Out of the past: Dec. 21

1998

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- The Perryville City Council has named its pick to oversee the final stages of construction on a new $9 million multipurpose building and prepare it to open by April 1; Robert Held, previously the activities manager at a private resort in Washington County, Missouri, has been named director of the city's Parks and Recreation Department and will start work Jan. 4; although he will be in charge of the city's entire parks system, his primary duties will involve the new Perry County Multipurpose Center.

Injuries come with the job in Rick Wright's line of work; the 36-year-old former Sikeston, Missouri, resident is one of the team doctors for St. Louis' three major professional sports teams: the Blues, Cardinals and Rams; Wright, an orthopedic surgeon who specializes in sports medicine, is on the staff at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis and is an instructor in orthopedic surgery at Washington University School of Medicine.

1973

Temperatures throughout Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois reach record lows in the morning as Old Man Winter hits the area with another of his punches -- bitter cold; the sub-zero temperatures come in the wake of winter's first big snowstorm which dumped 5 inches of snow in Cape Girardeau and more than a foot in St. Louis and Jefferson counties.

A group of landowners bounded by Hopper Road on the north, Benton Road on the west, Bloomfield Road on the south and Interstate 55 has asked the Cape Girardeau City Council not to consider annexing their 3,400 acres; the petitioners, mostly dairy farmers, don't believe it is in their best interests to be annexed to the city.

1948

Cape Girardeau city officials are pondering a site for a federal armory -- cost, $500,000 to $750,000 -- after hearing at a meeting yesterday that residents of the area around Capaha Park and others as well do not want the armory located in the park; Edgar P. Bock, William H. Wescoat Jr. and Hobert Blake, representing neighborhood residents, presented a petition bearing the names of 77 persons objecting to the plan.

Near-record crowds are expected in Cape Girardeau stores as last-minute shoppers make their Christmas purchases; meanwhile, business at the post office here yesterday hit an all-time high, with more packages being handled than ever before in history.

1923

S.E. Brady, manager of the New Broadway Theatre, notifies the Rotary committee that he has secured "The Big Brother" for the children's matinee Wednesday afternoon; Rotary Club members will act as hosts at the event, free to children 12 years old and younger; each child attending will receive a present.

Nearly $20 in cash and a 45-year-old gold watch valued at $100 was taken by a careful, methodical footpad who broke into the A. Astholz home at 12 N. Middle St. last night; gaining entrance through a rear window, the stealthy burglar went to the bedroom occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Astholz on the second floor, took the money from the man's trousers pockets and Mrs. Astholz's purse, examined letters he found in the pockets, walked into another room and took 17 cents; he escaped through a window without awakening the occupants.

-- Sharon K. Sanders