From our archives:

85 years ago

In Berlin German engineer Dr Johannes Winkler was one step away from his dream of reaching the moon after finally setting a date to launch a giant rocket in an attempt of penetrating beyond the stratosphere.

According to the arrangements the experiment was to take place at a spot to the south-west of Pillau in East Prussia.

Selby hospital extension had a new contractor, J H Carr and Sons. The scheme which consisted of building a new children’s ward at a cost of more than £4,000 was designed to accommodate 10 patients and include extra accommodation for the staff.

According to the director of the hospital for speech disorders, there was a real danger of making stutterers out of high-strung imitative children by portraying facial and speech contortions on the stage and screen.

He therefore urged film producers to do something to check this peril.

50 years ago

Thousands of people gave the liner Queen Mary a rousing send-off when she left Southampton fully booked, for her last east-west crossing to New York.

Sixty per cent of the final 1,500 passengers were Americans who had flown to Britain specially to make the return trip to New York.

Among the crew of 1,000, there was a general feeling of sadness.

At least ten of them had served more than 20 years with the Queen Mary.

The 152-year-old Congregational Church in Saville Street, Malton, was to close its doors for the last time after a final service on October 1.

The church which was scheduled as a building of architectural or historic interest, was to revert to the ownership of Earl Fitzwilliam’s Malton Estate which owned the land.

The congregation which flourished until some 40 years ago had been gradually declining for many years.

In 1964 it was recorded that there was only 20 members but death and removal had now reduced the number to 10.

20 years ago

Police in York were warning people with personalised and italic lettering on their car registration plates they could be N1CKED in a new crackdown.

One York woman was already L1VID after buying her boyfriend a number plate with italic writing as a birthday present.

Officers in York had warned people that they could incur a £20 spot fine and have the plates confiscated.

Volunteers from English Nature and the People’s Trust were on the hunt for an endangered species of dormouse in woods near Pickering and Fountains Abbey.