipal School of Art.

1910 - became a rent collector and clerk with the Pall Mall Property Company, Manchester.

1934 - elected to the Royal Society of British Artists.

1945 - awarded an honorary MA from Manchester University.

1967 - refused a knighthood.

1975 - the universities of Salford and Liverpool conferred upon him the honorary degree of DLitt.