Tuesday, December 13, 2005

100 years ago

At Knaresborough Police Court, Thomas Fairburn, a farmer's boy of Helperby, was charged with carrying a pistol, being under the age of 18, contrary to the Pistols Act of 1905. Superintendent Keel said that on November 28th the defendant rode in a train between Harrogate and Knaresborough and discharged the pistol through a carriage window, frightening some school children who were in the compartment. Police-Sergeant Burton was in the train, and on arrival at Knaresborough took possession of the pistol and cartridges. The Bench fined the youth 7s 6d including costs, and pointed out the danger to which the defendant was exposing himself and others, and also the liberty of the gunsmiths in selling firearms to youths under age.

50 years ago

The Yorkshire Herald Newspaper Company, Ltd, published a souvenir supplement to mark an extensive and important rebuilding scheme, giving York a newspaper office, which was among the most modern and up-to-date in the country for its size. Although many readers would recall that in the German air raid on York in April 1942, the historic church of St Martin-le-Grand, in Coney Street, was wrecked and the premises housing The Yorkshire Evening Press and its associates were extensively damaged, the bold imagination and sweep of the rebuilding programme bore little relation to the wartime damage, which was soon made good. The compensation awarded for the damage caused in the air raid was an infinitesimal part of the total cost. It gave the greatest satisfaction to the board and the management to feel that the benefits of the modernisation programme would be passed on to their readers, in improved and speedier service.

25 years ago

York's proposed new northern bypass would be a single carriageway road, decided North Yorkshire Highways Committee. Members were told new traffic figures did not justify a dual carriageway. The £12m road would link Copmanthorpe with Hopgrove, via Boroughbridge Road and the A19 near Rawcliffe. Although the road and its bridges would be single carriageway, adjoining land would be protected in case increased traffic in future made a second carriageway necessary. Mr Bill Lofthouse, a member of the design team, said: "We have sufficient capacity in a single carriageway to deal with forecasts of traffic up until the year 2010." The motion approved unanimously, was proposed by Councillor Steve Galloway and seconded by Councillor Bill Chapman, who said: "When we rejected the idea of a lorry ban in York we used the argument that this road would relieve the problem of heavy lorries in the city, so we should press ahead with it as quickly as possible."

Updated: 16:22 Monday, December 12, 2005