A look at stories from the Rutland & Stamford Mercury archive from 10, 25, 50 and up to 200 years ago
With the help of the Rutland & Stamford Mercury Archive Trust, we look back through the newspaper's archive to find interesting stories from years gone by…
10 years ago
Pedalling for charity
Gym members pedalled enthusiastically for three hours to raise money for Sue Ryder Thorpe Hall Hospice.
Helen Cole, a member at Westside Health and Fitness in Stamford, organised the charity Spinathon, which took place on February 1.
In the past her events have raised funds for Macmillan Cancer Support and Cancer Research UK but this time she chose a cause a little closer to home - Thorpe Hall Hospice's £6m Capital Appeal to build a new hospice alongside the current building.
Westside instructor John Sheeham led the class of 16. And on Tuesday, Helen was delighted to hand over £815 - double her target - to Kirsty Clipston, from the hospice.
Helen said: "Sadly I've lost friends and family to cancer and feel it's important to help these worthwhile charities.
“Raising funds for Thorpe Hall was a bit closer to home and a bit more personal as some of those who took part know the work the hospice does.
“Everyone paid £25 to take part but a lot of people gave more generously and one lady raised £200 from sponsorship.
“Considering that most of those who signed up wanted the personal challenge of spinning, it was a great amount of money to raise.”
“More than half of the money needed for the new hospice has been raised and building work has already started.”
Charity expands support scheme
A charity is expanding a support scheme for elderly and vulnerable people to 24 hours a day after a successful launch.
The Evergreen Care Trust, which is based in Stamford, will offer its Evergreen Angels service during the night hours of 8pm to 8am from today.
The day service, between 8am and 8pm, launched in Stamford in November.
The trained angels make a minimum weekly visit to paying members, and are on call for emergencies.
Evergreen is also expanding its catchment area to include villages on the outskirts of Stamford, including Ryhall, Tinwell and Great Casterton.
Angels co-ordinator Bob Mackrill said the success of the scheme meant the charity was able to cater for demand outside Stamford itself.
He said: “We are expanding it to the villages of Stamford. We are confident we can cover that.”
The Angels service is available to anyone who thinks they might need it.
Those who sign up to the day service receive weekly visits, plus a monthly safety check and emergency call outs between 8am and 8pm for £7.50 per week.
The new night service will run from 8pm to 8am. For a weekly fee of £3.50 members will get access to emergency call outs 365 days a year.
The service can be tailored to suit an individual’s needs, with more visits if necessary.
A single membership can cover two people in the same home.
So far Evergreen has about 80 members in the Angels scheme.
Mr Mackrill thanked the community for supporting it, adding: “It’s going very well.
“It’s going what we had anticipated it would do.”
“The monitoring has been very successful in heading off health crises for individuals in numerous instances.”
Work begins to refurbish watermill
Skilled tradesmen have started work reassembling and refurbishing an historic watermill which is due to reopen in the summer.
The William Scott Abbott Trust has reached a crucial stage in the restoration of its 18th century Grade II* listed watermill at Sacrewell with the arrival of two skilled millwrights to refurbish and reassemble the mill's wooden, metal and stone segments to full working condition.
The millwrights - Neil Medcalf and Steve Boulton - are from Traditional Millwrights, based at Farlesthorpe in Lincolnshire and will be working on site for two months.
They were hired by Stamford based firm Messenger Construction which is responsible for the £1.7m restoration project at Sacrewell, near Peterborough.
The project began last year, using a £1.4m grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund with trust money.
The water wheel is the most recognisable aspect of Sacrewell's 18th century mill which includes the mill pond, mill house, bakery and mill gardens.
The wheel had been carefully disassembled early on in the restoration process, and many of the wooden elements were found to be rotten after 300 years of use.
Prior to the arrival of the millwrights, Messenger had been busy working at the back
of the mill, casting reinforced concrete walls to stabilise the building and repairing the millraces to help with the flow of water from the mill pond through to the wheel.
The millwrights' first job is to replace all of the rotten wood. The millwrights will also be stripping and refurbishing the metal on the wheel, restoring the gear cupboard and the large millstones.
Mill project officer Jane Harrison said: "Every day we see progress in restoring the mechanical workings of the mill come together again."
Paul Gibbons, managing director of Messenger Construction, said: "Having a fully functioning mill once again is a sure sign that this significant restoration project is on the homeward stretch."
Former Army cook receives war medals 70 years later
A former Army cook has finally been awarded the medals he won during the Second World War, 70 years after the conflict ended.
Harry Weston, 95, from Greetham, received the Defence Medal and the War Medal last month.
The former Army Catering Corps cook enlisted in 1940 and served in Scotland until 1946. He returned home to Greetham and carried on his life at the Old Bakery.
It was only when village historian David Bland started researching Harry's past that he discovered the veteran had never applied for his medals.
David and son Paul wrote to the Ministry of Defence, and the two medals arrived within a few days.
Paul, who is co-writing Greetham and the Great War with his father, said: "Harry was a bit surprised, but delighted to get his medals.
He was really pleased. "I imagine even 10 years after the war he might have thought it was too late."
Before he started researching Harry's story, Paul was under the impression medals were handed out automatically after the Second World War.
He said: “Harry had just got on with his life and had forgotten about it. We thought it was time to put it right."
Harry is a lifelong Greetham resident, only leaving the village during his time in the Army.
His father John and uncle Harry moved to Greetham just before the First World War to take over the village bakery business from their uncle.
While serving, Harry and four other cooks had to prepare meals three times a day for a battalion of over 700 sol-diers. He was based in Shetland and Orkney during the war.
Five generations in one picture
Four generations of the same family born and bred in Stamford, have just welcomed the arrival of baby Myles.
Myles Christopher Thomas Ward was born on February 9 at Peterborough City Hospital, much to the delight of his great great grandfather Thomas Hayes, who he has been named after.
Thomas, who turned 100 in October always knew that his great granddaughter Annabelle would have a baby boy.
Myles is the first child of Annabelle Ward, 25, and her husband Paul, of Christ Church Close, Stamford and represents the fifth generation in the family.
Great grandmother Janet Smith, aged 70, of Churchill Road, Stamford is delighted to have a great grandson.
She said: "We are absolutely thrilled to have baby Myles in the family and Thomas is especially proud."
Baby Myles got to meet the other four generations last week, including his grandmother Christine Abbott, 52, from Christ Church Close, Stamford.
Myles' mum, Annabelle said: "I've always been very close to my great grandad, so for him to meet my first child was an extremely special and emotional moment.
"During my pregnancy Paul and I didn't find out whether we were having a boy or girl but my great grandad always told me I'd have a big baby boy, and at 8lb 8oz he wasn't wrong!"
25 years ago
Church could become heritage centre
Stamford’s medieval St John's Church could become a Christian Heritage Centre and act as a 'gateway' for churches across Lincolnshire.
That's one of the options being looked at to try to secure the future of the grade one listed St John's Church, which has been joined with the parish of All Saints' since the 1970s, needs £150,000 restoration work which the Parochial Church Council says it cannot commit itself to.
A feasibility study will be carried out to look at converting the church into a heritage centre which could be used to promote the county's churches.
This would be done in partnership with the Diocese of Lincoln, South Kesteven District Council and the local community.
The Rev Neil Russell said if this was not viable the church would seek suggestions for other alternative uses for the building.
He said the final option would be to approach the council for the Care of Churches to see if it would accept St John's under the scheme of redundant churches and allow it to be used for up to six services a year.
Mr Russell said closing the church was not an option. He said: "For the last five years we have been thinking about alternative uses for it.
"One option we looked at was to convert the building into an office and meeting room but we only got as far as phase one and the costs were too high.
"Then we had a five-year survey done which found £150,000 work was needed at St John's and £100,000 to All Saints.
"The PCC decided we could commit ourselves to the success of this.”
Firefighters help nursing home
When Stamford fire service arrived at Red House Nursing Home they got straight into action to rescue staff.
Thankfully it was only a fire drill but it gave both staff at the Emlyn Street home and the fire service the chance to put their skills to the test.
The event was a combination of Stamford's weekly drill and the home's annual drill.
None of the residents were involved but staff played the role of casualties and were placed in strategic places around the building to be rescued.
Matron Elizabeth Twiddy said the event was very useful and gave staff the chance to be ever vigilant about fire problems.
Children get creative over half term
Creative hands were hard at work at Stamford Museum over half term as children gathered to make weather vanes.
Children, aged five to 11 looked at the historical context of Stamford's weather vanes, as part of the museum's half term activities, on Thursday.
Particular attention was made to the weather cock on Saint Mary's Church which has medieval origins.
The children tried to decide whether the spikes on the vane were meant as a deterrent to pigeons or to keep the devil away.
The children also got a chance to make their own weather cocks using cardboard and tin foil.
Thomas the Tank Engine visits Wansford
Thomas the Tank Engine and the ghost of Snowy the cat entertained children at Wansford Nene Valley Railway last Saturday.
Thomas met with children of all ages and treated them to a special return trip from Wansford to Yarwell.
The short journey took the children through a third of a mile long tunnel which is haunted by a former station master's cat called Snowy.
Jane Smith, of Wansford Nene Valley Railway, said: "Thomas always comes out during school half term holidays to visit his friends. We are very proud to have Thomas here where he has lived for many years."
50 years ago
A verdict of accidental death was recorded on the 65-year-old Countess of Ancaster at an inquest at Stamford Hospital on Tuesday. The Countess, who lived at Grimsthorpe Castle, near Bourne, was found unconscious by her maid early on Sunday morning. and later died in Stamford Hospital.
100 years ago
Presentations - At the weekly meeting of the Women's Guild, at the Albert Hall on Wednesday, the members presented M. Carnegie with a silver-plated egg stand. During the afternoon songs were rendered by Miss Carnegie and Mr. Turpin.
150 years ago
The bakers of Stamford are not at all times above taking a hint. They have lowered the price of bread a half-penny in the 41b loaf. Thus the public will benefit a little; but, per contra, the butchers, not content with the profits they had been reaping, have raised the price of meat.
200 years ago
Providential Escape - As Mr. Musson, farmer, of Colsterworth, was on Friday the 18th ult. drawing water from a well 14 yards deep, and having in it 16 inches of standing water, one of the buckets being at the bottom, a son of his, a stout child 2 years and 7 months old, fell into the well. Mr. Musson immediately fixed a cart rope, and went down after the child; when, to his great joy and surprise, he found the boy standing in the water unhurt.
