Out of the past 9/6/03

10 years ago: Sept. 6, 1993

Labor Day.

After closure for last year and a half because of terminal renovation, restaurant at Cape Girardeau Municipal Airport is set to reopen; Runway Restaurant and Lounge will open Wednesday.

Compton Heights Concert Band of St. Louis plays concert at Capaha Park in evening; event is sponsored by Cape Girar-deau Bicentennial Committee; Sousa-style concert on pleasantly cool Labor Day draws large crowd and is capped by fireworks display accompanied by "1812 Overture."

25 years ago: Sept. 6, 1978

Proposed city-school swimming pool moves step closer to reality when Cape Girardeau School Board selects vendor to build air-support structure for pool; board doesn't award contract but authorizes negotiations between Delta Engineering Consultants, engineers for project, and Air-Tech Industries of Clifton, N.J.

As evidenced by comments at public hearing last night, general consensus is that Jackson School District should renovate present high school football stadium rather than build new one; more than 100 people attended hearing, called by school board to gather public opinion, and everyone who spoke said renovation is more economic avenue.

50 years ago: Sept. 6, 1953

Thomas S. Messer, professor of Chair of Bible in Cape Girardeau, has returned from extended tour of Holy Land and Europe; during his two-month trip abroad, Messer visited 10 or 11 countries, including Eire, England, France, Italy, Spain, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Greece and Israel.

The 29th Jackson Homecomers event ended last night, the high pole act being performed before crowd of nearly 10,000 people; midway was hardly passable during evening due to jam of revelers; Truman Bollinger of Cape Girardeau was awarded new car given away.

75 years ago: Sept. 6, 1928

At membership meeting of First Baptist Church last night, the Rev. George S. Ellyson, pastor, urged acceptance of his resignation; after lengthy and stormy session, adjournment was taken and assumption is that Ellyson is no longer pastor, although his resignation wasn't accepted.

Evacuation of site for Montgomery Ward & Co. store on Broadway is attracting unusual amount of interest among older residents; work is revealing old grain tunnel which once connected Stein Bros. flour mill with company's elevator; mill once stood on site and represented one of most prominent industries of the day.

-- Sharon K. Sanders