Remember when…

Here's a look at what was making the news 15 and 50 years ago in the Hants Journal.

15 YEARS AGO (MIDNOVEMBER 2007 EDITIONS)

Vandalism shut down

•

Avon View High School (AVHS) for a day while police investigated the incident. More than two dozen windows had been smashed out the night before. Four young men — three of them considered young offenders; two of which were students at AVHS — were apprehended by police the next day and charged with mischief over $5,000.

Avon View student Matt

•

Noiles was “blown away” by the response to a commercial he filmed for a class project. The commercial had an environmental message and went on to receive $500 in the Aliant Get Green Student Video Contest.

The owner of Mani's

•

Swiss Bakery was getting frustrated with the delays relating to the Mill Island Development project in Windsor. Orlando Chiesa moved to Canada to open his Swiss bakery and was told the retail space would be ready by May, then the deadline got pushed to September. At the time of the article, his space was to be ready by March. He said if the site wasn't ready by then, they wouldn't be able to hold out and would have to open shop elsewhere. The project co-ordinator said the hold-up was installing a heating and cooling system that could accommodate all of the tenants.

Ski Martock owners

•

Heather and Jim Boylan said preparations were well underway for the upcoming season. In 2006, it was reported that Ski Martock was one of two ski resorts that operated in Atlantic Canada throughout the entire winter. It was noted that it was largely thanks to 52 high-efficiency snow guns and good snow-making planning.

Bobby and Brenda

•

Cruickshank, of Mt. Denson Motors Ltd., was celebrating 10 years in business.

Canadian country artist

•

George Canyon performed in Windsor as part of his ‘In a Quiet Room' tour. While his show entertained audiences, a private meet-and-greet with youth was what had folks talking. Canyon opened up about living with diabetes and the benefits of using an insulin pump. For 13-year-old Jacob Sheffield, of Wolfville, meeting a celebrity with a similar medical condition was very rewarding.

More than 10,000 Nova

•

Scotia Community College students, staff and faculty participated in a ‘Reach out to Nova Scotia' day, doing good deeds throughout the province. About a dozen Kingstec students spent the day at Windsor Forks District School, painting classroom doors, benches, and picnic tables, as well as planting trees.

Concern was expressed

• over the steady decline of chimney swifts in the Annapolis Valley. A retired Acadia professor, Jim Wolford, who spearheaded the development of the Robie Tufts Nature Centre to protect chimney swift habitat, said no one was sure what was killing the swifts off. It was noted major weather disruptions, increase in predators (like Merlin hawks), pesticides and human development were possible

reasons.

Three men were hoping

• to develop a European-style rugby team in Hants County and were hosting a community meeting to gauge interest. Those involved with the creation of the team were James Hardy, his father Charles Hardy, and friend Godfrey Kenny. Aside from fielding a second division team consisting of 15- to 50-year-old players, the hope was to create “a traditional British, Irish, European sociable club where people come together on weekends with their families.”

Wolfville's Brehannah

•

Hopgood, a Grade 12 King'sEdgehill School student, was selected to play on Canada's U-19 women's rugby team that was headed to England in December for a tournament.

50 YEARS AGO (MIDNOVEMBER 1972 EDITIONS)

The life story of Charles

•

Bultheel, who was a member of the Belgium Army and then the Belgium Underground after Germany captured the country during the Second World War, appeared on the front page of the Hants Journal. Bultheel, who helped broadcast troop movements to Britain and sabotage Nazi efforts, was captured during the war and was assigned to work camps. After liberation, he rejoined the Belgium Army, as a corporal specialist engaged in shoe-making. He emigrated with his wife to Canada after his daughter's husband died and soon joined the Royal Canadian Legion

— a group he was proud to represent.

An investigation was

• underway to see if eating blighted potatoes was causing pregnant women to have children with birth defects.

Miss Nova Scotia Alanna

• Payne, of Windsor, was named Miss Congeniality at the Miss Canada Pageant in Toronto.

The Hants West branch of

• the Victoria Order of Nurses announced it would have to close if financial help didn't come forward to keep it operational.

Windsor town council

• informed Hugh Fairn, the owner of the new Fort Edward

Shopping Mall and Kingsway Inn and president of Tidal Developments Ltd., that it would be against regulations to share the cost to install a water line to the facilities. However, as a sign of good faith, they would purchase and install two fire hydrants, with shutoff valves, to help defray the developer's costs.

Scotia Bank in the new

• downtown Windsor Mall, on Water Street, officially opened. Norman Roop was the bank branch manager and was thanked for keeping business running smoothly while the transition to the new building occurred.

West Hants council was

• estimating the cost to build a new courthouse to be about $175,000.

Work was underway to

• construct the Newport and District Arena in Brooklyn. Both the building and ice plant had been ordered. The fundraising committee was still short $25,000, which would be used to install the lighting and heating systems, add seats, dressing rooms, electrical and plumbing systems as well as a canteen, office, PA system and painting.

Hockey player Bob Purcell

• was injured when competing in Kentville with his team, the Windsor Junior C Lions. When the 19-year-old crashed into the boards, Purcell fractured two vertebrae in his back.

David Brown, of the

•

Ardoise 4-H Club, won the Atlantic Provinces Single 4-H Demonstration Competition at the 1972 Atlantic Winter Fair.

Sobeys was having a preChristmas

• food festival, offering such deals as a 10-ounce tin of Heinz tomato soup for eight cents; a two-pound package of Valley Farm frozen French fries for 28 cents; Canada Grade A blade roast for 72 cents per pound; and Grade A beef prime rib for $1.09 per pound.

Co-Op Home and Farm

•

Supply Centre on O'Brien Street in Windsor had toys in stock to delight girls and boys at Christmas. Among the hot ticket items in 1972 were a 15-inch Sprinkle doll for $1.49; a plush wind-up acrobat dog for $2.98; a twobay service station with three mini cars and gas pumps for $3.59; a Tonka dump truck

boggan for $6.49; and a baby (a toboggan featuring a molded body and safety strap intended for infants) for

$6.98.

Showing at Windsor's

•

Imperial Theatre was What's Up Doc? starring Barbra Streisand and Ryan O'Neal; and two children's features: Malibu the Deer and Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny.

In the Hants Journal from

•

1947, John Doran and Allen Bezanson, both of Windsor, were found alive after being lost in the woods for two days.

Also in 1947, 20 Windsor and Falmouth residents were due in court for operating a radio set without a federal license.

In the Hants Journal from

•

1922, it was reported that blasting at the Eastern Lime Company quarry in Windsor uncovered human remains believed to be of Indigenous origin. This was the second time human bones had been unearthed by the company, with the first being in a cave following blasting operations.

Also in 1922, Arthur Reading Jr. was seriously injured after attempting to jump on or off a moving train and Percy Frizzell suffered facial burns after tar fumes caught fire while he was working at Dodge's garage.

Editor’s Note:

The 25 years ago section is temporarily unavailable. If you have a collection of newspapers from 1997, please contact carole. morris-underhill@saltwire. com.

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