Monday February 13

1951: It was decided that the memorial to Richard Jefferies should be erected at the site of his favourite haunts at the foot of Liddington Hill. The Richard Jefferies Society was unanimous in its decision where it should be placed, after its executive committee had refused the suggestion of placing the memorial at Regent Circus.

1961: The 14th birthday of the Upper Stratton Women's Institute was celebrated with a tea and entertainment at the WI Hall, Dores Road, Stratton St Margaret. More than 100 members and friends were present and the entertainment was provided by the Sanford Street Swindon Evening Institute Choir conducted by Mr D Parsons.

1971: Mr Herbert Tinson retired after working for 20 years at Radio Rentals in Swindon. The firm gave Mr Tinson a portable radio and a spin drier. His colleagues gifts to him were a clock and wallet. The gifts were presented to Mr Tinson who was employed as a storeman, by Radio Rentals Group Chief Accountant Mr Michael O'Brien.

Tuesday, February 14

1951: Peter Churchill, French Resistance leader and husband of the famous Allied intelligence officer, Odette, was the speaker at the Swindon Arts Centre, talking to the Central Townswomen's Guild about his exciting exploits as a British spy, dropped into France, during the war.

1961: More than 40 per cent of the Swindon population was registered with the library and they were reading on average between 40 and 50 books each year. Swindon Library was acknowledged as one of the busiest in the country. Mr H Jolliffe, Swindon librarian and curator aimed for a progressive library.

1971: Guest speaker at the Swindon labour party annual dinner was Mrs Gwyneth Dunwoody the former MP of Exeter, wife of former Labour MP John Dunwoody. She and David Stoddart, Swindon's MP, attacked the Government and encouraged members to start what Harold Wilson called a crusade against the conservatives.

Wednesday February 15

1951: Two Swindon dancers Jill Morse and Barbara Martin drew a decorated sleigh on to the dance floor and distributed prizes at the stroke of midnight during a Valentine's Ball. The dance, in aid of the NSPCC, was at the Town Hall in Swindon, where 150 guests danced the night away.

1951: Chief of the Timber Store of the Great Western Railway and Western Region of the British Railways, Mr J W Bezzant of Woodside, Briddel Grove, Swindon, resigned. He had worked there since 1905, when he joined straight from school. The day after he resigned Mr Bezzant took up a post in London with a firm of timber importers.

1961: Pancake races in Swindon's main shopping centre were staged by Technical College students to raise money for famine relief in the Congo. Many of the students wore fancy dress or their college scarves. The races were the idea of the College Students' Union. They took place in the Parade.

1961: Valentine's Day and Shrove Tuesday were celebrated with dancing and pancake-making at a party given by the Swindon Young Conservatives group. The party headquarters in Temple Street was suitably decorated and about 40 members attended.

1971: There was all smiles from Swindon's British Rail Staff Association Silver Band when they walked off the band stand with a host of successes in the silver band contest at Sharpness. Mr W Thacker took first place in the Senior Slow Melody Class and the Swindon band also won the quartet prize.

1971: There were roars of approval from the hard benches of the Marlborough College Memorial Hall after a performance from the English Chamber Orchestra, the fifth in the season of subscription concerts. The orchestra was conducted by Kenneth Sillito.

Thursday, February 16

1951: The Sanford Street Evening Institute Young Ladies Choir, which recently broadcast on the BBC's Home Service, took part in a concert at Sanford Street School, Swindon, in aid of Sanford Youth Centre funds. The choir was conducted by Mrs D Parsons. Two one act plays were also performed by the Sanford Street Youth Centre's Dramatic Group.

1951: A man who started his career in the Borough Treasurer's Department of Swindon, Mr Jack Sydney Roberts, was appointed the Borough Treasurer and Ratings Officers at Bebington. He was elected from 69 applicants for the post. Mr Robertson served in the RAF during the war from 1942 to 1946.

1961: Swindon's latest entertainment centre, The Regency Club, was opened at McIlroys Ballroom, Havelock Street, with a Valentine's Ball. Proceeds from the ball went to the Princess Margaret Hospital, Swindon and about 600 people attended. The club meets every two weeks with a cabaret and two bands.

1961: There was a warm welcome from the Greek prime minister, Mr Karamanlis when he lunched with MPs at the House of Commons. Host at the lunch was Swindon MP Mr Francis Noel-Baker, chairman of the British Greek group for the InterParliamentary Union. The MP remembered Greece from childhood holidays.

1971: Decimal stamps were in demand in Calne by stamp collectors from all over the country. The main Post Office counter at Calne was fully manned throughout the postal strike and the post master Mr Donald Eade was receiving inquires from stamp collectors from all parts of the country about the new stamps.

1971: A record number of gardeners attended the Wroughton and District Gardeners Society meeting in the parish church hall. Mr F Auger presided and the speaker was Mr C W Keen, a driver of Rimes Coaches, whose talk was illustrated with slides.

Friday, February 17

1951: The carved head of a bed in which Queen Elizabeth was reported to have slept during the 16th century at Liddington Manor in Swindon, was included in a sale of surplus furniture. It was bought by Mr A D Passmore, from Wanborough, for £9 at the sale held at the manor.

1951: Mr R M Jones of Salisbury Street, Swindon, retired from No 4 Shop of Swindon Railway works, ending 143 years of the Jones family working in road and rail coaches. His great grandfather started the family run in 1807 when he was apprenticed to coachbuilders in Liverpool. Since then one of each generation has followed the trade until M Jones retired.

1961: Swindon coin collector Peter Ffrench, manager of The Bulldog Inn, Walcot, started his collection during the war when he visited Canada, America, Burma, French Indo-China and Siam as pilot in the RAF. His oldest coin was from 1250, a silver penny.

1961: Janet Collins, five, Of Ashwell Close, Swindon, a pupil at the new Deaf Unit at Clarence Street Infants School was seen on the BBC TV programme: It Happened To Me. The programme included a documentary account of modern treatment at the Oxford Centre where, until the Swindon unit opened, Janet was a pupil.

1971: The £648,000 second stage of Swindon's storm water drainage system was approved buy the Public Works and Services Committee. Mr Norman Pritchard, Controller of Technical Services, said the scheme was essential to the development of Swindon.

1971: Coin Boxes in Swindon's telephone kiosks were converted to decimal coins but the conversions have not put strike-crippled boxes back into action. The charges for calls have changed from old money 6d and 1s to new money 2p and 10p.

Saturday, February 18

1951: David Rogers, nine, of Churchward Avenue, Swindon won a Mug's badge, awarded by Marcus Morris editor of a strip cartoon magazine. The badge was awarded to young people who are of some worth to the world. David was born with club feet and despite being strapped with iron splints all his life he never complained and did all he could to overcome his complaint.

1951: Station Officer Fonder was host to members of the Inner Wheel at Cromwell Street Fire Station in Swindon. He had one of the fire tenders in the yard for display and he was kept busy explaining operations to the visitors.

1961: There was a battle of words going on between the Wiltshire Parish Council Association and the military authorities who have claimed the rights to possess the lifeless village of Imber on Salisbury Plain. For years the War Department used the land for military training. The village was ghostly to look at, but The Rectory, Imber Court, and The Bell Inn could all be repaired, so the Wiltshire Association of Parish Councils were fighting the military to give up the area to farm country again.

1961: A party of 38 children of employees of Wiltshire Newspapers Ltd and Swindon Press Ltd were treated to an outing to Oxford to see the pantomime Dick Whittington. They went by coach accompanied by Mrs S Clayton wife of the director and general manager of Wiltshire Newspapers Ltd.

1971: Two members of the Swindon British Rail Works Committee took part in a lobby of railway town MPs, at the House of Commons, to protest against the Industrial Relations Bill. The Works Committee Chairman Mervyn Hayward and NUR Representative Don Sly, discussed the Bill with Swindon's MP David Stoddart but there were no crumbs of comfort.

1971: A public meeting held at Highworth Recreation Centre voted unanimously for the carnival to go on. The centre committee feared the lack of support would stop the carnival but representative of the town's organisations voted their approval of its continuance.