100 years ago

INGLETON'S newly formed cycling club had held its first annual social at the Beezley Grange Assembly Room. Almost 250 keen cyclists attended - minus their bikes - and dancing was kept up vigorously until 3am. Meanwhile Miss Weddell had begun courses in laundry and cookery in the Wheatsheaf Assembly Room. The lectures and classes were held in connection with the Yorkshire Ladies' Council of Education and the room had been filled with eager students.

Still in Ingleton, where Herald reports were concentrated this week in 1900, the electrical lighting and power company had almost completed laying down the necessary plant for the illumination of the village. The date for the official ceremony was fixed for Jan 24. Mrs JA Farrer, of Ingleborough, had agreed to perform the switch-on which was to be followed by a banquet at the Wheatsheaf Hotel in the company of the leading inhabitants of the village.

50 years ago

THE president of Skipton and District Gardeners' and Allotment Holders' Association, WA Perkins, had decided the club had too much money in the bank and went on a spending spree. In one fell swoop he reduced the bank balance from £73. 10s to £33 after purchasing six wheelbarrows, a multiple sprayer and a quantity of vases for show purposes. He said the group had no interest in accumulating a large bank balance when the money could be used to the benefit of its 251 members.

When Miss JM Cole, headmistress of Hebden School, handed in her notice after clinching a head's appointment at Barnoldswick's Rainhall Road School, she sent Craven's Divisional Education Executive into chaos. It was extremely difficult getting good teaching staff within Dales schools and they wanted her to stay until the end of April at least even though this was two weeks into the second school term.

A great deal of canvassing was going on in Skipton in view of the forthcoming General Election in February for the Skipton division. In the running were MP Burnaby Drayson (Conservative), Eric Greenwood (Liberal) and Tom Roberts (Labour).

Lack of interest by members was blamed for the winding up of Settle and District Village Produce Association. Formed in 1942, the association at one time boasted 120 members. More recently it had dropped to 61 with only five turning up for the annual general meeting. It was claimed that, as usual, the running was left to just two or three people. The closing balance of £11.18s.8d was to be given to Mrs Rawdin, of Giggleswick, for the benefit of the Home for Cripples, in which she had an interest.

25 years ago

WELLINGTON Rifle Club, Skipton, was said to be going "great guns". Presently based at the Drill Hall in Otley Street, the club was looking forward to the completion of a new range at Sandylands which would mean pistol shooting could be practised. Along with volleyball and basketball, rifle shooting was one of the world's most popular sports (that's what it said!). There were seven clubs within a three mile radius of Bradford and 120 teams competing in Yorkshire alone. The club boasted two lady marksmen - Vicky Lambert and Lynn Liversedge. Club chairman was Alan Windles.

The National Caving Association was urging the Yorkshire Dales National Park planning committee to put in a bid for White Scar Caves, at Ingleton, which were coming up for auction in February. The association feared that Amey Roadstone Corporation Ltd, which owned the mineral rights to the caves and who also owned three quarries nearby, would buy it. Managing director of Amey, Mr B Braithwaite-Exley said the company already owned the caves, it was the business which was for sale and there was certainly no danger of it being quarried. The caves were leased to the trustees of the late Tom Greenwood, of Ingleton.

10 years ago

SETTLE man Robert Claughton, 28, of High Hill Grove, was busy training to run in the London Marathon - even though the farthest he had ever run before was five miles. The 26-mile grueller was due to take place in April and Robert was busy raising sponsorship for the charity he was supporting, Motor Neurone Disease, a condition which was affecting his father-in-law.

Plans to create a wildlife pond at Embsay-with-Eastby, were overtaken somewhat by the weather. The pond had been excavated but heavy rain had filled the hole in with water before the volunteers had chance to put in the liner! Enter Skipton firefighters who came to the rescue and pumped out the water allowing the liner to be installed. Those involved in the nature project were then praying for more rain to fill it up again!

Hetton's Angel Inn had been awarded the prestigious Yorkshire Life magazine's Restaurant of the Year Award for 1990. The establishment had been owned for the past seven years by Denis and Juliet Watkins, who had formerly run a 250 bed hotel in Bristol. The award was presented to them by writer John Sheard, consulting editor of the Yorkshire Life group.

Twelve-year-old Francesca Blackburn, of Grassington Road, Skipton, had been picked to play a star role in the hit musical Oliver, at the Alhambra Theatre, Bradford.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.