When Sheffield Wednesday played a charity match at Keswick Rugby Club

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

Borrowdale CE School – retirement of Mr Malcolm Miller

Several events marked the end of ten happy and productive years for retired Borrowdale Headmaster Malcolm Miller.

On 10th July ‘Travelling Light’ had pupils, parents, staff and friends past and present dancing the night away at a Ceilidh held at Rosthwaite Institute. And on Friday 16th July, St Andrew’s Church was full for the end of term Thanksgiving Service. The children were in fine voice, singing their favorite hymns, and the fleet group sang beautifully. There was a presentation of Bibles to the four departed – Lewis Cooke, Emily Dowson, Ben Fidrmuc and Ellen Hindmarch.

Various children then read from a Book of Memories they had compiled for Mr Miller, and on behalf of the Parish Church Council, Mr Sam Hicks presented Mr Miller with slate bookends, made by the late Chris Bland, and a check .

Chairman of Governors, Mr Alan Leyland, thanked Mr Miller for all he had done for the children of Borrowdale to raise the standard of education, dealing with the multitude of changes regularly imposed on him and the mountain of paperwork, making life easier for governors by his efficiency. He then presented Mr Miller with a superb telescope and tripod from the governors, staff, pupils and parents, wishing him a long and happy retirement.

Letter to the editor

Dear editor,

Now that I am retiring, I can, through the columns of your newspaper, express my thanks to the community of Keswick for their overwhelming support of the school during my tenure as Headmaster of Trinity School. I include in this statement all those who have served as staff in a variety of capacities, governors and others who have helped as a volunteer, and businesses and charities who have come forward to support their local school. I want to include all the students and parents over the years because they too have contributed to what the school has become.

When I first came to Keswick as a director, I was thinking of it as a 5 to 7 year post before moving on to something else. The fact that I stayed for 17 years says a lot about the city. It has been a privilege to serve a caring community and I consider myself fortunate to have been selected for this assignment. I now hope that everyone will support the new school that will be formed next year, through the merger of Trinity and St Kentigern schools, in the same way. Change is not always welcome, but on this occasion the movement towards change came from within the community rather than being driven from the outside. The change will bring together all primary children in the city and give primary education a single direction and better continuity. I wish the new school every success.

I have been particularly humbled this past year, not only by the sympathy I have received during my illness, but by everyone’s generosity in understanding the reasons for my retirement. Thank you to everyone who wrote or sent cards, your messages of support touched me deeply.

Mick Guy
Keswick

30 years ago

Allerdale stands firm

Allerdale District Council is set to fight for unitary status in the proposed restructuring of local government in Cumbria.

The Council disputes the draft proposals of the Local Government Commission which would provide for the introduction of two North/South remote unitary authorities to pair the six districts. The council is refusing to entertain a merger with Copeland Borough Council and is now backing a second ‘status quo’ option.

Allerdale Council leader Jim Musgrave said: “Unitary Allerdale is the only solution acceptable to this Council. The Commission’s choice to force a pairing between Allerdale and Copeland – two separate and distinct communities – is deplorable.”

“Unsafe” claim at the bridge

The former railway bridge over the River Greta at Penrith Road is still unsafe, a local councilor claims.

It is the bridge that featured in a televised reconstruction of a rescue drama in 1991. A BBC film crew was in Keswick a few weeks ago to film a reconstruction of the rescue by local painter and decorator Eric Mattinson of a nine year old child. boy for the 999 series.

This is known as the ‘Thunderbirds’ rescue, as Mr Mattinson, who crawled across the bridge superstructure to reach Gareth Hunter, who had fallen and landed on a support beam high above the river, cheered the boy up by telling him to international rescue television. the dolls were on their way. Mr Mattinson and Ambulance Martin Hardman received Royal Humane Society awards for their bravery in the rescue.

Councilor Mrs Sheila Hawkrigg pointed out that local children use the old railway line as a path to school and claims the bridge is still unsafe. “Nothing was done to make it safe for the children. There is an open invitation for children to come up, which is what happened in the incident, which will be broadcast on the 999 programme,” she said. “The position has not changed since the original accident and it could happen again.”

40 years ago

Charity football match

The Royal Oak Hotel football team lost 25-1 in First Division Sheffield on Sunday afternoon in a match they had arranged in aid of the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. But they scored top marks for their efforts to bring the first top-flight football team to Keswick for many years and for giving locals, particularly the youngsters, an opportunity to see the often criticized game at its best.

The skills of the First Division players were matched by the enthusiasm of the local team (which included a local printer among the chefs, waiters and assistant managers!), while the cheering band, dressed in Royal Oak team colours, provided tireless encouragement. their team’s efforts. They even helped set up Royal Oak’s only goal — handcuffing the Sheffield Wednesday keeper to the posts!

Royal Oak manager Mr George Vousek entertained the Sheffield team at the hotel overnight and all the players and helpers joined in a social event at the hotel that evening.

Despite the rather disappointing turnout, they hope to have raised almost £500 for the charity.

The local company is making waves

Keswick-based Cumberland Pencil Company has certainly turned heads with its new range of Derwent watercolor pencils. Sales are booming, the company says, and this versatile new artist environment, along with another new development for the creative market, has already resulted in twenty more jobs at the factory.

The watercolor pencil also appears to have captured the imagination of the media and was recently featured on BBC Radio World Service and Radio Cumbria in the region. Crayons also made an appearance on Border TV’s ‘Lookaround’ program when artist Bill Toop was seen demonstrating the crayons in the Cumberland Crayon Museum. Bill is one of the country’s leading and most respected watercolourists and is so excited about the new pencils that he happily traveled to Keswick from his home in Wiltshire to be filmed by Border TV. According to Bill, the Derwent watercolor pencil is “much, much better than anything else available, there’s simply no comparison” – a view naturally shared by the Cumberland Pencil company.

50 years ago

Letter to the editor

Dear Sir, — Last week a “council official” told a local gentleman (shall we call him “Tommy”?), who helped to keep the cars parked in the Bell Close waste ground in a certain order, that i should go “Tommy” was of great help to certain traders, preventing access to warehouses, a business, three shops and at least two private garages from being obstructed. He also tried to organize the parking lot so people wouldn’t find their cars caught by others when they returned.

I feel it is a shame that a harmless person who lost his workshop and birdhouse in the Bell Close development should be stopped by petty bureaucracy from taking up his time to help others. What horrible crime did he commit?

Regards,
Tony Rathbone
28 Stanger Street
Keswick

Mr. Joseph Thwaite

A former Keswickian who emigrated to Australia sixty-four years ago is back for a holiday – his first visit after all these years to the town where he was born and spent his childhood.

Mr Joseph Thwaite was born at Brigham Farm in 1892, the second of thirteen children to Mr and Mrs Joseph Thwaite, and after living at Wythop Mill for a few years the family moved back to Keswick to the Mill House on Penrith Road. Mr Thwaite and his father both worked as porters at Keswick Railway Station, and in 1910 the family decided to emigrate to Australia, leaving behind at Blencathra Sanatorium a son, Tom, who followed after eighteen months.

Mr Thwaite, who now lives in Queensland, lives with one of his sons at no. 18, Southey Street, and would like anyone who remembers him to contact him there.

Athletics

Keswick Athletic Club’s top track runner Kellie and running’s greatest endurance competitor Joss Naylor had a heated battle on the intermediate course last Saturday.

Kellie was behind Naylor on the final descent of the 8-mile Kinniside race at Cleator Moor Sports, but passed the Wasdale farmer on the flat run to the finish.

Kellie finished second in the race in a time of 69 minutes. 36 seconds. and Naylor was third in 69 minutes. 54 seconds but none could trouble the winner, Blackburn Harriers’ Dave Halsteads, who headed home on 68 minutes. 43 seconds.

Other Keswick AC positions in the race were: 8, Peter Trainor (75min 14sec), 11th, Ken Cartmell (77min 30sec), 16th, Paul Spencer Ellis (78min 49sec) and 25 , David Sutcliffe (104 min. 104 sec.). 55 seconds).