100 years ago

A SKIPTON soldier writing home from the Front described being bivouacked in a forest. He said it was a novelty and described how soldiers had made little tents out of ground sheets. It was like a wood several times the size of Skipton Woods, he said, with a few thousand men living in it.

Gunner James Wiseman from Earby wrote the Craven Herald to enable him to complete the equipment of a band. He was a mandolin player, but had no mandolin.

The people of Buckden gave 632 eggs for the wounded soldiers which were forwarded to the hospitals in France. Of the 632, about 30 each week were given by scholars of Buckden School from their parents.

50 years ago

SKIPTON people were eagerly anticipating their annual holidays. The mills closed and did not open for two weeks. Mills at Cross Hills and Silsden followed Keighley holidays. Shops closed for the second week of the holidays.

Skipton pensioners held their annual outing to the sea. A total of 253 went by special train to Morecambe. They arrived at noon and returned eight hours later. One lady gave them 10lbs of sweets to eat on the journey.

The grant of arms and insignia to Settle Rural District Council was to be performed by the Duke of Devonshire. The ceremony was to have been performed a month earlier, but was postponed due to the Duke's illness.

25 years ago

A BARNOLDSWICK brother and sister shared the same wedding day at the town’s Holy Trinity Church. Mechanic Mark Gretham married local girl Julie Pike while his sister, Lindsay, wed Damian Gaskell. Lindsay was a care assistant at Cravenside and her bridegroom was a staff nurse at Airedale Hospital.

Despite the rain, crowds turned out for the 12th Broughton Game Show. There was a host of high-standard events to lift the spirits. Held in the grounds of Broughton Hall, the event attracted 10,000 people. “Taking into account the weather, we were delighted by how many people turned out,” said show committee chairman DavidAynesworth. Celebrity guests included Leeds United star Vinnie Jones and comedian Bernie Clifton.

The High Commissioner of Zambia visited Settle Middle School to thank pupils for raising £1,000 to build a new school in the African country. Edward Lubinda, accompanied by the First Secretary, Mr B Chomba, presented the Settle students with a recording of president Kenneth Kaunda singing.

10 years ago

A GRANDFATHER who had been donating blood for 45 years was thanked for his dedication. Sutton man Greville Birkett received a commendation from the National Blood Service after giving 87 units of blood – one unit was just under a pint. Turning 70, Mr Birkett had reached the service’s upper age limit. He gave his first donation as a 25-year-old. “I am not being heroic and I don’t understand why more people don’t donate. There is no pain,” he said.

A Skipton firm shut its doors after 50 years of trading. Tower Auto Electrical, on Cross Street, had been repairing electrical parts on vehicles for half a century. One of the oldest businesses in the town, it started life as Highfield Auto Electrical. For Skipton man Hugh Chew, it was his first and last place of work. He joined the company at 15 and had worked there ever since. Owner James Butterfield said cars had become much more specialised and no-one wanted repairs any more.

An Austwick man was helping residents in the tsunami-hit area around Indonesia. Ian Clarke, 45, a project worker with Oxfam, was helping the population of Banda Aceh and Aceh Besar recover from the after-effects of the Boxing Day disaster, which had killed hundreds of thousands of people and left millions more with no homes or livelihoods. Mr Clarke’s work included restoring water supplies and sanitation and providing emergency shelter for people in more than 50 villages. “Much needs to be done but the people of Aceh are on the road to recovery and their future looks more assured,” said Mr Clarke, who had a seven-year-old son.