130 Years Ago
April 10, 1896
Mollring Bros. Have a new awning in front of their place of business.
125 Years Ago
April 12, 1901
Mr. Alfred Minnick is still working on the question of heating by means of the exhaust steam from the power house. He says that many of the business houses, hotels and saloons have expressed an acceptance of the idea and will patronize the heating plant from the start. The cost of getting the plant in running order will be about twenty thousand dollars.
120 Years Ago
April 13, 1906
The movement inaugurated by the Catholic church in Alliance for the erection of a large academy, boarding school and hospital in this city is progressing very favorably. The business men aware of the moral, as well as the financial advantages a large boarding school would bring to the city, have become interested in the project and are subscribing liberally to the funds.
115 Years Ago
April 14, 1911
Passengers on No. 42 Thursday morning were startled by a loud explosion while the train was standing in Alliance yards, caused by head in main air drum of switch engine 1470 blowing out. The concussion broke a vestibule glass and several window glasses out of a tourist car in 42, standing on an adjoining track.
110 Years Ago
April 14, 1916
“Hasty,” the rapid transit messenger, has been forced to neglect his patrons for a few days, but he wishes it thoroughly understood that he is not neglecting them of his ownn free will. “Hasty” was arrested a few weeks ago for disturbing the peach. He had no money but was willing to work and pay it up soon, and the judge let him go.
105 Years Ago
April 15, 1921
George Workman and three other men narrowly escaped death or serious injury when the second floor of the barn at 124 Cheyenne Ave., where Workman operates a junk shop, collapsed under a heavy weight of automobile tires Wednesday noon. The men were working about the shop directly underneath the second floor, preparing to put some new braces under it, when their attention was attracted by the cracking of the beams above them.
100 Years Ago
April 16, 1926
Without doubt one of the biggest fistic encounters to be staged in this vicinity will be held next Thursday night at the Roof Garden as the main event bout at the big American Legion fight show. “Lightning” Dermer, the hard-hitting Scottsbluff pug, will meet Francis O’Connor, the fighting Irishman of Alliance.
95 Years Ago
April 14, 1931
Officers raided the Bert Taylor residence and beauty parlor at 412 ½ Niobrara late Friday night. So many bottles that the offices did not attempt to count them were found in all parts of the house. A ten-gallon keg was also found, the raiding party members said. The occupants of the place, Mr. and Mrs. Bert Taylor were not at home when the police called, although it was around midnight.
90 Years Ago
April 10, 1936
Mother or father will have to come along and watch daughter get a license and be married in Box Butte County from now on, according to an order issued by County Judge P. E. Romig. This will apply only in the cases where the daughter is under 21-year-old age limit and must have the consent of one of her parents.
85 Years Ago
April 8, 1941
With the coming of better weather, work has been renewed on the expansion of Bower field into a lay-out that will accommodate baseball this summer. Work of clearing the trees from the east side and making a longer right field was started last fall. Plans include the finishing of a grandstand that will seat around 1,500 people. The structure is to be built mainly of broken concrete and concrete blocks.
80 Years Ago
April 12, 1946
Mike Dorn was arrested for drunkenness here April 2. On April 3 he was sentenced to five days in jail. He was released Tuesday, April 8 and Wednesday April 9 he was arrested again on the same charge. Now he is serving seven and a half days on a new sentence.
75 Years Ago
April 13, 1951
Our spy in the local meat markets comes up with a couple more tidbits. Seems a woman was planning a brunch (for the socially uninformed, that’s a late breakfast that runs into lunch) for five people. The woman went to the butcher shop and ordered five pieces of bacon.
70 Years Ago
April 9, 1956
Thousands of white geese – and not a few Canadians – circled over Alliance aimlessly Sunday night during a snowstorm. Many persons heard them honking as the snowstorm apparently halted their flying trip to Canada to spend the summer.
65 Years Ago
April 15, 1961
Workmen have started a general remodeling project at the J. C. Penney Company store at 412 Box Butte Avenue. Included will be a new, modern V-shaped front, new fiberglass suspended ceilings for both the main floor and basement, new display equipment and many new fixtures. New colors will feature the redecoration of the entire interior.
60 Years Ago
April 16, 1966
Alliance became the second city in Nebraska Friday to have an approved hospital for the Medicare program. An agreement was signed here at a special luncheon by Sister Mary Carmen as administrator of St. Joseph’s Hospital. Approval of St. Joseph’s Hospital for Medicare by the Social Security Administration was based on information gathered by the State Department of Health.
55 Years Ago
April 16, 1971
Alliance industry seekers have won a battle and Alliance will have a new industry that will begin taking applications for workers starting Monday. The new Alliance plant will be known as American Leisure, Inc., and will manufacture ski and car coats, other outer wear and sleeping bags…a total of 11 products.
50 Years Ago
April 15, 1976
When the Law Enforcement Education Officer program involving the Alliance Police Department and the Alliance schools was started last fall it was largely because of increased concern with juvenile crime and other problems within the community. At that time there were indications that juvenile crime here had taken a large jump the previous few years.
45 Years Ago
April 8, 1981
An Alliance man has been arrested and charged with arson in connection with a fire that destroyed a mobile home Monday, according to an Alliance Police Department report. The report said Martin told the investigating officer that he poured gasoline in the closet of the mobile home and also in the hallway, and after lighting the fire he took his 7-month-old son and ran to a neighbor’s home.
40 Years Ago
April 7, 1986
Representatives from the City of Alliance will travel to Chadron Tuesday evening to request funds from the Upper Niobrara-White River Natural Resources District to conduct a “much needed” Master Urban Drainage Plan. While some cities have such a plan and other don’t, Klein said it is important for Alliance to have one since the city “needs to know the total effect of the drainage system.”
35 Years Ago
April 8, 1991
In 1986 the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act was signed into law. The law requires that every state meet minimum requirements for commercial driver licensing. “There’s a lot of misunderstanding about it (changes in the commercial driving licensing). It’s something all truck drivers need to know,” said Lee Nelsen, assistant dean for non-traditional studies at WNCC Sidney.
30 Years Ago
April 11, 1996
During the first three months of 1996 wheat and corn prices at area grain elevators have risen to their highest level of the ‘90s. When the markets closed Wednesday wheat ranged from $5.65 at Lyman Elevator to $5.70 at New Alliance. Corn prices also rose ten cents. The high grain prices are largely the result of supply and demand.
25 Years Ago
April 11, 2001
“Some Alliance young people continue to have problems with alcohol and drugs,” Alliance Police Department Patrol Sgt. Marty Patrick said after the APD dealt with six serious drug and/or alcohol calls over the weekend of March 16-18. During that weekend, a 14-year-old girl was admitted to Box Butte General Hospital after drinking too much with other minors.
20 Years Ago
April 12, 2006
Yesterday in Box Butte Country District Court, Twelfth Judicial District Court Judge Brian Silverman sentenced Patrick K., 47, Alliance, on a charge of theft by receiving property valued at over $1,500, a Class III felony. Patrick K. was sentenced to a period of 20 to 36 months at the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services in Lincoln.
15 Years Ago
April 16, 2011
The Nebraska Department of Revenue, Property Assessment Division, has processed the 2011 Real Property Abstracts of Assessment filed by the 93 Nebraska county assessors. Preliminary analysis indicates that real property valuations have increased 4.88 percent from 2010 to 2011. Box Butte County’s total real property valuation increased at more than twice the state rate at 11.09 percent.
10 Years Ago
April 11, 2016
Coloring Not Just For Kids Anymore: Once considered a past time for a child has sky rocketed into a trendy way for adults to release stress. Whether it is a short-lived fad or is here to stay remains unknown. The new generation of books are typically filled with intricate black-and-white illustrations that are art themselves.
5 Years Ago
April 14, 2021
An officer-involved shooting remains under investigation after an early-morning altercation led an Alliance Police Department Officer to discharge their firearm. According to a press release issued by APD Chief Philip Lukens, the incident occurred just after midnight Saturday.
*Compiled from The Alliance Times-Herald Archives by Christine Melcher