Following are summaries of local news stories from the pages of the Intelligencer Journal and New Era. This column appears on page B1 of the printed newspaper each Monday. The items are researched and compiled by staff member Tim Buckwalter. Full versions are available on microfilm at the Lancaster County Library, 125 N. Duke St.
25 years ago
TUITION UP: Millersville University, Elizabethtown College and Franklin & Marshall College reported little change in enrollment for the 1984-85 school year, but tuition was higher at all three schools. Tuition and room and board totaled $3,450 at MU, $8,750 at E-town and $11,050 at F&M. (Aug. 27, 1984)
ROUTE 23: Top city and county officials generally rejected a proposal to improve New Holland Avenue by widening it and building a new interchange at its Route 30 intersection. The plan called for the demolition of 26 homes and the removal of five or six holes from the Lancaster Country Club golf course. Instead, the officials said, they preferred a relocation option that called for construction of a new four-lane leg of Route 23 into the east end of the city from its Route 30 connection. (Aug. 30, 1984)
50 years ago
DOWN THE DRAIN: City police went fishing in sewers and drains to recover $850 that a 12-year-old boy admitted stealing and flushing down a toilet at his home. Initial efforts yielded $700 of the missing money, which had been stolen from a home on Rockland Street. The boy told city detectives he became scared when he heard his mother discuss the robbery. (Aug. 24, 1959)
NEW SCHOOLS: Three new elementary schools worth $1.4 million were about to open for the first time. The $540,000 Elizabeth R. Martin Elementary School in Lancaster Township was ready to host 300 students. Its capacity was 420. The Fred S. Eshelman School in Millersville, built for $370,000, was about to open for 200 pupils. Its capacity was 220. And the $510,000 Clay School in the Ephrata Union district was preparing to open for more than 400 children. Its capacity was 429. (Aug. 27, 1959)
75 years ago
LABOR RIOTS: Two men were arrested on riot charges and 35 others were the subjects of arrest warrants following strike disorders at Columbia and Marietta. The arrests followed incidents at the Marietta Silk Mill’s property at Ninth and Houston streets in Columbia, where 12 peace officers were beleaguered for eight hours. The officers were stoned by hostile crowds when they attempted to escape, and were driven back into the mill. They were stoned again when state police helped them escape in taxicabs. Nearly all were injured, and five were treated at a hospital. (Aug. 24, 1934)
BROTHER KILLED: A 28-year-old Columbia man was killed when the Keystone Fire Company truck, on a casual test run, overturned and pinned him underneath. The victim’s brother, who was the borough’s chief of police, investigated the accident and was the first to identify the body. The driver of the firetruck was charged with involuntary manslaughter and driving without a license. (Aug.27, 1934)
100 years ago
DOUBLE FEATURE: City police were called simultaneously to two fights within a few blocks of each other. One fight involved the draymen who congregated around the courthouse corner, but it was over by the time officers arrived and no one had much to say about it. The second fight involved two men who battled in front of Deichler’s shoe store on North Queen Street. During the fight, both combatants went through the store’s big plate glass window. (Aug. 24, 1909)
TRAVELING SLANG: Several European tourists, on a trip sponsored by the Intelligencer as a contest prize, were surprised to learn that Dutch youths were conversant in American slang. “About the first thing we heard was ‘Skiddoo, 23 for you,’ and ‘Oh you kid.’ You can imagine our surprise,” wrote Edith M. Jamison in a letter published in the newspaper. (Aug. 23, 1909)
DEAD IN CHAPEL: A prominent Columbia man was found dead in the chapel in Holy Trinity Catholic Cemetery, where he went frequently to pray. He was found lying full length on the platform beneath the crucifix, with his hands clasped as though in prayer. Under his head was his coat, folded as a pillow. It was surmised that the man, who was retired and had been in ill health, had begun feeling ill in the cemetery and had gone into the chapel to rest. The cause of death was determined to be heart disease. (Aug. 28, 1909)
