Out of the past: June 22

1999

What began as a suggestion at a town meeting is set to become city policy after the Cape Girardeau City Council last night agreed to form an advisory board for the police department; while Mayor Al Spradling III supports the idea of the board, he says the council should wait until the issue is researched before forming the board.

An unassuming leader who joked he “could tell you stories” on most of those in the audience was honored with the R.A. Fulenwider Meritorious Community Service Award last night; James R. Nelson, who was principal of Jackson High School 23 years, received the award at the annual Jackson Chamber of Commerce Installation Banquet at the Jackson Knights of Columbus Hall.

1974

The Cape Girardeau public school system won’t be getting into the bus service for at least another years; the school board has awarded a contract for bus transportation for the 1974-1975 school year to American Transit Corp., of St. Louis, parent company of Cape Transit Co.; Cape Transit has had the bus contract for several years.

As many as 30 petitions are being circulated at Cape Girardeau businesses calling for the retention of Irvin E. Beard as chief of the Cape Girardeau Police Department; it was announced at the first of the month that the city was seeking a replacement for Beard, who has been chief 10 years; he reached retirement age in September 1971, when he turned 65, and has been granted annual extensions by the City Council the last three years.

1949

The Jackson City Council has ordered 100 parking meters, which will be installed within 60 days; they are to replace a large number of meters, and meters of another type, which had been voted out after a trial of six months; there had been 216 meters before; plans are to set the new meters for two-hour periods.

The fourth annual series of summer lectures on the Catholic Church is being delivered this week at the Courthouse Park bandstand by Catholic missionaries; during the evening series, the lecturers — the Rev. Oscar J. Miller and the Rev. Cecil Padres of the Vincentian Fathers — are discussing the Catholic viewpoint on such modern problems as government, communism, labor and family life.

1924

The Rev. H. Schmidt, formerly missionary-at-large for the state of Utah, is installed as pastor of the Lutheran Church at Egypt Mills in the morning; the Rev. A.H.G. Wagner, pastor of Hanover Lutheran Church, will install Schmidt in his new church, and there will be no services at Hanover.

Work has started on the new church building being constructed by the congregation of the Third Methodist Church in North Cape Girardeau; the old building, in which services have been held for the past several years, has been razed and in its place a substantial modern structure is going up; money to finance the build was raised by members in a recent campaign; pastor of the church is the Rev. Fred Statler.

Southeast Missourian librarian Sharon Sanders compiles the information for the daily Out of the Past column. She also writes a blog called “From the Morgue” that showcases interesting historical stories from the newspaper. Check out her blog at semissourian.com/history.