I wasn't around in 1995 so I bow to your longer experience.
There was another Mod before me. I can't remember his name now but I remember he had a chip about Mil posters and, as a result, many stopped posting. The forum was almost dead when I was asked to take over and I was very pleased that they came back - some under different usernames.
Was the earlier mod's username something to do with "S76"? Not sure. There have been at least two major site crashes, I lost my old 1990s username because I emigrated at the time of one of them. I was offline for some time and when I tried to get back online someone else had registered using that name.
I was asked to moderate here a very long time ago but I decided to decline the kind offer. I knew it often seems to cause the "moderatees" to turn their angst against the moderator himself, rather than against those they were previously chastising. Seems to me that some forget there are real people behind the forum usernames. This is often the case on another forum on which I do moderate and life is really too short; so I greatly appreciate the efforts of those who do choose to "pick up the torch" here!
I've never yet been banned from any forum (probably come close a few times) but I have certainly had a few posts deleted. Whether or not I felt it was justified I always make a point of never complaining about it. Unlike some who almost want to come to physical violence when they are so "affronted" by a moderator who after all, is only doing voluntary work.