Visit With Communities in the Past

Small town local papers used to publish all the local community news items. There would be a person or person in our small communities who would gather all the local news in their area each week and submit it to the local paper.

We didn't have a local radio station, so these items were always read and enjoyed by all, it was a way to keep up with the news all over the county. Maybe you will see a familiar community or family name.

These local news items are from the archives of The Crittenden Press in the year 1949.

March 4, 1949, Cora Clift submitted the news items from Fords Ferry.

• Herschel Hughes of Evansville, visited this week with his father, Walter Hughes and sister, Mrs. Leon Kirk, of Marion.
• Charles E. Kirk has returned to his post of duty in the Army after an extended visit with his relatives.
• Miss Sarah Hannah Walker, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Edward Walker, of Dam 50, and Encil R. Davenport, son of Rev. and Mrs. O. H. Davenport, of Marion, motored to Arkansas and were Married January 30. They were attended by Mr. and Mrs. Charles Shaffer of Marion. Mr. Davenport has a job in Chicago.
• The people of this community were sorry to hear of the death of Mr. Tom Williams, of Sturgis. Mr. Williams was from our community and many years of his life were spent here. He was buried at Mt. Zion and was the last of one of Crittenden's oldest families.

March 11, 1949, Mrs. Beulah Sutton of the Lily Dale area sent in their news for the week.

• Our school closed with a small program. Those present besides the parents were Mr. and Mrs. Harry Haynes and Mr. and Mr. J. P. Loyd. The children receiving diplomas from the eighth grade were Marvin Ordway, Reuben Parmley and Jimmy Stallions.
• Those receiving certificates and awards for perfect attendance were Eugene Sutton, Leon Sutton, Donna Fay Rushing and Donald Ray Rushing.
• Those receiving prizes for the most headmarks for the entire year were as follows: Grade 2 - Katherine Parmley; Grade 3 - Donna Fay Rushing; Grade 4 - Gladys Parmley; Grace 6 - Jackie Stallions; Grade 7 - Eugene Sutton, and Grade 8 - Marvin Ordway.
• Mr. and Mrs. Eldon Sutton and Ellen, Mrs. J. E. Newberry and Mrs. Oliver Stephenson were in Princeton on Monday.
• Mr. and Mrs. Kelly Jennings, of Marion, spent Wednesday night with his mother, Mrs. Lizzie Jennings.
• Mr. and Mrs. Fred Deboe and Eldon Sutton motored to Nashville, Tenn., on Friday.

June 17, 1949, the Emmaus Community News gathered by Mrs. M.L. (Pollie) Patton.

• Mr. and Mrs. Doyle Polk of this vicinity entertained Sunday, June 12th, at their home here in honor of their 5 children, all of whom are employed away from home. Only one boy, Doyle Jr., who is engaged in farming with his father, resides at home. The girls are as follows: Miss Georgia Nelle Polk, a nurse at Hopkinsville hospital; Miss Willie Polk who is employed in a drug store at Evansville; Miss Linda Polk, who has employment at Marion in the drug store; and Mrs. Raymond Riley, the wife of Raymond Riley, who is a farmer. A nice lunch was served, prepared by Mrs. Polk for the noon hour. Mr. and Mrs. Carl Decker and little daughter Ann of Evansville, were dinner guests of Mr. and Mrs. Doyle Polk.
• Mrs. Birdie Peek and granddaughter, Mary Jane Peek, and Mrs. Nellie McKinney are the guests of relatives at Frankfort Illnois this week.
• Mrs. Lela Adams was seriously ill last week and was taken to Riverside Hospital at Paducah for treetment.
• Mrs. M. L. Patton spent last week near Frances as the guest of Mr. and Mrs. Calvin Turley and children, and Mr. and Mrs. Sylvan Brasher and family.

Winter Weather of the Past

The ice storms of February 2008 have made headlines for the past two weeks. As a true lover of our local history, I always want to know what has happened in our past. I like to know whether things now are as bad as they were back then, or whether we just think they were.

I get most of my information on our local history from the archives of The Crittenden Press that are on mirco-film at our local Library, so off to the Library I went. From my own memory and those of my husband and son, I knew that January and February of 1977-1978 and 1979 were some of the most snowy and cold days that we remembered in our lifetime.

Living on a farm in rural northwest Crittenden County was rough for man as well as the animals on the farm and in the woods. Families would work together to help keep the graveled country roads at least passable, if only with one lane. During the winter of 1978, we received the help of neighbor, Gleaford Easley, who actually used his bulldozer to plow a lane through our road so that a vechicle could make it to the highway. The piles of snow on the road were higher than a pick-up truck.

January 1977 started out with a 10 inch snow, which was one of the deepest snows we had seen in several years. A cold northern wind kept temperatures at zero for several days and even dropped to 10-15 below zero. The Ohio River even froze during this icy grip of winter.

January 1978 we were hit again with a 15-18 inches of snow. Mail could not be delivered to the rural routes. Postmaster Ed Runyan said it was the first time since 1963, when he became postmaster that the routes weren't delivered. Once again familes worked together and if one could make it to Marion, he would pick up everyone's mail that lived close by and would take it to them. We were lucky and had one of the few 4-wheel drive trucks on our roads. Schools and factories, Moore's Business Forms and Potter and Brumfield plant, were closed until streets could be cleared enough for traffic. Then in February, with the ice and snow still around, a high wind added to the problems and disrupted electric service for a while.

January 1979, another wintery blast hit us with temperatures as low as zero, ensuring the snow and ice would remain for a while. A week later, another snow fell on our area, causing school to be closed for all but 4 days in January and most of the month of February. Schools ran until June of that year.

These are just a few of the facts of the winters of 1977, 1978 and 1979. Needless to say, we all dreaded thinking of what Mother Nature had in store for us at the start of the next new year.

Starting a New Blog

Crittenden County historian laureate Brenda Underdown will be starting a new Web blog regarding Marion, Crittenden County and area history. Bookmark her blog and check back often. It's sure to be as big of a hit as her columns that appear regularly in The Crittenden Press printed edition.