125 Years Ago: 1901
Three men who broke into a drug store in Quitman last week were each fined $5. They would be sent to jail for 14 days if they failed to pay the fine.
A traveling evangelist preacher at the Burlington Junction Methodist Episcopal church’s recent revival meeting found himself embroiled in a complicated court case. A young woman at the church had filed a case claiming breach of promise against a young man, also a member of the church, for damages of $5,000. The minister tried to force the young lady to drop the case by threatening to remove her from the church if she did not. The young woman’s lawyer quickly intervened, and the minister has since left town.
A local resident still had a relic of the Civil War. Silas Rowley served in the Union Army and was captured by Confederates in Tennessee while guarding a railroad bridge. He was sent to Libby Prison, a Confederate prison camp in Richmond, Virginia, for several months before he received parole. A copy of the 1863 statement he signed was reprinted in a Maryville paper.
Breeders of the Belgian hare, a small rabbit, held a banquet in Maryville for 150 people. The group was served a dinner featuring the meat and was intended to create a demand for it in the market. The event was held at the Modern Woodmen and Calumet halls, and music was provided by an eight-piece orchestra.
75 Years Ago: 1951
The Clearmont Lions Club sponsored a basketball game between the Clearmont and Burlington Junction town teams as a fundraiser for the March of Dimes, the national Infantile Paralysis drive.
The second community schoolhouse entertainment "Good Will" trip was made by the retail committee of the Maryville Chamber of Commerce. The group travelled to the White Cloud school, located west of Pickering. White Cloud residents applauded the efforts made by the get together. A ‘Good Will’ visit had already been made to Xenia school. Three more schools were scheduled: Blackman, Excelsior, and Sunrise.
Two young men, one 20 years old and the other 22 years old, were charged with grand larceny for stealing 40 bushels of corn from a farm near Skidmore.
The Maryville Cub Scouts collected a total of $129.68 for the March of Dimes in their street solicitation in downtown Maryville.
Mrs. Haiden Souers from Maryville won a table-top model radio in a letter contest asking the question “What should we do about communism in the United States?” The contest had been offered by a radio station in Shenandoah, Iowa.
Mr. and Mrs. Wiley Davis of Maryville received word this week that their son, Private first class James J. Davis, was killed in action in Korea on July 20, 1950. Pfc. Davis was the first man from the Maryville area to be reported missing in action after the start of the Korean Conflict. He enlisted in the Army in 1947 when he was a sophomore at Maryville High School and had been in service since that time.
Concerns were raised about the Maryville license bureau because of a 25 cents service charge the local bureau had been making for each license plate it issued. The state revenue department, under which the local bureau operated, was contacted. Information received determined that the local bureau should not be charging the added fee.
50 Years Ago: 1976
Mrs. Lawrence Farnan hosted a delightful joint meeting of the Excelsior and Pioneer Clubs at her home northeast of Maryville. The business session, conducted by the presidents of both clubs, was followed by lively entertainment in the form of traveling bingo.
Kaye Medsker, program leader of the Pi Pi Chapter of Beta Sigma Phi in Barnard, led an engaging dual presentation titled "Viva La Difference" and "My Half of the Apple" during the chapter’s first meeting of the year.
Local authorities responded to two vandalism incidents over the weekend. The radio antenna and mirror glass were broken on a vehicle in Maryville, and a resident of Clearmont reported that two of his pickup truck’s tires were slashed when it was parked at St. Francis Hospital between Saturday and Sunday. Police encouraged anyone with information to come forward.
The Maryville Citizens for Community Action held a meeting at the Maryville city hall. All civic and service organization presidents were invited. The goal was to establish an All-Missouri Certified City program in Maryville. Six speakers presented possible problem areas and projects that could benefit from the program.
A man from Pickering was in critical condition at a St. Joseph hospital following an accident west of Conception Junction. The man had been driving an agricultural weight and measures truck and saw the incoming Chicago-Northwestern train too late when he tried to drive across the rail line. The train engine hit the right side of the truck, and all three engines and 16 railcars were derailed from the impact.
Northwest Missouri State University reported this week that it supported the new Title IX efforts to promote equal opportunities in athletics. The university’s athletic director recently returned from an NCAA convention that focused on Title IX and was trying to figure out how to implement the changes at Northwest.