130 Years Ago
Sept. 2, 1892
We will be pardoned when we say that Alliance has one institution of which we are justly proud – the Alliance Milling company. We say this because they are always making some new improvement to their property or move to increase the volume of their business. They now have a course of construction an elevator at Hemingford, a grain warehouse at Belmont and an elevator at Berea. Besides this they are putting in an improved dump, scales and building an office. This latter arrangement will greatly facilitate the handling of grain for the farmer. All he has to do now is simply to drive on the scales and his load is weighed, unloaded and the wagon again weighed without the necessity of his moving a muscle, and all done almost instantaneously.
125 Years Ago
Sept. 3, 1897
Chicago resident oculist H. W. Taylor, who is at the Grant hotel this week, has a bear story of his own to tell that is equal to any of them for thrilling experiences. Mr. Taylor went to the coast and mountains to enjoy a rest from work. One day while hunting in the mountains he espied a Silver Tip bear looking over a ledge above him, and promptly put a bullet through his neck. The bear disappeared and Mr. Taylor began looking for him, but it soon developed that the bear was also looking for Taylor. Just as Mr. Taylor turned a sharp angle along the ledge, they came around a rock face to face, not fifteen feet apart. The bear raised upon his haunches and rushed at the hunter, who had barely time to fire his rifle without bringing – an explosive one – tore a hole through the animal’s head, but he caught Mr. Taylor by the shoulder with a paw, lacerating his breast terribly, and with a stunning blow sent him over the cliff. Fortunately for Mr. Taylor, he alighted in a pool of water, thirty feet below, and was able to swim to shore, and was found by two companions, who were near.
120 Years Ago
Sept. 5, 1902
Ringling Brothers’ circus is here Monday afternoon September 8th. It requires five trains of double length railroad cars to transport Ringling Brother’s great circus from city to city. If placed end to end, these trains would cover nearly a mile of track. An amazing feature of Ringling Brothers’ circus is a great company of forty clowns, who keep the audience in a constant whirl of laughter by their grotesque antics and odd conceits. Ringling Brothers great canvas pavilions cover more than twelve acres, and constitute a veritable city of tents. The mammoth hippodrome amphitheatre is the largest ever constructed, and is absolutely impervious to rain.
115 Years Ago
Sept. 6, 1907
William H. West’s big minstrel company, playing at Lincoln this week, will give one performance in Alliance Saturday night, Sept. 14th. It is seldom such a big company plays a smaller place than Lincoln and Omaha and it will be a treat for Alliance. It is more than probable all seats in the opera house will be sold before the box office opens. The sale will open Wednesday of next week.
110 Years Ago
Sept. 3, 1912
Miss Ella Brown a compositor employed in the Hemingford Journal office, was injured when her hand was caught in the printing press and badly mashed. Miss Brown was feeding the job press and in some manner the heavy impression was thrown against her hand to the extent that she was quite badly hurt and thoroughly frightened. She was at once taken to a physician, who dressed the hand and found nothing more serious than a badly mashed hand. Miss Brown’s narrow escape from the complete loss of her hand is very fortunate, as the force with which the press comes together is very great.
105 Years Ago
Sept. 4, 1917
It is not often that the judge is left “waiting at the church,” but Judge Tash played the part last evening for several hours thinking that the couple he had intended to marry would return any minute. George Lewis and Birdie Walker applied for a license yesterday afternoon, but the judge could not issue the license without the consent of the bride’s parents because she was only sixteen. They left about four o’clock to get the paternal blessing and the judge waited for more than two hours. He finally concluded that the young man got a beating instead of a blessing and he returned home.
100 Years Ago
Sept. 5, 1922
Courtney Fosdick, 9-year-old son of Mr. and Mrs. C. E. Fosdick, 424 Mississippi avenue, sustained a scalp wound, a bruise on his arm and possible internal injuries when he was struck and knocked down by a car driven by Ben Joder at the southeast corner of Third street and Box Butte avenue. According to Officer Cal Cox, one of the rear wheels passed over the boy’s stomach, but he is not believed to be seriously injured. The boy was accompanied by his pet bulldog and was trying to protect the animal when the car struck him. He was given medical treatment and taken home by his mother, who had brought him up town to attend school at the city hall and who witnessed the accident. It was stated that Mr. Joder was in no way to blame for the accident, as he was driving slowly when the boy ran in front of the car.
95 Years Ago
Sept. 6, 1927
Gutzon Borglum stopped at Alliance last night. Congenial and good-natured, the great sculptor discussed his great work in South Dakota which is now well under way and which will require about five years to complete. It will include the carving of the gigantic busts of Washington, Lincoln, Jefferson and Roosevelt, which will be visible for over 40 miles.
90 Years Ago
Sept. 2, 1932
One of the greatest educational opportunities ever afforded residents of inland cities is now on a tour of the country, under the auspices of the Pacific Whaling Company, of Long Beach, Calif. Traveling in a specially constructed steel railroad car, is an exhibit of oceanic life that is as interesting as it is educational. The feature of the exhibit is a gigantic whale, measuring 58 feet in length and weighing 68 tons. The whale, which is known scientifically as a black fin back, was captured last December off the coast of Southern California, and was first exhibited in Denver, Colo., January of this year. It is in a perfect state of preservation and presents an appearance that is natural and life-like.
85 Years Ago
Sept. 3, 1937
Mrs. Nellie Stevenson, who with five children bummed her way in a freight car through here Monday, was picked up again when the train arrived in Lincoln. She was on her way to Des Moines, Ia., where her mother lives. Her children range from 10 months old to 12 years. At Lincoln they were taken first to the city jail and then to the mission where transportation was obtained for them. Railroad men in Alliance bought food and milk for the family.
80 Years Ago
Sept. 4, 1942
We’ve all heard of “chicken” whiskey – one drink and there you lay – but somebody is putting out a more potent blend that makes a fellow climb a tree . . . of all things! Joe Golightly (which he apparently didn’t) was found in a tree on East Tenth street Wednesday night when neighbors reported that some fellow, studying to be a halfwit, was climbing trees. And the worst of it all was that Golightly had his pants and shirt off. When the police arrived he took to the weeds, but he has been brought to police court and booked on a charge of being drunk. “The stuff they drink,” makes them do some funny things, but this just about tops the works.”
75 Years Ago
Sept. 5, 1947
For the past several days many persons have visited the Alliance Army Air Base to inspect the 63 buildings which are being sold by the City of Alliance. Sealed bids will be made on the buildings and the bids will be opened at the city building. Buyers can bid on two buildings in three of the lots which have more than single structures. Terms of the sale are 20 per cent to accompany the bid and the balance to be paid within 10 days. The barracks buildings which make up 42 of the buildings to be sold, have wooden flooring and sub-flooring. Similar barracks except for concrete floors, sold at Fort Robinson last year for $366 each.
70 Years Ago
Sept. 3, 1952
Ownership and operation of the Chimney Town housing project was acquired by the City of Alliance this morning following months of negotiations. The transfer of approximately 15 acres of land, 33 dwelling structures, a store building and the administrative – community building, was effected at a meeting of Alliance city officials and a representative of the Chicago office of the Public Housing Authority.
65 Years Ago
Sept. 5, 1957
Alliance had an impromptu rodeo Wednesday afternoon. Seems a calf being unloaded from a truck at the stockyards decided it still liked the faraway spaces, so it took off pell mell thataway. Pretty soon Bob Nichols, a cowboy working for the Alliance Livestock Commission Co., headed after the critter on horseback. Two policemen, Theron Duckworth and Mahlon Cass, then entered the chase, each in a patrol car. They spotted the calf about Third and Missouri. Well sir, this calf was not about to give up. It ran all the way to 16th Street and back on Laramie Avenue just south of the High school, before Nichols and Steed caught up. Nichols sailed a lariat over the calf, and the dashing little dogie went to market. All of which proves the machine age still hasn’t displaced the cowboy and his horse.
60 Years Ago
Sept. 7, 1962
A new feed and supply store, owned and operated By Albert (Bus) Leisy, will open at 112 Black Hills avenue Monday. Name of the business will be Bus’s Feed & Supply. Its main line will be Victor Feeds, manufactured by the Crete Mills at Crete, Neb. Leisy will also handle a complete line of minerals and seeds. He has purchased the building at 112 Black hills, formerly occupied by Arrow Freight Lines, from Harold Churchwell. A ground-level office and store addition, 20-foot by 40-foot, has been added to the street-side of the building.
55 Years Ago
Sept. 6, 1967
Congressman Dave Martin is scheduled to be in Alliance and Hemingford this afternoon and evening. His session in Hemingford was scheduled for 4 this afternoon and he will be honored at a coffee session at 7:30 tonight in the East Room of the Drake Hotel here. All constituents are invited to attend tonight’s session and visit with the Congressman. Martin also plans to remain in Alliance overnight.
50 Years Ago
Sept. 6, 1972
An Alliance woman, Mrs. Ruth Cole, was treated for injuries at St. Joseph’s Hospital, received from an unknown assailant who is being sought. Police were called to the scene by a resident in the 4th and Hudson vicinity who heard Mrs. Cole’s screams. According to Mrs. Cole, an employee of the Bowl Mor who was walking home from work, she was followed to that point by a man in a late model maroon car, who got out of the car and began beating her with a tire wrench. She struggled with the man, holding onto the wrench, screaming all the while. The man, described as short and dark-complexioned, and wearing glasses, finally ran to his car and left.
45 Years Ago
Sept. 6, 1977
Vonl Mattson, a graduate of Kearney State College and a five-year member of the North Platte Telegraph advertising department, is the new advertising manager of The Times-Herald. Mattson replaces Nick Partsch in the top advertising position of The Times-Herald. Partsch has been named publisher of the Lead Daily Call and Deadwood Pioneer-Times in South Dakota. Mattson has complete charge of The Times-Herald advertising department including local, national and classified. Members of the Times-Herald advertising department include Margo Young, George Post and Barbara Swanson.
40 Years Ago
Sept. 1, 1982
Roger McGrath officially took over the position as chief of the Alliance Fire Department. McGrath replaces L. E. (Bus) Overstreet who retired Aug. 1. McGrath’s wife and one-year-old son Mark remain in Lafayette, Colo. Where he was previously employed, until he finds a home here in Alliance.
35 Years Ago
Sept. 7, 1987
An overheated chicken pressure cooker has been pinpointed as the cause of the Saturday afternoon two-alarm fire which destroyed the Panhandle Packing Co. on East Kansas Street. Fire official estimate damage to the building and its contents at $78,000.
30 Years Ago
Sept. 8, 1992
Navy Seaman Recruit Ryan T. Covalt, son of Landon C. Covalt and Sally A. Hansen, both of Alliance recently completed basic training at Recruit Training Command, Great Lakes, Ill. During the cycle, recruits are taught general military subjects designed to prepare them for further academic and on-the-job training in one of the Navy’s 85 occupational fields. Studies include seamanship, close-order drill, navy history and first aid. The 1978 graduate of Alliance High School joined the Navy in May, 1992.
25 Years Ago
Sept. 10, 1997
When not in school, 14-year-old Ashley Swiercinsky can be found practicing her gymnastic routines and moves at D. J.’s gym. Her hard work has been rewarded by being undefeated between January and May of this year, placing first in state competition and fourth at Nationals in June.
20 Years Ago
Sept. 6, 2002
An Ellsworth Air Force Base B-1B aircrew is scheduled to perform a fly-by as part of the memorial ceremony at Box Butte General Hospital’s Liberty Garden to honor those killed in terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. “It’s an honor to have a B-1 crew from our base participate in a ceremony in my hometown.” Tech Sgt. Steve Merrill, NCO in charge of the 28th BW public affairs office and an Alliance native, said.
15 Years Ago
Sept. 7, 2007
A name, familiar with many local residents, is being resurrected – with one small change. “All Roads Lead To Rhoads” will be true with the spelling changed to Rhoades, Laura Lachman, owner of Alliance’s newest ladies apparel shop, said yesterday. Rhoades 2 will open for business Thursday, Sept. 20, at the corner of Box Butte and Fourth Street. Lachman said she had heard so many good things about the original store and wanted to follow, as much as possible, in those footsteps of long ago.
10Years Ago
Sept. 7, 2012
There was plenty of patriotic spirit as the Veterans Honor Flight passed through Alliance Thursday. In addition to the many flags held by folks along the route, businesses showed plenty of support with traditional red, white and blue decoration. The motorcade of veterans escorted by the Nebraska Patriot Guard riders are on their way to take part in the “Honor Flight” that will transport them to the World War II memorial in Washington, D.C.
5 Years Ago
Sept. 9, 2017
The 200 block of Box Butte was the place to be Thursday as the businesses hosted a block party called “200 Block Rocks!” Earlier in the day the Chamber Ambassadors hosted a ribbon cutting to celebrate the relocation of Bluebird Flowers and Gifts with owner Kendra Schott. A bingo style game was played as people visited each of the participating businesses to have their game sheets signed or stamped. The completed sheets were then turned in and a drawing was held for the gift basket worth about $500. Before the prize was drawn, residents gathered on the park on the corner to listen to music by Kalin Krohe Reference with help from Derek Johnson followed by Kelly Dickerson featuring Shon Townsend. Kids played games from Keep Alliance Beautiful and Sara Leisy with Wild Women BBQ served food up. After the party the big winner for the event was drawn and Bette Gerlach was the lucky Winner.