Out of the past: Jan. 26

1996

A 17-year-old and two juveniles were taken into custody yesterday in connection with one of the worst cases of vandalism in the history of Old Lorimier Cemetery; the man was charged with felony property damage, while the juveniles, boys ages 14 and 16, were cited into juvenile court accused of the offense; about 116 tombstones and grave markers were damaged Nov. 28; vandals gained access to the cemetery by crawling under a chain-link fence, police said; more arrests are anticipated.

The Cape Girardeau County Commission has appointed two new members to the Planning and Recreation Board, which oversees the County Park on Highway 61: Virgil Chirnside and David Hitt; John Allgood and Board Chairman Bob Wilhite are the other members of the board.

1971

John D. Meier, a guidance counselor at Cape Girardeau Central High School, has been named Outstanding Young Educator of the Year by the Cape Girardeau Jaycees; he received $100 and a plaque at the Jaycees' 1971 awards banquet last night, when another coveted prize -- the Distinguished Service Award -- was presented to Jerry Reynolds.

William H. Shaw of Sikeston, Missouri, District 10 engineer of the State Highway Department, spoke last night at a meeting of the Downtown Cape Girardeau Rotary Club; he explained the ambitious 12-year highway construction plan, which involves 2,200 miles of roads at a cost of $1.4 billion; the proposal is before the Missouri Legislature and likely will face a ballot box test before it becomes reality.

1946

The Adams house, a 20-room building at 1107 Broadway, is to be vacated next week, and later will be razed so a business building can be constructed on the site; notice was given to the 10 families, consisting of nearly 40 persons, in November that they must move, but eight families haven't found new quarters; Eddie Erlbacher owns the structure, a landmark in Cape Girardeau.

Farm machinery dealers are advising farmers with old machinery at all fit for further use to put them in shape for the coming season, as new farm machinery is scarce; one bright spot in the situation is that a fair amount of replacement parts can be had.

1921

Mayor H.H. Haas, who has been corresponding with the Carnegie Corporation in New York in an effort to get an adequate appropriation for a public library building in Cape Girardeau, meets with a number of women at the home of Mrs. John S. Kochtitzky to report his progress; before the war, the Carnegie Corporation offered the city $20,000 for the building, but Haas has written the corporation, asking for at least $30,000.

In an advertisement in today's Southeast Missourian, City Commissioner C.E. Schuchert lays down the law: Every person who owns an automobile of any kind must have a license for it; all licenses expire Feb. 1, and beginning that morning, the police will make a special effort to see that every auto has a new license plate on it; the new tags are bright red with white figures, and they stand out like a headlight on an engine.

-- Sharon K. Sanders