Digest of stories from The Luton News: Thursday. September 13th, 1917.

Owing to engine trouble, an airman attempted to alight in fields on the Hitchin-Luton road on Tuesday afternoon, and crashed through the hedge into the road, which was completely blocked.

The airman had difficulty in finding a suitable landing place owing to the number of woman workers on the fields. A girl cyclist and a pony and trap containing three people coming from the direction of Luton had narrow escapes.

Digest of stories from the Beds & Herts Saturday Telegraph: September 8th, 1917.

Town Clerk William Smith (pictured) was proving to be not too forthcoming on the work of Luton's new Food Control Committee, other than to say it was at work and he had matters to bring before the members when they next met.

Digest of stories from The Luton News: Thursday, September 6th, 1917.

Seven serving Shaw brothers and a brother-in-law were featured in an article in The Luton News on Thursday, August 30th, 1917. Three appear to have lost their lives in or as a result of the war.

Digest of stories from the Beds & Herts Saturday Telegraph: September 1st, 1917.

• Discharged and disabled soldiers' march in Luton.

Last evening there was a keen discussion at a meeting of the War Pensions Committee on the poor response of Luton hat manufacturers to the appeal to train disabled soldiers in the trade.

Mr and Mrs Edwin Collier, of 3 Clarendon Road, Luton, had four sons serving in the Army - including one son rescued from a torpedoed ship - and one in the Navy. Three other sons were working in munitions, as were two daughters and Mr Collier himself - 11 members of the family in total.

On Monday, August 27th, 1917, at the Luton Divisional Court, the remarkable case in which it was claimed that a soldier riding a motorcycle on duty need not show his military permit was satisfactorily concluded after having been twice adjourned. The defendant was Sgt Guest, of the Royal Engineers, Houghton Regis, and he was summoned for not producing his licence when demanded by Special Constable Elvey at Leagrave on July 15th.

Digest of stories from the Beds & Herts Saturday Telegraph: August 25th, 1917

A special meeting of the Luton Town Council was held at the Town Hall on Thursday to appoint a Food Control Committee. The proceedings were marked by one or two lively exchanges, but in the end the Council arrived at a unanimous arrangement.

In August 1940 Thomas Graham Salter (pictured above), of 32 Albion Road, Luton, was wondering if the over-40s were to be conscripted in World War Two. Not that the possible prospect of the battlefield would be a new experience for him - he had been in the World War 1 fighting in France from September 10th, 1914.

This tobacco box saved the life of soldier Henry Miles during World War One. But it seems there was a tragic sequel to his story during World War Two.

Digest of stories from The Luton News: Thursday, August 23rd, 1917.