The following stories all appeared in Watford Observers past. I felt they deserved a second view, for all sorts of reasons...

An unexploded bomb was found in the grounds of Rickmansworth Grammar School on Wednesday. It is believed to have come to the school in soil loaded at Bushey. Rickmansworth police examined the bomb and then notified an Army bomb disposal unit. [From August 16, 1957]

The receiver has been stolen from the telephone kiosk in Cawdell’s Arcade in Watford High Street. [From August 16, 1957]

A 49-feet long wooden ladder has been stolen from Croxley Green railway station. [From August 16, 1957]

Don’t look old — Darken the Grey Streaks with Lockyer’s Sulphur Hair Restorer, which deepens to a natural colour in a few days. Does not stain the skin. Large bottles everywhere. Post free, 1s 6d. Bedford Laboratory, London SE. [From August 17, 1912]

The Grand Trunk Railway is experimenting with an ingenious device, whereby the delivery and reception of mail bags may be accomplished while a train is running at full speed. It has been patented by a well-known Chicago expert and it is understood is being successfully used by a number of railways in the United States. [From August 17, 1912]

Once again, antiquity fights a losing battle with progress. Bedmond’s historic Porridge Hill cottages, the oldest in the village, are to be sacrificed to a road widening scheme, just as soon as an ownership dispute is settled.

And so another link with the past will be severed for cottage number 3 was once an inn known as the Traveller’s Rest and among the many travellers who are said to have regularly sampled its hospitality was the notorious Dick Turpin.

Mr A Witcomb, a former parish councilor, who lived in number 3 for 35 years, said: “It has been handed down from father to son in this village and was passed on to me by people no longer living. Dick Turpin made The Traveller’s Rest a regular port of call and he used the cellar of the cottage next door for stabling Black Bess.” [From August 16, 1968]

ONLINE 4pm THURSDAY: Railway moans not a new phenomenon

These stories formed part of the Nostalgia column first published in the Watford Observer on August 23, 2013. The next Nostalgia column can be found in this week’s Watford Observer (dated August 30, 2013 and available in newsagents now, priced 90p) or read online here from 4pm on Thursday.

If you have anything to add – or would like to tell us anything you think our readers may enjoy about Watford’s history – we are always pleased to hear from you. Contact Nostalgia, by clicking here watfordnostalgia@london.newsquest.co.uk