125 Years Ago: 1901
A young man was in a serious accident that resulted in his left arm being amputated above the elbow. He had been working on a farm about 10 miles northwest of Burlington Junction when his hand was caught in the rollers of a fodder shredder.
It was reported that Peter Hamill, who owned a saloon in Maryville, on the south side of the square, had been arrested and taken to St. Joseph because he allegedly had not posted his pool room license, but such was not the case. There had been a complaint by Maryville residents that Peter had not complied with a revenue law requiring saloons with pool tables to post their pool room license in a conspicuous place. A US marshal visited the saloon intending to place the owner under arrest. However, it seems that Pete talked his way out of an arrest. The marshal reported that the infraction was so slight and had not been intentional, so he believed that he could explain the matter to the satisfaction of the commissioner.
A horse belonging to George Irby, a laborer living in North Maryville, dropped dead in front of the Ream Hotel. Because of this loss, George had to work out on the street without the help of his horse. The boarders at the hotel felt so sorry for him that they raised $7.50 to help him buy a new horse.
A young couple from near Elmo had recently run away to elope. On their way, they passed through Skidmore and boarded a train in Maitland to get to Kansas so they could marry there, but they were told that they could not marry without a license. The girl was only sixteen years old, and her father traced her steps to Skidmore but gave up his pursuit when he learned the couple had gone to Kansas. The newspaper reported that he sent the couple a telegraph asking them to just return home.
75 Years Ago: 1951
The Tri-C Legion and Auxiliary hosted an old-fashioned square and round dance at the Legion Hall in Conception Junction. In this cross-community event, the Barnard Lion’s Club provided the music. The money raised at the event benefitted the March of Dimes.
An employee at the Lewis Moore Repair Shop suffered injuries to his head and neck yesterday when a steel tank fell on him. He was taken to St. Francis Hospital, and the following morning, his condition was reported as good.
The Wilson Tourist Court on South Main Street in Maryville recently opened two new units, bringing the total units to 19, of which 14 were cabins. The new units were constructed of concrete block with hardwood floors and interior plywood walls. The bathrooms had ceramic floors and full-sized combination tub and showers.
It was a dangerous week for young people in basketball this week. An Elmo student, Larry Garner, fractured his right arm during a game against Skidmore when he fell to the floor after he had been held up to knock a ball away from the goal net and was dropped by one of the boys holding him. Another Elmo student, Eddie Carlson, sprained his shoulder while playing basketball at school.
There were three fires near Hopkins over a period of just two days. The first fire was in a field of clover and timothy at a farm five miles west of town. The second fire started the next day when a pump motor caught on fire at a home in town. It was immediately followed by a fire at a barn seven miles southwest of town. It is thought that this fire was caused by heat lamps that were being used to keep 24 young pigs warm. The barn was destroyed, and all of the pigs were lost in the blaze.
50 Years Ago: 1976
On Wednesday morning, a devastating fire broke out at a farm in Quitman. It destroyed a farrowing house, four sows, and 110 pigs. 12 pigs managed to escape, although they sustained singeing from the intense heat.
In local government news, Thomas C. Coates, Maryville’s city engineer, was appointed to be the acting city manager during the temporary absence of the city manager, David Warren, due to medical issues.
The Maryville Ministerial Fellowship held a special noon-day service at the Maryville First Presbyterian Church to commemorate the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. The event was open to the public and included scripture readings, prayer, and singing to promote unity across various denominations.
Everett Brown was re-elected as president of the board at St. Francis Hospital, and Herb Selby was elected vice president of the Lay Advisory, also at St. Francis.
The Hopkins Community Club dinners for 1976 got off to a great start this week when 106 people turned out for this first meeting of the new year. In recognition of the country’s bicentennial, the program focused on the drawing up and signing of the Declaration of Independence and on the life of Benjamin Franklin.
The Maryville vocational-technical school was broken into, and the total loss from theft and damage was $800. Taken was cash and a dictation and transcription machine.