50 Years Ago

• At least 600 youths in Hampshire County cannot find work this summer, partly due to a recent sharp decline in the number of jobs in the Connecticut Valley tobacco fields. Robert Sojka, placement director at the Northampton Division of Employment Security office, said today that some 600 county youths aged 14 to 22 have unsuccessfully applied for summer jobs.
• Atty. William M. Ryan of Haydenville Road yesterday was appointed campaign manager by Atty. Edward M. O’Brien of Easthampton, who is seeking the Democratic nomination to oppose incumbent U.S. Rep. Silvio O. Conte, R-Pittsfield. Ryan has a law office at 39 Main St. in Northampton.

25 Years Ago

• A local scholar, Stephen Rutherford Platt of Florence, has received a prestigious $36,000 Fulbright grant to conduct research in Taiwan next year. Platt, 30, who is working on his doctoral dissertation at Yale University, said he was thrilled with the honor. He said he plans to study the way western culture preceded western travelers.
• A new, eight-page booklet available in key locations around the city may give people with disabilities a key to the city. The City of Northampton Guide to Accessibility tells readers which municipal buildings and recreational facilities are wheelchair accessible, what resources are available for people with disabilities, and where drivers with handicapped license plates can park.

10 Years Ago

• A plethora of imported British chocolate, tea, condiments, meats and other food will soon be available in downtown Northampton. Brits R U.S., a British and Irish specialty food store, will open at 16 Armory St. the first week in August, according to owner Alan Greaves.
• After three years of sitting vacant at 15 Main St. in Williamsburg, the building that once was home to the Big Mamou Cajun restaurant is being transformed into an eclectic art studio that will house three businesses: a professional knitter, a restorer and seller of antique lamps, and an oil painter. “Many people have been stopping by here wanting to know what is going in,” new owner Nancy Basler said.