THE ARCHIVES

100 years ago

Mr and Mrs Davidson, 22 Arbroath Road, Carnoustie, have recieved official information that their son Private Alex Davidson, Black Watch, has been wounded. In a letter he writes: “On October 11 I was sleeping with a box of ammunition for a pillow, when a German shell exploded near me, wounding me in the right shoulder. A good thing it did not hit my pillow. I started to make my way for the dressing station and suddenly stumbled into a shell hole where lay three dead Germans. Nice company!”

50 years ago

Four Scottish miners have joined the ranks of heroes of the roundthe-clock rescue work at Aberfan. Their story was disclosed by a welfare officer, but wishing to remain unheralded even in their own mining village outside Edinburgh, they refused to allow their names to be given out. As far as their relatives are concerned, all they know is that the four travelled to Cardiff to watch the Wales v Scotland football international. After the game they decided to hitchhike to Aberfan to join the rescue work.

25 years ago

British Rail was warned nearly a year ago that the system of manually opening and shutting the level crossing gates at Gray Street, Broughty Ferry, could lead to a disastrous accident, a union official claimed. The official said an employee predicted exactly the scenario which occurred at the controversial crossing on Tuesday night. Four people escaped almost certain death by seconds after an InterCity train from Aberdeen crashed through two of the gates at around 80mph.

One year ago

A grandfather has hit out at vandals who ran amok in his garden causing hundreds of pounds worth of damage. Robert Stark, 69, returned home to find his garden in Newburgh turned upside-down and that teenagers had pushed their way into his house while his granddaughter was at home. He said three teenagers, whose names have been reported to police, had overturned and broken garden furniture and play equipment. A swing was pulled from the ground in the garden on East Shore Road.