Out of the past: Oct. 21

1993

A ground-breaking ceremony yesterday at 701 Good Hope St. marked the start of construction of the $1 million Salvation Army headquarters; the new, 17,200-square-foot building has been on Capt. Elmer Trapp's "wish list" for several years.

Traffic congestion is the price of progress as work starts on the next segment of the Cape LaCroix Creek-Walker Branch flood-control project in Cape Girardeau; section of Kingshighway and streets that connect to the northbound lane of the street will be closed as part of the flood-control work.

1968

Vernon H. Landgraf challenges his Democratic opponent for Congress, Bill D. Burlison, to an immediate debate; the Republican candidate says he wonders why his opponent "wants to wait until the last week of the election to debate the issues with me."

Acting on a recommendation from the airport board, the Cape Girardeau City Council accepts the figure of the second-low bidder on the heating and air conditioning work at the proposed municipal airport terminal building project; the board had recommended that bid because a sheet metal workers union threatened to picket the job if the contract went to a non-union firm.

1943

The St. Louis Browns are coming back; William O. DeWitt, vice president and general manager of the American League baseball club, has confirmed to Cape Girardeau Mayor R.E. Beckman the Browns want to make Cape Girardeau the club's 1944 spring training camp site again; Beckman assured DeWitt the Brownies would be most welcome.

The "Cape Girardeau," a big, seagoing cargo ship to be named for this city, will be launched Oct. 31 from the ways of the Consolidated Steel Corp. Ltd. shipyards at Los Angeles.

1918

According to reports in Haarig, a group of citizens, supposedly boys, went to the home of a local resident who has repeatedly refused to buy Liberty Bonds and painted the walk to his house and the front steps yellow; it is also reported, as they applied the paint, the man discovered them and fired several shots at the boys.

The Idan-ha Hotel is to be enlarged just as soon as the war is over and will be made into a first-rate hotel; George McBride, owner of the hotel building, has just bought from Alex C. Vasterling 47 feet on Broadway, adjoining the Idan-ha to the west; the old section of the hotel, as well as the one just bought, will no doubt be removed to make way for an expanded hotel that will face Broadway.

-- Sharon K. Sanders