From the archives (From Craven Herald)

From the archives

9:50am Saturday 20th June 2009 in

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100 years ago

The property market was looking up. Land abutting main roads and in close proximity to villages had for some time seen a slump. However, judging from a sale in Skipton, there were yet people who believed in the rural districts being regarded with increased favour by the town dweller and businessman.

A joiner was summoned to answer a charge of riding a motorcycle at a speed dangerous to the public. The defendant was timed over a measured 220 yards in Main Street, Cross Hills – a distance which he covered in 24 seconds, equal to 18 miles per hour. There were five vehicles, three cycles and 20 to 30 pedestrians in the area at the time. He was fined 10s and costs.

A motor car which came tearing down the hill from Cringles into Silsden – described as a favourite but dangerous run for motorists – crushed a cat to death, it was reported. Nimble, as puss was known, could not escape the juggernaut and none of the occupants seemed to know of her death.

50 years ago

Probably for the first time in the long history of Skipton Castle, a Swiss flag fluttered on the battlements and the Union Jack was also flying. The occasion was in honour of the wedding in Switzerland of Thomas Peter Fattorini and Anna Kirsti Buhler.

The accident report for the Skipton rural district for the first quarter showed there were 128 accidents on Dales roads. Of these, 69 were without injury and 20 concerned dogs. The peak hour was 3pm to 4pm, when children were leaving school. Seventeen accidents were recorded then.

Under the Government’s new house purchase scheme, people could obtain 95 per cent mortgages on older houses. Skipton Building Society was one of the first societies to be granted trustees security status, required for them to participate in the scheme.

25 years ago

Eighteen-year-old Darren Elgie took part in the Trooping of the Colour. The Barnoldswick teenager was in the massed ranks of the Grenadier Guards and had been taking part in ceremonial duties for six months. He was shortly to head for tropical combat in the Central American state of Belize.

Bride-to-be Beverley Bernard came down to earth with a bump – quite literally. She was taking part in a charity parachute jump at Flookburgh Airfield and hit the ground with such a jolt that she broke her leg. And that left her hopping mad as she was due to marry sweetheart John Taylor at St Stephen’s Church, Skipton, just a few days later. However, she was determined the ceremony should go ahead – and planned to make the journey down the aisle in a wheelchair.

10 years ago

Murphy – the English Mastiff from Stainforth – looked in danger of losing his title as the biggest dog in the world. Murphy had been put on a diet because of a leg injury, which had reduced his weight from 21 stone (130 kilos) to 17.5 stone (110 kilos). And that had resulted in a challenge to his title from another English Mastiff which tipped the scales at 19 stone. However, the Guinness Book of Worlds ruled that Murphy still held the honour as no dog had beaten his previously recorded weight.

A statue marking the 50th anniversary of the National Health Service was unveiled at Airedale Hospital, Steeton. The sculpture was created by Kate Maddison and Holger Lang, of Gargrave-based Chrysalis Arts. It took the form a tree with silhouette images of staff and objects from the medical world cast into bronze leaves. It also included a time capsule.