Out of the past 11/30/13

1988

Flags at the Cape Girardeau Fire Department stations have been lowered to half staff in memory of six Kansas City firefighters who died Monday, when 45,000 pounds of ammonium nitrate blew up at a highway construction site; the firefighters had been called to a vehicle fire at the site when the explosion occurred.

Retiring State Rep. Marvin E. Proffer will have a new job next year as a full-time consultant for Southeast Missouri State University; as part of his duties, Proffer will serve as the university's first lobbyist, promoting the school's interests and budgetary requirements to the Missouri Legislature.

1963

Work on Cape Girardeau County roads will have to move at a slower pace in 1964; the County Court will probably have less money available overall, and actual cash on hand in road funds up to the time 1964 taxes come in will be lower.

The first post-Thanksgiving weekend, the traditional inaugural of the Christmas buying season, is meeting and in some cases exceeding expectations among Cape Girardeau retail merchants; commercial outlets representing the various business districts all reported excellent shopping crowds yesterday.

1938

Sounding his whole-hearted support to the proposal to revive the Cape County Fair, Clyde D. Harris, president of First National Bank, suggests that it should be planned not just as a county fair, but as a district-wide exposition that would include all of Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois.

Construction of one or more buildings on lower Themis Street, on the site of Monday night's disastrous fire, is seen as a possibility, as it is understood both the Elks Lodge lot and Mrs. Ollie "Ma" Kopper's space will be offered for sale; Mrs. Kopper's property includes not only the ruins of her boarding house at the Spanish Street corner, but also a frame house at 38 N. Spanish St.

1913

W.G. Hancock, a real estate man of Texarkana, Ark., is spending a few days in Cape Girardeau County with relatives and friends; this is his first visit to the county since he left about 15 years ago.

Sen. R.B. Oliver leaves for Washington, D.C., where he will attend the National Drainage Congress, which will meet this week; Oliver goes there as an attorney and representative for the St. Francis Levee District.

-- Sharon K. Sanders