From the Evening News, April 16, 1992

JUBILANT Kearsley residents were today celebrating a victory in their boundary battle to stay in Bolton.

The local government boundary commission had recommended that only 54 homes should be transferred to Salford. Over 700 residents were threatened with being moved against their wishes into the neighbouring borough. Mr Gil Driver, of Teak Drive, Kearsley, who has led a three-year residents' campaign, said: "It's a half victory. But this is better than we would have hoped for last year, and it has been achieved by people power."

25 YEARS AGO

From the Evening News,

April 16, 1977

A FRANTIC rescue operation has been launched to fly home more than 150 young Bolton and French town-twinners. The holiday children faced being stranded in Le Mans, Paderborn, and in Bolton, because of the British Airways maintenance engineers' strike. When the engineers decided not to return to work yesterday, existing plans to get the children, aged between 13 and 16, back to their respective families seemed to be wrecked. The rescue operation was started immediately by Bolton travel firm Anglo-Continental, which had booked the British Airways flight. He managed to charter a 73-seater British Midland Airways flight.

That meant the 47 French boys and girls who had been staying in Bolton for the past two weeks were able to set off home, and the same plane would bring back 51 Bolton youngsters from Le Mans. Other Bolton children in Paderborn will be brought home on a special flight on Sunday.

50 YEARS AGO

From the Evening News,

April 17, 1952

MR J. Rogerson, a 25-years-old Lancaster schoolmaster, pleaded for a salary increase "on the grounds of poverty" at the annual conference of the National Association of Schoolmasters in Harrogate today. "Last year I married and I was drawing £22 19s a month," he said. "In a five week month, that works out at £4 11s a week, out of which my rent and coal came to £3 7s 5d. That leaves £1 4s for food, clothing, bus fares and entertainment. The present position is causing a great deal of hardship among young schoolteachers." He was supporting an amendment - which was finally defeated, only two voting for it - demanding a £250 a year increase in schoolmasters' pay with a lump sum of £750 tax free in lieu of "back pay".

100 YEARS AGO

From the Evening News,

April 16, 1902

THE work of demolition in connection with Trinity-st. station improvements goes on rapidly, and during the last few days the remnants of the original Station erected when the Bolton and Manchester Railway was opened in the year 1838 have disappeared.

These old buildings faced Trinity-st., and in their place a handsome new booking hall, left luggage offices, etc. are to be erected. For these extensions it will be necessary to greatly extend the width of the bridge, and already the foundation of the span upon which the new buildings will stand has been laid on the Manchester departure platform.

The main entrance will be an elaborate facade with handsome verandah, will face into Trinity-st. and will, it is stated, be second in appearance to no station on the L and Y Railway system. With reference to the new iron girder bridge from Johnson-st to Trinity-st., the work of asphalting the floor is yet to be completed.