100 years ago

Much excitement had prevailed when two bullocks found their way into the hardware shop of Mr A Burrows, 31, Nunnery Lane and caused a great deal of damage before they were ejected.

The bullocks, the property of Mr F Davison, butcher, of Micklegate, were being driven along Nunnery Lane in the direction of Blossom Street by a boy, when one of them espied the open door of Mr Burrows' shop and walked in.

The other animal followed suit. As the shop was of small dimensions and well-stocked with various crockery and tinware there was soon a commotion.

Mr Burrows was absent at the time, but Mr A Scott, who kept a fruiterer's shop opposite, saw the intruders. After shutting the doors leading into the house he proceeded to turn the bullocks out.

This he eventually accomplished by the assiduous use of a broom handle, but not before damage had been done to the estimated extent of £5.


50 years ago

Progress - in the form of plastic materials - was forcing one of York's oldest manufacturing firms to close down.

The cork-making business of John Deighton and Co Ltd, in Grape Lane, would officially "die" and bring to an end a craft which had begun in the city in 1770 on King's Staith.

Lately, the firm had been largely engaged on the production of corks for medicine bottles and for the brewery industry. But more and more prescriptions were being dispensed in the form of pills, and brewers were using very few corks.

During the 1939-45 war, it had a large staff employed in producing lifebelts and lifebuoys. Some of the vintage equipment was going to the Castle Museum, including a branding machine which stamped names and addresses on corks.


25 years ago

Humberside should be renamed East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire, said MP David Davis.

He was putting forward two alternatives - East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire, or East Yorkshire and Lindsey.

Boothferry’s Conservative member was writing to the Boundary Commission putting forward his suggestions as an alternative to splitting up Humberside County Council.

He said the proposal would get round the problems of administration and costs of doing away with, or altering the 16-year-old county, but would also enable people to retain their historical identities.

They could legitimately still say they came from East Yorkshire, North Lincolnshire or Lindsey.

His intervention came in the middle of the final six weeks the Boundary Com¬mission had allowed for further comments about the future of Humberside.

Deputy leader of the county council, Councillor Tony Fee (Lab, Hull), said: “It would cost businesses and others a lot of unnecessary expenditure as they changed stationery and the like.”