Once Upon A Time
by James Rada, Jr.
June 1923, 100 Years Ago
Fishing For Time
Richard and Isaac Garrish of Williamsport, Md., according to reports from that time, fished up 17 gold watches from the Potomac River last Thursday.
The brothers spend much time fishing and maintain a fishing camp below the bridge and it was while they were plying their art that they found the watches. …
… Messrs. Garrish believe that the watches were thrown into the water nearly a year ago. They now recall that one night last summer, while they were at their fishing camp, that an automobile stopped on the bridge and something was thrown overboard and they heard the splashes of objects hitting the water. They now feel that it was the watches which were cast away and that they have been in the water since that time, and that they were thrown away by robbers, who feared to longer keep them. The automobile passed over the bridge and into West Virginia
– Catoctin Clarion, June 28, 1923
Governor To Speak
The annual picnic at Rocky Ridge will be held in Mt. Tabor Park the second Saturday in August at which Hon. Albert C. Ritchie, Governor of Maryland, will be the guest of honor and deliver an address. He will also remain over for Sunday and speak at the great annual Sunday School mass meeting.
– Catoctin Clarion, June 28, 1923
June 1948, 75 Years Ago
Refuse From Storm Being Removed
Evidence accumulated today that a “twister” ripped through sections of Frederick and Carroll counties Saturday afternoon, damaging some barns and homes, uprooting trees, blocking side road and interrupting power and telephone service. There were no reports of injuries. …
… The freak blow evidently skipped over Thurmont to strike next in the Union Bridge-New Windsor-Johnsonville section. A barn roof on the farm of William Hobbs, this city, which is located near Union Bridge, was reported ripped loose and “lapped over.” It was a metal roof.
– Frederick News, June 15, 1948
Diplomas For 63 At Thurmont
The need to evolve morally and spiritually was emphasized by Dr. William Barnhart, head of the Hood College Department of Religion and Philosophy, in this address to 63 graduates of Thurmont High School on Thursday evening.
Speaking to the capacity-filled Thurmont Town Hall at 8:15 p.m., Dr. Barnhart, in part, said:
“The all important question in this atomic age is the question of Hamlet, “To be or not to be.” That has become the most important question for the whole of mankind. We are the first generation that can completely destroy ourselves. At the close of the First World War the younger generation was called the lost generation. If our present younger generation should be another lost generation it may be the last generation.”
– Frederick News, June 11, 1948
June 1973, 50 Years Ago
Firemen Schedule Donkey Baseball
The Vigilant Hose Co. has scheduled a donkey baseball game here on July 14 at 6:30 p.m. The local firemen will take on a team from the Fairfield Fire Company in a game that promises to be filled with laughs, thrills, spills and fun. The donkeys are owned by Shaw Bros. Sports Inc., of Sayre, Pa.
– Emmitsburg Chronicle, June 21, 1973
Cozy Host To Soviet Personnel
The Cozy Motel in Thurmont was host to twenty or so Soviet support personnel during the Nixon – Brezhnev summit conference at Camp David last weekend. According to Jerry Freeze, operator of the Cozy complex, the Russians were there strictly on business and not as tourists. A dozen direct telephones were installed which tied into Camp David and a transportation system ferried the Russians up and down the mountain.
According to personnel at the Cozy Restaurant where the Soviet group ate three meals a day during their stay, the Soviets are great fanciers of seafood. The most popular entree during the week was the mixed seafood platter. Their preference ran to meat one meal, seafood the next. The guests also liked bananas, big steaks and Marlon Brando, according to Valerly I. Onikeyev, third secretary, permanent mission of the USSR to the United Nations, who served as coordinator between the Soviet staff members during their stay at the Cozy
Motel and personnel at Camp David.
– Emmitsburg Chronicle, June 28, 1973
June 1998, 25 Years Ago
Citizens’ Memorial Dedicated
Commissioner Clifford Sweeney and chairmain of the Parks and Recreation Committee tells the Memorial Day gathering of Emmitsburg residents at the Citizens’ Memorial that his is a place where you can come “to sit and remember those who have given so much to the town.” The first three citizens to be honored with stone markers on the memorial are the late David L. Copenhaver, Gregory A. Hollinger, and Thomas L. Topper.
– The Emmitsburg Regional Dispatch, June 1998
Water Search Continues
The Town of Emmitsburg, under the direction of the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) and BCM Engineers, Inc. (formerly Smith Environmental Technologies), has been actively pursuing the use of groundwater for the Town’s public drinking water supply.
Currently, the Town utilizes a combination of groundwater (three wells) and surface water (Rainbow Lake). Unfortunately, our present water treatment facility, which was built in the early 1960’s, has had difficulty processing our existing water demand, and cannot contend with the additional demands of a growing town. It is time to furnish a system that will take Emmitsburg into the future.
– The Emmitsburg Regional Dispatch, June 1998
