Looking Back with Lora Stull

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One Hundred
Twenty-Five Years Ago
(From the Mount Ayr Record-News, Thursday, Decenber 19, 1895.)
On Tuesday President Cleveland sent a special message to Congress relative to the Venezuela situation. (The Venezuelan crisis of 1895 occurred over Venezuela’s longstanding dispute with the United Kingdom about the territory of Essequibo and Guayana Esequiba, which Britain claimed as part of British Guiana and Venezuela saw as Venezuelan territory.
The crisis ultimately saw Britain accept the United States’ intervention in the dispute to force arbitration of the entire disputed territory, and tacitly accept the US right to intervene under the Monroe Doctrine, the policy, as stated by President Monroe in 1823, that the U.S. opposed further European colonization of and interference with independent nations in the Western Hemisphere.)
It is a pleasant surprise and brought great relief to the anxious country. The President frankly states all that has been done in the matter and declares what ought to be done in the grave emergency. He takes the high and only honorable position that the Monroe Doctrine as historically understood and as we understand it, must be applied in the case, no matter what England may say or do about it.
Marriage: December 15, Luie Jarvis became the bride of Charles Graham..
One Hundred
Years Ago
(From the Mount Ayr Record-News,Thursday, December 15, 1920.)
The Smith store and depot at Redding were burglarized Saturday night. Entrance to both buildings being effected through the windows by breaking glass. At the Smith store the robbers secured about $150 worth of clothing, men’s apparel and cigars. All the freight had been removed from the depot before closing time Saturday evening and all the expressed delivered except a basket of bread and buns. From this the robbers appropriated a couple loaves of bread and buns.
Five young men of Diagonal and vicinity appeared in Judge Fuller’s court Saturday to answer to criminal charges. Four of the young men were charged with stealing chickens and one with resisting an officer and all of them entered pleas of guilty. In each instance a fine of $100 and costs was assessed and six months jail sentence, which was suspended during good behavior, was imposed on the young men who was charged with resisting an officer.
Obituaries in this edition were: Peter Nicholas Robinson, Mary Elizabeth Sheriff Shields, Fred Martin Hopkins, Andrew Albert Hunter, Glenn Sullivan, Henry Stuck, Archie LeRoy Ward, Mary Ann Johnson and Ethel Thompson Meade.
Fifty Years Ago
(From the Mount Ayr Record-News,Thursday,  December 24, 1970.)
Legend, Lore of Holiday Takes Varied Forms: Among the earliest Christmas tree ornaments were some that resembled the sun, stars and moon or animals. Using signs of nature as decorations can be traced back to the feasts of the winter equinox, when sun-worshiping pagans hung similar trinkets on trees…The belief that Santa has a reindeer-drawn sleigh and enters homes through the chimney may have come from Scandinavia. An old Norse legend about the goddess Hertha said that she rode on a reindeer’s back. Her appearance in the fireplace in mid-winter was thought to bring good luck to the home… “Silent Night, Holy Night” was written in 1818 by a village priest in Hallein, Austria. Father Joseph Mohr wrote the words, to an accompaniment created by his organist, Frank Grubber. Legend has it that the church organ was out of order-damaged by mice-and so “Silent Night” was first sung to a guitar accompaniment.
Marriage: October 25, Eula Jimmerson and Duane Dolecheck.
Births: Dec. 17, a daughter, to Mr. and Mrs. Roger Lane…Dec. 23, a son, to Mr. and Mrs. Loren Winemiller…Dec. 21, a daughter, Stephanie, to Mr. and Mrs. Dick Gibson…Dec. 15, a son, Douglas, to Mr. and Mrs. Denny Morrow…Dec. 7, a son, Theodore, to Mr. and Mrs. Dennis Zimmerly…Dec. 14, a son, Monte, to Mr. and Mrs. Michael Adkisson.
Obituary in this edition was: Hillard W. Clark.
Twenty Five Years Ago
(From the Mount Ayr Record-News,Thursday, December 21, 1995.)
It is an official epidemic! When there is more than 10 percent of school enrollment absent because of illness the Iowa Department of Public Health calls it an epidemic. Mount Ayr Community school nurse, Carolyn Bjustrom, reports that the school she serves has over 25 percent absent as of early this week, Monday December 18, there were 94 out because of illness, whereas on an ordinary day there might be 5-10 gone. Bjustrom says quite a few had a fever. Many had influenza symptoms. She was observing upper respiratory problems, headaches, coughing, vomiting, and sore throat.
Don and Edna Small have reopened Small Corral on the NE corner of the square in Mount Ayr.
Births: December 14, a daughter, Abbey Gail, to Mr. and Mrs. Darrell Adams.
Ten Years Ago
(From the Mount Ayr Record-News,Thursday, December 16, 2010.)
Brittany Parrott was crowned queen and Dillon Davenport was crowned king for the Diagonal Community school homecoming activities Friday night in Diagonal.
Two Iowa cancer charities will be recipients of the $31,000 that was raised by the Tackle Cancer homecoming football game for the Mount Ayr Community Raiders. “We are excited to let residents know that the final amount of our Tackle Cancer fundraising efforts totals $31,000,” said Delwyn Showalter, Raider football co-head coach. “We have decided to split our donation between two organizations, Children’s Cancer Connection and University of Iowa Dance Marathon, that are located in the state of Iowa, with each receiving $15,500. Both of these groups serve children who are suffering from cancer and each of them have provided services to Mount Ayr students in the past.”
Obituary in this edition was: Clyde Summers.