The Good Old Year, 1929 Passes In Review as published in The Colby Free Press Tribune on January 2, 1930

THE GOOD OLD YEAR, 1929, PASSES IN REVIEW
Published in the Colby Free Press - Tribune
2 January 1930 - Front Page
Transcribed and contributed by Susan Henderson (DaveSu1611@cs.com)  23 October 1999

All of these highlights are from actual articles published throughout the year.

As the old year merges into the new and hopes are attuned to the expected good fortune of the next twelve months, one is tempted for a moment to pause and review the features of the old year.  Perhaps it will be interesting to many people to recount, briefly, some of the events of the recently defunct year to recall the events that were happy or tragic, or interesting or merely funny that have occupied the minds of the people at their various moments.  The year seemed to have a note of optimism, of hustling energy, optimism and growth that exceeded that of former years and is a happy augury of the year to come.

The year opened with a fanfare of publicity over the coming tractor show, the county fair and a note about the scarcity of living accommodations for the hordes of people who wished to come to Colby to live but could find no places.  On top of this the merchants split their bag of silver among about fifty customers and Judge Sparks announced his resignation from the district court bench to become congressman and there was a grand scramble for the judgeship.  An exploding gasoline stove burned a young daughter in the Colopy family badly and Horace Anderson discovered that his first class farm hand was an escaped inmate of a Nebraska insane asylum.  A suitcase containing all the new clothes Mrs. George Harrison had bought in Kansas City lost off the car and Masters Jimmie Dick Pratt and Donald Billie Crumly arrived also without clothes.  The boosters outlined a plan for a district fair that was to pass both houses of the legislature without a dissenting vote and was then vetoed by Governor Reed.  Representatives from nine counties met here with Ag college men to discuss wheat raising, the new county officers took charge, the commissioners announced a lowering tax rate, the city dads entertained a petition to pave Fourth street, the high school basketball team lost to Norton and J. R. Connelly got caught in a snowstorm at Salina for two days and the Gillette barber shop installed a scalp tickler.  Dave Ferguson could not understand his sister Mary when she came from London for a visit and the P. U. C. consented to hold a hearing on telephone rates.  Judge Gunckel issued six marriage licenses in two days and Prof. Fort took his boys to the Denver stock show.  Farm Viewing Day plans were announced and somebody stole the school house furnace in the Showalter district.  The Fergusons left for New Orleans and the rabbit hide business had a bull market.  Charley Kendall and Pud Walker had a terrible fight with an ironing board in a bathroom and a great quantity of corn came to market.  The annual Kansas Day banquet was served at the Odd Fellows hall and a cold wave came along the latter part of the month with subzero weather for a few days.  Guy Ramey's pup ran off when Guy and Herman Riedel had a collision with their trucks and a nail hopped spryly into Nelse Jasperson's eye.  The B. & L. association gave an optimistic report of its year's business, dark horse W. B. Ham was appointed district judge, old timer Earl Wallace of Fresno, Calif., was a visitor, Wiley's rabbits won prizes at Akron, Ohio, the Public Utilities Commission granted an increase in telephone rates and Uncle Bill Trompeter's Ford car nearly caved in the F & M. State bank.

February was ushered in with 4 below weather and Burt Dolph's barometer indicated another corn year. Colby's college students got nice mention and the W.C.T.U. staged a big county program. Sheriff Mallory put a bootlegger in the hoosegow and the Free Press-Tribune printed a map of northwest Kansas that omitted the town of Oakley. Goshamighty! The city announced opening date for bids for street paving and Dr. Davis bought a new LaSalle car that will travel 80 miles an hour. In mid month there was a night of 15 below weather, rabbit hides took another hike and the Chamber of Commerce had a hot session. Joe Shalz secured a federal air pilot license and the Prairie Rose people had a successful play and bazaar. Raymond Washburn won a Union Pacific scholarship for raising pigs and Tom Lane won a six months' sentence for raising the dickens. Jack Vawter marketed some No. 2 white corn and the Bales ranch was sold to the Kansas Wheat Co. A terrible sleet storm on the 24th made the roads glassy and D.L. Rouse was hurt in an accident. H.M. Parker revamped the Palms café and Pete Eicher recollected that he had arrived in Thomas county in a bad blizzard just 42 years before. "Cowboy" Taylor was badly burned in a wreck and the Lions organized a new club at Hoxie. Wm. Shanks, veteran herdsman at the Foster Farms died, a hundred men applied for the job of superintendent of schools and the Bill Warner and Art Hamill families returned from California.

Early in March the telephone company and the Minneapolis Threshing Machine Co. started work on their new buildings and Mr. and Mrs. David Rowe of Gem celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. The golf bugs reorganzied and formed the Ackard country club. Emmett Andersons returned from Arizona and Roy Simpson's illness called his parents to California. Prof. Fort had scarlet fever and John Smerchek of Washington was his substitute. The Kansas-Colorado baseball league was organized and the Grone Implement Co. opened at Colby. Warner was reelected president of the Chamber of Commerce and Mr. and Mrs. Alex Showalter celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on the 12th. The Joe Faulkners returned from a winter in California and the boys kicked in $5 around to get a charter in the national Aeronautic association. The city dads were renominated with J.R. Connelly filling the place made vacant by the death of Robert Taylor. They were also reelected without opposition. The W.M. Garretts of Levant celebrated their silver wedding anniversary, the Lauterbachs left for California and the Menlo checker players simply swamped out addicts. Charlie McPherson of Gem was named most valuable player in the Hays tournament and Pegleg Warburton blew in with his doll racks. The DeMolays organized a basketball league team for the state meet and the Nichols-Shepard co. located headquarters here. The Watson Contracting Co. forces got under way on street improvements late in the month and the Lions staged a big egg hunt on Easter Day with hundreds of kids taking part.

April was one of the busiest months Colby ever experienced in the way of big attractions, opening with the vocational agriculture meeting of many high schools of this territory, continuing with the grad and high school contests, the tractor show, a busy district court, the opening of the baseball season. Lions kite flying contest and other events. It was not such a happy time for young Trenton Eisley who was severely burned on a high tension wire climbing for his kite. Rev. Knoles resigned as Christian church pastor and S.C. Parrott returned form a visit in Old Virginny. George Boeka's plow horse was rescued from an abandoned cesspool and the tractor show was a wonderful success. The annual school meeting show was given before a big crowd and Summers township orators discussed how the government should go about the business of farm relief. The L.P. Stewarts took a trip to California and the club ladies enjoyed the federation meeting at Hays. D.F. Klemm was chosen superintendent of schools and Mrs. Clara Parker celebrated her 83rd birthday by throwing a big dinner for all her kinfolks. Denny Grady got rich pulling busses out of the mud and Mrs. Fern Warner became postmaster at Gem. The month closed with very appropriate rains which seemed to make a good wheat crop fairly certain.

The merry month of May was another good one, with frequent timely rains and an optimistic air throughout. Some of the more confirmed crop killers worried about too much rain, but a Texas gentleman had the town worked up to quite a st5ate by threatening to start a business college here. The baseball team started off with a nice victory. Charlie Lovelace took unto himself a wife while an Oberlin chap shot both his wife and himself. The two state banks at Brewster came up with a merger and the Lions club threw a big minstrel party. The Ed Hammonds moved to Boulder, Colo., and Lester Templin had a tough time plugging the hole when one of the window lights blew out at the parsonage in a storm. Miss Clois Arnold made a new Dodge coupe do handsprings and the B.F. Barnes family went to Texas. The state announced it would gravel highway No. 36, a surveying party mapped out a new road to Menlo and Hughie Cauhey led the rural honor students with a pint total of 1147. The rain continued and the Rock Island began using a motor for the jerscey trains. Miss Florence Roberts placed in the Hays music festival contests and the Waifs walloped Goodland with Clyde Treat doing the pitching. The annual school picnic was held in the usual mud and the high school graduated 16 young world conquerors. Cowboy Taylor and Otto Weber had a dandy 4-round fight and Herb Randell went to hear Billy Sunday preach. Kenneth Davis wrecked his car in a collision near Stratton, Colo., and Head Coach Hargiss of K.U. addressed the high school graduating class and proud friends. Hemstrom park opened the 28th and the Sixth district lawyers organized at Stockton, but why o one knows. The electrocution of L.H. Rand, the suicide of Virgil Burton and the death of Mrs. Lacefield and two children in a crossing crash near Goodland lent a somber air of tragedy to the latter days of the month. The state assured us of the location of a protein testing station and Symns-Shafer threw a big party for their customers. Goodland won the second game of the first series. The big news of the month was the Marion Talley purchase of a section of land near Colby. Local boosters nearly had joyous heart failure and six valuable Herefords laid down and died at the Foster Farms though not for the same reason. The library got a big list of new gooks. Dick Souders put on a bindweed killing demonstration and burned his own leg severely, the Stratton baseball team caused local mourning by beating the Waifs and the Kansas air tour committee announced a full day stop at Colby.

June was an airminded month, starting off with the visit of the Kansas air tour which had a big crowd and enjoyed a good day. Two more streets, Third and Fifth, petitioned for paving and George Grady jr. was chosen state vice president of DeMolay. Henry Starnes started a pop factory and the Stratton Boys gave our Waifs another walloping. Pete darn near committed suicide. The George Troutfetters returned from a 2-months stay in California and the telephone company began the installation of the new battery system. Several local couples who had been married about 15 years each celebrated by having a nice party and four distressed wives entered pleas for divorce. Marion Talley paid Colby a return visit and the excitement was fierce. A hundred honest burghers bared their tonsils to the morning sun to state a greeting for her for the benefit of news cameramen. Manager Pete Bergmen finally got Pitcher Lyle Quackenbush on the dotted line for the remainder of the season and the experiment station had a very successful field day. When Herb Randell started picking his big strawberry crop he broke out all over with strawberry rash and had to go back to pinch and Cecil Calvert, state legislator, proposed a tax on the malt. The West team in the Twilight league finally won a game and interest picked up. D. Otis Gunckel and Playford Thomas swapped places and the West team won a second game. V.M. Harris, pleased with crop prospects let the contract for building a new elevator and the state decided to resurface North 40 across the county. Marion and Uncle Gus had their pictures in the Kansas City Star and Harold Hills invented his own windrowing machine.

July opened with the customary fair and warmer weather and a committee of Bolsheviks from Russia gave Thomas county a good looking over. Barley harvest began about the fourth and wheat ripened just a bit later. The city council announce another taxless year and the Free Press-Tribune carried an occasional story about Marion Talley, one enthusiast even breaking forth with poetry. The new money was issued by the banks and the Joe Voisins celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. The employment bureau was a busy place and Osa Beck and Amy Jasperson had a thrilling encounter with a stick up artist who Osa whipped quite thoroughly. The county's population was announce at 6,860 and Bert Blackman pitched a one-hit game for the East team. Max and Floyd Smith, Judson Morehead and Ben Kleinhans paid a record price for the Deves corner and young Clarence Tubbs was pitifully burned in a harvest accident. Fire also harvested 80 acres for Ernest Snell and Wilbur Misner was married. Gould and Gillettte sold their businesses, Arthur Brisbane had some nice things to say about Colby and a Wichita man placed the firs order for Talley wheat.

August was a mighty hot month, tempered somewhat by mid month rains. The wheat train special on the Union Pacific drew a fair crowd and a farm hand swiped Eli Hamilton's car and kited his check ten dollars. Baker B.H. Clark got a vacation by ramming his hand into a dough mixer and Claude Harrison and Kimmel Phillips started for K.C. in Kim's galloping goose. The Marion Talley stuff had just begun to die down when a farm hand started it p again by abducting Thelma Carpenter of Brewster. The Camp Fire Gils enjoyed a vacationing Colorado, the state and county announced lower tax levies and the state raised valuations. The firm of Boerner & Troutfetter announced a termination of the old partnership and Bill Pearson was through town with a might mean looking animal he claimed to have caught in Old Mexico. The merchants put up a building of their own at the fair ground and Roy leak, after limping two weeks found he had a broken bone in his foot.

September, always busy, opened with the fair and the first day of school. The fair, most successful to date, had three good days but the last day was a complete washout. There were many interesting exhibits and a good program. The Bourquin and Goin kinfolks of the Gem neighborhood had a big family reunions and the Isis Temple band stirred up thing for a while in town one afternoon. At the baby contest at the fair there was a lot of competition. Winners were, as follows: Boys short yearlings, Leo Linthicum, long yearling, Robert Gene Harrison; girls, short yearling, Ramona June Bugbee, long yearling, Ruth Emrich. There was a week of rain early in the month that foreshadowed the remaining weeks of the fall weather. The state told us we'd have to quite using the experiment farm for landing field and the Woodmen had a big logrolling here. A young waiter gave the town a thrill by announcing that he had his plans all made to start an air college here, but he landed in jail the next day for stealing a car. The Waifs won a couple of games from Goodland in a championship playoff, but Goodland would not count the first one because they lost on their home field which ain't no fair. Then the Colby team poured a little salt in the wound by forfeiting the pennant. The Methodist conference didn't monkey any with the local preachers and Brown sold his Chevrolet business to Andregg. Playful Mexicans carved each other up something fierce with butcher knives and V.R. Haisley, who ???? here when Colby was just a pup, dropped in from Texas to visit his daughter, Mrs. Jack Wolf,. The kids got away to college and some of the boys tried to get tickets to the world's series in Chicago. No luck.

Early in October Bill Donelan sold partnerships in his store to Serden Runtley and ????? McGinns and then went to Chicago to see the world series. The telephone system was switched over to the new building and local talent presented "Corporal Eagen." Walter Ohlrogge lost when he tried to throw the bull and Jimmy Donelan quit his cleaning business for a bank job. A beautiful stand of wheat sprang up all over the country and resources of Thomas county banks was added up to a total of $2,930, 489.07 The paving was finished on West Third street and Starnes started a new building on East Fourth. A nephew of Carrie nation peddled books in Colby and the football season got under way. A band was organized in the school under the tutelage of H.C. Kohfeld and land owners were warned about certain types of leases. The Waifs closed their season with a victory over Rexford. A number of booze peddlers found their way to the jail under the chaperonage of Izzy Einstein. Jimmy Simpson was awarded a nice trophy for leading the KC league in batting and a plan was devised for perpetual care of Beulah cemetery. Then junior footballers started winning games and kept right at it. The high school also won a game from Kanorado. Remodeling of the Lyric theatre began and Sheriff Mallory sent one of his guests for a bucket of coal after dark. He took the hint and did not come back. After ten long years of waiting the Atwood high school football team won a high score game from Colby to revenge a 99 to 0 defeat in 1919. Colby jumped from 83rd to 78th place in the ranking of Kansas cities and RB Snell received a lawful package of Kentucky products from Dick Chelf. Great storms seemed to fit the wheat's needs and Taylor started building anew garage for Pickwick stages. Various creamery projects were being pushed and argued and Troutfetters bought out the Boerner interest in the department store. Fitzgeralds received their sixth carload of Maytags and the Girl Reserves presented " A southern Cinderella."

November was a terrible month for weather but the Foster Hereford made important winning in big shows, finally copping grand champion bull at the American Royal. The missionary women of the Colby district met here at the Foshay company at Goodland went bust. Shiex Earl McBride was found guilty of a number of thing sin district court and the subject for the religious forum was Tolerance. Watson finished regraveling North 40 up to Colby from the west and May surgeons did things to A. Lauterbach. Many high school students were placed on the scholastic honor list and chicken fanciers enjoyed the poultry show. Charlie Lovelace and Charlie Moore were surprised on their birthday. So was Mrs. Nick Schroeder. Grandpa Elledge was also surprised but it wasn't his birthday. It was a fire in his hip pocket that required fir department attention. The rural carriers bucked big snow drifts and the colored singers sang sweet hosannas. Brewster's E.W. Allbright defined a hero and Tom Harned went to the pen. Rarick explained the school code plan and the merchants formed a credit association. Josephine Shafer, Kate Schroeder and Mrs. John Reid went to California and the Aggie boys went to the American Royal Junior Storer and the Scott boys built a snow igloo and Claude Schnellbacher went skylarking east with the master farms. Ernest Downey spoke before the civic clubs, the city paid off the last bond on its original paving issue and the churches had a union Thanksgiving service. A blizzard raged on the 21st and M.A. Hamill got a birthday surprise. The jail birds had an inspiring song service and calmer weather closed the month.

December, of recent memory, was month of calm weather and heavy business. The city was prettily decorated for the Christmas season, and Sheriff Mallory carried a bottle of liquor to Topeka without getting caught. There was some furore over the 28th attempt to move the bulk oil tanks outside town but it soon died down. Bert Davis met a woman tourist in Iowa and got his ear cut off and the poultrymen formed a county organization. Goffe quit the oil business for electricity and the Colby high school lost the annual snow fight to Goodland, Editor Carruth of Topeka was set right about Colby rates and the Christmas fund committee had a successful campaign. Judge Sparks was appointed on the house legislative committee and the high school glee clubs gave a pretty cantata. The 23rd was kid's day and Earl Morrison won a number a K.S.A.C. Claude Schnellbacher met President Hoover and the Colby schools were admitted the national honor society. A Lautherbach went back to work after a 2-motnb loaf and Joe Kuska went to Washington The Asher Wilson family visited briefly and Simpson Fell. Footballer Lyle Munn came home and there was more about Marion Talley. Christmas was a beautiful day and Wm. Sloan was surprised on his birthday. Fond parents had a fleeting glance at their collegiate offspring and the Rawlins county sheriff caught the North Platte bootlegger. The month closed with the people generally in excellent spirits and happy in expectation of another good year to follow.

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