25 years ago — 1995
Penrith
Almost £3,200 was taken in the first day of trading at the British Heart Foundation shop in Penrith.
Chris Sandford, chief executive of the charity’s shops division, said: “In the seven years in which we have been trading, only two shops have achieved higher sales on their opening days, and that includes shops in many of the largest cities and towns in the UK.”
Two students from the Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Penrith, have scored notable musical achievements.
Merlin March, of Kirkland, a year 11 student, has become the first pupil from the school to become a member of the National Youth Orchestra.
Chris Hamilton, an upper sixth student, has been appointed leader of the County Youth Orchestra — the third successive member of the school to achieve this post.
Appleby
The first meeting of the Eden Valley Railway Society committee was held at Appleby’s Midland Hotel on Saturday.
Initially, the object of the society is to raise funds to purchase from British Rail the section of the old Eden Valley Railway which still exists between Appleby and Warcop and restore it to working order.
After four years of hard work, Appleby and District guides and brownies celebrated the opening of their new £25,000 headquarters in Holme Street on Saturday afternoon.
The opening of the new building came 75 years after the guide movement first began in the town in September, 1920, when Miss Ann Tufton marched a troop of girls from the castle to the public hall to be enrolled as 1st Appleby guide company.
Kirkby Stephen
Kirkby Stephen hockey team will represent Cumbria in the northern clubs championship after defeating Wigton in the final of the Cumbria Astro tournament at Kendal.
Kirkby began strongly, with forward Diane Nicholson, Sarah Richardson and Sarah Cowin causing the Wigton defence problems and forced penalty corners, one of which resulted in Kirkby’s first goal, scored by Sarah Richardson.
50 years ago — 1970
Mungrisdale
A recent discovery near old mine workings, and interest by one of the country’s leading mining concerns, have led to speculation that gold is being hunted in the Mungrisdale area.
Farmers and landowners in the district have been asked by Consolidated Goldfields Limited to co-operate in their plan to prospect the area, but a spokesman for the company said this week: “We prospect in a number of different parts of the U.K. for mineral generally and this is part of our program.”
Penrith
Penrith’s Regent Cinema in Old London Road has been sold as part of a deal between two Cumberland cinema and theatre-owning companies.
The new owners are Graves (Cumberland) Ltd., who have been running Penrith’s other cinema, the Alhambra, as a picture house and bingo-hall for some time now.
Graves, who also own the Top Cat Discoteque in Keswick, are the third owners of the Regent, which was opened in December, 1933, under the banner of New Cinemas, Penrith, Ltd. In June, 1957, it was bought by M.B.C. Ltd.
Penrith schoolboy Billy Burrell had a unique distinction last week-end — he was chosen to pay for his county at both soccer and Rugby Union.
Billy, 13-year-old son of Mr. Ronald Burrell, Wetheriggs Rise, and a pupil at of Ullswater School, had the choice of playing centre forward for Cumberland Schoolboys in their away match with Cheshire, or as wing-three quarter in the Cumberland and Westmorland Schools’ side to visit Northumberland.
Having chosen to play soccer, Billy helped his side to a 3-2 win over Cheshire, heading the decisive goal.
Ullswater
Joe Wear, the Ullswater Foxhounds’ famous huntsman, 47 years with the pack, will not be carrying on after the end of the present hunting season in May next year.
He has held the position of Huntsman for 37 years and for nine years before that was Whipper-in. “He is retiring,” his wife told the “Herald”.
Shap
Shap — which was by-passed by the main road traffic when the M6 Motorway traffic through Westmorland was opened in October — has a factory project checkmated at the moment, because of Ministry of Transport objections on traffic grounds!
The Kendal “K” Shoe firm — already with two factories in Kendal and others at Lancaster, Askham-in-Furness and, the latest, Lillyhall, Workington, in West Cumberland — has been negotiating with Penrith Co-operative Society for the purchase of premises in Market Square, Main Street, Shap, for the setting up of a factory which would ultimately employ forty to fifty men and women.
100 years ago — 1920
Kirkby Stephen
Mr. and Mrs. John Waistell Braithwaite have celebrated their golden wedding. Mr. Braithwaite started work as a railwayman before becoming postmaster at Kirkby Stephen and, at the same time, commencing business as a printer, bookseller, etc. Mr. and Mrs. Braithwaite have brought up a family of fourteen.
St John’s-in-the-Vale
The Council of the Herdwick Sheep Breeders’ Association could not agree over the suggestion of setting up a breed standard. The discussion centred on the vexed question of grey and “strong” wool or white and finer wool.
While the secretary, Mr. W. Wilson, Watendlath, stated that inquiries for export strongly preferred white wool, the old school disagreed.
They argued that to improve the breed’s fleece would sap its hardiness and ruin the sheep as a “strong” fleece was essential for mountain life.
150 years ago — 1870
By the termination of the trust, the Appleby, Kendal, Kirkby Stephen and Market Borough turnpike road is now free from tolls and the toll bars have been sold off.
These were at Scalethwaite Rigg, Borrow Bridge, Burrells and Kirkby Stephen.
