Out of the past: Aug. 26

1993

With temperatures soaring past the 90-degree mark, the first day of classes at Cape Girardeau public schools today was cut short; elementary students dismissed at 11:30 a.m. and secondary at noon.

Mary Burton, executive director of the Cape Girardeau County chapter of the American Red Cross, said the agency is reducing its operations here now that floodwaters are receding; the Red Cross is cutting back on its emergency response vehicles that have become a fixture this summer in many Mississippi River towns; at one point this summer, there were 15 of the vehicles delivering meals in the district.

1968

The Cape Girardeau County Court received notice in the morning the Cape County Ambulance Service will no longer provide 24-hour emergency service as of Sept. 10; George Rouse of the ambulance service told the court the costs of maintaining a 24-hour emergency service were prohibitive and will have to be dropped; this may mean the county and cities will have to subsidize the emergency service, if they wish it to continue.

A ground crew moved into Arena Park to begin preliminary preparations for the opening of the 1968 SEMO District Fair only two weeks in the offing; the fair, entering its 113th year, will run from Sept. 10-16.

1943

Installation of the 20-inch war pipeline across Southeast Missouri is nearing completion, with a few weeks of final work to be done; the bulk of the job is done, on time, and members of the State Guard have been discharged from patrol duty; the soldiers, including men from Company F here, had been on duty since May, when labor disorders caused the governor to order them out.

The apple harvest for Cape Girardeau was getting into full swing, with the early fall varieties ripening nicely; local demand, as well as from wholesalers, is good, and the price is comparatively high.

1918

The Iron Mountain division of the Missouri Pacific Railroad system has taken charge of the Cotton Belt system at Illmo; it is expected many changes will be made at Illmo, both in the office and yard forces, as the consolidation of the businesses is made by the Federal Railway Administration for the purpose of cutting expenses.

Maj. Patrick Frissell and Capt. Stephen Harvey arrived here Saturday evening from Eberts Field, Arkansas, to spend Sunday, Frissell's wife being on a visit to her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Louis Houck; the plane was kept at the Woods farm last night, guarded by a squad of the Home Guards; Frissell has promised to give an exhibition flight over the city this afternoon before departing for Arkansas, weather permitting.

-- Sharon K. Sanders