Out of the past 5/7/04

10 years ago: May 7, 1994

Jackson lawyer John Lichtenegger is commencement speaker at Southeast Missouri State University in afternoon; 663 undergraduates and 36 graduate students receive diplomas at Show Me Center exercises.

The 1994 version of Cape Girardeau Riverfest T-shirt is on sale through Riverfest Association; white shirts feature full-color print caricature of spirited river pirate dancing jig around Cape Girardeau's downtown clock.

25 years ago: May 7, 1979

Resurfacing of Highway 74 through Cape Girardeau, including badly deteriorated Morgan Oak from Sprigg to Lorimier, is one of number of area highway improvement projects scheduled for next fiscal year by Missouri Highway Department; plans also call for safety modifications on Interstate 55 through Cape Girardeau and completion of improvements to Highway 177, from Highway 61 to Route V.

THEBES, Ill. -- Efforts to clean up 84,600-gallon spill of fuel oil continue on Mississippi River below here, after towboat with six barges struck Missouri Pacific Railroad bridge Saturday night; all but small portion of barges' cargo was spilled into river.

50 years ago: May 7, 1954

Delta Queen, owned by Greene Line at Cincinnati, Ohio, likely will be only river packet to cruise up Mississippi River this year; vessel will go to St. Paul in mid-summer; next week, during Cotton Carnival at Memphis, Tenn., Delta Queen will be on hand with about 100 passengers and will continue on to New Orleans.

Air Medal is awarded posthumously to Capt. Bobby Foster, Cape Girardeau Marine Corps pilot of two wars; Maj. David Foos presents medal to Foster's wife.

75 years ago: May 7, 1929

May Greene celebrates golden jubilee of her 50 years of teaching in Cape Girardeau public schools amidst telegrams and messages of congratulations, flowers and other gifts from present and former pupils.

Dr. O.L. Seabaugh, Cape Girardeau physician and surgeon, has gone to Rochester, Minn., where he will remain for six weeks to observe work in surgery in Mayo Brothers' clinic.

-- Sharon K. Sanders