Pickings from Pike’s Past: 75 YEARS AGO: GENERAL HOBART GAY FORCED TO RETREAT IN KOREAN CONFLICT
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150 Years Ago
Aug. 5, 1875
On the Tuesday night preceding our last issue this section was visited with a tremendous fall of rain, but it proved to be a mere April shower in comparison with that of Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
No watermelons yet. The fruit crop is one grand failure this year.
As will be seen, there is to be a dedication of the Methodist Church at Summer Hill, just completed at a cost of $2300, and which is a fine ornament to that beautiful village.
The ice cream festival at Rockport recently to purchase an organ for the Methodist Church resulted in a net gain of $76.
125 Years Ago
Aug. 8, 1900
The heated term has been on for some 10 days and ever since last Thursday the thermometer has been close to 95 every day, mostly above it. No rain and corn on thin land and pastures are suffering considerably. Dust on the roads rises in clouds and traveling is particularly unpleasant.
Notwithstanding the promise of excessive heat and the presence of clouds of dust to make life miserable, the Modern Woodmen of Pike County were in Pittsfield in great numbers Thursday and the gathering was one of great success. Oldest Woodman on the ground was Jake Diamond of El Dara.
The bell tower of the Griggsville M. E. Church is being enclosed after the Gothic style of architecture. Field’s band of Pittsfield has been engaged to play for the fair in Griggsville. The weather is fair, and but for the dust the roads are in good condition.
W. J. Davis and Co. of the Bowling Green, Mo. Post have sold the Nebo Banner to Nebo parties who will conduct it in the name of the Banner Publishing Co. Elmer Lewis will be the editor in charge.
100 Years Ago
Aug. 5, 1925
Attorney George Wilson says we have a wonderful corn crop this year—the best he remembers in years. Pike County farmers should certainly make some money this year.
Twenty-five children from the tenement district of Chicago spent two weeks in New Canton. They ranged in age from five to 13. In the group are Italians, Bohemians, Poles, Russians and Americans, but all speak English. They were sent out by United Charities of Chicago.
Between 50 and 60 Pittsfield people went to Quincy to see the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus give a performance at Baldwin Park.
Pittsfield High School has 15 teachers for the 1925-26 term. The school offers five courses of study: college preparatory, general academics, commercial, agricultural and home economics.
Milton went down to defeat before the invincible River Rats of Valley City last Sunday: 6-1.
Pittsfield is just now in a position to come into its own, and take its proper place among the progressive county seat cities of Illinois. The coming of the state hard or concrete roads into the city and county has been a great factor in bringing this about.
75 Years Ago
Aug. 1, 1950
“You can say in the paper,” says Pittsfield Mayor Charles A. Hooper, “that we have no definite assurance of an increased gas allotment for the city before the winter of 1951-52.”
Up goes the handsome marquee for the new Zoe Theatre on N. Madison Street. The colored glass front will be installed soon after.
Max (Curley) Cowden, proprietor of the Ocean Trail Park at Florence says there is a lot of talk in Florence about a new grain elevator if a planned dredging operation makes it possible to land river cargoes there. He also says that the Cecil Kessinger store in Florence is one of the best stores for a place of its size to be found anywhere.
Retreating is something new for Pike County’s Rockport General Hobart Gay. The general, commanding the First Cavalry (mechanized infantry) division in Korea has been forced to fall back in the face of North Korean tanks. General Gay is reported to have promised his bazooka men a bottle of whiskey apiece for each red tank they knock out. “Tain’t so,” said General Gay, in effect; “I promised them a bottle of champagne.”
Aug. 2, 1950
Mr. and Mrs. Charles Curry (Muriel Myers) had a son born July 27 at Illini Hospital, named Kim Myers.
Harold Menke, program chairman of the Pleasant Hill-Pike County Fair says the program for the five days and five nights is almost complete, and he is sure fair-goers are going to well pleased with many of the features of the fair, which starts Monday Night, Aug. 21.
Aug. 3, 1950
The Pittsfield Community Unit School District No. 10 Board of Education announces that all schools within Unit 10 will commence the fall term on Tues, Sept. 5, 1950.
Mrs. Grace Snyder of Rockport, a patient at Illini Hospital, is pictured enjoying the new coin-operated radio recently installed at the hospital.
Fourteen major accidents have occurred on Pike County’s “Bloody 36” so far this year, with five fatalities and several injuries.
50 Years Ago
Aug. 6, 1975
Mayor Dudley Williams in Pittsfield’s city council meeting Tuesday night said it is not too early to encourage citizens and businesses in the city to conserve gas, as he has received information from the government and Panhandle that the country will experience “the biggest shortage of gas in history” this winter.
The Illinois Department of Public Aid announced last week that it is trimming its Medicaid expenditures six per cent. Local pharmacists, Warren Winston, Jim Miles, Gaylord Rhodes and Bernie Keller pf Keller Pharmacy in Barry are not happy about the change and the increasing amount of red tape.
Mr. and Mrs. LaDon Johnson of rural Pearl have announced the engagement of their daughter Rokettia Lea, to James Roger Brokaw, son of Mr. and Mrs. Gawain Brokaw of RR1, Pleasant Hill. The bride-elect is a 1974 graduate of East Pike High School. Her fiancé, a 1971 graduate of Pittsfield High School, is a 1975 graduate of Abilene Christian College, Abilene, Tex. the wedding is planned for Aug. 23 at 7 p.m. at the Pearl Church of Christ.
The Pike County Historical Society is undertaking another major project: having reprints made of the 1872 Pike County Atlas.
25 Years Ago
Aug. 2, 2000
A Pittsfield physician was recently selected to fill the presidency of one of the top organizations in his field. Dr. Ronald L. Johnson was elected and installed as the president of the Illinois Academy of Family Physicians at the IAFP annual meeting July 21-23 in Rockford. The election was quite an honor for Dr. Johnson. “That really made me feel great,” Dr. Johnson said, “I know I represent 4000 doctors now, so I have to be careful.”
Melissa Ann Freesmeyer of Pleasant Hill and Owen Lacy Brown of Pittsfield were united in marriage May 27 at the Pittsfield Church of the Nazarene. The bride is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John Freesmeyer of Pleasant Hill. The bridegroom’s parents are Mr. and Mrs. Owen Brown of Pittsfield.
10 Years Ago
Aug. 5, 2015
Kaye Iftner, Executive Director of the Pike County Chamber of Commerce says that Pike County saw a historical increase in tourism-related expenditures in 2014, according to preliminary numbers from the Illinois Office of Tourism. Pike County had an estimated $25.42 million in tourism-related expenditures in 2014, up 8.4 percent from the $23.45 million spent 2013.
Chuck and Carolyn Barber will celebrate 60 years of marriage Saturday Aug. 8, with an open house from 1-4 at the Red Apple Room at Old Orchard Country Club in Pittsfield. The couple was married Sept. 10, 1955 in Baton Rouge, La., but will celebrate early so college students can attend.
Compiled by Michael Boren
