Out of the past 7/20/05

25 years ago: July 20, 1980

Starting this morning, and hopefully continuing 168 hours until next Sunday morning, six area residents are making their pitch for the world's record in horseshoe pitching; the marathon is being staged at the home of Chad Hartle in Jackson; the pitchers are Hartle, Steve Oldham, Kevin Brown, Doug Biermann and Kenny Seabaugh, all of Jackson, and Drew Garner of Cape Girardeau.

The Rev. Raymond Carlson of Springfield, Mo., is the guest speaker at First Assembly of God Church for the dedication of its new sanctuary; Carlson is the assistant general superintendent of the Assemblies of God with headquarters in Springfield.

50 years ago: July 20, 1955

Cape Girardeau's laws, many of them dating back to horse and buggy days, would be revised and weeded out under a proposal advanced to the city by an ordinance codification service in Washington, D.C.

The Jackson school board has awarded a contract to Eugene E. McDowell of Jackson to build the new elementary ward school at Burfordville; Penzel Construction Co. of Jackson got the contract to build the annex to the high school in Jackson, the workshop and library.

75 years ago: July 20, 1930

Prayers for rain to cut short the drought that is proving a serious menace to growing crops in Southeast Missouri are offered in at least two Cape Girardeau churches; the Rev. H.C. Hoy, pastor of Centenary Methodist Church, asks for rain during the morning service.

Stepping into a 20-foot hole as he wades in the Mississippi River on the Illinois side of the stream opposite Cape Girardeau, Charles Worthen, the 16-year-old son of Mrs. James Kirby, drowns at noon; his body is recovered four hours later.

100 years ago: July 20, 1905

Hoch & Brinkopf, the undertakers, have had erected on the lot opposite Louis Houck's office on Spanish Street an iron house for their fine hearse that attracted so much attention at the World's Fair in St. Louis, Mo.; the hearse cost several thousand dollars, and the iron house was necessary to give it the proper protection.

All the contracts for furnishing materials to be used in the construction of the electric street railway have been awarded, and material should be arriving soon; Leming Lumber Co. received a contract to provide 14,000 first-class ties for the streetcar system.

-- Sharon K. Sanders