130 Years Ago
April 21, 1894
Fairbury went "dry" last Tuesday when the following were elected on the Anti-License ticket: President of village board, J. W. Beers; for members of village board, W. W. Wonser, Edward Slaughter, Thomas Gants.
The high wind of Wednesday night blew down the unfinished barn of Robert Abbey in Belle Prairie Township.
Jerry Sullivan has gone to Forrest to work for John Reis in the tailoring business.
Walton Bros. have started up their creamery.
They have a new game in which the young ladies produce photographs of themselves when babies, or at any tender age. They are arranged for inspection and the young men are ushered in one at a time to guess who are the originals. The one making the most successful guesses wins the game. It's lots of fun.
120 Years Ago
April 22, 1904
Edward Cumpston was digging post holes on the farm of his father, Benj Cumpston, south of town, one day last week when he dug into what has all the appearance of a gold deposit. He was digging in a sandy soil and the flakes of gold were mixed all thru the sand. Ed washed out a small phial and will have is assayed. If it should be gold we may expect an influx of fellows from California.
Many men are opposed to the removal of the cornstalks from the field as a fodder crop on the ground that such a course tends to impoverish the soil. A clover rotation once in six or seven years will put more fertility into the soil twice over than could ever be extracted from the decaying stalks.
Walton Bros. Co. has engaged Mr. Perine, an experienced tinner, and has opened a tin shop in connection with their hardware department. They are prepared to do all kinds of tin, copper and sheet iron work promptly. Repairing, roofing, spouting, furnace work, etc.
Chenoa — George J. Arnold and wife, who have been at Hot Springs, Ark. for the past five weeks for the benefit of the former's health, have returned home improved.
110 Years Ago
April 24, 1914
The first gun of the war with Mexico was fired Tuesday morning at 11 o'clock at Vera Cruz, and that evening the Mexican forces had evacuated the city and it was in the hands of the American forces. Four American bluecoats were killed and 20 wounded in the engagement, while 200 dead and many wounded was the loss of the Mexican side.
C. A. Purdum is the latest person to join the army – the army of automobile owners.
The aldermen on the Citizen's ticket in the various wards were elected on Tuesday. They were: First Ward, W. R. Freeman; Second Ward, Robt. Henning; Third Ward, Francis McDowell. The hold over aldermen are E. Keller, Joseph Gerber and J. C. Kessler.
The people of this vicinity will be happy to learn that Prof. Powers will be at the head of the Fairbury schools for another year at least.
100 Years Ago
April 18, 1924
The electrical storm early Wednesday morning caused a fire at the Mike Peter house on South Fifth Street. Lightning struck a large tree in the back yard. One end of the wire clothes line was attached to the tree and the other end was attached to the house near a window. The lightning followed the clothes line into the house, setting fire to the curtain and window shade. The woodwork was also set on fire. The fire company responded and the fire was soon extinguished. Lightning also started a blaze at the Mike Flanagan home about the same time. It was extinguished with a few buckets of water.
The Fairbury people who have been spending the winter away from here are coming back. Mr. and Mrs. S. J. Perlee arrived home on Tuesday from Santa Monica, Calif. Mr. and Mrs. C. J. Claudon and children left Palm Beach, Fla. Tuesday and are expected here most any day. Mr. and Mrs. G. A. Sutton, Miss Minnie Sutton and Mrs. F. D. Eatherly left Pasadena, Calif. the latter part of last week for San Francisco, where they spent the week. From there they will go to Salt Lake City for a few days and then to Colorado. They will probably arrive home about May first.
A car driven by Dr. W. A. Pendergast and one driven by Shelby Wharton mixed things slightly at the intersection of Third and Locust Streets Monday evening. The Pendergast car had a fender bent and the Wharton car had a wheel broken. The Pendergast car was going north and the Wharton car west at the time of the accident.
90 Years Ago
April 20, 1934
Little interest was displayed in the city election Tuesday, the combined vote of all three wards being only 256. With the exception of a few names written in, there was no opposition to the Independent party candidates. In the first ward 46 votes were cast, of which Emil Keller received 44. Two ballots were defective. The second ward cast the largest number of votes, 121. Eben Neal received 107, T. J. Patterson 5 and nine were defective ballots. In the third ward 89 votes were cast. Harold Ringler received 78, J. C. Kessler received 5 and 6 were defective.
Edward "Bud" Decker, Mose Mowery, Louie Kaisner and "Dutch" Huette left last Saturday noon on a hitch-hiking trip to the west. A card received by John Mowery the first of the week stated they had reached a point in Kansas Sunday noon. Their first objective is Cascade Locks, Ore. From there Decker and Mowery will go to Los Angeles, Calif. The other two had not given out their final destination before leaving Fairbury.
Shirley Ann Moser had a party on Saturday because it was her birthday and she had a lovely cake with four candles which she wanted to divide with her friends. There were twenty-five of them and they had a lively time from three to five o'clock when the party broke up.
80 Years Ago
April 21, 1944
Miss Mary Eleanor Combes, student nurse at the Methodist Hospital, Peoria, will be home this evening and on Sunday with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Roscoe Combes, and her brother, Frank, will go to Eureka, where she will receive her degree at the graduation exercises for the class of 1944 at Eureka College. The ivy ceremony will follow gradation after which there will be a reception for the graduates and visitors at the home of President Burris Dickinson. Miss Mary Eleanor will graduate in June from the nurses' course at the Methodist Hospital.
Mr. and Mrs. John Somers recently received a letter from their son, T/1 Kenneth Somers, stating that he was recovering from wounds received in battle in January. He was wounded twice, one of the wounds being in the stomach and the other in the back, both being of a serious nature, the wound in the stomach being especially so. However, he has again joined his outfit, but is doing office work and will remain in that capacity for the next six or eight months. Mr. and Mrs. Somers of course do not know where their son is located, but believe he is in Italy.
Mr. and Mrs. Myron Womack have purchased of Mrs. Nelle Nimmo, her neighborhood grocery store on East Locust Street, taking possession Tuesday. Mrs. Womack has for some time past been employed in the Third Street Kroger store. Mrs. Nimmo purchased a half interest in the store of Mr. and Mrs. Bernard Bell on April 1, 1935, and later purchased the entire business. Mr. Womack, who is employed at the Caterpillar plant in Peoria, will continue to work there. Marvin Shilts who has assisted Mrs. Nimmo in the store, will continue with Mrs. Womack in that capacity.
70 Years Ago
April 22, 1954
Two fires of separate origin did considerable damage late Monday night and early Tuesday morning to the Little Joe Market on west Oak Street. A blaze was discovered on the second floor of the building at 11:30 p.m. with the fire department arriving in time to avert much damage. But a second blaze broke out at 2 a.m., gutting the entire second floor, and breaking out in two spots on the east and west side of the upper floor. Again the fire department contained the flames before they could do further damage. Water and smoke did considerable damage to food stuffs on the first floor, directly below the fire.
J. C. Ebach, of Forrest, state vice-president of FFA has been chosen by WLS to represent Illinois along with representatives from Indiana, Wisconsin and Michigan, on a panel discussion to be broadcast on "Editor's Round-up" Saturday, April 24 at 11:30 a.m. The topic being considered by the panel will be "How can a young farmer get started." The boys will be taken on a complete tour of WLS and Prairie Farmer land while they are in Chicago. This is a Prairie Farmer-WLS award trip.
Ray Winter, of Chenoa, who is a salesman for a Champaign firm, had his truck stolen from in front of his home in Chenoa one night recently. It contained tobacco, cigars, sun glasses, hose and other articles valued at close to $2,500. Friday, Harvey Watkens of this city, and Sylvester Fosdick, of Weston, went out to repair a corn crib a half mile north of Weston. On the ground between the road and the crib they found some of the articles taken from the truck, including cigars, some rather expensive sun glasses, small leather bags, etc. The articles were wet from recent rains. The truck had been found previously with its doors broken and stripped of its contents.
60 Years Ago
April 23, 1964
A motorcycle accident near El Paso put Sam Fairley, 21, in Fairbury Hospital overnight Saturday, where he was treated for cuts about his body and arm. The Fairburian had just purchased the three-wheel machine at El Paso and was riding back to Fairbury when the vehicle left U. S. 24 and struck a barbed wire fence. He was treated by an El Paso physician and then taken to Fairbury Hospital.
Pvt. Richard A. Rieger, son of Mr. and Mrs. Richard Rieger of Forrest, placed 1st in a class of 30 men when he graduated from a 10-week course at the U. S. Army Engineer School, at Fort Belvoir, Va., on March 20. Rieger left Tuesday, March 24, for France where he is stationed near Dreux.
A capacity crowd braved cold weather and rain to attend the dispersal of the Creek View Guernsey herd, owned by John E. Sutter, east of Fairbury on U. S. 24 Saturday afternoon. The 51 animals were snapped up in rapid order, and astounded veteran sale-goers by building a pyramiding average. The first 10, averaged $323; the next 10 averaged $334; and the third 10 averaged $338. The 51 head averaged $317. Top cow in the sale, destined for a home in Wisconsin, brought a bid of $680. Seven animals in the herd were purchased by the University of Illinois. The Sutter dispersal was made necessary by the fact that their son is departing for military service. The herd was founded in 1942 with the purchase of six heifers from Honeggers' of Fairbury.
Cropsey — Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Bazzell are the proud parents of identical twins born Friday at Fairbury hospital. Karl Ray was born at 11:45 a.m., weighing 5 lbs., 14 oz., and Kevin Lee arrived at 11:49 a.m., weighing 6 lbs., 4 oz. The Bazzells have two daughters, Kathy, 5 years, and Kae, 18 months. Their many friends are happy to know that mother and sons are doing very well.
50 Years Ago
April 25, 1974
A $500,000 perpetual trust designed primarily to fund continuing education for Chatsworth High School graduates has been established by the estate of John Koehler. Under his will, Koehler established a perpetual trust with the income from the trust to be used to provide college scholarships and funds for other advanced courses, other than college, for deserving graduates of Community Unit School District 1. Should the Chatsworth Unit District be annexed to, merged or absorbed by another district, only the graduates of that district who live within what is now the Chatsworth School territory shall be eligible for scholarships from the Koehler trust.
St. John the Baptist Catholic Church of Fairbury was the setting for the 2 o'clock wedding, Saturday, April 20, that united in matrimony Miss Rhonda Dohman of Fairbury and Jeff Abbey of Cropsey. Rev. Fr. Charles Karl of Chatsworth officiated at the double ring ceremony held in the presence of 200 guests. Parents of the newlyweds are Mr. and Mrs. George Dohman of rural Fairbury and Mr. and Mrs. James Abbey of Cropsey. The bride was a 1973 graduate of Fairbury-Cropsey High school and is employed at Mr. Timber, Fairbury. The bridegroom was a 1972 graduate of the same school and farms near Cropsey, where they will make their new home after May 26.
Eighth grader Pam Lawrence spent a great deal of time reviewing her word list recently in preparation for the annual Livingston County Spelling Bee, held last Thursday in Pontiac. Pam, a student at Lincoln Junior High, finished second in the county competition. Thirty students from around the county took part in the spell-down.
First Christian Church, corner of Walnut and First ,is one of three churches cited as historical monuments by Illinois Historical Society.
40 Years Ago
"Here's the church, and here's the steeple . . ." is the way the childhood rhyme started. First Christian Church of Fairbury removed its 90-year-old steeple Saturday morning with the aid of a crane from Koehl Bros. Service. The removal came after church officials ruled the bell-tower had rotted so severely that they feared it might collapse in a windstorm. A new glassed entrance will be constructed soon.
The "item of great value" which Grocer George Weber advertised in last week's Blade as being found in his IGA store, has been returned to the rightful owner. At the time George placed the ad, on Wednesday morning and past our deadline for advertising, he stressed its urgency. Well, an area lady, the owner, properly described the $400 in cash, and the envelope which contained it, and was, according to George, properly grateful. "Up until she read the Blade, she'd been going through her wastebaskets, looking for it!"
Judith Marie Knutson and Kenneth Allen Scurlock of Fairbury are announcing their engagement. She is the daughter of Marian Knutson of Coal City and Arnold Knutson of Donnybrook, N. D. He is the son of JoAnn Scurlock of Fairbury and the late George Scurlock. Kenneth is employed at Janssen's Sunoco in Fairbury and Judith is employed at Interstate United. A June 2 wedding is planned at the United Methodist Church of Fairbury.
30 Years Ago
April 20, 1994
Helen Allen of Fairbury was recently the recipient of the 100-Hour Award by P. K. Kennedy, Medical Center Director for the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center at Danville. Though she said she hasn't donated nearly as many volunteer hours as others, she thinks she did okay for living so far from the Danville Hospital where she helps in the Christmas gift shop. She has been a member of the American Legion Auxiliary for 40 years.
What began 80 years ago as a sewing club limited to single women of a certain age, the Sunbeam Club of Fairbury turned 80 years old recently. The current member who has been in the club the longest is Bertha Wessels, who joined in 1928. Club officers are Anita Scherr, president; Ida Ruth Roach, vice president; Cathryn Frisby, secretary; and Pauline Miller, treasurer.
Millikin University freshman Steven Mann of Fairbury has been named to the highly selective Kemper Scholar program. He is a management information services major in Millikin's Tabor School of Business. He is a son of Thomas and Janet Mann and a 1993 graduate of Prairie Central High School, where he was active in band, golf, CAPTAINS and the speech team, was named an Illinois State Scholar and to the National Honor Society. At Millikin, he has participated in the Marching Big Blue and Concert Band and recently was selected for membership in Alpha Lambda Delta National Scholastic Honorary.
20 Years Ago
April 21, 2004
Carra Tinges of Fairbury has accepted membership into the Butler University Chapter of Phi Eta Sigma and Alpha Lambda Delta. She and other first year students were initiated into the organizations on April 4 at the university in Indianapolis, Ind. Founded at the University of Illinois, in 1923 and 1924 respectively, Phi Eta Sigma and Alpha Lambda Delta are national honor societies that recognize and encourage academic excellence among first-year students. Tinges is the daughter of Darryl and Lorri Tinges of Fairbury, and is a graduate of Prairie Central High School.
Mr. and Mrs. Rob Haab of Forrest will celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary on April 28, 2004. The couple was married April 28, 1979 at St. Peter & Paul Catholic Church in Chatsworth. Their attendants were Dennis Haab and Becky Young. They are parents of two sons, Bradley of Alabama, and Nathan of Minnesota. The Haab's own and operate Haab Forest Products in Forrest.
Lisa Bahler, owner of Merle Norman Cosmetics in Fairbury, has announced that a grand opening of the new business is currently underway. The Merle Norman Studio is located at 113 W. Walnut in Fairbury. "We are thrilled to bring Merle Norman Cosmetics to Fairbury," said Bahler. "I look forward to serving the women of Fairbury and surrounding communities." Founded in Los Angeles over 70 years ago, Merle Norman Cosmetics has approximately 2,000 independently owned and operated cosmetic studios throughout the United States and Canada.
10 Years Ago
April 23, 2014
Mrs. Beryl Irwin, formerly of Chatsworth, will celebrate her 100th birthday on May 3, with an open house at the Chatsworth United Methodist Church. Mrs. Irwin was born on May 1, 1914 in rural Cropsey, the daughter of George and Alta Thomas. After graduating from Cropsey High School in 1931, she attended Illinois State Normal University and taught at Miller School near Cropsey from 1933-1936. She married Milford “Milt” Irwin Dec. 25, 1937 and they farmed south of Chatsworth for many years. Her six children are Kay (Harold) Lindley of Morton, Bette Jane (Bruce) Otto of Minier, Alan (Kathy) Irwin of Graham, N. C., Bill (Diane) Irwin of Oregon, Ill., Gary (Sue) Irwin of Galion, Ohio, and Colleen (Jim) Browning of Hudson. She also has 12 grandchildren and 19 great-grandchildren.
Sophomore Kassadee Ifft captured the third place medal in the pole vault at the Illinois Prep Top Times Premier Meet held at Illinois Wesleyan University on Saturday, March 3. Ifft jumped 12'0” to capture third for the second consecutive year. As a freshman, Ifft jumped 11'0” in the meet many consider to be Illinois' indoor “state” contest. Joining Ifft but not medaling were freshman Molly Lane, who took 11th in the high jump with a leap of 4'10” and junior Linnea Johnson who placed 21st in the 60 meter hurdles with a time of 10.74.
James L. and Karen Haab of Normal will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary with a family dinner. Haab and the former Karen Benway were married on April 26, 1964 at the Forrest United Methodist Church by Rev. Milhouse. Their attendants were Sharen Wade and Richard Haab. They are the parents of Jeff Haab of Normal and Todd Haab of Bloomington. They also have two grandchildren. He worked for GROWMARK from 1960 to 2002 and she worked at the Mustard Seed and Provident Book stores.
("Looking Back" from Kari Kamrath is sponsored by Duffy-Pils Memorial Homes with locations in Fairbury, Chenoa and Colfax)
