Out of the past: Aug. 4

1999

Delays in building renovations and new construction won’t cause a delay in the start of classes for the Cape Girardeau School District; superintendent Dr. Dan Steska says Cape Girardeau’s public schools will open on schedule Aug. 26, despite slow construction on projects at three schools — Alma Schrader, Clippard and the new Blanchard School.

GALE, Ill. — No further cleanup is needed at the Illada Energy Co. Superfund site, says the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency; a proposal for no further action comes eight years after the final tank was removed in 1991 from the site between East Cape Girardeau and Gale; the 16.7-acre site operated by Illada contained 22 storage tanks with 12 million gallons of storage capacity; the plant closed in the 1980s when state and federal EPA inspectors found large concentrations of toxic chemicals and metals in used oil shipped to the plant for recycling.

1974

Trinity Lutheran Church in Cape Girardeau has published some of the results of a survey it undertook several weeks ago at the request of a researcher at the University of Chicago to gauge the assimilation of German people into the American culture; the survey found approximately 94% of the members of its congregation are entirely or partly of German ancestry; in about 55% of the homes, at least one member can speak some German, and German is spoken regularly in a little more than 1% (12 homes) of the congregation; Trinity was one of 275 churches to participate in the survey.

The Palmer House Restaurant, 417 Broadway, has been leased from the owner, Bill Palmer, by Todd Langley, who recently retired from military service; Mr. and Mrs. Langley and daughter, Ginger, 15, and son, Roger, 7, have moved here from Anchorage, Alaska.

1949

All building construction records for Cape Girardeau were broken in July when the total value of permits issued since Jan. 1 rose to $1,413,739 on the strength of $414,668 in approvals last month, practically all of that in the tornado-devastated area.

The most difficult work connected with the construction of the new physical education building at State College has been completed, college officials say; this was the erection of the shoring for the $50,000 structure, which will replace Houck Field House, destroyed by fire in February 1948; workers are now constructing the foundation and walls; L. & R. Construction Co. of St. Louis is the general contractor.

1924

Patrolman Ivan Robinson of the Good Hope Street beat has to appear before the City Council this afternoon to explain why he fired a volley of shots at a fleeing Black youth in the Haarig business district Friday; one of the shots from Robinson’s revolver passed through a rear wall of the Cape Battery Station, 312 S. Frederick St., narrowly missing Christ Hirsch, proprietor; it appears both Robinson and the youth were victims of a prank, leading to an argument between them that escalated.

A “citizen’s plan” for the installation of the Normal sewer in North Cape Girardeau is held illegal in an opinion presented to the City Council by city counsellor Rush H. Limbaugh; the opinion holds that the plan — which proposes that the city construct the principle outlet line and assess all the property in the district to pay for it, and then to allow the construction of the laterals to be made as property holders desire, and to be paid for by taxing the property served by the laterals — would make the tax bills issued for payment of the main sewer invalid, as city and state laws don’t provide for this contingency.

Southeast Missourian librarian Sharon Sanders compiles the information for the daily Out of the Past column. She also writes a blog called “From the Morgue” that showcases interesting historical stories from the newspaper. Check out her blog at semissourian.com/history.