130 Years Ago
December 20, 1895
Banks Stewart received a letter a few days ago from Prof. Erwin H. Barbour, state geologist, thanking him for the porcupine which he sent to Lincoln some time ago and informing him that it had been cataloged with his name as donor.
125 Years Ago
December 21, 1900
It may be said in a general way that the report of conditions here as regards the “small pox” scare since our last issue are favorable and as satisfactory as could be expected. Since then there have been nine new cases – no more and no less. All have been mild and there are no serious cases among any of the patients.
120 Years Ago
December 22, 1905
Since the removal of the laundry, Geo. Fox has been using the basement of the Fox lodging building for the manufacture of cement building blocks and is turning out this new building product at a rapid rate.
115 Years Ago
December 23, 1910
A recent order by the City authorities will meet with the approval of all good citizens. It is an instruction to the city police force to arrest any person heard using profane or indecent language about the streets. A number of arrests have been made for this offense, and those who do not like that sort of discipline should take notice and govern themselves accordingly.
110 Years Ago
December 21, 1915
Eighteen head of cattle died on the Herman Frederick ranch just north of town last week from eating some poisonous wee supposed to be “pig-weed.” Mr. Frederick had been feeding the cattle from a pile of cornstalks and these were carefully sorted, but it is evident that some unknown weed was overlooked and this caused the heavy loss.
105 Years Ago
December 21, 1920
Unmistakable proof that the sack of mail which disappeared from No. 41 at Hemingford about three weeks ago was stolen and not merely lost, has been established through the finding of several pieces of the metal parts of the sack and about 75 letters along the railroad track about 40 rods east of the Hemingford station.
100 Years Ago
December 22, 1925
A bread war made itself evident in Alliance Saturday between a local baker and outside competition. Bread made by outside manufacturers was put on sale at four loaves for a quarter. The Alliance Bakery, a home concern, soon put on sale 1,500 loaves of bread at five for a quarter. These were large loaves, according to Proprietor Schadwinkle, of the bakery, and weighed a pound a half each.
95 Years Ago
December 26, 1930
Harold “Spike” Domnisse and Forest Cook, Hay Springs bank bandits, matched wits with Box Butte County officers yesterday afternoon and won their freedom from he county jail, where they were being held awaiting a trip to the state penitentiary at Lincoln to serve 20 years. While the crowds were singing carols around the municipal Christmas tree in front of the court house, the two yeggs were using a “jimmy” to break the lock on the cell door and pry the barred window frame from the jail corridor.
90 Years Ago
December 20, 1935
A youth who confessed having taken a diamond brooch pin belonging to his employer, Fred Krueger, was arraigned in county court Thursday and pleaded guilty to the theft. He was given a suspended sentence and paroled for a period of 30 days. The pin had been taken from Krueger’s home Wednesday. It was estimated as being worth less than $35.
85 Years Ago
December 20, 1940
A mattress making project has been set up in Box Butte County as part of a nationwide program to relieve the cotton surplus, Agricultural Agent J. F. Decker announced today.
80 Years Ago
December 21, 1945
Ed G., former ranch worker, suspected of stealing a pocketbook containing $105 in cash, valuable papers and a small gold seven-jewel watch from the Fred Robbing resident, Tuesday night, is being held in the jail.
75 Years Ago
December 22, 1950
Solid Citizen Department: One of Alliance’s more stoic taxpayers who draws an unswerving line between right and wrong had his sense of justice twinged early this week. It seems he came out of a business office and noticed a police car parked at the curb. The parking meter registered “Expired.” The taxpayer saw the flag, and it bothered his sense of justice. Passersby saw him rummaging in the front seat of the patrol car. The equality-minded fellow removed a parking ticket from the book lying on the seat, made it out in duplicate and placed it on the car’s windshield.
70 Years Ago
December 22, 1955
Box Butte Avenue from First to Third Streets were blocked to traffic this morning to allow city workmen to install bases and wiring for Alliance’s new street lights.
65 Years Ago
December 22, 1960
Alliance Gets Frontier Use-It-Or-Lose-It Note: The civil aeronautics board has sent a use-it-or-lose-it notice to the mayors of all cities with local airlines. “Unless adequate use is made of the air service, its cost to the government is not warranted, and continuation of the service would not be in the best interests of the public,” Gillilland said.
60 Years Ago
December 22, 1965
City Manager R. W. Laing announced today the appointment of Charles H. Rusk, 22, to the Alliance police force as a probationary patrolman. Rusk will join the force as a probationary patrolman for a 6-month period at a starting salary of $300 per month.
55 Years Ago
December 22, 1970
Bond was set at $10,000 each today in Box Butte County Court for the four persons who escaped Friday night from Box Butte County jail. Terry F., David B. and Don T. were each charged with escape from custody, robbery, and stealing an automobile Friday night.
50 Years Ago
December 19, 1975
Christmas mail isn’t keeping Alliance mailmen hopping as fast as last year but the carriers have to arrive about one hour earlier to keep up with it. That’s the word from Alliance Postmaster Paul Kosmicki who said this year’s mail is slightly less than the usual Yuletide average of double the regular flow.
45 Years Ago
December 26, 1980
Western Nebraska basked in warm sunshine today with the temperature at midday reaching 60 degrees. Elsewhere in Nebraska it was frigid, only 18 degrees at Omaha.
40 Years Ago
December 21, 1985
Tempers flared several times during a 2 ½-hour meeting on the city’s proposal to annex 500 acres of land Thursday night but when the smoke cleared, the council on first reading passed the annexation proposal handed to it months ago by the Alliance Planning Commission.
35 Years Ago
December 19, 1990
What was apparently a prank phone call turned into a very time consuming, costly and laborious task for the Alliance Police and fire Departments Tuesday. More than one phone call was received saying that there was a bomb in the Alliance High school. The entire building was then evacuated and carefully searched.
30 Years Ago
December 20, 1995
Three area youth foundations will receive cash contributions from local businessmen. The Cattle Capital Country Community Center, Inc., or 5 C’s, sold its property south of Alliance, adjacent to Highway 385, to Vern and Theresa Rasmussen in the fall of 1993. In October, the 5 C’s board decided to contribute $12,000 to local youth funds.
25 Years Ago
December 20, 2000
Judge Brian Silverman sentenced two men to the Nebraska State Penitentiary yesterday. Ronnie D, 23 was sentenced to five to seven years on one count of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance/marijuana, a Class III felony. Philip (P. J.) L, 23, was sentenced to 25 to 36 months at Lincoln for probation violations.
20 Years Ago
December 21, 2005
Nineteen-year-old Mitchell resident George V. has been bound over to Box Butte District Court following a County Court preliminary hearing yesterday. George is a suspect in a series of vandalism in Alliance. George is reported to have been involved in shooting out windows at several Alliance businesses and three cars.
15 Years Ago
December 22, 2010
Nebraska Boys Ranch On Market Once More: Following several extensions to a prospective buyer, the Nebraska Boys Ranch (NBR), located 17 miles southeast of Alliance is going back to the drawing board in its attempt to sell its 16,000 acres of Sandhills ground and rolling stock.
10 Years Ago
December 23, 2015
One week ago the Alliance City Council approved Resolution No. 15-126. This resolution provides for City Manager J. D. Cox to negotiate the purchase of a Ford E450 Lifeline ambulance through Rocky Mountain Emergency Vehicles.
5 Years Ago
December 23, 2020
Unified Command has lowered the COVID-19 Risk Dial to orange, or high, down from the severe risk of spread it remained at for several weeks, as an additional seven deaths were announced on Monday. The total number of people in the Panhandle who have suffered COVID-19 related deaths rose to 104.
*Compiled from The Alliance Times-Herald Archives by Christine Melcher