Editor’s note — We’re continuing our tradition of taking a look back each Saturday at some of the important, interesting or even odd events as they were reported during the same week throughout the years, along with interesting advertising features from years gone by.
This week in 1927, The Greenfield Republican reported that George Cope, the man who started at first base for the Greenfield Athletics, was appointed as a special traffic officer and given a motorcycle for when he needed to “overhaul the speed demons.”
An employee of the under-construction Baltimore and Ohio Railroad bridge was arrested and held in the county jail in Hillsboro under suspicion of using several saws to saw a whole corridor’s worth of prisoners out.
Roy Haynes, the former national prohibition commissioner from Hillsboro, announced that he accepted the presidency for the Economy Fire Insurance Company under the laws of Maryland, with the organization headquartered in Washington, D.C.
Members of the Highland County Farm Bureau as well as family and friends planned to have a big time at its annual picnic at the Rainsboro Fairgrounds on Labor Day, with one of the events being a mule race on the track.
In sports, the Greenfield Athletics won against the Cheviot team by a score of 6-4 thanks to a strikeout with the bases loaded with a 3-2 count in the final half-inning, with the win keeping Greenfield alive in the pennant race.
The Lyric Theatre, located in Greenfield, advertised a showing of Paramount’s most colorful comedy “It,” which was written by Elinor Glyn and starred Clara Bow.
C.F. Caspari Store advertised multiple products including a dozen California peaches packed in heavy syrup for $2.50, a pound of Fig bars for 12-and-a-half cents and a large can of Royal Baking Powder for 45 cents.
This week in 1952, The Press-Gazette reported that the sixth annual Highland County Fair was scheduled to open soon, with the four-day event headlined by events like a horse-pulling contest; beef cattle, dairy cattle and sheep judging; and a school band performance.
The Hillsboro Chamber of Commerce discussed two projects heavily impacting those in Highland County and Hillsboro, that being Rocky Fork Lake and the atomic energy plant in Pike County, with the hope for the lake to be flooded in the fall.
Officials from Bainbridge and Greenfield discussed the possible establishment of a main north-south highway that would connect the two towns as well as the site of the atomic plant in Pike County.
Several Highland County 4-H and FFA members picked up awards at the Ohio State Fair, with Wendell Martin getting first place in Jersey showmanship and Neil Milner, Leesburg, getting the grand champion from the Guernsey breed in FFA competition.
Nora Florea, Blanchester, was announced to be the new Highland County home demonstration agent following Mary Ellen Cox’s resignation from the position after working for eight years there.
Chakere’s Colony Theatre, located in Hillsboro, advertised multiple films including “Jumping Jacks,” starring Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin, and “Outlaw Woman,” starring Marie Windsor and Richard Rober.
Kroger advertised multiple products including two 23-ounce cans of pork and beans for 29 cents, a pound of fruited hams for 79 cents, a 20-ounce loaf of bread for 16 cents and a Golden Bar chocolate fudge cake for 49 cents.
This week in 1977, The Press-Gazette reported that a meeting of the Highland County Board of Commissioners focused on the discussion of a plot of land that the Highland County Fair Board wanted to purchase.
Robert Rodenfels, manager of the Hillsboro Publishing Company, announced that Rick Tuttle was appointed as the editor of The Press-Gazette, with Tuttle having been the sports editor of the newspaper since July 1975.
The Senior Citizen Advisory Board met to discuss the estimated $48,000 that would be required to purchase and renovate the Willman property located next to the Senior Citizens Center.
In sports, the Hillsboro High School varsity football team picked up its first scrimmage win by a score of 14-0 over Waverly, with one of those touchdowns coming from an 80-yard drive capped off with a Bruce Hall two-yard touchdown run.
Chakere’s Colony Theatre, located in Hillsboro, advertised “Smokey and the Bandit,” directed by Hal Needham and starring Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jerry Reed and Jackie Gleason.
The Butcher Shoppe advertised multiple products including a pound of boneless patio steaks for $1.99, ground beef patties for 79 cents per pound and Butcher Shoppe country-style bacon for $1.19 per pound.
This week in 2002, The Times-Gazette reported that the Fairfield School Board announced that it would set up a public auction date of Oct. 19, 2002, to sell part of each lot in Leesburg and Highland where its old school buildings were located.
The 996 National Story Competition Grand Prize Winner Larry Keller planned to make his return to the Highland County Fair following some time away due to the National Storytelling Competition no longer happening at the fair.
Multiple rare birds were spotted at Rocky Fork Lake over the last month, as a quartet of roseate spoonbills, birds more commonly found in Florida, Texas and Louisiana, were spotted there.
The village of Leesburg announced that it had experienced its second water line break in just the last week, as it worked to “test the new water tower.”
In sports, the Lynchburg-Clay varsity boys soccer team picked up a 2-0 win in its first matchup of the season thanks to goals from Brody Burson and Thad Wallace, with goalkeeper Craig Van Fleet getting the shutout.
Star Cinemas, located at 211 Harry Sauner Rd. in Hillsboro, advertised multiple films including “Lilo and Stitch,” starring Chris Sanders and Daveigh Chase, and “Signs,” starring Mel Gibson and Joaquin Phoenix.
Dave’s Panhandle Dairy Bar, located on Northview Drive in Hillsboro, advertised multiple products including the Panhandle Burger for $2.60, a hot dog for $1, a medium shake, malt or float for $1.80 and a banana split for $2.50.
Reach Jacob Clary at 937-402-2570.
