125 YEARS AGO: 1897
The foundry is turning out about 25 sets of bobsleighs weekly and is increasing the output as fast as possible. It seems almost impossible to keep up with orders.
The Hutchinson Times has seen the light of day. It promises to be a rock-ribbed Republican journal. It is a six-column quarto with a folio edition on the side and is a very creditable paper. The Leader sincerely wishes th enew venture the success, which its promoter expects.
The iron bridge at the foot of Main Street was completed and formally delivered to the city council by the foreman of the building crew. Ceremonies attending the transaction were very formal, the several members of the county taking a hand in driving in an alleged golden spike. We are uninformed as to the bottle of champagne, but presume it was at least, uncorked.
100 YEARS AGO: 1922
At the time of the last previous call, June 30, 1922, the 18 banks of the county reported total deposits of $8,288,071.74, and loans and discounts of $7,414,715.03, greatest by $46,168.65 in the history of the county, the previous high mark having been June 30, 1920. Other counties in the state are watching McLeod County, and are going into the line of the high-producing dairy cow, and are going into that endeavor more extensively. Farmers of those counties are now realizing that dairy and hogs, not grain and stock are are what makes fat bank accounts.
75 YEARS AGO: 1947
Leif Larson and Ralph Hakel, linemen with the Municipal Electric Plant, were seriously burned in a manhole gas explosion. The heavy blast burned their faces badly, but fortunately, other parts of their bodies, protected by clothes, escaped injury. Both were treated and bandaged at the community hospital where they were rushed immediately after the blast.
Fire destroyed the building, which housed the laundry and shop at Maplewood Academy, as well as doing considerable damage to the contents. For a time, the main building, located only a few feet south of the gutted structure, was threatened, but the wind was from the right direction and the fire department, which was on the job for six hours, confined the flames to the one building.
50 YEARS AGO: 1972
Mrs. Lester Buckentin (Marlys), RFD 2, Glencoe, was recently named Farm Wife of the Year by the subscribers of Farm Wife News magazine. Farm Wife News, a bimonthly national publication, each year honors a farm wife somewhere in the United States for her contributions to her home, children and community.
25 YEARS AGO: 1997
A new $30,000 Safe & Sober grant will help the Hutchinson Police Department, the Glencoe Police Department and the McLeod County Sheriff’s Department crack down on traffic violations during the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. The three law enforcement agencies have received word that they have qualified for the grant to again operate their Safe & Sober campaign, a national and statewide effort sponsored by the Minnesota Department of Public Safety and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
When the American Red Cross Bloodmobile rolls into McLeod County. it will be passing into one of the most prolific blood donating counties in the 104-county region served by North Central Blood Services. “McLeod County is one of our most important counties,” said Larry Wieser, Red Cross donor representative.
Motorists who traveled this past Thanksgiving holiday paid 7 cents less for gasoline than they did over Labor Day, when self-service unleaded gasoline was $1.294. A current survey shows that the statewide average price is $1.224.
With the busy holiday greeting season approaching, there’s one postal worker who won’t let the extra business get to her. Phyllis Hecht won’t stamp any envelopes with “Postage Due” this season, but she has stamped her timecard with “Retirement Due.” Since 1969, Hecht has been in the communication delivery business. Stamps cost 13 cents then. First she was a secretary to an inspector, but since 1974, Hecht has been a regular clerk. “It’s always busy,” Hecht said. But with retirement, it’s been less busy since Nov. 29. “I’ve enjoyed the people — customers and friends I work with,” she said.
