100 Years Ago - August 17, 1912
At the conclusion of the weekly race of Yarmouth Sailing Club, two people ended up in the sea.
A man and a woman were leaving their boat , when the man stepped heavily on the bow of the dinghy and swamped it, throwing the pair into the water. The waterlogged dinghy also starting sinking.
The sailors were quickly rescued.
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Two Freshwater men were fined 5s 6d for stealing apples worth 1s.
A witness saw the two men and one appeared to be carrying something in his handkerchief, while the pockets of the other man were bulging.
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A man was charged with being drunk on Cowes seafront.
PC Drudge said the man was lying in Union Road, unable to stand up.
The defendant admitted he was drunk but said he could not stand up because he had injured his knee when he fell over.
75 Years Ago - August 21,1937
The seven-and-a-half tonne motor-cruiser, Chrysoberyl, which had been built earlier in the year in Portsmouth, was burnt out in Bembridge Harbour.
The blaze started after an oil stove exploded.
The person on board was slightly burnt.
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A serious fire occurred at Cowes, at the High Street boat shop and stores of Mr A.N. Compton.
Fire crews found the shop blazing fiercely and the flames being fanned by a breeze.
The fire was brought under control and confined to the shop and stores.
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Residents were being warned against men from the mainland who were offering to buy gold from people.
The men would call at a house, saying they were authorised by the government to buy gold.
They would then say the gold produced was not worth a lot, make a low offer and trick the owner into selling.
50 Years Ago - August 18, 1962
The world’s second hovercraft service began at Ryde, when amid clouds of spray and sand, the Westland SRN 2 left Appley Beach to glide on a cushion of air to Eastney Beach, Southsea.
On its first day of travel, it made three round trips between Ryde and Southsea, with paying customers.
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A holidaymaker from London escaped serious injury when he slipped and fell 40ft down the cliff at Atherfield Bay.
A nearby fisherman raised the alarm and coastguards hauled him to safety.
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On the second busiest weekend of the holiday season, the British Railways car ferry developed a fault.
As the vessel was leaving Portsmouth for Fishbourne, one of the propeller units was damaged, making it impossible for it to be manoeuvred.
A replacement ferry was put in operation and the service continued into the early hours, to deal with the long queues of cars waiting to travel.
25 Years Ago - August 21, 1987
Having just won a £1.5 million contract to build a fast 350-passenger ferry for an operator in Italy, Faireys, of Cowes, was set to explore its potential for cross-Solent travel.
Talks were set to take place with Sealink and Red Funnel about a high-speed catamaran service.
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Shackled with chains and secured with padlocks, a 35-year-old man was trussed up inside a mailbag and taken into The Solent and dumped into the sea.
Just 35 seconds later, the man’s grinning head appeared on the surface to the cheers of hundreds of people, who had lined Ryde Esplanade to watch the Houdini-style escape, which was held to raise money for Dover Park Primary School.
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A Ryde restaurant, which was built in 1770, was badly damaged after fire broke out in the roof space.
Seven fire engines tackled the blaze at The Swan’s Nest, in St John’s Road.
The roof was severely damaged but the rest of the building was saved.
10 Years Ago - August 16, 2002
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Industrial unrest was brewing at Wightlink and the Island fire service.
Around 500 firefighters were expected to march into Newport in their campaign for better pay.
The row at Wightlink was sparked when the company closed its pension scheme to new members, followed by a proposal to scrap its final salary pension
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The crew of Bembridge Inshore Lifeboat was out in force to raise funds at the lifeboat regatta — 115 years on from when the station was first built.
Crowds flocked to watch the races from the seafront and browse the stalls on the common.
The party continued into the night, with music from the Mechanix and a firework display.