Out of the past: June 11

1998

Passengers on a St. Louis Iron Mountain and Southern Railway excursion train got a little more excitement than they bargained for yesterday, when the train struck a pickup truck that pulled into its path at the U.S. 61 crossing; the driver of truck suffered minor injuries in the accident, the first involving the excursion train; 72 passengers, all visitors from a Godfrey, Illinois, bus tour, were on the train, but none were injured.

Democratic congressional candidate Tony Heckemeyer of Sikeston, Missouri, has challenged U.S. Rep. JoAnn Emerson to debate him on the issues; Emerson campaign manager Atalie Ebersole says the Cape Girardeau Republican would be willing to discuss the issues with "our eventual opponent" at informational forums this fall; Heckemeyer is one of three Democratic candidates for the 8th District congressional seat, the others being Richard Kline of Gipsy, Missouri, and Thad Bullock of Cape Girardeau.

1973

Gov. Christopher S. "Kit" Bond has requested that 11 Missouri counties, including eight in Southeast Missouri, be declared federal disaster areas from the May 26 and 27 flash flood; the request was made in a letter Sunday to President Richard Nixon; if granted, it would make the counties eligible for federal disaster assistance through the Office of Emergency Preparedness.

Members of the Cape Girardeau Board of Education cast a tie 3-3 vote on whether to continue the trimester-modular scheduling program at Central High School; the board then unanimously votes to ask Arthur Mallory, state commissioner of education, to rule whether the document signed with the federal government in conjunction with a grant for the trimester-modular system is a binding contract or an agreement; if a contract, the plan stays on at the school for another year, since state law says it takes a majority of votes to pass a motion on contract items.

1948

The valuation for taxation purposes for all property in Cape Girardeau County is $25,573,856, according to figures compiled by Assessor John L. Wescoat and reported to the county clerk, Edwin J. Sander, who has certified the 1948 assessment to the state; the real estate assessment amounts to $19,554,425 and personal property to $6,019,431.

The 1948 SEMO District Fair, with its extra day, is being whipped into shape for its Sept. 13 opening; meeting last night, the fair board virtually completed details of the seven days of activities, and material to appear in the annual fair catalogue will be in the hands of the printer within a few days; the fair will run from Monday, Sept. 13, through Sunday, Sept. 19, with an extra attraction -- motorcycle races -- scheduled for the final day.

1923

Special Community Week at the Cape Girardeau Teachers College begins in the morning; rooms have been fitted up in the new Education Building for the accommodation of visiting county superintendents, some of whom are already here, while others will come tonight and tomorrow; today is Book Day, and the program was arranged by Sadie Kent, head of the college library; other programs in store this week are Health Day, Play Day and Community Day.

Invitations to the wedding of Ruth Kelso, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. I.R. Kelso, former Cape Girardeau residents, to Dr. Louis Huber Renfrow are received by friends in this city; the wedding will take place the evening of June 19 at the Union Avenue Christian Church in St. Louis; the young couple plans to reside in University City, Missouri; Renfrow is a practicing physician in St. Louis.

-- Sharon K. Sanders