THE ARCHIVES

100 years ago

A big fire occurred at Craigiebarn mansion house, Stannergate, Dundee, yesterday. The house is occupied by Mr H Renny and shortly before six o’clock in the morning he was informed by a servant that the house was on fire. He at once set about removing the occupants and with the assistance of his wife he wakened the children and the maids, who were asleep on the top flat. The building was well alight when the fire brigade arrived but they tackled their hard task with determination.

50 years ago

British people took more than 35 million holidays in 1967 and spent about £860 million on them. A survey published today by the British Travel Association says more than 30 million of these holidays were taken in Britain. The number of holidays remained roughly the same as in 1966. Of the £860m – which includes fares – £560m was spent in Britain, £10m more than in 1966 and £300m was spent abroad, about £20m down from the year before.

25 years ago

Labour leader John Smith arrived to a rousing welcome in Inverness but battling pensioner George MacDonald was on hand to press home the SNP message. Mr MacDonald, 84, of The Haugh, Inverness, spent the night at home preparing a placard in support of Highlands and Islands Euro-MP Winnie Ewing. Arriving in his limousine, John Smith was confronted with a poster proclaiming “Winnie Rules Here”, which George attempted to place in view of TV cameras.

One year ago

More than half of Scots have come in contact with identity fraud, according to a study by credit rating agency Experian. The analysis found 53% of those quizzed have been affected and 17% had first-hand experience of fraud. More than a third knew someone who has been a victim of fraud compared to the UK average of 42%. The findings were taken from a survey of 2,000 Scots, carried out by Censuswide. There is a 20% rise in criminals stealing personal information.