Craven through the years

AFTER months of deliberation, a site had finally been selected for a new auction mart at Skipton. A sub-committee set up to investigate had initially been in favour of a site at Spring Gardens, off Otley Road, but the main committee had rejected that option. After debate it was decided to go for the site on Broughton Road, opposite Dewhurst's Mill, even though it would be more expensive to construct, for drainage reasons, than Spring Gardens. However, a majority of cattle dealers and farmers preferred the railway site because they felt it was easier access.

A pub called the Catchall with 50 acres of meadow situated close to Messers Spencers' limestone works and quarry at Swinden was available to let by tender.

Evening classes, for the continuing education of school leavers were set up for the Grassington area. The classes offered were dress making, cookery and needlework, domestic economy, drawing English, geography and commercial arithmetic.

50 Years Ago

Kildwick Hall, which went on sale last month for £3.5 million, was also up for sale exactly 50 years ago. The former Jacobean residence was then a hotel and country club and was auctioned at the Devonshire Hotel in Skipton. The bidding reached £3,000 but the property was then withdrawn.

Three Craven residents fell foul of the strict laws on taking money out of the country when they broke down in Germany. Mr and Mrs Fred Thompson of Sutton and Jeffrey Nicholson, of Skipton, were stranded so Mr Thompson's parents sent £5 in the post, which was promptly seized by the Customs. After the intervention of the Skipton MP, the Treasury returned the money but said the regulations had to be strictly enforced.

Embsay Parish Council complained that the shelter for Embsay buses at the Skipton bus station was like a wind tunnel. They wanted it blocked at one end as it was useless as a shelter in driving rain.

The diary column reported on an elderly Dales farmer who was taking only his second holiday away from the farm, a week in Morecambe. On the second day he was fed up and asked where he could find the nearest auction mart.

25 Years Ago

ROLLS Royce announced it was closing its Barnoldswick factories until further notice, throwing 2,200 men out of work. It said the site would not be reopened until the engineers' dispute, which had led to one day wildcat strikes, was resolved or the local union gave undertakings that it would defy the strikes. The management said it had come to the conclusion that it could not keep acting on an "amateur basis". It had become disorganised and was continually apologising to its American customers.

The problem of Hellifield's discoloured drinking water might be solved by abandoning the present springs and supplying the village from Skipton. But that could not begin until 1981. The supply was particularly bad after heavy rain but Yorkshire Water said that despite its colour, the water was perfectly safe for drinking.

Lothersdale Parish Council wanted the village street lights extinguishing between midnight and 5am to save money. They felt the expense was unnecessary in the dead of night.

The villages of Kildwick and Farnhill should soon be back as part of the Craven fold after years of exile as part of Bradford Metropolitan. A scheme to realign the boundary, bringing the parish into Craven had been drawn up by Craven District Council but it had to be approved by the Boundary Commission.

North Yorkshire County Council was withdrawing funding for school swimming lessons, with a serious local effect for local pools. In particular Settle could face closure during the winter as it would lose almost £4,000 of revenue from school classes.

10 Years Ago

A poll organised by Barnoldswick Town Council found that the majority of people in the town wanted a move back into Yorkshire to become part of the Craven District. But turnout was low, with barely 10 per cent of those eligible to vote doing so. Of those who did, 496 said they wanted to be administered from Yorkshire while 200 were against.

Long Preston Post Office, which had just been named the top post office in the North East, was the subject of a complaint to the national park for making bacon butties. A villager complained that cars were stopping and the shop was becoming a cafe. But the national park investigated and concluded that the trade was not enough to warrant a change of use and it was happy for the butties to continue, although it would monitor the situation in a "low key" manner.

There were bumps, grazes and bruises at the Appletreewick Bogey Race, a test of speed and machine design down the hill outside the New Inn. MC Mike Harwood scoffed at those who had incorporated brakes into their design and Andy Singleton produced the fastest time.