Saturday, January 29, 2005

100 years ago: It was "stated definitely" that Tom Bowling, about whom the poem Tom Bowling or the Sailor's Epitaph was written, was a native of York, the son of Edward Bowling, ferryman at the Castlegate, or Skeldergate ferry, and many other interesting particulars were given. An advertisement copied from the Yorkshire Herald of October 9, 1790, referred "no doubt" to the giving up of the ferry duties by Tom's father: "Mr Ellis begs to inform merchants and tradesmen of this city, and the public in general, that he has taken the Old Crane, late in the possession of Mr Edward Bowling, and requests they will oblige him with their favours." The advertisement went on with references to the shipping of goods, etc, into vessels in which Tom Bowling's father had been engaged, besides keeping the ferry. When "Death had broached him to", the "sheer hulk" of poor Tom Bowling was buried "under hatches" in Stoke Churchyard, and a monument erected to his memory, on which the inscription mentioned his native city, York.

50 years ago: Mr Nobody and a Yorkshire Evening Press photographer had a frightening experience when they spent a morning at the Milk Marketing Board's Stockton-on-Forest Cattle Breeding Centre, quickly coming to the conclusion that they preferred their own jobs to that of looking after some of the 32 bulls kept there. They both found it rather frightening standing a few yards away from three-quarters of a ton of Aberdeen Angus bull, and it took only "a slight snort", a paw of the ground and a lower of the head to really scare them - much to the amusement of witnesses. The MMB's Centre had been built in 1951, to provide better breeding lines therefore better and more milk, and provided for about 40,000 artificial inseminations annually.

25 years ago: Another York street would be closed to through traffic in less than a week, when St Andrewgate would be closed at its junction with Spen Lane, as part of the overall redevelopment plan for the Aldwark area of the city. Bollards were to be erected across the street to prevent extraneous traffic from King's Square and Aldwark using the developing area as an escape route from the central area. The closure would also segregate the rear servicing areas of shops in Goodramgate from the proposed housing area.

Updated: 16:43 Friday, January 28, 2005