130 Years Ago
June 14, 1895
Dr. E. E. Barr received an expensive microscope one day this week. We suppose the doctor will be discovering all kinds of bacteria now.
125 Years Ago
June 15, 1900
Miss Louise Rosseter has been quite ill, suffering from nervous prostrations caused by overwork at school.
120 Years Ago
June 16, 1905
An individual who performed the dextrous feat of transferring a pair of pants from the clothing table at Beckwith & Bresee’s store unseen to a place under his coat, but was later apprehended, is doing time on the streets in truly metropolitan fashion, having a ball and chain attached.
115 Years Ago
June 14, 1910
On Saturday evening Brakeman R. F. Morgan discovered two hoboes steading a ride on an extra west freight near Dooley. He told them they would have to get off the train at the next stop, when they became offensive, and a scrap ensued. During the melee, Brakeman Morgan was thrown from the car, sustaining slight injuries to his hip. The hoboes succeeded in making escape.
110 Years Ago
June 15, 1915
For the first time in the history of baseball Alliance won a game Sunday by the narrow margin of one tally when the local boys clashed with the Hemingford aggregation. The game was a fast one and developed into a pitcher’s battle in which the Alliance tosser had a shade the best of it. All through the contest the Alliance boys had the necessary “pep” that makes a winning team.
105 Years Ago
June 15, 1920
After 27 years of married life together, during which six children were born to them, the marital ship of Levin H. Jones, a farmer living one and one-half miles west of Hemingford, and his wife, Jessie, ran afoul of the divorce court Saturday, when the husband filed a petition in district court asking that the bonds of wedlock be rent asunder.
100 Years Ago
June 12, 1925
Jesse C. Kennedy, patent medicine vendor and erstwhile charmer of rattle snakes, was discharged from the city jail Thursday afternoon. Jesse reclaimed his pet rattler and started for Oshkosh. The snake remained oiled in his Turkish towel without food or water awaiting the return of his master and rattled a pleasant greeting when Jesse spoke words of greeting. Kennedy was arrested for peddling without a license and was locked in the city jail. He then communicated to the other prisoners that he had “snakes” and he displayed his pet rattler.
95 Years Ago
June 13, 1930
Betty Jean, the three-year-old daughter of Mr. and Mrs. M. A. Gibson, who reside at Tenth and Dakota, narrowly escaped death yesterday evening about 7:30 o’clock when she fell in a cesspool at the home of a neighbor. The little girl and a boy were playing in the neighboring yard and were jumping from a barrel which covered the cesspool.
90 Years Ago
June 14, 1935
Gala Parade, 100 Floats To Open Stampede Event: A colorful parade, including floats, from all business firms in Alliance, is planned by the American Legion committee to start the Panhandle Stampede. This will be an innovation and with this cooperation of merchants greater interest is anticipated in the opening of the big rodeo.
85 Years Ago
June 14, 1940
With continued warm weather, immediate baiting for grasshoppers in fence rows, stubble fields or other hatching areas was urged by County Agent J. F. Decker today. Grasshoppers have caused very little damage so far this spring in Box Butte county but the weather conditions have been unfavorable until this week for grasshopper development, Decker pointed out.
80 Years Ago
June 15, 1945
Boiler Explodes At Greenhouse: Cause of the boiler explosion which wrecked the Alliance Floral Company’s greenhouse last night was still a mystery this morning as Andrew Irwin, owner, and others continued clearing away debris and making other preparations to determine how much of the property can be salvaged. It was almost miraculous that no one was killed by the blast.
75 Years Ago
June 16, 1950
Judge Penrose Romig heard two cases in county court this week. Thursday morning, Lewis Brewer and James O’Toole were charged with assault and battery. Both pleaded not guilty. Bond was set at $50 each and the hearing was set for Monday in county court. The charges against the pair grew out of the alleged assault on Albert LeBrun in a Burlington bunk car south of Alliance Monday night.
70 Years Ago
June 17, 1955
Alliance’s new Grade A milk ordinance now is in effect, City Manager R. W. Laing said today. Laing said present milk producers and processors operating under Alliance license can continue with the same licenses. However, milk companies that distribute but do not process milk here must get a distributor’s permit.
65 Years Ago
June 15, 1960
Six Alliance Junior and Senior High students will attend the annual University of Wyoming string orchestra camp from Sunday through July 2. The six will attend on $56 scholarships paid for by the Music Parents organization here.
60 Years Ago
June 14, 1965
Alliance won a large share of the Nebraska Stock Growers Association delegates attention at its 76th annual convention in Ogallala which ended Saturday – including the honor of being its host for the 1966 convention. Miss Judy Messersmith, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Frank Messersmith of Alliance, was named Junior Stockgrower Miss of the Year.
55 Years Ago
June 16, 1970
Approximately 350 persons attended the open house Sunday at the Nebraska Boys Ranch. Richard Haslow, superintendent, reported today that 24 towns in Nebraska were represented as well as persons from Kansas, Colorado and South Dakota. Numerous State Eagles officers were here for the occasion and members of the Alliance Eagles Auxiliary furnished cookies for the open house.
50 Years Ago
June 14, 1975
Ralph Johnson, 27, of Scottsbluff, will start duties Monday as the new jailer for the Box Butte County Sheriff’s Department at the Alliance City Jail. Johnson has worked for two years as a jailer in the Scotts Bluff County jail at Gering. He will be in charge of supervision at the jail and will handle bookings and discharges as well as taking care of the jail.
45 Years Ago
June 17, 1980
The Alliance Downtown Improvement Board (DIB) mapped out its strategy Monday night in preparation of presenting a proposal to do away with the downtown parking meters to the city council this Thursday evening.
40 Years Ago
June 14, 1985
The City of Alliance has given a 60-day verbal continuance to television station KSTF in Scottsbluff to improve its signal so that Alliance viewers can enjoy a good quality picture and not be totally dependent on cable television.
35 Years Ago
June 14, 1990
Jerry Davies, 32, of Hemingford has been hired as a Box Butte County Deputy Sheriff. He will be stationed in Hemingford, according to Mike Frerichs, Box Butte County Sheriff. “While we will cooperate fully with the Hemingford Police Department, I would ask that the citizens of Hemingford not expect Jerry to police Hemingford. The staff of the Box Butte County Sheriff is literally swamped with sheriff’s duties and responsibilities.”
30 Years Ago
June 15, 1995
Between 5 p.m. Monday, June 12, and 8 a.m. Tuesday, June 13, items valued at about $1,000 were taken from the city’s Fleet Services Building in the 100 block o Big Horn Avenue. The burglar or burglars broke a window to gain entry to the building. Items taken include a cordless phone, Motorola hand held radio and base, impact wrenches, side cutters, Maglite rechargeable flashlight and 35 mm camera.
25 Years Ago
June 15, 2000
With Alliance’s Heritage Days about a month away, the Heritage Days Committee is finalizing plans for this year’s festival, scheduled for July 20-23. This year’s theme is “Visions of Our Future – The Next 100 Years.” Alliance Chamber director Shell Tornjack announced that this year’s festival will include several new attractions, including a church service, a classic car show and activities in the 400 block of Box Butte Avenue.
20 Years Ago
June 17, 2005
The council accepted three torts claims without comment or action during last night’s regular City Council meeting. The tort claims are from: Corrosion Products Inc.; United Industries Inc.; and Dutton-Lainson Company. All three companies had supplied material for the municipal swimming pool to St. Louis Pools or to their subcontractors. None of these companies were paid.
15 Years Ago
June 19, 2010
Although Alliance’s giant cottonwood tree fell during one of the summer’s most violent storms, it was not the only tree damaged in Central Park. One may have noticed a second tree that hadn’t fallen, but shortly after the storm, had yellow tape surrounding it. This tree, located near the 10th St. crosswalk between the Fountain and Central Park has a crack in its crotch, much like the damage that ultimately took the cottonwood down.
10 Years Ago
June 15, 2015
Bumblebees are valuable pollinators, and there are 46 species in North America. Ther3e are ten or more that can be found in “our area,” according to John Thomas, extension educator and agriculture unit leader for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln extension office in Box Butte County. Some Alliance community members have noticed a bumblebee that looks different, but has actually been around town for a while.
5 Years Ago
June 17, 2020
Garth Brooks is set for a concert event at 300 drive-in theaters across North America, only on June 27. The concert will be featured at the Sandhills Drive In in Alliance. The concert will be created exclusively for this event, making this a once in a lifetime experience. The concert will be the largest ever one-night show to play at outdoor theaters across the United States and Canada.
*Compiled from The Alliance Times-Herald Archives by Christine Melcher