Out of the past: March 20

1992

For the first time since making Cape Girardeau a port of call in 1984, neither the Delta Queen nor the Mississippi Queen are scheduled to make any regular stops at Cape Girardeau this year; a spokesman for the Delta Queen Steamboat Co. said that is because of continuing changes in the two steamboats' itineraries.

The Rev. Larry Rice of St. Louis, director of a Cape Girardeau homeless shelter, said the facility at 713 Morgan Oak St. still is operating despite concerns from social workers who have been unable to contact the center for referrals. The center opened last summer as an overnight shelter for homeless men.

1967

The Cape Girardeau County Court handles a variety of business in the morning, including a brief discussion of a bill pending in the Legislature that could become a local issue in the future; the proposal would be a county option law, requiring voter approval to put into practice; it would create a new county highway commission and would abolish special road districts.

Fire yesterday destroyed the Eldon, Missouri, home of Mr. and Mrs. Robert C. Evans, while Robert Evans and his son Pat were attending church services. Mrs. Evans was returning to Eldon from Cape Girardeau, where the family also maintains a home, Elmwood, on the former Louis Houck estate on Bloomfield Road.

1942

The Mississippi River is on the rise, having climbed to 24 feet, a rise of 1.7 feet since yesterday morning. With no official crest forecast, the Ohio River is nearing flood stage levels at several points, including Cairo, Illinois. The pressure of the high Ohio River may push the Mississippi to flood stage here.

LAFLIN, Mo. -- The family of Virgil Parsons of near Laflin has learned of the loss of a second sailor from the family within a week; reported missing is Seaman 2nd Class L.A. Parsons, 20. A message received Monday told that another son, Charles E. Parsons, 24, also is missing. Both were serving in Pacific.

1917

The Allenville school closed Friday with an interesting program. Those pupils passing the examinations and graduating in the ninth grade, which is one year of high-school work, were Althea Hinton, Lender Kinder, Alma Young, Gertrude Hector, Mattie Nothdurft, Lorine HItt, Dewey Hinton and Pearl Hayden. The last act in the program was a joy ride to the metropolis and Athens of Southeast Missouri, Cape Girardeau.

John Macke and family move to Cape Girardeau from Jackson and are occupying a house on West Good Hope Street. Macke recently purchased the Idan-ha Ice Cream factory on Water Street.

-- Sharon K. Sanders