From our archives:

85 years ago

York planned to hold a meeting to protest against the manner in which Germany was treating the Jews. The Lord Mayor, Alderman Henry Rhodes Brown, the Archbishop of York and Mr Seebohm Rowntree who had organised the event, claimed that their meeting was simply a way of exercising opinion, and that they did not wish to interfere with the internal affairs of another country. The York Corporation Transport Committee was getting restless over the inaction of the Big Five by preparing to carry out drastic alterations of the tramway system by themselves. According to the chairman of the committee, one route had lost £1,300 in six months, “and you cannot go on like that.” And several brave women from Malton had been honoured for volunteering during a recent Typhoid epidemic. Disregarding personal risk, volunteers had worked day and night and even become blood donors to help control the disease.

50 years ago

Sheila Sherwood, a 22-year-old Sheffield school teacher had won Britain’s first medal in the Olympic Games in Mexico City, taking second place with a silver medal in the women’s long jump. The first to congratulate her was her husband, John, who had also gained a place in the 400 metres hurdles final. Delighted with her win she immediately set her sights on the gold at the next Olympics in Munich. Ray Illingworth, the England all-rounder, announced he was to join Leicestershire as captain. The 36-year-old Yorkshire player said: “Leicester’s offer was not the best I got, but the captaincy helped to sway me.” Firemen in York had received three reports of premature Guy Fawkes bonfires in an hour. The first two were in Kingsway North but there was no trace of a third fire.

20 years ago

Britain’s first space-age home, which could be controlled by a mobile phone call or wristwatch, had been unveiled in York. At the push of a button, the Smart Home will draw the curtains, switch on the lighting and heating, warm up the oven and run a bath, while the occupier was on the way home. In Elvington, Richard Brown had managed to reach a speed of 195mph covering a quarter of a mile in 4.49 seconds, in an attempt to break the British motorbike land speed record.