Headline news in Hexham and the Tyne Valley 150 years ago

10 years ago

CONTROVERSIAL CASH: The £100,000 bailout of the Beales store in Hexham at council taxpayers' expense infuriated county councillors. The first they heard of the deal was when the read about it in the Hexham Courant. Councillors had been promised an explanation of the thinking behind the move by director of finance Steve Mason, but all they got was a terse statement - and no embellishments were allowed. 

TYNEDALE FOOTBALLER: Fraser Forster, a 25-year-old from Stocksfield, was to become the first footballer from Tynedale to appear at a World Cup final. He was named as one of three keepers in Roy Hodgson's England squad for the summer World Cup in Brazil.  

JEWELLERY STOLEN: Thousands of pounds worth of jewellery and computer equipment was stolen during two burglaries in Hexham.

25 years ago

North Tyne lambs huddle together for shelter in 1999 (Image: David Hewitson)

LAMBING STORM: Snow and sleet hit Tynedale with a vengeance, causing a spate of accidents on roads across the district. Following one of the mildest winters on record, the Arctic Blast - traditionally known in Tynedale as the Lambing Storm - caught highway authorities off guard, despite the fact it had been predicted by weather centres several days in advance. Grit bins had been removed from some parts of the district, notably Hackwood Park in Hexham, and in rural areas there was anger snow ploughs had been slow to respond. 

REFUGEE APPEAL: An appeal by Hexham 1st Scout Group for blankets and clothing for refugees from Kosovo, which was ravaged by war at the time, was met with an overwhelming response. In just two days, the Scout Hut at Maiden's Walk was filled with bin bags full of much-needed essentials to help with the humanitarian crisis which had broken out. 

TRUCKERS JOIN DEMO: Tynedale truckers joined more than 200 other drivers from the region in a demonstration that grid-locked Newcastle to protest at rising taxes they said were killing their industry. The protest was hailed as a success by Hexham haulier Wayne Smith, one of the founders of Trans-Action North East, which organised the demonstration.

50 years ago

COMMUTER BOON: Bus schedules in Tynedale were adjusted to fit in with the arrival and departure times at Hexham railway station to encourage more people to use public transport.

WORK ON WAY: A £260,000 repair programme was to begin at Corbridge's vicar's Pele Tower which was 650 years old.

BIRTHDAY BASH: Hexham Beacon Club celebrated its second birthday.

SHIELD WIN: Kielder's Border Park rugby side beat the Northern Panthers, one of the county's top clubs, 20-16 to take home the Northumberland Junior Shield.

BIG SCREEN: The film version of the evergreen BBC comedy series Dad's Army was showing at Hexham's Forum Cinema, along with Shaft in Africa, starring Richard Rowntree. 

75 years ago

ALUMNI HONOURED: A roll of honour was unveiled at Hexham's Queen Elizabeth Grammar School in memory of 54 past pupils killed in the Second World War.

PARKING PLAN: Proposals were drawn up to provide a 120-space car park at South Park in Hexham.

JOCKEYING FOR POSITION: The then Lord Allendale succeeded the Duke of Norfolk as senior steward of the Jockey Club.

100 years ago

HOSPITAL REPORT: The second annual report revealed that in 1923 Hexham War Memorial Hospital had dealt with 295 patients, 174 of whom required operations. 

INSTITUTE INITIATIVE: A women's institute was founded at Sinderhope, near Allendale.

125 years ago

METHODIST MOURNED: Capheaton's John William Hardwick, one of the prime movers in the campaign to secure a United Methodist Free church for the village, died aged 45.

150 years ago

FATAL ACCIDENT: A 13-year-old employee at Haltwhistle's brick works died there after being struck by a wire wagon rope which had come loose.