1884

A lad was driving down Cunliffe Road at rather a brisk pace, and when he turned into Church Street came into collision with a trap coming from the direction of Brook Street, containing about half-a-dozen persons, mostly ladies. The lad was thrown out on to the road but soon picked himself up, and went in search of his horse which had gone off along Skipton Road at a brisk pace.

  • A thunderstorm of unusual severity passed over this district during which the lightening was of a terrific character, as many as three flashes following each other in quick succession, and the thunder was like the sound of the discharge of heavy ordinance at a distance. The rain came down literally like a deluge, and at times resembled a waterfall more than anything else, so much so that the streets had within a few minutes the appearance of a brook very much swollen, the drains being inadequate to carry off the extra flow of water.
  • A labourer describing himself as a retired soldier and the landlord of the Junction Inn, Addingham, were summoned at the Skipton Petty Sessions, the former charged with being drunk on licensed premises, the latter with permitting drunkenness on his premises. The case was found proved and the landlord was fined 10s and the retired soldier, 2s and 6d.
1909

A cow on Thursday being driven along Skipton Road ran into the Listers Arms Hotel, passing through the house into the dining room. From the house it was ejected without doing any damage but it broke through a hedge on the bowling green border and here jumped the wall into Cunliffe Road. The cow was kept off the green and gained the road without injury.

  • Under the auspices of the Watercress and Flower Girls Christian Mission, a beautiful display of artificial flowers made by blind and disabled girls connected with the mission is being held in the town hall this week. The mission was inaugurated by the 7th Earl of Shaftesbury in 1866 with a view to ameliorate the condition and offer help to the watercress and flower girls frequenting Covent Garden Market.
  • In this climate of ours where every conceivable variation of temperature is possible within the space of 14 hours, the weather often proves a fickle friend, and outdoor functions that promised a wealth of beauty and attractiveness turn out to be bedraggled spectacles most woeful to behold.
1934

Heavy storms on two successive days caused considerable alarm in the Ilkley district. Vivid flashes of lightning and terrific peals of thunder accompanied heavy rain. On the first day cellars in Brook Street and houses in Church Street were flooded and on the second day the signal box at Ilkley Station was struck, the apparatus being badly damaged, and the man in charge narrowly escaping injury.

  • A suggestion that the Ilkley Urban District Council should so far as possible employ Addingham labour when carrying out work in Addingham was made at the meeting of the Addingham Parish Council on Monday. Mr P Selby said that as users of Ilkley gas, Addingham labour ought to be considered when the Ilkley Council was carrying out work in connection with the gas in the village. Dr D McCarthy: I have personally approached the Ilkley authorities on the subject and quite agree. It is hard lines for our men who might be out of work, especially when they bring their own casual labour. It was resolved to ask Ilkley Council to consider unemployed men in Addingham when they had any work to be done in the village.
  • Visiting Ilkley on Wednesday in the course of a tour of mid-Wharfedale, members of the Royal Archaeological Institute and of the Yorkshire Archaeological Society found considerable interest in the antiquities associated with the Ilkley Parish Church, the Ronan Fort of Olicana and in the cup-and-ring rock carvings. There was a company of over 200 who, after visiting Harewood House, Church and Castle came on to Ilkley and lunched at the Blue Bird Cafe.
1959

Governors of Ilkley Grammar School and Ilkley Secondary School have been informed that the County Education Committee has approved the expenditure of not more than £5,000 on the development of the 13.08 acres at Wheatley Holmes as school playing fields, and have decided that joint use must be made of the fields without stipulating how this should be arranged.

  • Twelve gallons of petrol were stolen valued at 46s from a pump at the rear of the Wheatley Hotel, Ben Rhydding, between Friday and Monday. The lock on the pump had been forced. It was the property of Mr R Jeffries, of North parade, Burley.
  • A large gathering of Wharfedale Scout Association officials, cubs of 1st Ben Rhydding and personal friends gathered at Ilkley Station on Saturday morning to see 17 years old Richard Wright, of Wheatley Road, Ben Rhydding, off as the Wharfedale Association’s representative of the World Scout Jamboree which is being held in the Philippines. Richard was presented with a plaque representing the Ilkley coat of arms by Councillor Mrs Jane Ellicot.
1984

The 10th Yorkshire Ballet Seminar begins its five week run at Ilkley Campus tomorrow with students coming from all over the country and abroad. The first week teachers will be Dame Alicia Markova, Pamela May, former Ballerina of the Royal Ballet and Carol Myers, principal with Sadlers Wells Royal Ballet.

  • Anglers and fishermen on the River Wharfe at Ilkley are up in arms over proposals being considered by Bradford Metropolitan Council to lease fishing rights which their club has rented for over 50 years. Ilkley and District Angling Association is worried that Bradford will lease the rights to the highest bidder
  • American preacher, Dr Billy Graham, comes to Ilkley this week on a large screen. The latest video projection system from West Germany will be used to show the Mission England services from Birmingham, in Otley and Ilkley. “I was amazed by the clarity and quality of the colour TV pictures on the 14 by 10 foot screen,” said the Rev Peter Marshall, vicar of Ilkley Parish Church.