Out of the past: July 7

1993

Farm experts say corn should be knee-high by the Fourth of July, but in some Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois fields, the water is that deep; it is estimated there is between 18,000 and 20,000 acres of farmland under water in Alexander County, Illinois; that estimate was made July 2, when the Mississippi River was at 35.2 feet at Cape Girardeau; the river is now three feet higher and is expected to be at 40.5 feet tomorrow.

Hordes of strike-it-rich dreamers in 14 states and the District of Columbia are lining up for a 1-in-55 million shot at a $100 million jackpot in tonight's Powerball drawing; the jackpot is the largest ever offered in Missouri and the fourth largest ever offered in the United States.

1968

Jerry Wyatt and Ben Benton, two 19-year-old evangelists from Cottage Hills, Illinois, begin a gospel revival at the Jackson Assembly of God Church on Highway 72 West; the revival will continue through July 14.

The new vice pastor of St. Mark Lutheran Church begins his duties; Dr. William J. Boatman of Murphysboro, Illinois, is serving as interim pastor at St. Mark; the Rev. Max D. Sullivan, pastor, has left to become a chaplain in the Army.

1943

Unable to get private bids on levee repair work, as most equipment owned by contractors is tied up, the government has delegated its U.S. Engineers to the job of closing the numerous dike breaks on the Missouri and Illinois shores of the Mississippi River in the Cape Girardeau area; work was started recently on the Illinois side of the river in the Wolf Lake, Illinois, vicinity by the U.S. Dredge Grafton.

Youngsters accustomed to taking advantage of the free period at the city swimming pool in Fairground Park are out of luck because of some hoodlums; the rowdies took some of the fish that had died in the nearby lagoon and thew them into the pool, rendering it unfit for swimming; large numbers of the fish in the lagoon died Monday night, evidently as a result of the amphibious jeeps churning up the water during military demonstrations at the Fourth of July picnic.

1918

Dr. C.E. Schuchert's new band plays a concert in the courthouse bandstand in the afternoon, benefiting the Salvation Army; it is the band's first appearance in the park; guest speaker is Sgt. Alex. Allen, an American who joined the British forces at the beginning of the war and has been fighting the battles for four years.

Frank Mollenhour, an employee of the Harris Motor Car Co., until recently, leaves in the afternoon for Benton, Missouri, where he will join the Scott County contingent of draftees who will depart for camp tomorrow; Cleve Crites and Roy Fox accompany Mollenhour to Benton to see him off.

-- Sharon K. Sanders