As the first Christmas at war approached and the end of a year  that ‘will go down to future generations as one of the most catastrophic periods recorded in the history of Great Britain, of the Continent of Europe – nay, of the whole world’, people became even more conscious of the threat when the German navy killed many civilians by shelling Scarborough, Whitby and Hartlepool.

Letters from the front continued to give a vivid picture of what life was like in the trenches and telegrams continued to bring the news every family dreaded. At home there was the usual build up to Christmas with tempting adverts for gifts, but the recruiting drive was stepped up and everyone was aware that ‘war is still waged with growing intensity, it extends its field of operation and its baneful influences are felt throughout the globe.’

The links below will take you week-by-week through some of the stories that appeared in the Shipley Times & Express exactly 100 years before. The headlines given only contain a few of the leading stories.

There are usually three pages, two of which will generally cover events and life in the Shipley district with the other one telling some of the stories of the men at the front.