Out of the past 2/16/11

25 years ago: Feb. 16, 1986

St. Mark Lutheran Church notes the first Sunday in Lent at morning services; the gospel describes Jesus' 40 days of temptation in the wilderness; modern temptation is part of a dialogue between Carl Train as devil's advocate and the pastor, the Rev. F. Jan Bengstson.

Negotiations are underway for a change of ownership of the Sands Motel, 1448 N. Kingshighway; Evelyn Bahn, a member of the corporation owning the property, reports the new owner will be Sharad Kobakia of Saratoga, Ga.

50 years ago: Feb. 16, 1961

Athletic director Kenneth Knox of State College is notified that Cape Girardeau has been officially selected as the host city for the National Collegiate Athletic Association College Division southwest regional playoff basketball tournament March 10 and 11.

The last major section of construction in the step-by-step upgrading of historic Common Pleas Courthouse is underway; the estimated $16,000 project, paid for by the city and county, involves removing wooden floors in corridors and replacing them with concrete, and constructing a steel-and-concrete stairway to the second floor.

75 years ago: Feb. 16, 1936

The Rev. Ira D. Crewdson, pastor of the First Christian Church, is the speaker at the regular service of the Christ Evangelical Young People's League in the evening; his topic is "Living with the Japanese," in which he discusses his personal experience as a missionary in Japan.

An unidentified young woman narrowly escapes drowning in the Mississippi River; she is pulled from the icy water after going in up to her shoulders, when she breaks through the ice while walking on the frozen stream.

100 years ago: Feb. 16, 1911

Members of the State Highway Engineers' Association are gathered in Cape Girardeau for their conference; the first session is held at the Lyric Theater, presided over by Dennis Scivally of Cape Girardeau, president of the association.

Another of Cape Girardeau's Civil War veterans, Charles Bode, answers the last summons in the morning; he is survived by two daughters and two sons.

-- Sharon K. Sanders