130 Years Ago
March 2, 1894
The Sabbath School association of Box Butte county is making preparations for a county convention to be held at Alliance in the near future. All who are interested in this great work will accept this as a personal invitation to attend.
125 Years Ago
March 3, 1899
Tuesday was the last day upon which a motion might be filed with the supreme court asking for a re-hearing of the county seat case. It was filed by Hemingford’s representatives. This is a matter in which Alliance’s attorneys do not appear, although R. C. Noleman will probably go down to urge the necessity upon the court of immediate consideration. It is Hemingford’s last futile attempt, and like all the others, can come to naught. It is very probable that Alliance will have full right to move the records down within the next two weeks at farthest.
120 Years Ago
February 26, 1904
The chairmen of the republican central committees of the various counties of this, the Sixth, congressional district met at Grand Island yesterday and decided to hold the convention for the nomination of a successor to Congressman Kinkaid at Alliance on March 17th at 2 p.m. So it will be quite an important affair, and it behooves Alliance republicans to prepare to entertain with western hospitality the large number of stalwart republicans who will attend.
115 Years Ago
February 26, 1909
The Modern Woodmen rally and class adoption was held at the city hall last evening as previously advertised and a fine time enjoyed by all. A class of about fifty-five candidates were initiated, after which refreshments were served. Deputies Young & Young, who have been in this city for the past several days soliciting candidates, etc., take their departure tomorrow morning.
110 Years Ago
February 27, 1914
That the National Fidelity & Casualty Co. of Omaha intends to push the construction work on the courthouse is indicated by a copy sent to county clerk M. Hargraves of the letter sent by the bonding company to William Campbell of Grand Junction, Colo. The bonding company informs Mr. campbell that not over one third the work that should have been done by this time has been completed and that if Mr. Mason, the present contractor on the job is not equal to the task, that Mr. Campbell must get some one else competent for the work or the bonding company itself will hire an expert foreman and charge his cost to Mr. Campbell.
105 Years Ago
February 28, 1919
Road building enthusiasm was instilled into the delegates who attended the first annual meeting of the Potash Highway Association held at Seneca this week, when two hundred delegates attended. The association was formed a year ago to promote a needed highway through the center of the state. The road would extend from Grand Island, through the forest reserve at Dadley, through the potash district and Alliance and thence west to the Yellowstone park.
100 Years Ago
February 29, 1924
George L. Lewis took the pitcher to the well once too often when he returned to Mike Saba’s store at noon Wednesday for another load of stolen goods after he had made one successful trip while Mr. Saba was out of the store for a few minutes. The result was that Lewis was placed under arrest and a search of his room in West Lawn disclosed articles taken in four different robberies in the past month. Confronted with the evidence, he made a clean confession of robbing Fielding Cleaners, Brennan’s drug store, Threlkeld’s furniture store and Saba’s clothing store.
95 Years Ago
February 26, 1929
Jack Dailey struck his brother-in-law, Jack McLean, a hard blow on the head with a pool cue during an altercation between the two at Joe Smith’s pool hall early Sunday evening, according to police and eyewitnesses. McLean was taken to the hospital nursing gashes and bruises on the head.
90 Years Ago
February 27, 1934
More than two tons of Nebraska Triumph potatoes, probably about 4,500 pounds of them, are reported to Alliance police as stolen from a potato cellar near Hemingford. G. F. Rodgers, owner of the spuds, said he believed they were taken at night about February 19.
85 Years Ago
February 28, 1939
The new jail rules, promulgated by Judge E. L. Meyer for the 16th district, restrict reading material to the Bible. When Charles Radcliffe, Guy Barnes and Charles Robinson were lodged in jail pending investigation of the kit of burglar tools found in their car Sunday afternoon, they asked for something to read. Officers informed them of the jail rules. “That’s pretty dry reading,” one of them remarked, “but better than nothing. Fetch them in.” Thereupon the sheriff furnished each prisoner with a copy of the Bible.
80 Years Ago
February 29, 1944
A representative of the Comb company of Minneapolis, Minn., arrived here Monday to start work on remodeling the screen line in the Alliance postoffice. This was part of the general contract awarded the company just before Christmas, when it was scheduled to erect a frame addition at the rear of the building for handling parcel post. Engineers of the postoffice department have been working on this “problem” for the past 15 years and they have finally arrived at a program that will help handle the increased business. The engineers will probably be pensioned now after having exhausted themselves on such a monumental job.
75 Years Ago
February 25, 1949
The city council was “drainage conscious” Thursday night as City Manager Laing explained the serious problems arising from the melting snows which are taxing the city’s sewerage system. Two major drainage headaches for which a solution was sought are: 1. Improvement of drainage along Highway 19 bounding the city on the east. 2. Providing drainage on the west side of the city from Black Hills north to Tenth street and the nearby area.
70 Years Ago
February 27, 1954
County Attorney Robert Moran has become the first candidate to file for county office in the August 10 primary election. Moran filed this week with Mrs. Eunice Rhein, county clerk.
65 Years Ago
February 28, 1959
The Alliance City Council voted City Manager R. W. Laing a $600 annual pay increase Thursday night at its regular bi-monthly meeting. The increase was granted before either Laing or members of the press arrived for the meeting.
60 Years Ago
February 28, 1964
A “community attitude survey” will be Alliance’s effort for the statewide Community Betterment Contest in which 97 cities and towns under 30,000 population are entered. The survey project was submitted at a meeting Thursday evening attended by representatives of 11 organizations—70 organizations had been invited by Frank Tyler, chairman for the meeting.
55 Years Ago
February 28, 1969
The 12-man Alliance delegation was prepared to meet this afternoon to make Alliance’s application for the headquarters complex of the Nebraska Game Commission. Expected to be offered the Commission is a program that would provide at least 10 acres of ground, cost free, at one of four sites and the construction of a $2-million building to be financed over a 20 or 25-year bonding plan to be repaid by the Commission in monthly rentals.
50 Years Ago
February 28, 1974
Construction on a new Safeway food store for Alliance is expected to get underway around the first of April with completion set for late October, according to an announcement made this morning by Dale Wickham, Safeway manager here. Wickham returned from managers meeting in Colorado Springs Wednesday afternoon and was notified that all final approvals had been given for the new Alliance store.
45 Years Ago
February 28, 1979
The Box Butte County Board meeting Tuesday afternoon temporarily turned into a verbal sparring match between Commissioners Leslie Stull and John Ditsch when Ditsch requested a special public meeting to “hear out” the recent firing of road foreman Ed Wilkins. Board Chairman Stull said that a meeting would be inappropriate and could only embarrass Ditsch, Wilkins and Commissioner Cliff Bartels.
40 Years Ago
February 29, 1984
Gene Neuswanger, chairman of the board of Neuswangers, Inc., today named Donald J. Lehr as president and general manager of the firm effective March 1. Dick Bloom has been reassigned as vice-president, operations.
35 Years Ago
February 28, 1989
The Neuswanger building in the 200 block of West Third Street has been sold to an undisclosed individual. Occupants of the building were notified last Friday by Gene Neuswanger. The administrative offices of the Alliance city schoools have been located in the building for almost four years.
30 Years Ago
February 28, 1994
Church Women United of Box Butte County will observe World Day of Prayer on Friday, March 4. A special service prepared by Christian women of Palestine will be held at 1:30 p.m. at the United Methodist Church in Alliance. The theme is “Go, See and Act.”
25 Years Ago
February 27, 1999
The first public hearing concerning Alliance’s city sales tax will be at 3:30 p.m. this Sunday. Alliancites must decide if they want to continue their city sales tax beyond June 30, 2000; at what rate they would like the tax to be operating and what items they would like to spend the revenue on.
20 Years Ago
February 27, 2004
A $650,000 bond resolution was approved by a 4-1 margin during last night’s special meeting of the Alliance Public Schools’ Board of Education. If passed by the voters, the money will be used to pay for modifications and upgrades of existing school buildings.
15 Years Ago
February 28, 2009
Karen Rhoads, technology coordinator for Grandview Elementary and Emerson Elementary, said the level of technology use in elementary classrooms at the elementary level depends on the school. At Emerson, she said, students use software to learn math concepts, as well as some reading concepts. At Grandview, in addition to learning math and reading concepts students also learn keyboarding skills and utilize their computer knowledge to work on projects.
10 Years Ago
February 28, 2014
Thursday, the Box Butte County Commission hosted this quarter’s joint meeting with the Alliance City Council at Newberry’s. Agenda items revisited topics presented three months ago with the E911 Taskforce and Veterans Cemetery Road updates generating the most discussion.
5 Years Ago
February 27, 2019
At a meeting earlier this month, the Alliance City Council approved a resolution authorizing the city of Alliance to submit a grant application to help fund the renovation of the Alliance Sunken Gardens. The total amount of the grant the city is seeking is $15,000, coming from the Civic and Community Center Financing Fund.