WE TAKE a look at the stories making headlines in East Lothian 25, 50 and 100 years ago.

25 years ago

AN ANONYMOUS donor was looking to serve up an ace, according to the East Lothian Courier of November 29, 1996.

A mystery benefactor has offered to buy an all-weather tennis court for Belhaven Hill School in Dunbar.

The donor used a lawyer to approach the school in the summer, agreeing to fund the building of an astro turf pitch on part of the current playing fields.

The school’s headmaster, Michael Osborne, said: “We have absolutely no idea who made the donation, but we are extremely grateful for the kind offer.”

He described the amount of money as “substantial” but declined to disclose the actual figure in accordance with the donor’s wishes.

Although the gift was intended for a single tennis court, Mr Osborne decided to contribute school cash to increase the area of the pitch.

“We thought we would extend the money to make space for four tennis courts instead of one,” he said.

50 years ago

‘TORIES lash out’ was a headline in The Haddingtonshire Courier of December 1, 1971.

A bitter two-pronged attack on the Government over the closure of Scotland’s only sugar beet factory came this week from leading East Lothian Conservatives and farmers.

For the closure may cause a farm job crisis and force farmers to increase grain acreages against their better judgement.

The Conservative Association’s County Committee joined the furious farmers in slamming the Government in a statement issued from their Haddington headquarters.

And their views are to be passed to Mr Alick Buchanan-Smith, MP, Scottish Under-Secretary responsible for agriculture.

The committee said that the closure of the Cupar Factory could only reflect badly on the Government at a time of high unemployment in Scotland.

100 years ago

THE decline of the fishing trade in Yarmouth was having an impact on Scots workers, reported The Haddingtonshire Courier of December 2, 1921.

The number of girls going to Yarmouth may be lessened in later years, as the Yarmouth fishing is overdone.

No less than thirty workers of Scots domicile came before the Yarmouth Magistrates as having no means to return to Scotland.

The railway fares were granted, but the cause of these workers being stranded – with its concurrent dangers – will be the matter for an investigation.