Out of the past: Sept. 13

1998

St. John's Lutheran Church in Pocahontas celebrates its 130th anniversary in conjunction with its annual mission festival; guest speaker at the morning worship service is Kudud Natru from Papua, New Guinea; the Sweet Adelines perform, followed by a potluck meal.

Gates of the 143rd SEMO District Fair open in the morning, with no admission charged; afternoon events include a Family Day Special on carnival rides, pet parade, a horse show at the grandstand, a Good Life Gospel Singing show and a fair pageant.

1973

Final results of an autopsy are expected today to determine if the fully-developed, newborn baby girl found yesterday by a custodian in a trash chute in Towers North Dormitory Complex at Southeast Missouri State University was dead before or after being thrown down the chute; rooms, showers and toilet facilities have been searched, but no evidence was found to suggest the child was born in the dormitory.

The sun tries its best to shine through the clouds as thousands of children, some with their parents, crowd Arena Park for Cape Girardeau Day at the 1973 SEMO District Fair; entertaining the crowds in the evening will again be the Blue Grass Shows and LeRoy Van Dyke country music show.

1948

The 1948 SEMO District Fair gets underway for its week-long stand at Arena Park as hundreds of spectators make their appearance on the grounds and mingle with exhibitors, showmen and workers who are completing final preparations for the scheduled events; today is entry day, and it is a busy one for entry clerk Elmer P. Lind; displays will open tomorrow morning, and a big Army and Navy parade will be staged in the afternoon, sponsored by the American Legion posts of Cape Girardeau and Jackson.

Each completing a 26-month tour of duty in Europe as Air Force ground personnel Elton G. Schmidt, 111 S. Pacific St., and Don Roberts, 115 S. Pacific St., are in Cape Girardeau, the former on a three-week furlough and Roberts as a civilian, having been discharged Sept. 8; both are Cape Girardeau Central High School graduates and entered the service the same year, 1945; they served together for a brief time at Furstenfeldbruck Air Base in southern Germany.

1923

With more than 70 acres of strawberries pledged for next year, a Cape Fruit and Truck Growers Association has been organized among the area's enthusiastic farmers and business men; among those who have pledged to plant strawberries next season and market them through the association are John Holcomb, Bowman Brothers, W.O. Bowman, Frank Felder, John Weiner, E.R. Spencer, A.H. Seimers, Will Hirsch, John W. Holtz, C.W. Weiss, W.C. Blair, J.M. Sitze, C.J. Palisch, J.F. Lawler, J.L. Thornbrough, C.A. Marlin, Prosperity Food and Berry Co., Albert A. Schade and A.L. Ross.

Workers are removing debris from the site of the Houck building on Independence Street, destroyed by fire two weeks ago, and construction of a new building will start shortly; the walls of two rooms of the original building, saved from the flames, will be used in the new structure.

-- Sharon K. Sanders