100 Years Ago
April 10, 1909
A LARGE number of people turned out to see the laying of the foundation stone at the new Church of England Schools in Carisbrooke Road, Newport. The schools were built to replace the old national schools and they would accommodate 480 children. The Bishop of Southampton and the Archdeacon of the Isle of Wight were present at the ceremony.
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Cowes Football Club remained on course to win the Hampshire League after topping the table with only two games reamining. The yachtsmen were five points clear of second-placed Salisbury FC and were expected to win their final two matches, against Bitterne FC and Sandown FC, having beaten them both earlier in the season.
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The Royal National Hospital, St Lawrence, received national praise from Lord Rosebery, who paid tribute to its successful training programme.
75 Years Ago
April 14, 1934
Two 19-year-old Oxford undergraduates were hauled to safety from their boat near Sandown Pier, after encountering problems in strong winds. The pair ran into difficulties when the sail split in their four-tonne sloop, which prompted them to head for shelter in Sandown Bay. After hearing cries for help, pier workers threw a line to the students, who were pulled to safety on the pier deck.
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The Isle of Wight Canine Association held its first show in St John’s Drill Hall, Ryde. The event was for members only, which included people from Hampshire, Dorset, Wiltshire and Sussex. More than 160 dogs were shown and the winner was a French poodle, owned by Miss J. Lane, of Crawley, Sussex.
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Wireless transmission experiments were held on the Island by Sherratt and Son, of Newport. Staff at the firm held a two-way conversation between their shop and a travelling vehicle, via a transmitter and receiver. Following the success of the experiments, further tests on TV equipment were expected to follow.
50 Years Ago
April 11, 1959
A ten-year-old boy had to be rescued from the cliff at Freshwater Bay after he was stranded 220ft above the beach. The boy, who lived in Freshwater, was stuck for an hour after slipping while on a bird-nesting expedition. Two police officers hauled the boy to safety using a rope to tied to their patrol car, following an emergency call from his mum. The boy was suffering from exhaustion and shock after his ordeal.
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The Island branch of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals received 144 complaints about animal welfare. Honorary secretary Mrs Jesty said she was satisfied the branch had successfully investigated all of them.
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A special darts event was held at the Prince Regent Inn, Newport, featuring a team of blind ex-servicemen from St Dunstan’s. More than 100 spectators turned up to watch the blind team beat their Island-based sighted opponents 2-1.
25 Years Ago
April 13, 1984
The cliff path between Shanklin and Sandown was targeted by vandals, with damage to fences, signs and gardens reported by residents. The Isle of Wight Council said any damage caused to property on the landward side of the cliff was the responsibility of residents, while anything on the seaward side would be dealt with by the local authority.
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A mass demonstration was planned for Shanklin over the future of the town’s bus services. Three hundred people were expected to protest about Southern Vectis’s plans to close the bus station.
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Residents in Brighstone were calling for more sports and youth facilities in the village. At a meeting of the Brighstone Recreation Ground administrative committee, many residents said a purpose-built community centre would be able to accommodate the village’s clubs and organisations. The committee said a new centre would cost around £60,000.
10 Years Ago
April 9, 1999
Work was set to start on a £1.5 million slope stabilisation scheme for Wheeler’s Bay. The scheme would protect more than 100 properties and save the threatened Bay House, which had been evacuated two years earlier, on safety grounds. The development would require barging in rocks to act as a sea defence instead of building a sea wall.
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More than 80 staff were left in limbo after bosses at Bembridge-based Micronair said they could no longer pay their wages. The company, which produced agricultural spraying equipment, had been on the Island since 1956 but financial difficulties and the lack of a buyer meant it had to close.
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A huge blaze in a Cowes stockyard caused an estimated £40,000 worth of damage. More than 25 firefighters attended the scene, at Amazon Works stockyard in Three Gates Road, where 40 tonnes of raw material — mainly polystyrene — were alight. The 50ft-high flames were visible from many areas of the Island and mainland.
Reporter:
mattw@iwcpmail.co.uk