Published in the Southeast Missourian, Feb. 5, 1995: Former Circuit Judge A.J. Seier donned a paper sack while roasting retired Cape Girardeau County Presiding Commissioner Gene Huckstep Friday night following a dinner at the Drury Lodge. At right is Huckstep and his wife, Betty. (Don Shrubshell ~ Southeast Missourian archive)...

Published in the Southeast Missourian, Feb. 5, 1995: Cleo Elvin Johns, left, and his son Cleo Edward Johns, work together at Johns Metal-Iron and Salvage Yard. (Fred Lynch ~ Southeast Missourian archive)...

Published in the Southeast Missourian, Jan. 22, 1995: Ed Neace and Donna Gertis two-step across the dance floor at Big Al's Video Dance Club. (Don Shrubshell ~ Southeast Missourian archive)...

I can still remember 25 years ago standing in front of St. Mary's Cathedral and looking south down Sprigg Street to see a massive mechanical claw reach out to tear down historic Farmers & Merchants Bank. It was a sad day for me. I had been in the historic preservationists' corner, rooting for some way to save the old building...

Published in the Southeast Missourian, Jan. 1, 1995: Haman's Sandwich Shop was a popular Cape Girardeau hangout during the 1930s and 1940s, offering food and dancing. From left are John Davis, Etta Carney, Ned Stuart, employees Elizabeth and Earl Blackwell, and owners Kate and Albert Haman. (Southeast Missourian archive)...

Published in the Southeast Missourian, Jan. 9, 1995: Arboreta, situated on Old Sprigg Street Road on the north end of Cape Girardeau, has been home to six generations of the family of Judge I.R. Kelso. (Fred Lynch ~ Southeast Missourian archive)...

Published in the Southeast Missourian, Dec. 12, 1994: Carl Whitaker checked on two of his emus, Alice and Lance, which are 2 1/2 years old. (Fred Lynch ~ Southeast Missourian archive)...

This photograph, featured in advertisements for the recently concluded Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament, caused a bit of a stir among readers...

Shooting matches were common when I was a youngster, the weekly events being advertised in the classified section of the Southeast Missourian. I can recall my dad, an avid hunter, attending a match occasionally. The competitions aren't as common as they once were, but I did find that the Cape Girardeau Elks Club still hosts matches featuring "computerized judging." The club's website provides all the particulars...

Published in the Southeast Missourian, Dec. 11, 1994: Robert and Donna Komorech, 1717 Bertling, love to decorate for Christmas. Their display includes a Christmas tree, a sleigh, reindeer and an array of lights. They also won the Holiday of Lights contest. (Don Shrubshell ~Southeast Missourian archive)...

Back when I was attending St. Mary's Grade School, the school's safety patrol was made up only of boys. Published in the Southeast Missourian, Friday, April 24, 1970: Congratulations were in order Thursday for these members of the St. Mary's Grade School Safety Patrol, which was named the outstanding patrol in the area during the 1969-70 school year by the Travelers Protective Association. ...

Judith Moriarty, the Pettis County clerk, won election as the Missouri Secretary of State in November 1992. But by the summer of 1994, rumors and accusations were swirling that she had broken state election laws. And by December of that year, she was gone...

Published in the Southeast Missourian, Nov. 21, 1994: Firefighters from around the area battled a three-alarm blaze Saturday night that started at Lanter Company, 226 Linda Street in Cape Girardeau. The fire spread to Plaza Tire and burned until Sunday morning. (Lou Peukert ~ Southeast Missourian archive)...

Published Nov. 14, 1994, in the Southeast Missourian: Stafford Moore, left, was honored with an appreciation plaque for heroism by Cape Girardeau Fire Chief Bob Ridgeway at Fire Station No. 1 Tuesday. A former Cape Girardeau firefighter, Moore rescued a man from a burning house. (Fred Lynch ~ Southeast Missourian archive)...

Published Nov. 29, 1994, in the Southeast Missourian: Pat Colon, who starred for Southeast from 1982-87, had her jersey retired Monday night. (Chris Stanfield ~ Southeast Missourian archive)...

Published in the Southeast Missourian, Oct. 3, 1994: Delmar Cruce used a crowbar to pull down the upper-floor ceiling of the former Last Chance Bar at 903 Broadway. (Fred Lynch ~ Southeast Missourian archive)...

Published in the Southeast Missourian, Tuesday, October 25, 1994: Boys at Charles C. Clippard Elementary School got together to play with a basketball, including, from left, Jason Mercer, Vitaly Mourazine, T.J. Fort, Thomas Keener and Kris Metje. (Fred Lynch ~ Southeast Missourian archive)...

Published in the Southeast Missourian, Monday, October 24, 1994: Terry Emmons, head welder at Ole Hickory Pits, uses a mig welder to weld a fire box for a smoker cooker. (Don Shrubshell ~ Southeast Missouri archive)...

This being Halloween, I thought this odd little story about a glass-lidded coffin might be appropriately weird for the day. It also tweaked my memory about a story from my first year at the Southeast Missourian, and I found the article with little effort. I've removed the names of the university students charged in the case of the purloined prop. No doubt, today they are all three upstanding members of society...

Published in the Southeast Missourian, Monday, October 31, 1994: James Griswell of Vanduser waited for a cotton picker to dump a load of cotton onto a trailer destined for the Vanduser Gin Co. It takes ab out four acres of cotton to fill a trailer. (Fred Lynch ~ Southeast Missourian archive)...