The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
THE ARCHIVES
100 years ago
Dr W. Burgess, medical officer of health, gives many interesting figures and comparisons in his report on the health of Dundee during the past year. The estimated population at the middle of the year, as supplied by the Registrar General, was 181,777. The number of deaths was 3,168, representing a death rate of 17.4 per thousand of population. Deaths of infants under one year numbered 366, giving an infant mortality rate of 126.1 per thousand births. During the year the city was visited by a severe epidemic of influenza.
50 years ago
Barlinnie Prison is reported to have a ghost. The intruder moved into a cell in “A” hall on Friday night, and since then has been causing some discomfort to the three occupants. A prisoner released from Barlinnie said in Glasgow yesterday: “It’s the talk of the place among the men and the prison officers.” He said one prisoner was wanting to be moved to another cell. “I have spoken to all three men in the cell and they insist it’s no joke.” No one in authority at the prison would comment yesterday.
25 years ago
A home-made grenade-type device broke the calm in a quiet Rosyth street in the early hours yesterday. The device, which appears to have been made from a pipe and placed in a bin or bucket, exploded at 1am outside a house in Craig Street. The crescent-shaped residential street lies not far from the M90 and backs on to Park Road Primary School at one side. However, police still seem to be puzzled as to what the device was and why it was placed in a back street.
One year ago
Buses have been diverted away from Dundee’s flagship new campus because of fears a child could be struck by a vehicle . The North East Campus on Lothian Crescent was opened on Thursday but traffic around the building, which incorporates two primary schools and a nursery, has been described as “bedlam”. Bus company Xplore Dundee announced it is diverting buses away from Lothian Crescent between 3 and 3.45pm after drivers raised safety concerns. One parent said there had been “a couple of near misses.”