Out of the past 9/18/04

10 years ago: Sept. 18, 1994

The Rev. Neal O. Zeilinger is installed as pastor of St. Mark Lutheran Church; conducting installation ceremony is the Rev. Dennis Hallemeyer, assistant to Bishop Charles H. Maahs.

Sandi Hendricks has been hired as minister of education at Grace United Methodist Church; Hendricks and her family have lived in Cape Girardeau since 1986.

25 years ago: Sept. 18, 1979

MOUNDS, Ill. -- First teachers' strike in history of Meridian Community Unit 101 closes classes for 1,256 elementary and high school pupils here; meanwhile, district is seeking court restraining order to end walkout.

Police are conducting homicide investigation into death of Deborah Martin, 24, whose body was found yesterday morning inside Mother Earth plant store on Broadway; but authorities aren't ruling out possibility that she died accidentally; autopsy should help determine cause of death.

50 years ago: Sept. 18, 1954

SEMO District Fair, playing its most successful stand since its revival in 1940, ends in evening on spectacular note of the Auto Swenson Thrillcade, which in past years attracted greatest grandstand crowds of exposition; another huge crowd was on grounds yesterday, but fell short of Thursday's total; Friday's paid attendance was 9,444.

James A. Finch Jr., Cape Girardeau attorney, has been elected president of University of Missouri Board of Curators, succeeding Powell B. McHaney of St. Louis.

75 years ago: Sept. 18, 1929

Seventy-first annual Cape Girardeau County Fair opened yesterday at Fairground Park with record first day attendance; gate receipts were about three times as great as on first days the previous three years; approximately 1,250 people paid admission to park, and thousands of school children were admitted free, as well as numerous teachers from Cape Girardeau schools.

Interest in establishing airport in Cape Girardeau is expressed by E.B. Gray of Curtiss Flying Service of St. Louis, who is in town displaying Curtiss-Robin monoplane at Fairground Park.

-- Sharon K. Sanders