Out of the past: Aug. 17

1999

The corn stands tall on Oliver Bachmann’s farm south of Perryville; but Bachmann and his fellow farmers are worried: Low prices for their crops and livestock are making it tough to make a living; Bachmann and about 20 other Perry County farmers discussed their concerns yesterday with U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson; the Cape Girardeau Republican kicked off her four-day farm tour with an 8:30 a.m. stop at the Bachmann farm along Highway 61.

It may be a few months before Cape Girardeau residents have a chance to vote on a bond issue for more sewer improvements; the Cape Girardeau City Council Monday rejected an ordinance that would have set a Nov. 2 election for voters to consider allowing the city to borrow $8 million for sewer projects.

1974

Work was halted almost before it began on construction of the sewer replacement line to relieve sanitary sewer conditions in the west and north parts of Cape Girardeau; the trunk relief line will run from from Bloomfield Road north to Spring and Themis, skirting the Town Plaza Shopping Center; however, when the contractor started digging south of the intersection of Christine and William, he was forced to stop when the trench started caving; no sewer pipe has yet been placed in the ground, although materials are on the site.

Dr. S.D. Aubuchon, dean of the Baptist Foundation at Southeast Missouri State University from 1939 to 1951, is honored at a reunion dinner at the Top of the Hill; about 50 persons, who studied with Aubuchon during his 14 years with the foundation, gather to reminisce; the Rev. Wilbur Thorklakson of the Florissant Valley Baptist Church, arranged the reunion and hosts the informal program.

1949

One of the hottest industrial prospects in many years is in negotiation with the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce for location of a plant which would start production with 300 workers and gradually increase the force to between 800 and 900 employees; the firm is a finishing plant for a textile industry manufacturing velvets, velveteens, corduroys, napped fabrics and sportswear fabrics.

The vanguard of an ultimate 1,400 men of the 140th Infantry, Missouri National Guard, moves out from various communities for Fort Leonard Wood, where the annual two-week encampment will get underway for the main body Sunday; only 40 men are in today’s detachment, two from each of the 20 companies in the regiment; they are cooks who will attend a four-day pre-camp mess school at the fort.

1924

Most of the pulpits in Cape Girardeau are either unoccupied or are filled wit substitutes this month, as pastors take their vacations, just like “ordinary people”; among the local pastors who are absent are the Rev. J. Hanckel Taylor of Christ Episcopal Church, who is in North Carolina; the Rev. C.H. Morton of First Presbyterian Church, who is in West Virginia; the Rev. C.C. Clark of Centenary Methodist Church, who is in Mississippi visiting his and his wife’s parents; the Rev. Reinhart Lehman of Christ Evangelical Church, who is on a fishing trip near here, and the Rev. C.H. Swift of the Christian Church, who is visiting in north Missouri.

The 25th anniversary of the ordination to the ministry of the Rev. F.H. Melzer, pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church, is celebrated by the church congregation in the evening; the affair comes as a surprise to the pastor, who had prepared for his regular Sunday evening services.

Southeast Missourian librarian Sharon Sanders compiles the information for the daily Out of the Past column. She also writes a blog called “From the Morgue” that showcases interesting historical stories from the newspaper. Check out her blog at semissourian.com/history.