NOSTALGIA: Looking at how Swineshead got its name in 1949 and bridge swings for first time since war in 1984

Old Leakes Giles Secondary School held a 12-hour basketball marathon 35 years ago. Some 70 boys took part in the event, held in aid of school funds. Girls contributed by distributing sponsor forms, selling tickets for the guess the points score game, assisting with refreshments, and generally helping out on the day.

* How did the village of Swineshead get its name?

This was the question set before readers of the Standard this week 70 years ago.

“Ask any of its 2,000 inhabitants, and in all probability they’ll point to the stone boar’s head on the church, and say: ‘That’s why.’,” the paper wrote.

“But residents or no, they told you wrongly,” it continued, noting an explanation put forward by Mr W. F. Mews, of Parks Farm, a member of Boston Rural District Council.

He said: “Long since, a river used to run into Swineshead called the Swin. This place became spoken of as the head of the Swin. And so of course, there’s your Swineshead.”

At that time, Swineshead boasted 14 public houses, four bank sub-branches, two of the largest schools in the county, three football clubs, and a once weekly cinema.

* An exact cause of an outbreak of food poisoning at Boston schools was still unknown, but evidence pointed towards some ingredient of the fish cakes eaten by the victims.

Some 136 cases had been reported across four sites over two days and emergency arrangements had been put in place meaning no food was being sent to schools from the Civic Restaurant until a cause was found.

This week in 1984 ...

* For the first time since 1945, Fosdyke Bridge swung open.

The reason? The latest and largest acquisition of John Parson Shipping, which was based on the seaward side of the bridge.

The Dellstedt was deemed too large to lie at the wharf for repairs because she would have interferred with trading operations and so had to be taken through the bridge.

Traffic tailed back more than a mile in each direction as the 869 ton ship squeezed through the unusual gap in the A17 over 20 minutes.

* Industrial action was being taken in Boston.

A one-day strike had been called at timber firm Calders and Grandidge and more walkouts were threatened in a dispute over pay.

On the same day, workers at Boston’s Royal Insurance office held a one-day strike and picketed the company’s Market Place premises.

This was part of a national strike called by the Association of Scientific, Technical and Managerial Staffs, again, in a dispute over pay.

* Thousands of pupils at schools in the Boston-area got an unscheduled holiday when snow hit the county. At Amber Hill and Butterwick, children got had a three-day break due to the wintry weather.