From our September 7 issue

100 years ago

ON Monday the price of coal was raised throughout Midlothian and Haddingtonshire, the increase generally being 1s (5p) a ton, though at some collieries, particular varieties of coal have been sent up as much as 2s (10p). Trade continues booming. It is computed there are not five thousand tons of coal "bing-ed" throughout the Lothian districts altogether. There are some complaints about the scarcity of waggons to meet the extraordinary demand being everywhere experienced.

AT Inveresk School Board, the chairman, James Gemmell, referring to the proposal to build a new school at Smeaton Shaw, said there were to be 144 new houses there with a population of about 800, and that would mean a good many children. It would be much too far for young children to walk to Crookston. The chairman said in an offhand way he had thought upon Crossgate Hill.

50 years ago

ST Peter's Church Hall, Musselburgh was filled on Thursday evening with friends of the Rev J McGill and his congregation, who were presenting him with a gold watch after his 16 years' ministry at St Peter's Church. Mr James Mackie announced that the Vestry, with the approval of the Bishops of the Diocese, had appointed the Rev Ian Armstrong Deighton, rector of St Columba's, Clydebank, to be rector of St Peter's in succession to Mr McGill.

MEMBERS of the Millhill Church Youth Club, Musselburgh, visited the premises of the Scottish Daily Mail and had a ringside seat when they saw, and heard, a national daily newspaper going to press. Interest was maintained at maximum level from the moment they were introduced to "Bunty" Munro, the commissionaire — a Musselburgh man who at one time was a very smart Drum Major in the pipe band, and still is in his spick and span uniform — until each member of the club was presented with one of the first copies of the paper hot off the press. The teleprinters, which are linked up to various points in the UK, churned out the news, and was of great interest at one point to the football fans of the club. The collating and editing of the news was watched from a distance through a glass partition.

25 years ago

THE Rev A Graham Black of Longniddry was installed as Moderator of the Presbytery of Lothian at their September meeting. Earlier, his predecessor as Moderator, the Rev Kenneth Hughes, Prestonkirk, had conducted Presbytery's annual Communion service in Northesk Church.

THE people of Ormiston are working together organising a series of events which eventually raise over £12,000 to buy a Batricar for a local woman left paralysed after an operation to remove a tumour from her spine. At present 40-year-old Nancy Baird, who lives with her husband and son at 27 Limeylands Crescent, seldom leaves the house because of immense difficulties involved with being paralysed from the chest down.

OCTOBER 15 and 16 have been chosen as the official opening dates of Haddington Labour Party Social Club. The decision was taken at a management committee meeting when it was decided to invite local MP John Home Robertson to perform the ceremony at the club in Opera Close, off Court Street. The committee went for two dates in order to involve as many of the 600 members as possible.

10 years ago

THE East Lothian community this week joined the nation in mourning the tragic death of Diana, Princess of Wales. As news spread of the death of the Princess and her companion, Dodi Al Fayed, in a car crash in Paris in the early hours of Sunday morning, tributes were paid throughout the district to "the People's Princess." East Lothian Council opened books of remembrance for the Princess at the Town House in Haddington and the Brunton Hall in Musselburgh, which soon became a focal point for locals wishing to pay their respects. The Lord Lieutenant of East Lothian, Sir Hew Hamilton Dalrymple, ws first to sign the book at Haddington while council convener Councillor Pat O'Brien was first to record his condolences in the Musselburgh book.

THE Loch Centre in Tranent is to be closed for 16 weeks for a major £340,000 facelift. The centre will close from November 17 to allow for the major programme of refurbishment and improvement work, which will include the installation of a new health suite incorporating a sauna and steam room, as well as the replacement of high-level poolside windows, removing and re-tiling of the existing poolside and relocating and enlarging the body conditioning area.

From our September 14 issue

100 years ago

ON Monday afternoon last a brilliant assemblage of ladies and gentlemen gathered at the Grammar School by the invitation of the Chairman and members of the Musselburgh School Board to witness the ceremony on the re-opening of the school after having undergone extensive alterations. Nobody knew when the school was instituted. The original school was what later men amongst them called the Burgh School, which stood opposite the Post Office. In 1894 it was raised from being an elementary school to a higher grade. There was now accommodation for 461 pupils. Mr Murdoch, the new headmaster, said he would do everything in his power to make the school a success.

THE Provost moved that Musselburgh Town Council erect a pavilion in the Burgh Fever Hospital ground for the treatment of poor patients in the last stages of consumption. The motion was rejected.

50 years ago

THE Musselburgh Rotary Club often does a great deal of good in the burgh which is never recognised. On Saturday, August 31, 35 boys from the Red House Home were taken to North Berwick in the private cars of Rotarians. Once at North Berwick, the Rotarians entertained the boys with games of putting and introducing them to the many amusements North Berwick has to offer. This was followed by a slap-up tea, which even Billy Bunter would have appreciated, and ice-cream.

RAPTUROUS cries were heard from the children of the Hayweights Cinema Club, Musselburgh, on Saturday morning when club chief Mr George Williamson announced that next week all children of the club would receive a free signed photograph of Tommy Steele, generally supposed to be England's answer to Elvis Presley. Mr Williamson is at present organising a "Tommy Steele" skiffle group competition.

WHEN Musselburgh Fire Brigade were called to extinguish a chimney fire at 5 Manfsfield Road, Musselburgh, on September 6, Fireman Reginald Pensom was injured when a piece of chimney stack fell on his head. After receiving medical treatment, Fireman Pensom carried on with his duties.

25 years ago

RETIRED Haddington businessman Stanley Godek returned from a mercy mission to his native Poland on Monday evening with a message for the district — Dziekuje Bardzo. It means, quite simply, thank you, and it comes from the many beleaguered Poles who received essential food, clothing and medical supplies bought through the kindness of local people.

EAST Lothian District Council is planning to spend around £13,000 over the next 12 months in an attempt to improve its public image. The local authority plans to advertise for a public relations officer at an annual salary of between £7,500 and £8,000. And it is proposed that a council news sheet be delivered free to all households in East Lothian at least three times a year.

LABOUR councillors are to join NUPE members on picket line duty at Herdmanflat Hospital, Haddington, on Wednesday — the TUC's Day of Action in support of the health workers. The councillors hope to be joined by East Lothian MP John Home Robertson. Labour group chairman Councillor Pat O'Brien (Prestonpans) said they would be showing solidarity with the health service workers in their fight for higher pay.

10 years ago

THE streets of East Lothian were deserted on Saturday morning as people throughout the district mourned the tragic death of Diana, Princess of Wales. Shops and businesses remained closed as a mark of respect. In one Musselburgh household, the television funeral procession took on a special poignancy. At their home in The Grove, Janie and Matthew Paterson watched as their nephew, Graeme Innes, played his part in the historic occasion. Graeme (26) was watched by millions as he rode the lead horse of the six which pulled the gun carriage carrying the Princess's coffin on its sad journey from Kensington Palace to Westminster Abbey. His mother Margaret, nee Hall, was Honest Lass in 1960 and his father George was Honest Lad the following year.

SCHOOLS in the Cockenzie and Port Seton and Prestonpans area are to benefit from £10,000 worth of new library books. The boost comes in the shape of three annual donations from Transco, the gas transportation and emergency service, which will go towards buying library books for schools in the area. The donation followed the emergency which hit the Prestonpans and Cockenzie areas two winters ago, when thousands of local householders were left shivering when the gas supply failed.


From our September 21 issue

100 years ago

ON Tuesday morning, while the schooner "Gleaner," which had been discharging rock salt at Fisherrow Harbour, was on her way from Fisherrow to Morrison's Haven to load coal, it went ashore on the beach at the mouth of the Esk.

ON Saturday evening last Mr John Marshall was waited upon by his fellow employees at Musselburgh Gas Works and presented with a silver-mounted umbrella and walking stick on the occasion of his leaving this district to occupy a similar position in England.

MUSSELBURGH Juniors opened their season's play in earnest at Mall Park on Saturday last. The match was with Granton Oakvale in the first round of the East of Scotland Junior Cup. A well-contested game ended in a draw of three goals each. At the Goose Green, the local St Andrews beat Ashvale, Edinburgh, 2-1.

50 years ago

THE sub-committee of Midlothian education authority, after careful consideration of the question wehter all children should be educated within Musselburgh rather than some children from Pinkie Braes being forced to travel to Wallyford for schooling, have decided to carry on with their original scheme that some children should be educated in the new school at Wallyford. This decision has been made despite the protests of Pinkie Braes Parents' Association and Musselburgh Town Council that there is ample school accommodation for these children within the burgh.

THE Ministry of Pensions and National Insurance and the Ministry of Labour and National Service are moving into a new building in Mansfield Road, Musselburgh, this weekend. The Ministry of Pension and National Insurance will start moving from their present address at 163 High Street on Saturday first. The Ministry of Labour and National Service start their removal from Balcarres Road, opposite the Gas Works, to the new building on Monday.

SINCE the X-ray campaign began, 14,868 people were X-rayed up till Saturday last, including 272 at Whitecraig.

25 years ago

A PLAN to clear 118 acres of trees at Butterdean Wood, Gladsmuir, was strongly attacked at a meeting of East Lothian District Council's planning and development committee. Council chairman Tom Wilson said the plan would leave an area of "total desolation" between Penston Farm and Samuelston and would have to be strongly resisted to maintain the beauty of the East Lothian countryside.

THE people of Haddington will be glued to their television sets this evening when the last in the present series of the popular BBC Scotland gardening programme, The Beechgrove Garden, takes to the screen. For the programme, which took the form of one of the highly successful roadshows, was recorded in the town's Corn Exchange earlier this week. The TV cameras moved into the town on Monday morning along with the programme's two star presenters George Barron and Jim McColl.

FACILITIES for the disabled at Haddington swimming pool are to be increased further thanks to the efforts of members of East Lothian branch of the Scottish Sub Aqua Club by playing pool non-stop underwater for 38 hours, playing in one-hour stints.

10 years ago

EAST Lothian residents have overwhelmingly backed the referendum for a Scottish parliament with tax-varying powers. In last week's referendum, 65 per cent of the district's electorate turned out to vote, with almost 75 per cent backing calls for a Scottish parliament and almost 63 per cent agreeing the parliament should have tax-varying powers. Scottish parliament: Yes, 33,353 (74.2pc); No, 11,665 (25.8pc). Tax-varying powers: Yes, 28,152 (62.7pc); No, 16,765 (37.3pc).

A FORTNIGHT later than planned, fisher folk will gather in the Honest Toun tomorrow to celebrate the unique heritage of a sea-going community, at Fisherrow Fishermen's Walk. Originally intended for Saturday September 6, the event was postponed as a mark of respect following the death of Diana, Princess of Wales. According to tradition, the men will lead the way, carrying banners high, with women and children following.

COUNCILLORS have given the go-ahead for the reinstatement of storm-damaged roofs at Middleshot Square, Prestonpans. Roofs at the flats were ripped off and damaged during hurricane-force winds in November 1996.

From our September 28 issue

100 years ago

ON Thursday afternoon, while one of the electric cars was passing along North High Street, Musselburgh, a little girl named Georgina Hamilton, aged two-and-a-half years, daughter of Mrs Hamilton, 203 North High Street, ran in front of a car and was knocked down, sustaining slight injuries about the head by coming in contact with the life guard. An Edinburgh doctor happened to be on the car, who took the child to Dr Young's residence, and had the wound on her forehead dressed.

THE Fishermen's Walk passed off very quietly. According to some of the older residents of Fisherrow, there is not nearly the same interest being taken in the function as in the good old days.

TO make room for the temporary grandstand at Musselburgh racecourse, some 50 yards have been chopped off the first hole on the golf course.

50 years ago

THE Housing Committee recommended that permission be granted to Fisherrow Yacht Club to use premises at 27-29 Caird's Row for the purpose of storage and for a clubroom. Mr David Taylor, Town Clerk, pointed out that the property did not belong to the council and, as it was condemned property, the landlord would need permission before he could let it. Mr Ness, Sanitary Inspector, believed that if the premises had already been certified "unfit for human habitation" they should not be used. He had no objections for the property being used for storage purposes, but feared that when the tides were adverse, members from Edinburgh might sleep the night in the clubrooms in Caird's Row.

THE Head Postmaster has announced that commencing September 28, 1957, there will be one delivery of letters and parcels in Musselburgh instead of two on Saturdays. The morning deliveries will continue as at present; the second will operate from Monday to Friday but will not be made on Saturdays.

MUSSELBURGH will take part in the National Civil Defence recruiting campaign. It will be a tremendous effort to demonstrate the dangers of future wars.

25 years ago

DUNBAR open-air swimming pool was officially recommended for closure this week by East Lothian District Council's leisure, recreation and tourism committee. Mr Graham Duncan, Director of Physical Planning, explained a meeting had been held with the Scottish Development Agency about rehabilitating the site. Councillor John Macnair commented: "It is a pity — the end of an era. The Dunbar people have put up a very good fight."

PENCAITLAND Amateur Football Club have asked East Lothian District Council's Department of Leisure, Recreation and Tourism for permision to upgrade the football pitch at Pencaitland public park and allow them to enter the national senior football league. Mr J Greenhorn, club secretary, said members would like to discuss the possibility of obtaining a long-term lease from the council for either the pitch itself or the pitch and pavilion.

MR Noel Foy, secretary/agent for East Lothian Labour Party, was admitted to hospital in Blackppol on Monday after high winds blew in a window at the town's Winter Gardens Centre during a Labour Party Conference debate. He was later released after being treated for a cut on his back.

10 years ago

THE countdown has started for celebrations next autumn to mark 200 years of worship at Musselburgh Congregational Church. A week of events will be held next September.

A NEW housing development in the centre of Tranent has been visited by memebrs of East Lothian Council. Known as Potter's Path, the Well Wynd development has been built by the East Lothian Housing Association and has been designed to provide houses for rent for the elderly and single people.

HADDINGTON Infant School's new nursery class will be officially opened by local councillor Anne McCarthy today. Parents have also been invited to view the facility which can now cater for 80 children.

COUNCIL chiefs have masterminded a plan to ensure that the unveiling of Dunbar's new £26,000 statue is well attended — they have invited Magnus Magnusson to do the honours. The sculpture depicts Dunbar's famous son, John Muir, as a boy. It is 12 feet high and cast in bronze. It was designed by Ukranian sculptor Valentin Znoba and depicts a young John Muir holding a bird.