Out of the past: Oct. 9

1999

The predicted 3 inches of rainfall today and Sunday prompts the Cape Girardeau County Commission to rescind its county burning band; likewise, the City of Cape Girardeau drops its request of city residents to conserve water; organizers of the City of Roses Music Festival, however, are frowning; more than 75 musical groups are performing at the festival this weekend, some on outdoor stages.

Country-western star Vince Gill picked up his guitar and sang before 5,148 people at the Show Me Center last night; Gill appeared with Joe Dee Messina, an up-and-coming country music performer.

1974

Southeast Missouri State University will apparently come out clean in a report to the Missouri House Appropriations Committee on how the school handles its money; the committee’s subcommittee on higher education held a day-long session yesterday on campus to investigate the university following an audit report by State Auditor John D. Ashcroft that contended the school had been over-appropriated by approximately $1.1 million for fiscal 1973 and 1974.

Six students of Southeast Missouri State University met yesterday afternoon with the House Appropriations Committee’s subcommittee on higher education to discuss problems at the school; the students’ rap list included racial bias, poor food and health services, lack of housing for married students, not enough social activities and an administration that sometimes seems unapproachable.

1949

“Little Butch” Stanphill, who at 5 years old, is an evangelist, assists his father, the Rev. Ira Stanphill, with the closing services of a revival at Assembly of God Church, 1202 S. Sprigg St.; the youthful evangelist, who has been performing at revival services since he was 3, preaches, plays his trombone and sings.

An estimated 1,500 persons attend the “coon on a log” contest, held at Capaha Park in the afternoon, despite protests by the Humane Society of Missouri; the raccoons come out the winners in the competition, with only six of the 72 dogs able to get the coon off the floating log; and in each of those cases, the coons escape from the dogs before they can be carried 15 feet to shore; the contest is sponsored by the Coffee Drinkers Friendship Club to raise money for the emergency polio fund, a little under $500 being cleared.

1924

Congressman Cleveland A. Newton of St. Louis arrives in Cape Girardeau late in the afternoon and will be the principal speaker tonight at a Republican mass meeting at Common Pleas Courthouse; Secretary of State Charles U. Becker, a candidate for reelection, and Phil A. Bennett, GOP nominee for lieutenant governor, will also be present to speak.

A portion, at least, of West End Boulevard will be paved this year, say city officials in denying reports that improvement work in other sections of Cape Girardeau will be given preference; Keller & Haas, contractors, have been ordered to proceed immediately with the paving of as large a portion of the boulevard as is possible before cold weather breaks; grading starts today on the block between Broadway and Normal Avenue.

Southeast Missourian librarian Sharon Sanders compiles the information for the daily Out of the Past column. She also writes a weekend column called “From the Morgue” that showcases interesting historical stories from the newspaper.