Out of the past 5/13/11

25 years ago: May 13, 1986

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- Paul Simpson, a retired businessman and longtime Perryville resident, has been elected to the Ward 2 alderman seat vacated April 30 by Clarence Zahner.

After a lengthy discussion, the Cape Girardeau School Board agrees unanimously to employ a third sixth-grade teacher at Hawthorn School to alleviate what many view as overcrowding in the classroom; no consensus is reached over the question of combining sixth- and seventh-grade classes into a "middle school" concept at Schultz School.

50 years ago: May 13, 1961

OLIVE BRANCH, Ill. -- Floodwaters have taken over much of the land south of here, the backwater coming in and surface water from recent rains getting in its small blow; the Miller City, Ill., area is largely flooded, with Horseshoe Lake spreading across the country like it hasn't done for a long time.

The Mississippi River reaches a practical crest at noon at Cape Girardeau with a stage of 39.5 feet.

75 years ago: May 13, 1936

ESSEX, Mo. -- Residents of Essex and the country nearby escaped injury late yesterday as a small tornado ripped through the town, leveling two buildings, damaging many more, and uprooting hundreds of trees; a hailstorm seriously damaged field and garden crops.

Louis J. Schultz, superintendent of Cape Girardeau's public schools, is elected president of the Lions Club for the ensuing year.

100 years ago: May 13, 1911

High school athletes from Charleston, Mo., as usual made a strong showing yesterday in the preliminaries of the track events at the fairgrounds; numerous heats were necessary to eliminate the slower runners, jumpers and weight throwers.

Eddie McDade made a killing with his Broadway Hippodrome last night; a big crowd filled up all the reserved seats on the ground and then extended up to the topmost row of seats on the bleachers; the crowd was kept in laughter as several vaudeville entertainers held the boards.

-- Sharon K. Sanders