Down Memory Lane

Apr 15 2010 by Andrew McGilvray, Hamilton Advertiser

Down Memory Lane

IT was reported that the causewayed streets of Hamilton were to be periodically “douched” with water, by means of the fire hose.

THE Hamilton Advertiser is able to report that aviation is being taken seriously, evidenced by the formation of an Aviation Investment and Research Company, charged with turning the concept to commercial advantage.

TWO particularly stupid miners and two brushers were each fined £1 with the alternative of two days’ imprisonment at Hamilton Sheriff Court for having in their possession either matches or tobacco pipes at the Pyctshaw seam of Douglas Park Colliery. A miner from Strathaven was fined 10s or five days for having a match in his pocket while working in the No 2 Pit at Cadzow Colliery, perhaps fittingly on April 1.

WHEN a railway trespasser explained at Hamilton Sheriff Court that he had used the line as a short-cut to catch a bus, the railway company’s prosecutor smilingly asked the Sheriff to regard it as an “aggravation of the offence”. A rail and bus ‘war’ was ongoing at the time.

HAMILTON people who had been happily following Hamilton Accies’ progress to the Scottish Cup Final were horrified to find that it wasn’t easy to get to the Hampden showpiece. People visited the Glasgow ‘emporiums’ at which tickets were to be on sale on the morning of April 12, only to find the booking closed, as it were, before it had opened. Hamilton’s allocation of fewer than 1000 stand tickets was causing annoyance, and was said to be a disproportionately low number for a stand stated recently to hold 12,000.

BURNBANK woman Hellen Boyd, who retired from the post of clerkess at Strathclyde Hospital, was to visit America in the summer as a guest of her brother and sister, whom she had not seen in 30 years. Mrs Boyd’s sister Lillah (Mrs Ray) emigrated to America just after the First World War and set up home in Buffalo, New York. Her brother George, who lived in Delaware, settled in the USA in the early 1920s and was a prominent union official.

HUNDREDS of Lanarkshire miners were expected in Motherwell to protest against pit closures and demand higher wages, a shorter working week and three weeks’ summer holidays – but only 150 turned up to march from Knowetop to the town hall.

The ‘support’ was described as “tragic” by Michael Megahey, county Scottish Executive Committee member.

BLANTYRE Vics reached the Scottish Junior Cup Final for the first time since winning the competition 20 years ago. Vics beat Ayrshire side Ardrossan Winton Rovers 2-0 in a semi-final at Ibrox to set up a Hampden final against Penicuik next month.

AN ear infection forced Scottish international swimmer Jean Ross from Hamilton to miss Commonwealth Games trials. Jean was admitted to Stonehouse Hospital where a specialist said she’d probably be able to take part in second trials in May.

BELLSHILL man William Mallaghan had a lucky escape after fire broke out in the cabin of his oil tanker in Larkhall. It was carrying several hundred gallons of used motor oil and Mr Mallaghan had jumped out to ask for directions when he noticed smoke coming out the front of the vehicle.s

RATEPAYERS’ money went down the chute because of a bureaucratic botch-up, although it wasn’t yet known how much cash was spent by Hamilton District Council on a ‘24-hour wonder’. They put up playground equipment at Butterburn Park, Hamilton, on Monday, and took it down again on Tuesday.

The wrangle appeared to be because workers put in a chute and ‘Wendy House’ to replace a broken roundabout, but hadn’t yet dismantled the faulty equipment.

TEACHERS at Holy Cross High staged an unofficial strike over their wage negotiations. Following a lunchtime meeting about 32 members of staff from the three teachers’ unions walked out... about a third of the school’s workforce. Pupils were sent home early.

A WAR of words erupted following a boys’ football match between teams from Hamilton and Shotts, in which several players were sent off. An investigation was launched following the 4-4 draw between Shotts Community Boys’ Club and Whitehill United, which contained so many incidents that officials from both teams differed in their accounts of the number of players red-carded. Later, referee Robert Mitchell said three were dismissed for fighting, a fourth for threatening to punch another player, and Shotts goalkeeper William Brown was twice red-carded for foul language.

In an understated comment, the official said: “I have a sneaky feeling that the two teams do not get along with each other.”

FEARS were voiced that Hamilton Accies could automatically be relegated to the Third Division as a result of the call-off of their match against Stenhousemuir on April Fool’s Day. The Scottish Football League Management Committee were to meet in Glasgow on April 20 to decide how to punish Hamilton after the beleaguered club couldn’t field a team at Ochilview because their players were on strike over a pay dispute.

A TOTAL of 65 drivers were stopped by police and fined £20 in a week after ignoring new traffic restrictions on Hamilton’s Cadzow Street. From 8am-6pm daily, access was restricted to buses, taxis, private hire cars, goods vehicles and permit holders.