1924– 100 Years Ago
Another Greenbrier Hen
Mr. C. F. Knapp of Renick, this county, has a hen which has been in his possession twelve years this coming May, a three-fourth strain Brown Leghorn, which has laid an average of 292 eggs per year for eleven years. She is hale and hearty, never offered to sit at any time, or refused to lay under any political administration. She retains a full set of teeth and bids fair to give many more years of active service. Can any one give this hen a name fitting her record?
The Big Engine
Much interest centered about the arrival in Ronceverte last Tuesday at about noon of the monster new freight engine of the C and O railroad, No. 1110, which that day made its maiden trip from Hinton to Clifton Forge. The giant 1100 is one of 25 purchased from the American Locomotive Works, Schenectady, N.Y., by the C and O for operation between Clifton Forge and Hinton in the freight service. It weighs 775,200 pounds, has 16 drive wheels, and a new design of tender.
New Bank At Rainelle
The Comptroller of the Currency has approved the application made to organize the First National Bank of East Rainelle with a capital of $25,000. Application was made through C. H. Thompson, president of the Ronceverte National Bank.
1949 – 75 Years Ago
Must Accept Nego
A federal district judge ruled that Negroes have established their right to full membership in the South Carolina Democratic party. The Democratic party as constituted cannot in the conduct of (its primary) elections make any racial or religious discriminations, he said. Its patent and flagrant attempt to bar qualified Negroes from participating in full membership in the primaries is illegal, Judge J. Waites Waring said.
Women Termed Stronger
A doctor said that the average American woman faces eight years of widowhood. Another expert added that women should help their menfolk live longer by giving them their seats on buses. The first statement was made by Dr. Edward Stieglitz, a specialist in geriatrics – the study of the aged – in a broadcast of the University of Chicago round table over National Broadcasting company network. Another speaker, George Lawton, consulting psychologist and specialist in problems of older people, observed that women are stronger sex. They should help their men live longer, Lawton said. They should get up in buses to give men their seats. This, and marrying younger men, would help remove one of their problems of old age – those eight years of widowhood.
Oppose Health Insurance
An educational program against socialized medicine is to be carried to every section of the state once President Truman’s health insurance plan is brought out of congress, Charles Lively, secretary of the West Virginia Medical Society, said.
1974– 50 Years Ago
Oil Allocations Cut 15 Per Cent
The government today cut allocations of heating oil 15 per cent and warned homeowners they will run out unless they turn thermostats down six degrees. The six-degree formula also applies to schools. All other users of heating oil, including businesses, must lower thermostats by 10 degrees or face running out of fuel before winter is over.
Skylab
The Skylab 3 astronauts Monday set a record for time spent in space, surpassing the Skylab 2 mark of 59 days, 11 hours, 9 minutes and 4 seconds. They plan to stay aloft for 84 days, a figure likely to stand for decades.
Richlands Home Demonstration Club Meets
The Richlands Home Demonstration Club held their January meeting in the home of Mrs. Ross Tuckwiller, with Mrs. Sam Tuckwiller as co-hostess. The Junior Leaders of Central Willing Workers 4-H Club presented a program on “This is 4-H.” The club voted to cooperate with the 4-H Club in a community project. The clubs are planning to keep the roadsides to Herns Covered Bridge clear of litter and trash. The clubs hope to erect a new sign about the local historic landmark on Rt. 60.
1999– 25 Years Ago
Supreme Court Agrees To Head Davis’s Appeal
The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals voted 3-2 to hear the appeal of a woman convicted in Greenbrier County of murdering one child and poisoning another. A jury found Marybeth Davis guilty in 1997 of the 1982 murder of her daughter, Tegan, and the 1981 poisoning by insulin of her son, Seth. Prosecutors maintained Davis committed the acts because she suffers from Munchausen’s syndrome by proxy which drives parents, usually mothers, to harm their children in an attempt to draw attention to themselves.
Planners Fail To Reach Compromise
After weeks of discussion and controversy over a rezoning issue, Lewisburg’s planning commissioners have agreed to disagree. On Monday evening a secret “straw ballot” on the issue at hand – the requested rezoning of 208 West Washington St. (now the site of Humble Tomato) – found the ten planners evenly split, with five supporting changing the property to a commercial designation and five opposing the change.
Assessor Told To Vacate Basement Office Space
Amid accusations of personal conflicts and pleas not to use force, the Greenbrier County Commission approved an order instructing the assessor vacate a portion of his office space. Newly elected county commissioner Steve Malcomb announced during his first meeting in that position that he had prepared two executive orders – “both toward the accessor” ‘ and urged his colleagues to approve them.
DISCLAIMER: The articles in Echoes of the Past are printed in their entire original form, typos and all.
