8:30am Saturday 27th June 2009
A short history of Skipton Grammar School had been written and would appear in the school magazine. A concise, reliable and up-to-date account of the school had long been awaited.
An anxious mother from Skipton was concerned about the decision of the Skipton Joint Hospital Committee to restrict hospital visiting by parents unless the patient’s condition necessitated it. She pointed out the anxiety of parents who were restricted from seeing their children and said she understood two children had died recently in hospital without seeing their parents.
The rural district council sprayed Gargrave High Street with tar – a boon to those people who live there. As it was a main road to the north, the dust caused by motorists was a constant nuisance.
In less than five weeks, Barnoldswick and Earby reservoirs would be dry and a race against time was taking place to bring supplies from Skipton. Craven Water Board could not maintain the present 12-hour supply and, the following week, the two towns would have water only between 6am and 2pm from Monday to Friday and from 10am to 4pm on Saturdays and Sundays.
Successful negotiations took place to open up to the public 2,350 acres of Barden Moor and Fell. The West Riding Town and Planning Authority and Trustees of the Chatsworth Settlement had reached an agreement over the issue and the observations of the National Parks Commission were being sought before formal steps were taken.
A Barnoldswick firm was to help the Falklands Islands’ economy after the bitter Argentinian war. Ceratex Engineering was about to take delivery of thousands of rocks collected from the Falklands seashore to make into paperweights. The project was being spearheaded by Slaidburn man John Huckle, who was, for a time, harbour master at Port Stanley. The stones had been collected from the beaches of Peebles Island, where the British Special Forces had carried out daring night-time raids, and were to be polished using Ceratex’s revolutionary machines.
Cononley Primary School headmaster Edward Chesters was to retire after 40 years in the teaching profession. Mr Chesters had been head of the school for 23 years and one of his first initiatives had been to introduce swimming lessons.
College student Sue Metcalfe was to represent the North of England in a cricket match against New Zealand. Susan, 19, from Kilnsey, had played at county and national level as a junior. She went on to become one of the country’s top women cricketers and played for England in the 1997 World Cup in India.
Cracoe’s new village hall got a royal seal of approval. At the opening ceremony, a personal message was read from the Prince of Wales, who had laid the hall’s foundation stone the previous year. He said: “I know that a great many local people have worked incredibly hard to plan this new hall and raise funds to ensure that it was built in time for the new millennium. The new building will provide local people with a wonderful venue for clubs, school activities, meetings and family celebrations and will give a new lease of life to the local community.
A Dales fish farm was turning back the clock more than 60 years to a time when it produced its own electricity using hydro power. Kilnsey Park and Trout Farm was planning to restore the unit, which had produced its last kilowatt in the 1930s.
© Copyright 2001-2012 Newsquest Media Group
http://www.cravenherald.co.uk/trade_directory/