25 YEARS AGO

FREE car parking at Bolton's Chorley Street and Folds Road car parks ends this weekend. On Monday, motorists will have to pay 20p a time at Chorley Street, and Folds Road becomes a contract only park at £45 a year.

THE ancient stately home of Hoghton Tower, near Preston, is to re-open its doors to the public on Saturday. The mansion was closed to the public in 1960. But now a £100,000 appeal fund has been launched to restore the buildings to their former glory.

50 YEARS AGO

THOSE young people who are keen on dancing apparently don't believe in staying in Bolton every week when they can visit to Tower Ballroom on Saturday nights. Since it was introduced at the beginning of last summer, the cheap rail excursion to Blackpool every Saturday evening has been very popular, especially as there is a special bus service to take people home when the train arrives back in Bolton after midnight. Excursions to Southport on Sunday evening have also been popular.

125 YEARS AGO

From the Evening News, August 18, 1875

ON Wednesday afternoon, the Royal yacht Alberta, conveying Her Majesty from Osborne to Gosport, en route for Scotland, ran down the schooner yacht belonging to Mr Heywood, of Manchester, which sank immediately. A lady, said to be Miss Peel, and the mate of the schooner, went down with her, and the captain died shortly afterwards from injuries he received. Mr Heywood and several of his crew were severely injured. The Queen, who witnessed the catastrophe, was much agitated, and, on reaching Gosport, remained for some time making inquiries.

A YOUNG man named James Bell, employed at Messrs. T. Broadhurst Lee, and Co.'s mill, Daubhill, and residing in Parrot-street, proceeded on an excursion last Monday week to Norfolk, and on Saturday last went to gather mushrooms. He was taken ill on Sunday, when medical aid was called in, and he was pronounced to be poisoned from head to foot. On the following day he expired in great agony. It is supposed the deceased had eaten fungi instead of mushrooms. He was buried at Methwold.