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Looking Backward 7.6.2017

   25 Years Ago

July 2, 1992

 

The major Independence Day celebration of this area –– the annual Squires Picnic was held last Satur-day night, with another huge crowd of folks attending.  This Fourth of July celebration has been held for 10 years now, and the event continues to grow in popularity.

Morgan Everett-Arnold, daugh-ter of Ian and Dornna Arnold, of Ava, was in Branson last Friday to compete in the Music Country USA Clogging Championships which were held at the Ozark Mountain Amphitheater. Morgan competed in the girls singles for 5 and 6 year-olds and won first place.

Matt Wade attended the SMSU boys individual basketball camp last week in Springfield.  Matt took first place in the one-on-one tournament and first place in free throw competition in the 14-year-old division.  Matt will be a freshman at Ava High School this fall.

Orilla Murray, Ava, has been listed as a first year honor student at Linn Technical College, Linn, Mo.

CROSS ROADS –– Happy Anniversary to James and Virginia Wilson. It was number 24.

Ava eighth grader Mindy Atchison earned three trophies at the College of the Ozarks basketball camp last week at Point Lookout.  In the junior high division, Mindy won the Skill Test, Obstacle Course, and 3-on-3 competition with Kari Wolfe, Branson, and Rachel Not-tingham, of Stockton.

HUNTER CREEK – Happy 79th birthday to Paul Pitts.  Dr. and Jackie Harlin, Russell and Lena Robertson, Paul and Modena Pitts celebrated Paul’s birthday by having lunch at the Highway House Café and later returned to Paul and Modena’s house for watermelon.

COUNTY LINE –– Daisy Strong celebrated her 80th birthday.

 

50 Years Ago

 June 29, 1967

 

Miss Connie Prock, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Rondo Prock of Ava, was crowned Douglas County Maid of Milk Saturday night by Mayor Fred O. Lethco. First runner-up was Miss Shirley Addy, and second runner-up was Sherry Plaster.

Winner of the milk drinking contest held Saturday was Keith Cox.

Fred C. Robbins, editor and publisher of the weekly Ozark County Times at Gainesville, died Wednesday afternoon enroute to a Springfield hospital following an apparent heart attack.

A Douglas County man attending the U.S. Air Force Academy at Colorado Springs, Colo., under appointment from Seventh District Congressman Durward Hall, has been named to the Dean’s List.

Mr. and Mrs. W.A. Spurrier, 501 NW 4th Avenue, will celebrate their golden wedding anniversary Sunday, July 9, with an open house at their home from 2 until 5 o’clock.

Lester B. Epps was honor guest at a surprise birthday party Tuesday night, June 20, when Mrs. Epps entertained at their country home on Route 3, southwest of Ava.

An Ava taxi made a trip to Poplar Bluff Tuesday to return Jessie Collier to his home near Sweden after being a patient in the Veterans Hospital.

DORA –– Mrs. Murrel Watkins was in Dora Saturday taking a “work survey” of applicants for a garment factory to be opened in Gainesville some time in the future.

On duty at Camp Ranh Bap AB, Vietnam, is Air Force SSgt. William V. Gipson, son of Mr. and Mrs. Fred L. Gipson, Lockwood. He is a medical records supervisor.

Ava Drive-In Theatre –– Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum,” Phil Silvers, Buster Keaton, Zero Mostel.  In Techni-color!   Wednesday, Thursday, Fri-day, “Nashville Rebel,” Tex Ritter, Faron Young and an all-star cast.  In Color!

Mr. and Mrs. Howard Plaster and Glen of Almartha entertained with a lawn dinner Sunday honoring Mr. Plaster’s brother, Mr. and Mrs. Dale Plaster, Ann, Lynda, Margie, Jimmie and Barbara of Santa Anna, Calif.

Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Alderman entertained in their new home in south Ava Thursday night, when they hosted a regular summer meeting of the Ava Pitch Club.  Members attending were Mr. and Mrs. Vernon Jackson, Mr. and Mrs. Burnam Cummins, Mr. and Mrs. Cloine Pettit, Mr. and Mrs. Harlan House and Mr. and Mrs. Clinton Maloney.  Mr. and Mrs. Russell Klineline were a guest couple.

The Ladies Golf Association of the Ava Country Club was host to a guest day for women golfers last Wednesday from Mountain Grove, Willow Springs and West Plains.

 

75 Years Ago

July 2, 1942

 

Two hundred and nineteen Douglas County youths, 18, 19 and 20 years old, were registered Tuesday for selective service.  One hundred and eighty-six men were registered at Ava and 33 were registered at Drury.  Ava school teachers did the registering here, and W.I. Barker, clerk of the local draft board did the registering at Drury.

With wild blackberries this week beginning to turn from red to black in the hundreds and hundreds of patches over Douglas County, and other nearby areas, the Ava Canning Company has issued a call for all the blackberries that can be brought to them.  F.L. Stockton of Marshfield, operator of the canning factory in Ava Monday said he expected to sell to the government all the blackberries he could can.

New officers of the Ava Lions Club will be installed at a ladies night meeting to be held Friday in the Lions Den.  Heading the list of officers who will serve until the first of nest July is Russel Ferguson, elected president. Other officers for the year are: first vice president, David Joslin; second vice president, C.O. Daves; third vice president, Paul Clauser; secretary, R.C. Gritzmaker; treasurer, E.B Norman; Lion tamer, Louis Brown; tail twister, Luke Copenhagen; assistant tail twister, Dr. J.H. Coffman; members of the board of directors, E.R. Norman and C.H. Hibbard.

Someone says that “when a man buys a home with us he is pretty much settled.  He becomes a per-manent member of the community.”  The mortgage will hold him when nothing else will.

Friends? They come and –– alas sometimes they go.  There are few so faithful and so frank as the one who says to me, “I don’t know why I put up with you, but I do. I even read the rotten stuff you write.”  My Friend, I salute you.

Mrs. Arthur Morris, who lives on Turkey Creek east of Ava, has been in a serious condition recently. She was bitten on the ankle by a snake.

  1. A. Curry of Carney, Nebraska, H.Y. Frost of Arapahoe, Nebraska, and Mrs. G.R. Curry who has spent the past several months in Nebraska, arrived here Tuesday evening. Mrs. Curry will remain in the Ozarks, and the men will return following a few days visit here.

Visitors in the George Posey home Sunday were Mr. and Mrs. Bob Teal, Mr. and Mrs. Boyd Teal and son, Paul, and Mr. and Mrs. Etzel Wood and son, Max Alan.

Miss Norma Jean Bacorn, who is employed in a defense plant in St. Louis, spent the weekend of June 21 here with her mother, Mrs. Fred Bacorn, and other relatives.

ARNO –– Miss Reba King has been employed to teach the Arno school this fall.

If you think the government is asking too much of you we can give you the address of several young men from this community who would probably trade places with you and come back home and be glad to sign a pledge card, do without tires and sugar and a few other items we hear people “gripe” about.  They tell us that the soldiers and sailors have plenty of sugar and the “jeeps” and tanks and trucks have good tires.  Anyone want to trade?

 

100 Years Ago

July 5, 1917

 

Members of the national army, as the draft army has been named, will be vaccinated for smallpox and afterward inoculated three times for typhoid.

The women of Missouri will be asked to show their patriotism this month by registering for service for their country.

Arthur Warren, a young rural mail carrier, who carried the mail between Pottersville, in the western part of Howell County, and Syca-more in Ozark County, was killed instantly by a bolt of lightning Wednesday evening June 27.  The lightning struck a telephone wire just over the carrier’s head and brought the wire down on the man and his team.  The team was also killed instantly.

Notices have been posted in the Ava School District calling a special school election on July 16, for the purpose of voting to authorize the Board of Directors to issue bonds to the amount of $4,000 to install a heating and plumbing system in the old school building, and to pay for the vacant lots just north of the building, bought from M.C. Reynolds.

Eighty-one Missouri counties had completed organization up to June 25.  Fourteen of these have county agents and were organized before the campaign started.  In the 67 counties which have been organized within the last few weeks, 879 local clubs have been formed.

Grandmother kept her hair beautifully darkened, glossy and attractive with a brew of Sage Tea and Sulphur.  Whenever her hair took on that dull, faded or streaked appearance, this simple mixture was applied with wonderful effect.

A strange malady closely resem-bling enterocolitis has Oran, Dunklin County, and a few other southeast Missouri towns in its grasp.  Sixteen children are dead at Oran from the strange sickness and it is reported that 20 others are seriously sick at present time.  At Senath it is reported that six children have died within the past two weeks, and that there are at least 15 cases in town at the present time.

BRUSHY KNOB –– Uncle Jim Coats, past 77-years of age, was out hoeing corn a few days ago, doing his bit toward food supply.  While too old to join the army as he did during the Civil War, he is proud to know his son Logan is somewhere at the front doing his bit.

BASHER –– Honey bees are becoming quite plentiful in these parts now.  Quite a few bee trees have been found.

 

125 Years Ago

July 7, 1892

 

SEDALIA, Mo. –– The little village of Houstonia was thrown into a turmoil of excitement yester-day by the appearance on the streets of Jesse Musser, who was supposed to have been hanged and had been mourned as dead by his friends for almost a year.  On the afternoon of August 31 last, two men entered the bank at Corder, Lafayette County, and with drawn revolvers compelled the cashier to deliver over some $6151, all the money in sight.  They made their escape but a posse was quickly organized and one of the men was captured.  Half the money was found in his possession.  In less than two minutes, the robber’s body dangled from the convenient limb of a thorn tree.  It was believed that he was Jesse Musser and the remains were recognized as such by Musser’s father and mother.  Three days prior to the bank robbery Musser had disappeared.  When the consternation at Musser’s return subsided, he told the people that he had been employed as a farm hand near Gilliam, Mo., since leaving home.  He knew of the sensation he was supposed to have caused, but kept quiet.  Who the man was that was hung is now a mystery?

The sugar trust is said to be going into high wine distilling.

The jail at Lebanon, Mo., was broken by three prisoners, who escaped to the woods.

The police of Creston, Iowa have begun a war on Liquor places, but so far with little success.

Joe and John Wilson, of Birm-ingham, Ala., prominent Masons, were wounded while robbing a store.

Circuit Judge Lundrum of the Cherokee Nation sustains the law that provides that tracts of grazing land larger than 50 acres shall not be fenced with barbed wire.

Repenting of a sin is a great deal like pulling a heavy sled up hill after you have had a good time sliding down.

The “Little Giants” of Ava are anxious to meet the Cedar Gap club, and if a game can be arranged, show them how to play ball.

On last Sunday, during a game of ball on the grounds north of town, Wm. F. Hargrove and Bud Payne got into a difficulty during which Hargrove cut Payne on the left side of the back just below the shoulder blade. Dr. Murray made an examin-ation of the wound and pronounced it serious.  Hargrove was arrested by Sheriff Klineline and held until a warrant was issued by Esquire Snyder on a charge of felonious assault and the case set for trial on Wednesday.

The celebration at Ava on the Fourth was pronounced success.  The weather was fine and the attendance large, being estimated from 1,500 to 2,000 people.  The program was carried through with spirit and to the satisfaction of those assembled.  The game of baseball was the special attraction of the afternoon’s entertainment, and resulted in a defeat for the visiting club by a score of 63 to 5.  The day’s entertainment was concluded by a grand display of fireworks on the courthouse square at dark which was witnessed by crowds of visitors.