100 years ago

The Veterinary Surgeons Act Amendment Bill came in for scathing criticism from Settle farmers. It was suggested that only fully qualified veterinary surgeons should be allowed to perform necessary operations on lambs and prescribe for the many ailments that afflicted farm stock. This, if passed, would put out of court about 25,000 "other vets" who, the Herald said, may not have the necessary mystic letters added to their names, but whose experience was far more worthy than fancy diplomas.

The difference in educational methods was highlighted. Art teaching was applied to every section of schooling, but, the Herald mused, surely it would be better to allow youngsters to be thoroughly grounded in the three Rs before troubling their brains with theories of art.

50 years ago

Damage amounting to hundreds of thousands of pounds was caused when a fierce fire gutted the main four storey building of Broughton Road Shed, Skipton. The premises were occupied by Rycroft and Hartley, rayon manufacturers, and Garner Prestwich, rayon and silk manufacturers. It was the biggest mill fire in the town for more than half a century. Flames shot skyward as high as 50 feet and could be seen for miles around. Families living nearby were roused from their beds and evacuated from their homes. Shortly after, tons of masonry came crashing into the street as the side of the mill wall collapsed.

An Ingleton man was fined 10s for quitting a motor vehicle without stopping the engine. In a letter to the court the defendant wrote that as he was only a few yards away from the vehicle, he did not think he was committing an offence.

The General Purposes Committee of Skipton Urban District Council resolved that efforts should be made within the next seven years to provide funds for new swimming baths.

25 years ago

Proposals to alter historic Gledstone Hall, near West Marton, were described as a desecration amid fierce local opposition at the parish council's annual meeting. It was decided to ask the Society for the Preservation of Ancient Buildings and the Council for the Preservation of Rural England for help in fighting the proposals, which were to convert the hall into five flats. The hall, built in 1923-27, was designed by famous architect Sir Edwin Lutyens. It had been said that it should be a national monument.

People whose homes lined the main street at Eastburn were living in terror, the parish council heard. And their fears had been given solid foundation following an accident which resulted in a vehicle knocking down a lamp post outside their front doors. Chairman Geoffrey Funnell said it was only a matter of time before a vehicle embedded itself on one of the houses.

10 years ago

Police seized drugs worth more than £38,000 in Craven during a month-long campaign targeting suspected drug dealers.

If you were hoping to pass your driving test then your safest bet could have been to take it in Skipton. The town emerged in the top 10 official Government figures for pass rates up and down the country. Rookie motorists were more likely to be tearing up their L-plates in Skipton than almost anywhere else in the north according to the Driving Standards Agency.

Silsden youngsters could have been attracted to a life of truancy, gambling and crime if an amusement arcade was allowed to open in the town, councillors were told. A petition signed by more than 300 people was handed into council planning chiefs.

10:34am Friday 4th April 2008

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