130 Years Ago
December 15, 1893
A petition has been circulated about the county considerably this week praying that some of the men sentenced for cattle stealing in Wyoming last week be pardoned. We also hear that a number of parties have quite rightfully, refused to sign it.
125 Years Ago
December 16, 1898
On account of the absence of R.C. Noleman, Judge L.A. Berry found the responsibility shifted entirely to his shoulders this week for preparing a motion in the county seat case, praying that the Hemingford litigants be stopped from further proceedings questioning the validity of the write of mandamus, ans setting out the fact that Hollinrake and Barry of the board of commissioners had recognized the legality of the proceedings by voting at the special county seat election.
120 Years Ago
December 11, 1903
Next Monday is the bond election, now go and vote your convictions instead of staying away and kicking. The election to determine whether or not the City of Alliance shall erect a city hall, bonding the city for the sum of $8,000, will be held next Monday. It is necessary that this proposition receive a majority of two-thirds of the votes cast, if the question is to prevail and the bonds be issued. So far, there seems to be practically no interest in this bond election. This is wrong, and especially on the part of the tax-payers since it is they who must bear the burden, and hence every resident tax payer ought to express his preference for or against the bonds.
115 Years Ago
December 11, 1908
The work was commenced Wednesday of tearing down what is left of the old McCollough building, adjoining the opera house on the south. This was one of the first business buildings erected during the year 1888, when Alliance was started. It was used for many purposes during the interim, mostly for a meat market during recent years. Several months ago it was gutted by fire.
110 Years Ago
December 12, 1913
Work on the courthouse was resumed Friday, a small force of men being engaged in clearing out the snow and getting the stone, sand and brick ready for the masons next week. The masons will resume their operation next Monday.
105 Years Ago
December 13, 1918
Mrs. Addie Eaton, of Hemingford, received a gold star from the war department indicating that her son, Ray Eaton, was killed in action in France, October 19. This is the first of the gold stars to be received. Mrs. Eaton was on her way to Mitchell to attend her other son, Clifford, who is critically ill with influenza.
100 Years Ago
December 14, 1923
“Noting new today,” is the stereotyped expression used to greet the sad-eyed reporters in all of the courts where news of interest is usually obtained and were it not for the few scraps thrown out by Judge Tash of the county court the news hounds would literally starve to death. But editors are hard boiled and excuses are not acceptable. That is why you are reading this. Something has to be written and this just gets inside the limit of something. All in all it’s a gay life and a happy season—except for space writing reporters, who need extra change to meet the obligations of a season that demands all one has to give.
95 Years Ago
December 11, 1928
Dr. George J. Hand, former city physician, administered a verbal spanking to city and county officials and employees, identified with law enforcement, all the way down the line in ranks, in a talk before the Chamber of Commerce at its regular weekly meeting yesterday noon. The subject of Dr. Hand’s speech was ostensibly “Internal Affairs of the City,” but could better be labeled “The Open Saloon.” Hand accused the mayor of holding a one-man control of the reins of the city and of being blind to the fact that an “open saloon” is and has been operating in the heart of the Alliance business section for the past two years.
90 Years Ago
December 12, 1933
Can you imagine what a real panhandle cowman, chafing anyway because good steers nowadays are worth about $16 or $17 a head, would say if he sat down in an eastern restaurant and the management demanded $1.50 for just one pretty fair steak? If you can, that’ll give you some idea of what Robert Graham of Alliance and a party of other western stockmen thought and said when that very thing happened to them in New York last week. Twenty cattlemen from Nebraska and neighboring states were in the east to see what can and is likely to be done in the way of putting a federal bolster under the cattle market.
85 Years Ago
December 13, 1938
In brief wind-swept ceremonies, the first shovelful of dirt was turned this morning for the new municipal power plant building which will house the city’s $330,000 light and power plant improvement program. Mayor H. A. Fricke and Councilmen R. E. McCall, K. J. Stern, and J. E. Hughes together with City Manager Clarence Hoper and Carl Rockey, superintendent of municipal utilities, represented the city.
80 Years Ago
December 14, 1943
As the year 1943 draws to a close, Sheriff Dan Hoppes is drawing a fine bead on the few remaining delinquent tax payers in Box Butte county. He opines he will have them all collected or distress warrants served by the end of this week and then “it will be up to the county attorney to file actions in court or drop them completely.”
75 Years Ago
December 14, 1948
Two robbers held up Jim Huber at his Eighth street grocery store late Sunday afternoon and escaped with $85 in bills. Huber was alone in the store at the time.
70 Years Ago
December 15, 1953
Two hundred and 25 persons attended the second annual dinner dance of National Guard Company L Monday night—saw five members decorated for five years of service and heard the organization called a “great insurance policy for Alliance and the nation.”
65 Years Ago
December 12, 1958
An ambulance plane, carrying an elderly woman with a fractured hip, landed safely on a busy highway late Thursday after the pilot was unable to land at the airport because of snow. The plane was piloted by Byron Appleby, manager of the airport at Alliance. In the plane were Mrs. Kathryn Vinton, 87, a blind woman being flown to an Omaha hospital for surgery, and her granddaughter, Miss Kathryn Vinton, a registered nurse from Alliance. Mrs. Vinton had been brought by ambulance to Alliance from a ranch 80 miles away.
60 Years Ago
December 13, 1963
After receiving three protests while sitting as a board of equalization, the Alliance City Council completed preliminary steps Thursday evening toward levying assessments in 11 paving districts where streets were concrete surfaced this year.
55 Years Ago
December 13, 1968
A request to the public that St. Joseph’s Hospital visits here be limited because of the flu was made in joint announcement today. “The Box Butte Medical Society and the Hospital Administration is requesting that visitors limit themselves to an absolute minimum here at the hospital during the present flu epidemic,” the announcement stated.
50 Years Ago
December 13, 1973
Members of the 14 Class I school boards in Box Butte County, and one of the two Class III school boards (Alliance)—District 10 did not appear— elected a County School Reorganization board here Wednesday evening. County Supt. Of Schools Joan Kollars presided at the meeting, explaining that its purpose was to determine the number of members to serve on the board, either 6 or 10 to elect in proportion to the population at to class of district but to elect at least one person for each class.
45 Years Ago
December 13, 1978
About a dozen residents of the East 10th Street Road area attended the Box Butte County Commissioners meeting Tuesday afternoon to voice their opinions on the paving of the road. All but one were opposed to the project. The matter was first brought up at the Commissioners meeting two weeks ago when Raymond Jesse presented a petition, containing 88 signatures, asking that the road be paved.
40 Years Ago
December 13, 1983
Alliance Fire Chief Roger McGrath fine-tunes video equipment being used to record the National Fire Protection Association “Fire Away” program at Bruce Furniture Monday morning. The 23 hours of programming, being offered at no cost to the department, will be used for local training programs and will be fed onto the local cable television public assess channel.
35 Years Ago
December 13, 1988
The Box Butte County Commissioners have asked the county attorney for a written opinion to determine if the commissioners or elected officials set salaries for office deputies. On Jan. 1, 1989, elected county officials will get a $250 a year raise, to $19,250 per year. Those salaries are set by state statute. Currently deputies are making $1,187 per month.
30 Years Ago
December 13, 1993
The Alliance High School speech team placed second overall in the Bayard Invitational tournament Saturday. Individual placings were as follows: Informative speaking: Brandi Holsinger, third, Shannan Stewart, fourth, Chrissy Kloch, fifth; Persuasive speaking: Michelle Smith, fourth, Raime Lusk, sixth; Extemporaneous speaking: John Foy, first, Michelle Smith, fifth, Arlette Foy, sixth; Humorous Prose: Todd Almond, second; Serious Prose: Todd Almond, first, Brandi Holsinger fifth; Poetry: Raime Lusk, second, Chrissy Kloch, sixth; Duet Acting, Josh Dorcey and Darin Clark, sixth.
25 Years Ago
December 12, 1998
A foreign culture, which greets exchange students upon arrival in Alliance, rarely matches preconceived images of America. In contrast, Ana Reis, of Belo Horizonte, Brazil chose to spend a year in Nebraska based on her mother’s experience as a Rotary exchange student in Grand Island. Throughout her stay in Alliance Reis has enjoyed meeting new people and traveling.
20 Years Ago
December 13, 2003
Visitors to the Alliance Public Library are sure to be enchanted by Mikenzie Nordeen’s angel collection that graces both display cases. This is the first public showing for Nordeen’s angels, which will be on display throughout December.
15 Years Ago
December 12, 2008
A Dec. 23 preliminary hearing in Box Butte County Court is scheduled for John J. Leon, 61, Alliance. Leon has been charged with theft by taking over $1,500, a Class III felony. According to court documents, on June 1, Leon allegedly stole Safeway Scrip/gift cards belonging to the Holy Rosary Catholic Church valued at $1,525.
10 Years Ago
December 13, 2013
Western Sugar Senior Agriculturist Wade Wimmer recently shared the final numbers regarding sugar beet harvesting stations in the area. Overall, Wimmer said, the harvest went really well. However, the first half of the season was wet, which slowed things down a bit.
5 Years Ago
December 15, 2018
Mike Dafney, Mayor, Alliance, Nebraska, has been appointed to the National League of Cities 2019 Transportation and Infrastructure Services federal advocacy committee. This committee has the lead responsibility for developing NLC’s federal policy positions.