Do these pictures bring back memories?
They were released by North Yorkshire Police today to celebrate the 50th birthday of the force.
It trace its roots back to 1 April 1974, when a swathe of new police forces were launched across Britain.
North Yorkshire Police was formed to cover an area previously looked after by its predecessors. These included the North Riding Constabulary, City of York Police and the short-lived York and North East Yorkshire Police.
It also brought in adopted parts of neighbouring police forces such as Craven, which used to fall under West Yorkshire.
In a statement today, North Yorkshire Police said: “As these photos from the 70s show, policing looked very different back then.
“Our wardrobe was black and white, not high-vis. Our records were on paper slips in metal cabinets. And in a world before computers were everywhere, the only PCs in a police station were police constables.
“Our radios crackled. Our beat bikes rattled. And it all looks somewhat quaint by today’s standards.
“But that didn’t stop us responding to some massive incidents in our formative months.”
As North Yorkshire Police came into being in 1974, Harrogate sub-postmaster Donald Skepper was shot dead in a robbery.
Two other sub postmasters would also be killed in the months that followed. A huge manhunt led to the arrest of Donald Neilson, who the press called the ‘Black Panther’, and he was later jailed for life.
The following May, a bus carrying 45 women on a trip from Teesside to the Yorkshire Dales lost control down a steep hill, crashing through the parapet of Dibbles Bridge in Wharfedale.
The driver and 32 of his passengers were killed with the remaining 13 travellers seriously injured, resulting in the worst road accident in Britain at the time – see the picture below.
The police statement added: “In many ways it was an era of progress. Women who worked as North Yorkshire Police officers had pay parity by the mid-1970s and their range of duties was expanded, so they did the same tasks as men.
“We evolved into a more ‘tactical’ organisation, to keep up with changing demand. Task forces, tactical units and specialised skills training for our officers became more common.”
Commenting on the 50th anniversary year, North Yorkshire Police’s Chief Officer Team, which leads the force, said: “North Yorkshire is fantastic county with proper communities and truly great people and we feel very proud indeed to help lead the force through its 50th year.
“North Yorkshire Police still reflects many of the values it always held dear. Our officers take pride in serving their community, getting to know people and being part of the fabric of North Yorkshire, which we know is still very important to people who live and work in our county.
“But policing is also about adapting to change, whether that’s in our culture and ideologies or our operational response to criminality.
“Our technology, the development of specialist teams and our wider focus on not just catching criminals but also supporting victims, are just a few of the changes that were impossible to envisage when the force was formed in 1974.”
Fire service also hits 50
It is also the 50th birthday of the North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service.
In a post on Facebook, Malton Fire Station writes: “On this day, 50 years ago, the City of York Fire Brigade and the North Riding of Yorkshire County Fire Brigade were amalgamated into one service.
“The North Yorkshire Fire Brigade was born.
“This included Harrogate and Skipton Fire Stations which used to be part of the West Riding County Fire Service.
“North Yorkshire Fire Brigade was split into four divisions, A, B, C and D. Malton being in division B, station 2 (B2).
“On 1st January 1990 the brigades name changed to North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service because of the ever increasing number of calls received to incidents classed as special service calls – incidents not involving fire ie road traffic collisions.
“Happy 50th birthday North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service!”