once upon a time...
by James Rada, Jr.
March 1924, 100 Years Ago
County Gains In Battle With Storm Damage
Frederick county today gained ground in recovering from the effects of the disastrous storm which swept this section the first of the week. Although this section is still isolated, communication in being slowly established.
…The telephone and telegraph services are beginning to look much lighter according to reports. The C. and P. Telephone Company has succeeded in establishing communication with Hagerstown and on through to Cumberland There is also a probability that communication will be established between this city and Baltimore and Washington some time Friday, said Paul I. Payne, general manager of this division. This, however, is problematical, as new difficulties are always being encountered, he added, Lines have also been opened between Frederick and Walkersville and Thurmont. There is still no telegraph service, however.
– Frederick Daily News, March 13, 1924
Get Trophy Tonight
This evening at 7.30 o’clock the Thurmont ball club, winner of the Frederick County League pennant for the 1923 season, will hold a banquet in the north county town at which time the league championship trophy will he formally presented by M. J . Thompson, president of the league.
Lester S. Birely, president, and William J. Stoner, manager of the Thurmont club, have made elaborate preparations for the banquet. Invitations have been mailed to the league officers and to two representatives of each of the other seven clubs in the circuit, requesting them to attend the banquet.
– Frederick Daily News, March 17, 1924
March 1949, 75 Years Ago
own To Install Parking Meters
Installation of parking meters in Emmitsburg is to be started in the near future. In fact, the project is expected to be completely in operation within the next six weeks, Mayor Thornton Rodgers informed the Chronicle this week. The contract has been let to the Michael Art Bronze
Co., Washington, D. C. branch, and all that is holding up the meters is the inscription explaining the local parking hours which should be finished in approximately 30 days.
The meters will start at Frailey’s Store on W. Main St. and will terminate at Community Pure Food Store on E. Main St. There will be none installed on North and South Seton Avenues, it was explained, but there will be restricted parking on one side of these thoroughfares and appropriate signs will be placed by the State Roads Commission in the near future.
– Emmitsburg Chronicle, March 4, 1949
Rocky Ridge Man Murdered By Gangsters
Daniel Joseph Myers, 57-year old native of Rocky Ridge, who was buried in Mt. Tabor Lutheran Church cemetery, was murdered in Dayton, 0., last Friday it was learned today.
A 23-year-old ex-convict, whom Mr. Myers had befriended, and a 30-year-old companion, have confessed to crushing the skull of the Dayton restauranteur in a room over his H. & G. Restaurant in Dayton with a soft drink bottle, according to Dayton police. The men admitted robbing Myers of $60 after the fatal assault.
They identified Milton Henry, recently released from confinement in Kentucky on a burglary conviction, and William Henry Childers, powerfully built Dayton moving firm employe, as the confessed murderers.
Henry, they said had been given a room and employment by Mr. Myers after the former had lost his job with a Dayton bakery. Henry stated that he kept watch while Childers bludgeoned the restaurant owner to death in the latter’s room over the restaurant.
– Emmitsburg Chronicle, March 11, 1949
March 1974, 50 Years Ago
Town To Soon Begin Building Swimming Pool
With the assistance of the Maryland State Program Open Space and the Emmitsburg Memorial Post 6658, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Emmitsburg will soon have a community swimming pool. According to a letter to the Frederick County Commissioners from the State Department of Natural Resources, the Maryland Board of Public Works has approved commitment of over $132,000 to the town for the swimming pool project. This amount represents 75 per cent of the estimated project costs. The Veterans of Foreign Wars Post has voted to donate up to $40,000 to the town to help pay the remaining amount.
The project includes the construction of a 5,000 square foot swimming pool, a 315 square foot wading pool, a 2,500 square foot bathhouse complete with concrete decking, fencing, lighting, an office, landscaping and a playground. It will cost an estimated $176,043 to develop.
According to Philip Topper, town treasurer, the project may not have been possible without the VFW’s “generous offer.”
– Emmitsburg Chronicle, March 14, 1974
Redskins To Play Basketball Here
The Washington Redskins of the National Football League, and winners of the National Conference Championship of 1972, will be playing basketball at Catoctin High School this Saturday night, March 9, at 8 p.m. Their opponents will be the Alumni All-Stars consisting of: Gene Eyler, Harry Hahn, George Baker, Gary Manning, Jim Weddle, Bill and Steve Wildasin, Larry “Pup” Brown, Lee Koontz, Eddie Gills, Charlie Gearhart, and Dave Swomley.
Preceeding the Redskin game, beginning at 6:30 p.m., the Catoctin High faculty will be playing a group of senior boys, headed up by Dick Love, that participated in Fall sports at Catoctin.
Just received from the Redskin office is an up-to-date list of the 20 basketball players available, ten of which will be present. The names are as follows: Mike Bragg, Brig Owens, Herb Mul-Key, Ted Vactor, Mike Bass, Charley Taylor, Frank Grant, Harold McLinton, Chris Hanburger, John Wilbur, Dennis Johnson, Paul Laaveg, George Starke, Terry Hermeling, Walter Rock, Bill Brundige, Roy Jefferson, Jimmie Jones, Jerry Smith and Dave Robinson.
Even though Larry Brown’s name does appear on the list, the Redskin office has stated that he does sometimes appear at these games.
– Emmitsburg Chronicle, March 7, 1974
March 1999, 25 Years Ago
Fireman Succumbs On Duty
Volunteer firefighter Terry Lee Myers, 50, of the Vigilant Hose Company, Emmitsburg, suffered a fatal heart attack while on duty at the scene of a brush fire on Monday, February 15, 1999.
Myers had driven Engine 64, the company’s main water supply unit, to the scene of the mid-day fire near the ARCC on the grounds of Mount Saint Mary’s College. He was operating the front-mounted pump on the engine when he was stricken.
Immediate life-saving measures were initiated by emergency medical personnel who were within feet of Myers when he fell. Fire Chief Frank Davis, who was close by, issued a call for additional medical support but all efforts to revive Myers were unsuccessful. Although advanced medical treatment continued enroute to the Gettysburg Hospital, doctors there were also unable to revive him. He was pronounced dead about an hour and 15 minutes after his collapse at the scene.
– The Emmitsburg Regional Dispatch, March 1999
The Torch Is Passed
CPI Printing, former publisher of the Emmitsburg Chronicle, will be taking a new direction soon. The new owner, Dave Runkle of Hanover, will take an already thriving business and increase its potential. A former satisfied customer of Arthur Elder, long-time owner and manager of the company, Mr. Runkle became interested in the business through first-hand experience with its quality production and historic significance to the community.
– The Emmitsburg Regional Dispatch, March 1999
