What was making the news in the Newark Advertiser in 1924, 1974 and 1999
The Advertiser has opened its archives to look at what was making the news this week 25, 50 and 100 years ago.
25 years ago – February 26, 1999
ABOVE: Eco-warriors took to the trees in Flintham in a bid to halt the felling of ancient oak trees.
They joined local protesters who are calling for a judicial review of the decision to allow the felling of 26 trees, including 13 oaks, at Coney Grey Spinney.
Local people were in tears as the tree-felling began. Three eco-warriors climbed into the oaks and work was halted.
• The trial of Newark MP Mrs Fiona Jones and her election agent Mr Des Whicher started at Nottingham Crown Court.
Both denied making a false declaration of election expenses.
The prosecution alleged they spent more than double the £8,905 allowed under election law to fight the Newark seat and accused them of lying in declaring a sum of only £8,514.
• A £1.5m facelift for the Newark Town Wharf area was confirmed as a key piece in the Northgate regeneration jigsaw.
The four-storey Selecta House at The Wharf will be redeveloped into 19 flats and the derelict riverside Wharf Cafe will be converted into a restaurant.
• Efforts to save two old peoples’ homes in Southwell and another in Bingham have failed with a County Hall vote for the closures to go ahead.
Following a year of discussions and debate, members of Nottinghamshire County Council social services committee voted to close 12 homes, including South Muskham Prebend and the Old Vicarage in Southwell and Moorlands in Bingham.
• Hawtonville’s vandal-hit health clinic should be demolished and replaced with a new building, it has been claimed.
The 10,000 residents of Newark’s largest housing estate currently attend clinics in a ramshackle wooden building within St Mary’s Gardens.
50 years ago – March 2, 1974
ABOVE: The combined weight of a mammoth frying pan and five pancakes seems to be too much for these two youngsters at Southwell Holy Trinity School.
Wearing the cooks’ hats are Martin Hallam and Heather Lee, both six.
Labour’s Ted Bishop held on to his Newark seat, tipped by many to be a marginal, and increased his majority from 1,220 to 4,497 in a nail-biting Town Hall count in the General Election.
The declaration came two hours later than expected because of a shortage of counters and the very high poll.
The scheme to move Beaumond Cross in the centre of Newark for a traffic management scheme has gained the support of the Department of the Environment.
Their ancient monuments branch has supported the scheme to move it to a temporary position in Beaumond Gardens but then resite it as near as possible to its present spot within five years.
A bold new multi-thousand pounds project by Queensway Discount Warehouses planned for Newark’s Northern Road industrial estate has been scrapped because it is out of line with Notts County Council’s planning policy.
The company, whose premises in Appletongate were gutted by fire in December, planned a new scheme as a retail sales centre, mail order extension and also as their major distribution centre of an expanding Midlands market.
A county council spokesman said they were not allowing any sort of retailing activity on the industrial estate.
An auction of furniture and silver, including silver plate, church plate, was held at Kelham Hall.
The sale raised £10,900 and attracted a large crowd. Workers from Newark spent their dinner hour seeing the sale in progress.
Someone with little artistic sense but plenty of yellow paint attacked Hoveringham Gravel Ltd’s mammoth sculpture.
The 23ft high steel mammoth, a life-size model of the great elephant-like beast that roamed the earth in pre-historic days, was daubed with the paint.
100 years ago – February 27, 1924
A somewhat ambitious road improvement scheme received the approval of members of the Newark Urban District Council.
The proposal is to demolish property near Beaumond Cross and set back the east frontage, which is pretty extensive, so as to widen the street and widen off a dangerous corner.
The new line would start at the entrance of Messrs Harrison and Co’s motor garage, Cartergate, and end at Messrs Scales and Co’s factory on London Road.
Many accidents have occurred here and so dangerous is the area felt to be that a policeman has to be stationed there all day and far into the night.
A meeting of the Newark Amateur Wireless Society, for the purpose of re-organising owing to the great increase in the number of broadcast listeners, will be held at the YMCA, Northgate House.
All persons interested, both from the scientific and entertainment point of view, of radio are cordially invited.
A very foolish and apparently aimless act was committed in Fiskerton when some miscreant broke the glass of the parish fire extinquisher, situated near the Church Room.
The glass was broken in such a manner as to leave no doubt that it had been wilfully smashed by someone who does not realise the value of the instrument.
A Winthorpe man’s apparent objection to the light of a street lamp whilst in the company of his young lady had its sequel at Newark Police Court.
Pc Millhouse said he was on duty on Beacon Hill and at 8pm the defendant came along with a young lady and sat on a seat near to the lamp. At 9.40 defendant climbed up the lamp and put it out.
The constable said the lamp had previously been put out ten times in 14 days.
Defendant pladed guilty and was fined £1.
