EACH week we look back at Isle of Wight history and heritage, using the Isle of Wight County Press Archive.For more, please see the Isle of Wight County Press newspaper, every Friday.Search for your own stories by accessing our archive here.
Fifty years ago: It was a melancholic scene at Coppins Bridge, as another Island rail landmark disappeared.
The viaduct bordering the river, which had once kept the lines safe from flooding, was demolished by the IW County Council.
Because of the proximity of houses and shops, the use of explosives was ruled out, so it was the tried and tested method of a wrecking ball which erased this small slice of Island history.
100 Years Ago
January 27, 1917
THE Island was facing numerous food production problems. It was reported pig-keeping was unviable because of the cost of feed and the availability of land was worthless without sufficient labour or manure.
To make things worse, sparrows were rapidly becoming a problem as they stripped crop fields bare. The same was said for crows, wood pigeons, jays, stoats and foxes and it was advised clubs be formed to tackle their numbers.
75 Years Ago
January 31, 1942
A report from the Special Committee for Harvest Camps stated schoolboy labour proved invaluable in the previous year’s harvest and said attention should be paid so it might be fully utilised again.
50 Years Ago
January 21, 1967
The January meeting of the UFO Society took place in the Unitarian Church Hall, Newport.
The meeting was addressed by Anthony Durham, of Cambridge University Group for the Investigation of UFOs.
Mr Durham stressed the need for a scientific approach to UFO investigation and, through experiments, demonstrated how 95 percent of sightings could be explained, leaving the remainder a genuine mystery worthy of the society’s time.
25 Years Ago
January 24, 1992
Fossil remains of an iguanodon found at Brighstone Bay were thought to be the oldest ever to be discovered on the Island.
Martin Simpson, with fellow palaeontologist John Wince, discovered the remnants of the giant lizard’s left leg, pelvis, ribs and vertebrae.
Large quantities of superglue were used as part of an unorthodox means of keeping the fossil intact during extraction.
The beast would have roamed around 120 million years ago and been 25ft tall.
10 Years Ago
January 26, 2007
A Cowes woman pressed the town council to launch a case for an inquiry into unfair competition on cross-Solent ferry travel.
The anonymous commuter even compiled a dossier of evidence, which she sent to each town councillor.
From the study conducted by her and fellow passengers, it was said Islanders were being outpriced for getting to the mainland.
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