130 Years Ago
October 7, 1893
On receipt of a telegram from Minonk offering him $15 and expenses, George Decker went over there on Thursday to assist the home team play La Salle. The game resulted in a 7-7 tie. La Salle wouldn't let Decker hit the ball but he managed to get in four of the runs, one of them being a home run. Decker will play first base with the Chicago team next year.
Conrad Munz has consented to straighten Indian Creek, just west of "Cook's Bridge" so as to allow a free flow of water at right angles to the bridge. This involves a cut of about thirty rods. The work on the cut is progressing rapidly as is also the stone work on the bridge.
The little two-year-old son of J. E. Masterson was kicked in the face by a mule colt the first of the week and severely injured.
There are over 550 prisoners at the Pontiac Reformatory now. The number is increasing rapidly. The new building is enclosed, but it will be several weeks before it can be used.
120 Years Ago
October 9, 1903
C. C. King has purchased the interest of I. O. McCullough in the Economy store, and the firm name will be Hotaling & King.
Miss Anna Munz returned home this week from Switzerland, where she spent the past year.
Forrest — There will be a new Christian Church built in Forrest. Rev. William Ward, the pastor, made the announcement following a meeting of the official board Tuesday evening. There has never been a church of that denomination in Forrest. A new fire bell has been ordered by the village board and it is expected it will be put in place in a few days. John Easter has resigned as night clerk at the Torrence Hotel.
Miss Anna Salmon left on Wednesday for Monmouth for a visit with friends.
110 Years Ago
October 10, 1913
At Chicago yesterday, the Cubs won from the Sox in 13 innings, 6 to 5. Each team has now won one game. The returns of the games are being received daily at the Bon Ton.
Prof. Fred M. Burch has sold his residence property on the north side of town and next week will move to Pontiac, where the family will reside. Mr. Burch is making the change on account of the railroad facilities out of Pontiac making it easier for him to get around over the country to fill his orchestra engagements.
The Phi Chi Psi fraternity is having a new hardwood floor laid in their room over Wann's clothing store.
Frank J. Moran went to Chicago on Wednesday to visit relatives and take in the Cubs-Sox city series.
100 Years Ago
October 5, 1923
Great strides have been made this week in the work on the Walton building. Six additional bricklayers joined the force the first of the week and now the north and west walls are fast nearing completion, and the east and front walls are above the second floor.
Joe Hannie, all around printer of The Blade force, and conductor of The Blade's sport column, has accepted a position in the advertising department of the Bloomington Bulletin and will leave October 15 to start work on his new job. Joe began as devil on The Blade force, has grown up in an atmosphere of printers ink and noisy presses and in this time has mastered practically every angle of the printing trade. The Blade's best wishes follow him in his new position.
Miss Eva Gregg, of Tientsin, China, who speaks at the Methodist Church Sunday, is head of the Isabella Fisher Hospital, where a four-year training course is offered for nurses. She is also president of the Nurses' Association, of China, and vice-president of the International Council of Nurses. She is a wonderful woman, with a wonderful message, that will instruct and entertain her audience.
90 Years Ago
October 6, 1933
Charles Dunlevy this week sold the East End Grocery to Bernard Bell and the Dunlevys are moving back to Cuba, where they lived before coming to Fairbury. Mr. Dunlevy is a retired Methodist minister and during his residence in Fairbury had filled the pulpit at the M. E. Church on several occasions, and had taught a Sunday school class regularly. Fairbury people are sorry the Dunlevys are giving up their residence here.
The third annual corn show, which the business men, and other citizens of Forrest are sponsoring, is getting under way today and will last over tomorrow evening. A program that will take up the greater part of those two days and evenings has been arranged, the principal event of which is a corn show. In addition to the corn show there will be exhibits of cakes, fruits and vegetables. There will also be contests and amusements of various kinds, band concerts, a pet parade, a hobo parade and a parade of automobiles and trucks.
Some time yesterday morning between five and six o'clock, some person threw a rock through one of the plate-glasses in the Beckley Store display windows and stole a pair of men's pants. A 19-year-old inmate of the reformatory at Pontiac, Wilbert Sanders, made his escape Wednesday night from that institution, and it is the general belief that he is the one who broke the window and stole the pants. Evidently the guards sent out to look for Sanders thought so, for they spent considerable time in this city and vicinity yesterday.
80 Years Ago
October 8, 1943
An enormous parade will again feature Fairbury's big scrap drive next Tuesday afternoon. Heading the parade will be two large bands – the military band from Chanute field and a mixed high school band, the local high school band being augmented by members of other high school bands. The many trucks of scrap will be interspersed with numerous interesting features.
Roy Moore, of this city, had his car considerably damaged on Monday about noon when an electric light pole toppled over on it. At the time the car was parked on North Mill Street in Pontiac. The damage to the car was covered by insurance. The insurance representative said he expected his company would call upon the city of Pontiac for payment of damages. Since the above accident, a check-up has been made on the light poles in the downtown district, and those found to be unsafe are being removed. At least 75 percent of the poles will be taken down and a temporary lighting system installed.
Harry Pratt, 18 years old, of Cropsey, and Leo Hubly, 15, of Chatsworth, were among the top prize winners at the fourth annual Chicago Junior Market Hog Show and Sale, held at the Chicago Stockyards on September 30.
70 Years Ago
October 8, 1953
Funds received during the last week have swelled the Fairbury Hospital building fund to $9,601. The drive at Forrest is getting started, with a general solicitation planned in the future. Approximately $8,400 remains to be raised in the fund. Work at the hospital is entering the final stages, with a number of minor jobs to be completed.
A lively Halloween carnival, complete with downtown parade and selection of a "Halloween Queen" is being planned for the kid's big evening under the sponsorship of the Band Boosters of the Fairbury Township High School. These festivities will commence at 6:30 Halloween evening with grade school children assembling at Sunken Park for a big masquerade, accompanied by two bands through the business district and then to the High School gym. The carnival will include a "Cake Walk," youth boxing and wrestling, Bingo, Concessions and audience selection of a Carnival Queen.
Mrs. Ivan Metz entertained a group of 19 little First Grade boys on Tuesday evening at a wiener roast at the Honegger Grove at the edge of town, the occasion being her son Steven's 6th birthday anniversary. Mrs. Metz was assisted by Mesdames Merle Righter and Jess Crouch.
60 Years Ago
October 10, 1963
Livingston County farmers this week are in the midst of harvesting soybeans and corn, and also in the midst of an unusual market situation. Old timers remark that never can they recall a steady and continuing price rise from day to day during harvest, such as is reflected in local elevator prices. LeRoy Grace reports an average of 130 bushels of corn per acre from his farm.
Army Pfc. Duane E. Broquard, son of George A. Broquard, Fairbury, and other members of the 56th Medical Battalion participated recently in Exercise Lion Vert in central Europe. Lion Vert was designed to practice communications and staff procedures among the allied forces defending central Europe. The 10-day exercise ended in missions by allied tactical air forces. Broquard, a medical specialist in the battalion's 8th Medical Company near Karisruhe, Germany, entered the army in October 1961 and received basic training at Fort Sam Houston, Texas. He arrived overseas in April 1962.
Lincoln Roth, the Fairbury-Cropsey cross-country team's youthful star, won his second and third events of the season this week, the most recent being Monday when he was first over the line in a triangular meet with Lincoln and Normal Community. Only a momentary mistake on the new course kept Roth from setting a new record at Normal. His error cost him at least 10 seconds when he had to double back to round a proper flag, and that's about how much he was off the Normal record.
50 Years Ago
October 11, 1973
Two more all-weather tennis courts were donated to the Fairbury community this week by Mr. and Mrs. Floyd Stafford. Construction is expected to start immediately, just north of the two present courts built under the efforts of the Jaycees. The Blade learned that the Stafford specifications call for the "best possible materials." The gift was expected to total out in excess of $8,000, on the basis of construction bids obtained by the pool board.
A Fairbury lady, Miss Mary Beth Maurer, caught up in the midst of the Arab-Israeli war which erupted early Saturday morning, is apparently unharmed and reportedly enroute to safety, her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Henry J. Maurer have been informed. Mary Beth, a dedicated world traveler, was among 207 passengers aboard the Greek Cruise ship Romantica when it was intercepted by a Syrian gunboat early Saturday morning and forced to the port of Tartus, where they were detained for 60 hours.
Letters of Commendation honoring them for their high performance on the 1972 Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) have been awarded to three students at Fairbury-Cropsey High School, principal Robert Isaacs has announced. Those named commended students are Marsha A. Jenkins, Richard Rothenberger and Jeffry K. Stiver. The National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) has named 38,000 commended students throughout the United States. These students are among the upper 2 percent of those who are expected to graduate from high school in 1974.
40 Years Ago
October 6, 1983
Fairbury Association of Commerce directors Monday agreed to enlarge the Christmas parade court to include four Jack Frost candidates to go along with the quartet of Miss Merry Christmas hopefuls. In past years, four young ladies were randomly selected from nominations submitted at various Fairbury businesses, but just a lone boy was drawn to be Jack Frost.
Burglars hit two Fairbury offices late Monday night, but left with only $8.60 total, according to city police. Chief Bill Spray reported the money was taken from a break-in at the Slagel-Stoller Insurance Agency. Some minor damage was also done to the front door. Police reported nothing was taken during a break-in at the office of Dr. Stephen Zook, a Fairbury chiropractor.
A brush-gang was expected to start clearing the right of way along the "Bloomer Line" trackage of the former Illinois Central-Gulf right of way Wednesday. The abandoned trackage has been acquired by patrons along the line under title of The Bloomer Shippers Railway Acquisition League. Evans Track Products & Construction from Rolling Meadows will cut the weeds and the brush. A crew from Trackside, Inc., of Beecher will use chainsaws to remove the large brush and trees which have grown along the right of way, and will also restore road crossings.
30 Years Ago
October 7, 1993
Ground was officially broken Friday for the new Franciscan Family Health Center of Chenoa at 918 E. Lincoln Ave. The 3,700 square foot clinic will feature five exam rooms, a procedure room, x-ray and lab services, and will accommodate two full-time physicians. Dr. Mahmood Kah, who recently completed his internal medicine residency at Carle Hospital in Urbana, will practice in the clinic. St. James Hospital also operates medical clinics in Fairbury, Cullom and Dwight.
Homecoming king and queen candidates at Prairie Central High School are Mandy Baker, Cari Decker, Sharon Hoffman, Jaime McGreal, Shanna Schaffer, Chris Gerth, Corey Metz, Scott Mies, Jeff Rieger and Chad Weber. Completing the homecoming court are freshman, sophomore and junior attendants, Josie Rich, Courtney Kafer, Kelli Adams, Jeremy Martinez, Greg Kurtenbach and Tony Zook.
The Prairie Central Junior High baseball team brought home a runner-up trophy in the Illinois Elementary School Association Jr. High Baseball Tournament Tuesday evening. The boys' team finished their season 14-4. This is the fourth time coach Tim McGuire has taken his junior high baseball team to the state play-offs. Twice in the past three years they have been state runner-up. Members of the team include: Brad Haab, Craig Mowery, Jeff Kurtenbach, Ryan Weeks, Scott Peters, Brian Greear, Adam Vaughan, Brad Schmidgall, Matt Harms, Mark Zorn, J. D. Lane, Dustin Benway, Jake Soper, Nick Henson, Jason Starcher, David Buchanan, coach Tim McGuire and assistant coach Matt Razzo.
20 Years Ago
October 8, 2003
The building committee of the First Baptist Church of Fairbury and Pastor Steve Anderson participated in a groundbreaking ceremony Sunday afternoon, for the parish's new church on North Seventh St. in Fairbury, just north of Prairie Central High School. Many of those in attendance, including children, brought shovels and participated in the groundbreaking. Construction of the new church is set to begin this week.
Ted and Ruth Doran of Fairbury will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on Oct. 18, 2003. They were married on Oct. 18, 1953 at the First United Methodist Church. Rev. Cecil Lockard officiated. Their attendants were Don Doran and Dorothy Cooper Roth. The Dorans have four children, Tom (Denise) and Randy (Jean) of Fairbury; Gary (Dana) of Pontiac and LuAnn (Mark) Landau of Elmwood. There are 15 grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.
A new banner was unveiled at Friday night's homecoming football game between the Prairie Central Hawks and Olympia Spartans. Prairie Central remains undefeated (6-0) after a 40-20 win over Olympia. The Hawks, who moved to No. 3 in the Class 4A rankings by the Associated Press, head to Herscher this Friday, looking for another Corn Belt Conference win.
10 Years Ago
October 9, 2013
Maggie Stadler, 7, daughter of Scott and Casey Stadler of Pontiac, showed off her newest haircut after her grandmother, Jean Doran of Fairbury, trimmed 11 inches of hair that Maggie donated to Locks of Love. Locks of Love is a non-profit organization that provides hair pieces to financially disadvantaged children in the united States and Canada, under age 21, who are suffering from long-term medical hair loss. This is the second time in two years that Maggie has donated her hair to the organization. Her older sister, Carlee, 8, also gave 11 inches of her hair to Locks of Love two years ago. The sisters have had an ongoing contest, measuring each other's hair to see who's was growing the fastest. This time it was Maggie's.
The families of the late Ernest and Esther Sutter Hofmann recently hosted Swiss cousins and their friends. Doris Hofmann Cottier and her husband, Reynold Cottier, and their friends, Peter and Angela Ming, traveled from Switzerland to visit area relatives. Doris' parents, Ernst and Heidi Hofmann, had visited here several years ago. Mike and Lynette Johnson, Craig and Kris Ziller and Mark and Teri Arteman hosted the couples. Many area family members joined in all the activities which included learning about the harvest, driving a combine, fishing, picnics, a cook-out, traveling Route 66, a trolley tour of Pontiac, and more.
("Looking Back" from Kari Kamrath is sponsored each week by Duffy-Pils Memorial Homes with locations in Fairbury, Chenoa and Colfax)
Comments