Out of the past 1/22/08

25 years ago: Jan. 22, 1983

The victim of a reported purse snatching in Cape Girardeau earlier this month has died; Alma Younghouse, 81, a retired schoolteacher, dies at Saint Francis Medical Center, where she had been hospitalized since the Jan. 8 robbery.

Cape Family Television Ltd., which plans the establishment of a UHF television station in Cape Girardeau, has purchased a 60-acre tract on Oriole Road, just north of Cape Girardeau, upon which to locate the company's 1,500-foot transmission tower.

50 years ago: Jan. 22, 1958

With chilly weather coming on the heels of a light snowstorm last night, streets and highways are slippery in the morning; traffic in Cape Girardeau slows to a snail's pace, and some hills can't be negotiated; despite the hazards, schools are in session in all parts of the county.

An increase in telephone rates in Cape Girardeau, varying from $1 per month on business phones and 25 cents for residential service, will be asked by the Southwestern Bell Telephone Co., company officials announce.

75 years ago: Jan. 22, 1933

The Rev. F.H. Melzer conducts all services at Trinity Lutheran Church, following his recovery from an illness of about three weeks.

The committee elected at the annual meeting in October 1932 of the Cape Girardeau County Anti-Horsethief Association, to make an examination of the membership lists to determine who is and who isn't a member in good standing, has found there are about 185 members still living, most still living in this county.

100 years ago: Jan. 22, 1908

Arthur J. Bowron, representing Wilkinson, Beckitt, Williams & Co., of Chicago, expert accountants, is in Cape Girardeau with an assistant; they arrived yesterday and at once began auditing the city's books and accounts; for months, the council talked of having this work done, but no action was taken; finally, Mayor W.C. Patton made the arrangements himself for the audit.

The last tollgate in Cape Girardeau County is taken down in the morning; now travelers are welcome on the splendid Scott County gravel road, which runs south of Cape Girardeau through the swamps.

-- Sharon K. Sanders