SNJ reporter Saul Cooke-Black looks back at news from across the decades.

1966

A RAILWAY line connecting Stroud to Nailsworth closed after nearly 100 years of use.

The last goods train pulled out of the old LMS station in Stroud on June 1, 1966, consisting of 12 trucks and a diesel shunter.

Opened in 1867, the line was intended to serve the cloth mills in the area and connect Nailsworth to Stroud and Stonehouse.

The track, which is now a cycle route, was lifted a year later after the sudden closure.

STUDENTS from Marling School built a sailing dinghy with a kit supplied by the County Youth Service.

The 14-foot long craft, weighing 285 pounds with a 21-foot mast was built in ten days by a group of schoolboys with woodwork instructor John Kimpton.

The boat was sailed at South Cerney, the headquarters of the Water Sports Centre.

Boys from the school were hoping to add dinghy sailing and racing to the games syllabus.

FILM fans were left stunned and frightened after seeing a film which was banned by the BBC in Stroud.

The War Game, shown to members of the Stroud and District Film society, was about horror of what would happen if a nuclear attack was launched on Britain tomorrow, told through the experiences of ordinary people in a small country town.

The Stroud and District Film society was one of the first societies in the country to show the hard-hitting and controversial production by Peter Watkins, with tickets quickly selling out for the screening.

1976

NEARLY 100 drivers at the Whitbread Flowers depot at Salmon Springs, Stroud, found themselves locked out in a dispute over the firm’s use of hired vehicles.

A brewery spokesman said the workers had been locked out because there had been ‘a difference of opinion over the use of hired transport’ and the men had declined to work during the day on the vehicles.

It was later announced that the employees were going back to work as it had been agreed to hold further discussions about the use of hired transport in the near future.

A POPULAR shop announced it was to close, resulting in 12 redundancies.

International Stores, in Stroud High Street, said the closure was due to inflation and the costs involved in wages.

Mr Sibbick, who had been in charge of the store for the past five years, said: “Our customers, particularly the older ones who appreciated the personal touch with the smaller store, are very sorry to hear that we shall be going.

“I feel very sorry myself that we are going because we pulled quite a good trade as far as this side of the town is concerned.”

1986

MORE than £12,000 was raised to help children in famine-struck Ethiopia after a campaign was launched by the SNJ.

The original challenge to raise £8,000 by each person giving just 10p was met within just two months.

Money raised from the Stroud Aid For Ethiopia (SAFE) campaign helped 18 Ethiopian children to be reunited with their relatives.

The Tracing Service, set up from the fund, hoped to help trace the families of another 450 Ethiopian children affected by the African famine.

A FIREFIGHTER who was called out twice on his wedding night celebrated 25 years with the Nailsworth brigade.

Mike Powell was presented with a statue to mark the milestone by station officer Alan Beale.

“I think I am the only man to be called out twice on my wedding night,” said Mr Powell.

1996

A MOTHER and her disabled daughter watched the house of their dreams built before their eyes – in a week.

The foundations of the Smith family’s four-bedroom bungalow in Ebley were laid on the Friday morning, with the family set to move in seven days later.

The £55,000 house was being built in a week by the Gloucestershire Housing Association and Stroud District Council as part of National Housing Week.

A YOUNG doctor from Stroud was set to travel to Albania to take medical supplies to run-down hospitals.

James Walters was joined by fellow students from the Royal Free Hospital in London for the 3,500 mile trip to the capital, Tirana.

They were taking redundant medical equipment on the NHS which would still be of great value to hospitals in Albania.

As part of fundraising for the £3,000 trip, James was working a 12-hour day on the Royal Free’s wards.

2006

A GROUP of five from Stonehouse raised more than £2,000 by power-walking their way around London in their bras to raise money for breast cancer research.

Mike and Glenis Abbott, their two daughters and their daughter’s friend joined more than 15,000 women and men who took part in the annual marathon, wearing uniquely decorated bras over their t-shirts.

The Playtex Moonwalk started and finished in Hyde Park and was joined by a host of celebrities.