A Quick Reminder: Looking back through the archives of The Keswick Reminder from around this week 20, 30, 40 and 50 years ago.
20 years ago
Second jewel raid arrest
A second man has been arrested by police in connection with the £11,000 jewellery shop robbery in Keswick last week.
The Cumbria and the Metropolitan Police Forces have been praised for their co-operation after the arrest of the 25 year old from the London area. He has since been returned to Cumbria to help police with their inquiries into the raid which took place at Derwent Jewellers in Lake Road last Tuesday.
A 36 year old London man has already appeared before West Allerdale magistrates charged with the Keswick robbery.
‘Ridiculous’ market plan
Keswick Town Council has branded moves to bring a Continental market into the town centre on one of the busiest weekends of the year as ‘ridiculous’ and Councillors are angry that Allerdale is suggesting holding the market on Easter Saturday and Sunday when the town will be packed with holidaymakers.
Carlisle has already agreed to a Continental market over the Bank Holiday weekend and the organisers have asked specifically to come to Keswick too.
Councillor Roger Purkiss said: “We cannot allow Allerdale to ride roughshod over this town council. This would be of no benefit to the town and would not have the support of residents.”
Fellow councillor David Etherden said: “People are already double and triple parked and the large lorries which service the market will take out most of the Lakeside car park. It is a ridiculous idea.”
30 years ago
Keswick Town Council: New roads system criticised
Councillor Martin Jordan criticised some of the new measures created to change the town’s road system.
Only one of the four traffic islands built during the past few weeks as pedestrian refuges was in the right place, said Mr. Jordan. That one was in Victoria Street, but Mr. Jordan criticised the new island in Tithebarn Street as blocking off the centre traffic lane for cars waiting to turn right at the new mini-roundabout, the island outside the garage in Heads Road for being bound to cause obstruction, and the one on Heads Road as being “half way between nowhere and nowhere else!”
Mr. Jordan said he thought this was to be an experimental scheme rather than a permanent one. Had the traffic islands been temporary they could have been moved if their positioning had been found to be incorrect, he said.
40 years ago
Richard wins Krypton ‘special’
Old Keswickian Richard Crane has ended 1983 with a third major achievement, adding a “Krypton Factor” win to his other great successes in a special competition shown on ITV on Monday evening.
The Krypton Factor Special was a mental and physical contest between four people who had already this year conquered formidable natural and physical obstacles and who are now all celebrities in their own right – Liz Hobbs, World Ladies water Ski Champion and holder of the world water ski speed record; Julie Tullis, highest climbing British woman and a karate black belt; Peter Bird, the photographer who rowed the Pacific from America to Australia; and Richard Crane, who ran the length of the Himalayas with his brother in 101 days and who won Britain’s first Quadrathon.
At the end of the first round all four contestants had equal points, but Richard took the lead in the second round, the assault course, and followed with another win in the third round , establishing a good lead which he never looked like losing.
Richard’s prize for defeating such impressive opposition was a cheque for one thousand pounds for the charity of his choice, and he said this would be Intermediate Technology, which provides simple tools to help the people of the Third World.
Editorial
1983 has been a year of some progress for Keswick – indeed, it may be more correct to describe it as a year of hope. The revival of the Chamber of Trade and the Civic Society, and the declared aim of both organisations to work in close harmony with other associations in the town, certainly give rise to hopes for the future. The wish for 1984 must be that it will be a year of achievement, a year in which we will see the realisation of some dreams like the Leisure Pool and perhaps even a Sports Hall, a year in which other dreams draw much closer (a Theatre?) and in which everyone will come together with the one purpose of improving Keswick so that it can compete on equal terms with other towns seeking to attract visitors.
A very Happy Christmas and a Prosperous New Year to you all.
Ken Stuart is county champion
Threlkeld’s Ken Stuart claimed the Cumbria cross country title last Saturday to end the year as he began, by winning over a hilly eight mile course at Egremont.
Ken dominated a field that several observers thought to be the strongest ever seen in the county. After the usual fast start A. Sawyer of local club Copeland bravely opened a lead of 30 yards over a chasing group that included Ken Stuart and Windermere Marathon winner Graham Huddlestone. However Sawyer was soon caught on the second of four laps, and Ken literally ran away from the competition for a decisive win of over a minute from Huddlestone. Ken later said he found the race comfortable!
Further back amongst the mortals Keswick Club secretary Jon Broxap, recovering from an ankle injury, finished 12th and thereby with Ken will be invited to run for Cumbria in January’s Inter-County Championships. Other Keswick athletes pleased with their positions were Dave Wilkinson, 25th, and Duncan Frampton who was 28th in his first cross country since his school days.
Market Square voting
Voting chaos reigned as Keswick Town Council failed to find common ground for agreement when they met last Thursday to discuss County Council plans for a pedestrianisation experiment in the Market Square.
One proposition and two amendments all hit the deck and at the end of the debate members decided to leave it as a three-way split of opinion and try again at the next meeting of their General Purposes Committee.
The County propose closing the square to traffic on Saturday market days for eighteen months, but the only agreement reached by the Town Council was that they favour a twelve month time span for any experiment which is introduced.
The meeting heard a plea from Councillor Sean Crawford for an experimental scheme lasting a whole year, and taking place on every day during that year. He questioned the value of a Saturdays only experiment which could lead to further delays and further experiments, and said there were numerous exemptions to the prohibition of traffic which should take care of local problems.
Councillor George Hodgson said if they asked for every day of the week they would bring in opposition from tradespeople and possibly local people as a whole. “We have a positive step forward and let’s try it for twelve months on Saturdays only,” he said.
Councillor Herbert Craghill said: “If it is going to be forced upon us let’s give it a good go.” However he favoured moving the market out of the square.
Mrs. Laraine Morrison said she was against pedestrianisation of the Market Place and agreed that if anything had to be done the market should be moved.
The Mayor Councillor Martin Jordan said the most important thing was to remove traffic from the square and not to enlarge the market.
Mr. Hodgson’s proposal that the experiment be on Saturdays only for one year was defeated. Also lost were Mr. Crawford’s amendment calling for a full week experiment lasting twelve months, and a further amendment by Mr. Craghill that the Council ask for re-consideration of a one-way system around the square.
Cumbria County Council has already rejected the one-way proposal and submitted their eighteen month experiment instead. They are currently engaged in a process of local consultation and comments have to be in by next February.
After Thursday’s lengthy debate and its “mish mash” of opinion as one Councillor termed it, it was merely decided to receive the County Council document detailing their proposed experiment.
50 years ago
Father Christmas
A slightly bedraggled Father Christmas toured Keswick in a steady downpour on Saturday evening, at the invitation of Keswick Round Table, collecting gifts of unwanted toys and handing over sweets to those children who braved the rain to see him.
There was the customary good response from the children and the toys were sorted afterwards and a consignment taken next day by the Chairman, Mr. Edwin Butler, and members, to Darwen, Lancashire. Where Darwen Round Table will distribute them to needy homes.
Father Christmas also took the opportunity of visiting Keswick Hospital where he was welcomed by the Matron, Miss E. Mitchison, and visited the wards with Christmas gifts for the patients.
Letter to the Editor
Dear Sir, – What wouldn’t we give to have our warm fast diesel trains in the present fuel crisis?
It’s been calculated that trains are the most economical form of transport when measured by fuel consumption.
Are we too bogged down in bureaucracy to re-think the proposed plan to spend four million pounds on a by-pass that may be obsolete before it is completed?
Would not this money be better spent on re-introducing the railway?
Varya Vergauwen
Rigg Beck
Newlands
