Monday, September 19, 2005

100 years ago

The North-Eastern Railway, which had its headquarters at York, was the third largest concern of its kind in the country. The Great Western was first, and the London and North Western second. The miles of track owned respectively by those companies were 2,661, 1900 and the NER 1,643. The NER Company owned as many as 2,100 locomotives, and the Company's consumption of coal a year nearly reached the huge total of a million tons. The cost of the locomotives, which were made at Gateshead and Darlington, while the carriages were constructed at York, might be a revelation to some. They were between £5,000 and £6,000 each. The NER Company, pioneers of electrification, had about forty miles of electrified railway at the time, all of it being on Tyneside.

50 years ago

The annual revision of the register of electors had begun, and every householder in York - some 34,430 all told - would receive a form, which had just been posted. In the past, a canvasser had visited each household to get the information required, but this year the new system had been introduced. The particulars to be entered on the form, in addition to the address of the householder, were the names of all British subjects who would be normally resident at the address on October 10, 1955. Care had to be taken in column three of the form, "over 21." For those whose 21st birthday was between October 12, 1955, and June 16, 1956, the actual date of birth had to be given.

25 years ago

Consideration was being given to the idea of employing a metal detector to track down an ancient water pump missing from Rawcliffe, near York. Members of the parish council were concerned over the disappearance of what was regarded as a piece of village history. The iron standpipe supplied residents of Rawcliffe with drinking water before the handful of cottages tapped into the mains. It had last been seen lying in the grass verge after being snapped off by a reversing lorry. "We left it there while we tried to find who was responsible so we could make an insurance claim." said Mrs Sheila McGill, clerk to the council. "No one thought it would disappear, but it has gone and now the council is trying to find it."

Updated: 15:25 Friday, September 16, 2005