Out of the past: Aug. 7

1993

As the Mississippi River in Cape Girardeau inches closer to an expected overnight crest of 49 feet, weary flood warriors continue to wage battle against the water's assault; at 6 p.m., the river here stands at 47.9 feet; workers strengthen a sandbag levee around Red Star Baptist Church in north Cape Girardeau, and in the southwest part of town, rising waters begin to threaten more homes in the Meadowbrook area along South Kingshighway.

Renovation of the Towers West residence hall at Southeast Missouri State University is in full swing, and the project is being expanded to improve the "chilled water" cooling system on the north side of the campus.

1968

Despite the highest temperature of the year -- a blistering 97 degrees -- Cape Girardeau County voters yesterday forged a new county primary voting record and set the stage for an equally torrid November general election; a tabulation showed 36.9 percent of registered voters in the county turned out to cast votes.

Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney Bill D. Burlison failed to carry his home county yesterday, but steamrolled his opponents in most other sectors of the 10th District to carry off the Democratic nomination for Congress; Vernon H. Landgraf, Cape Girardeau businessman, breezed to a Republican primary victory for that office.

1943

With some schools in session in the cotton area of the district and others to start the term shortly, the teacher shortage remains serious; many superintendents are spending vacation time hunting instructors; the rural schools are hardest hit, and some of the outlying schools may not be able to open.

More than 4,500 cans of food were packed the first month of operation of the two Cape Girardeau Board of Education canneries; the plants, doing canning for families as well as the school cafeterias, are at Jefferson School and St. Mary's School kitchens.

1918

Frank J. Schaefer, the painter living on West Independence Street, is laid up in Saint Francis Hospital with a broken left arm and a fractured rib; Schaefer was painting a building in Illmo for C. Wielpuetz on Friday, when a rope on which his scaffold was fastened broke, and he fell to the pavement, a distance of two stories or about 30 feet.

The Russell Hotel in Charleston, Missouri, opened Sunday with 178 guests; the dining room was prettily decorated in flowers of the season; after the guests had all been served, a short prayer service was held by the ministers of the city for Cong. J.J. Russell, who has been seriously ill, and also for the success of the new hotel; the hotel was designed by Cape Girardeau architect W.E. Parlow.

-- Sharon K. Sanders