Out of the past 6/22/06

25 years ago: June 22,1981

The Cape Girardeau County Court approves seven recommendations for improving jail security in light of the recent jail escape; the recommendations, designed to help prevent future escape attempts, are made by county Sheriff Herman "Bob" Gribler.

Rainfall totals for Friday through Monday mean trouble for area farmers; Norman Weiss, director of the county agricultural conservation and stabilization service, says the area wheat crop has been damaged by recent rains.

50 years ago: June 22, 1956

Illinois state police say that a dice table, a roulette wheel and four slot machines were seized in a raid yesterday afternoon at the Colony Club at the junction of highways 3 and 146; the gambling equipment was taken to the courthouse in Cairo, Ill., and charges of possession of gaming equipment will be filed as soon as the identity of the owner is established.

In the construction of the flood-control levee along Sloan's Creek in Cape Girardeau, it was necessary to rebuild Chestnut Street over the top of the dike, some 15 feet higher than the former street level; as a result, drivers of vehicles using the street are unable to see approaching cars until they reach the top, a fact that has caused some concern.

75 years ago: June 22, 1931

Cape Girardeau goes into the fourth day of a record-breaking June heat wave, with little indications that the sweltering weather will be abated; although some relief to sections of the Midwest came over the weekend in the form of thunder showers, there was no relief here; in fact the temperature Sunday soared to 95 degrees.

A contract for construction of 37,700 feet of pile dikes, at a cost of $1 million between New Madrid, Mo., and Memphis, Tenn., is awarded to Woods Brothers Construction Co. of Lincoln, Neb.; the dikes are intended to stabilize the Mississippi River navigation.

100 years ago: June 22, 1906

About 25 members attended the meeting of the Cape Girardeau Commercial Club last evening, and much interest was shown in the proposed centennial celebration for this fall; the chairman of the executive committee reported the contribution of $500 by Louis Houck and $300 by the various downtown hotels toward the celebration.

"Mother" Mary Jones, beloved by every labor union man in the country, arrives in Cape Girardeau in the afternoon and later in the day speaks at the courthouse on "The Struggles of the Day."

Jones has devoted her live to the betterment of conditions among miners and has been a central figure in labor strikes across the nation.

-- Sharon K. Sanders