130 Years Ago
Oct. 21, 1892
To whom it may concern: The Bank of Alliance is now a full-fledged corporation. F. M. Sands retires from the business. The incorporators of the bank are W. G. Simonson, Joseph A. Kime and F. M. Knight, who will hold respectively the offices of president, vice president and cashier. The capital of this bank has been largely increased, and in a very short time will be more than doubled. We trust to do a conservative and satisfactory business, and would respectfully ask you for a portion of your business. Thanking all our friends and patrons who have so kindly helped maintain the financial standing of the Bank of Alliance during the past four years and trusting the new association may merit a greater degree of confidence in the future. I remain, Respectfully yours, F. M. Knight, Cashier.
125 Years Ago
Oct. 15, 1897
Senator W. V. Allen will attempt to explain the divergence in the market price of silver and wheat and other things that will bolster up the waning cause of populism at the opera house in this city next Tuesday afternoon, commencing at two o’clock.
120 Years Ago
Oct. 21, 1902
George Douglass Jr., the eldest son of George Douglass, the most expert and famous hunter in this part of the state, was the victim of a very distressing accident last Friday evening, while hunting in the Krause neighborhood, about twenty-five miles northeast of Alliance. The father was searching for a lost bird nearby, while the son occupied the front seat of the spring wagon, having just stepped in and placed his gun with the butt against the dashboard. In pulling up the lap robe, the firearm was discharged in some manner, and the muscles of the under side of George’s right arm were blown almost completely away.
115 Years Ago
Oct. 22, 1907
Tenny, the twelve-year-old daughter of E. P. Wood, who lives less than a mile from the post office, brought in a monstrous turnip yesterday weighing a little over twelve pounds. The same is on exhibition in the front window of the Times building.
110 Years Ago
Oct. 22, 1912
Mrs. Cora Basye, who lives in the old hospital building on West Third street, was severely injured by a fall early Monday morning, resulting in the breaking of her nose and the cutting of a deep gash on her upper lip. Mrs. Basye had arisen about four o’clock and was descending the cellar steps, when she fell, alighting on her face with great force. It was necessary to take half a dozen stitches to close the gash.
105 Years Ago
Oct. 19, 1917
The record size potato for the county has been raised by William McLean, of the southwest part of Box Butte. The tuber weighs three and three-quarters pounds and is of the Blue Victor variety.
100 Years Ago
Oct. 20, 1922
An exciting man chase, punctuated by a series of revolver shots and which included a long-distance foot-race and the use of a high-powered automobile, ended yesterday forenoon in the re-capture of one Edward Becker, alias Elmer Johnson, who sawed his way out of the city jail and escaped, only to be again looking out from behind the bars less than 30 minutes later. Becker, or Johnson, as he is known here, was first arrested by Special Burlington Officer C. H. Gilmore in connection with the robbery of the Burlington commissary at the Greer boarding camp, just south of the roundhouse, from which about $56 in money and two gold watches were stolen.
95 Years Ago
Oct. 18, 1927
Tom Carroll, 28, fireman at the city light plant, was painfully burned from head to foot when an explosion occurred in the boiler room of the plant yesterday morning. He is in serious condition at the hospital. It is believed that an accumulation of fine coal dust and hot ashes caused the blast. The fine dust had been seeping down for some time into a pit that lies a short distance in front of the boilers which Mr. Carroll was tending. Mr. Carroll was on the top of the pit when the explosion occurred. His clothing was set afire by the sudden outburst of flame and he had the presence of mind to rush outside the building. There he rolled in a puddle of water and extinguished the flames.
90 Years Ago
Oct. 18, 1932
Two young men, aged about 17, were discovered crawling out of a broken window at the Rex Hamburger Shop by Officer Dale Wade at 4 o’clock Monday morning as he was making his rounds. At his approach they ran through an alley and made their escape in the darkness. An investigation disclosed they had taken 66 pennies left in the register and some tobacco. They threw the tobacco away when the officer appeared.
85 Years Ago
Oct. 19, 1937
Imprisoned in the cab of his wrecked truck, Elmer E. Gaines, of Alliance, was burned to death at 12:30 today following a highway accident three miles west of Sutherland. According to Sheriff A. J. Salsibury of Lincoln county, the trailer on Mr. Gaines’ truck side swiped another large truck which was stalled on the highway, ran into a ditch and overturned. Mr. Gains was imprisoned in the wrecked cab. The truck caught fire a few minutes after the crash and the flames were so intense that the body could not be removed until nearly 3 a. m.
80 Years Ago
Oct. 16, 1942
Some behemoth, who wears 12EE shoes, tried to force the door on the Davee filling station at Niobrara and Eighth street on Wednesday night and came out of the ordeal minus an almost new shoe. The panel of the door was kicked in and it is apparent that the culprit got his foot through the door and could neither get in nor out. Somebody must have scared him for he unlaced the shoe, pulled his foot out of the “boat” and left the shoe sticking in the door. The only clue police have is that it was an attempted robbery by a man with exceptionally big feet for the shoe would make a helmet for a sizable shoat.
75 Years Ago
Oct. 17, 1947
Today a new Nebraska safety patrolman went on duty in Alliance, bringing the local force to two permanent men. The new patrolman is Myron E. Frerichs of Coleridge, Neb. He recently finished his training at Camp Ashland. Patrolman Frerichs said this morning that this is the first time he has been west of Norfolk except to go through on trains. “I like the town,” he said.
70 Years Ago
Oct. 18, 1952
Richard D. Murphy, 30, of 405 Lane 4, Chimney Town, was admitted this morning to St. Joseph’s Hospital with polio. Married and the father of two children, he is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Murphy, ranchers. According to his physician he is having difficulty in swallowing and has considerable stiffness.
65 Years Ago
Oct. 19, 1957
Floyd Davis, 8, of 415 Laramie, escaped injury Friday afternoon when he rode his bicycle into the side of a car. He was going north out of the alley between Box Butte and Laramie on Fifth Street and hit the side of car driven by Monte C. Rogers. There was some damage to the bike. Police later ticketed Rogers for driving while his Nebraska license was under suspension. He was driving a Colorado operator’s car and had a Colorado operator’s license.
60 Years Ago
Oct. 19, 1962
Roy Ferguson of Scottsbluff has moved to Alliance to become sales manager for the Nebraska Certified Potato Growers, according to an announcement by General Manager Louis Knoflicek. He replaces Robert Partridge, who accepted another position in Topeka, Kan. last summer. Ferguson a native of Scottsbluff County and an Army veteran of World War Two, has been in the Potato business for the past 16 years. For the past eight years, he has been associated with Baltes Potato Company of Scottsbluff in sales and other management capacities. Mr. and Mrs. Ferguson are living at 1243 Cheyenne.
55 Years Ago
Oct. 17, 1967
Nebraska’s Governor Norbert Tiemann announced here Monday night plans for reorganization of the State Department of Roads. The governor made the disclosure at Alliance where he inaugurated a series of “town hall” meetings with Nebraskans on a grassroots level.
50 Years Ago
Oct. 19, 1972
Officials of Great Western United Corporation and the Great Western Producers Co-operative signed a purchase agreement for the sale of the Great Western Sugar Company to the Co-operative. The signing is the latest step in the efforts of the Co-op to purchase the Company. Closing will take place in December providing all conditions of the agreement are met.
45 Years Ago
Oct. 19, 1977
Box Butte County beet farmers are angry because of overload tickets being issued by the Department of Roads Scale Division which sets up portable scales for spot checks on occasion. This has been done this week, and according to a call to The Times-Herald, it causes the use of extra gasoline for trucks and it reveals a shortcoming of “overload permits” issued by the county.
40 Years Ago
Oct. 18, 1982
For the first time in 33 years, Bob Howard of Alliance, editor of the Nebraska Cattleman magazine published by the Nebraska Stock Growers’ Association, put away his trusty typewriter and camera, parked his car and relaxed. He didn’t do it because he was tired. Rather, Howard did it because he’s retiring Close to 200 people from throughout the state traveled to Alliance to honor Howard at an NSGA-sponsored appreciation dinner at the American Legion Club.
35 Years Ago
Oct. 24, 1987
The Alliance Volunteer Fire Department responded to a two-alarm structure fire at the John Adam farm, one mile south on Broadwater Road. Thirty fire fighters required two pumpers, two tankers, two support vehicles, to truck in 10,000 gallons of water to put out the fire in an hour. The fire hydrants on Kansas Street were used for water. Another hour was used to mop-up and investigation. There were no injuries. Jerry Larson, deputy state fire marshal, estimated losses at $45,000. He said the inside center walls caught sparks from cutting metal. When the AVFD arrived the shop, garage and a calving pen, about 800 square feet total, were completely engulfed in flames.
30 Years Ago
Oct. 19, 1992
Alliance fire fighters raised $1,740 in their annual “Fill the Boot for Jerry’s Kids” campaign here recently. Fire fighters in many communities in Nebraska manned intersections and asked motorists to donate to the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) during the campaign.
25 Years Ago
Oct. 20, 1997
Jeff and Mike Holbert watch as Roy Shinn refuels his model airplane before flying the radio control craft in a meadow near Sky View Golf Course Sunday afternoon. Shinn built the airplane in 1992 and has been flying model planes for eight years. About 30 people fly airplanes in the meadow which includes a small concrete runway.
20 Years Ago
Oct. 21, 2002
One-hundred and thirty representatives from Cub Scout Pack Nos. 207, 214 and 209, Girl Scout Troop Nos. 35, 227, 28, 256 and 202, and Boy Scout Troop Nos. 344 and 216, and their parents collected a mountain of food during the annual food drive which benefits the Northwest Community Action Food Pantry. During the week before the food drive, the scouts placed collection bags on the doors and homes and then picked the food up the following Saturday.
15 Years Ago
Oct. 20, 2007
Mike Johanns, former Nebraska governor, U.S. secretary of agriculture and current U.S. Senate candidate, will be guest speaker at the Box Butte Development Corporation’s Annual Membership Meeting.
10 Years Ago
Oct. 19, 2012
On behalf of Jane’s Closet, Box Butte General Hospital employees Lori Mazanec and Mary Goodell accept a donation of $500 from Times-Herald Advertising Manager Cassie Darveau – the proceeds collected from dedication ribbons and advertising purchased for the Alliance Times-Herald “Hope for a Cure” special insert in recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness month. Jane’s Closet is a local charitable organization, which helps cancer patients with individual needs related to treatment.
5 Years Ago
Oct. 21, 2017
A crew from the West Pine Tree Farm unloads trees to be planted in downtown Alliance as part of the downtown streetscape project. The trees planted are imperial honeylocust and little leaf lindens.