50 years ago:

LABOUR: A local cotton mill turned down an offer from Bury Professional and Business Women's Club. They volunteered to work one evening shift a week to relieve the labour shortage. But the mill said it would take three months to train them.

EGG: A giant quarter-pound egg was laid by a seven month-old pullet belonging to Mr Leonard Critchley, of 51 Hillside Crescent.

TOBACCO: Smokers formed a 200-yard queue in Bury Market and trader Harry Lewis sold 63,000 cigarettes in 90 minutes, mostly US and Rhodesian brands. Asked where he obtained supplies during the fag famine, Mr Lewis winked and said: "One hundred thousand tobacconists would like to know that." He said he had turned down £20 from a national newspaper to tell his secret. Meanwhile, Mr John Goodwill was pictured with tobacco plants in his Walshaw Road greenhouse. "Patience is needed!" he said, as he revealed that it would take another year for the tobacco to be ready.

OVERTIME: Evening committee meetings of the town council had caused staff to work 3,000 hours overtime in the past 2 years. 25 years ago:

From the Bury Times, August 24, 1973

PAINT: A question mark hung over the jobs of 40 workers at the fire-gutted Macpherson's varnish shop.

ESTATE: Work started on the £800,000 Freetown estate, to house 350 people - including residents of the doomed Topping Fold estate on the M66 route.

BEER: A reader's letter complained that one local pub was charging 28 pence for a lager and lime. "How can they justify prices like this?" he asked.

MUSLIMS: Plans for the old Aitken Hospital at Holcombe Village as a Muslim college sparked fears of bell-ringing and chanting at all hours. Dismissing the fears, a spokesman said Muslims prayed in silence.

HEAD: Mrs Veronica Campbell, deputy head of St Michael's juniors in Whitefield, was named head of St Joseph's, Ramsbottom. New head at Greenmount primary was Miss Lillian Cullen.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.