100 years ago

A NEW stained glass window was unveiled at Carleton Church. It had been bought for the West Window by the family of the late William Slingsby, of Beech Hill, in memory of their father and mother. Meanwhile over at St Peter's Church, Stainforth, villagers had bought a memorial cross set with an onyx stone and two small vases in memory of their late vicar, Rev John Mathias.

The last Christmas of the 19th century - note the Victorians' insistence on the proper turn of the century - had been unusually quiet, reported the Herald. The weather had been a source of complaint due to the absence of frost and snow usually associated with the festive period. Money appeared to have been plentiful, however, with business brisk. Christmas day morning had been marked in the usual way by the ringing of the bells, music from Skipton Brass Band and singing. It was also reported that the Post Office had been very busy, with extra workers employed to cope with the 60,000 letters and parcels which had been sent.

50 years ago

THERE was good news for cotton weavers in Craven, who were to get a 10 per cent wage increase from January. The rise would benefit some 150,000 weavers and other cotton manufacturing operatives.

Over 1,000 toys were distributed to needy children in Skipton and the surrounding villages thanks to the Skipton Round Table Christmas Tree Appeal. Father Christmas visited the tree on four occasions before Christmas and, instead of giving out presents, accepted toys brought by the many youngsters there to greet him. A collection raised money to buy even more toys, and they were later distributed by Round Table members.

The first church wedding in Skipton between European Voluntary Workers was due to take place at the Parish Church. The bride and groom were both from Latvia and were living at hostels in Silsden and Skipton respectively. The wedding service was to be conducted by a Latvian Parish Priest from Bradford.

25 years ago

THE sale of council houses was approved by Craven district councillors, by 20 votes to eight. The decision went against a recommendation from the housing services committee which urged members not to adopt the policy due to the demand for rented accommodation.

Silsden couple Clifford and Mollie Thornton were runners up in a national competition to find the BBC Nationwide Supersave Family. Their prize was either £30 in cash or three minutes to spend as much as they could on food and drink at a supermarket of their choice. For the first round of the competition, Mr Thornton had to make something from £10 worth of materials, and made an illuminated wall desk and bookshelves. His wife had to spend £12 on a week's shopping for a family of four, make something new out of something old and make a meal from a leg of lamb and as many meals as possible from the leftovers. The couple travelled to London for the final where Mrs Thornton had to repeat the leg of lamb exercise with a turkey and her husband had to say what he would do if, just before guests arrived for Christmas dinner, water begain pouring through the ceiling due to a burst pipe.

10 years ago

RADICAL new controls were being planned for Skipton's High Street market. Craven's town centre sub-committee recommended trading should be restricted to the ancient market days of Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday and a market officer be appointed. In addition, market traders would not be allowed to park their vehicles on the setts unless they were loading or unloading goods. Chairman of the sub-committee, Coun John Phillips, said the council was concerned about the "chaotic" state of the setts.

Sutton-in-Craven Conservation Group, made up of regulars from the village's Black Bull pub, won £2,000 in the Better Britain Campaign. The campaign encouraged groups to take positive action to improve their environment. The Sutton group had cleared pathways, planted trees and removed rubbish and shrubs from the river.

Packed churches over the festive period indicated a return to the real spirit of Christmas, reported the Herald. At Skipton Parish Church on Christmas Eve the congregation spilled over into the aisles and onto the altar steps. Some 670 people attended the service, making it the largest congregation in recent years.