Peekin' into the Past

Five Years Ago
    June 28, 2012
    Effective June 30, Connie Troutman will officially be named postmaster at the post office in Holyoke. Since former postmaster Sandy Triplette’s retirement in July 2009, Troutman has been serving as officer in charge for the Holyoke post office.
    A fast and furious, very early wheat harvest is almost complete, according to area elevators Tuesday morning, June 26.
    Nine golfers braved the 107-degree weather and strong winds June 25 during the Hundred Hole Hike held at Ballyneal Golf Club southeast of Holyoke to help raise over $200,000 in pledges. Each golfer played to raise money for a charity or institution of his choice.
    
    Ten Years Ago
    June 28, 2007
    A proposal to phase out the weighted grading scale at HHS was presented at the June 19 school board meeting in a complete, detail-specific plan by soon-to-be Holyoke JR/SR High School principal Susan Ortner.
    A bolt of lightning ignited an uncut wheat field June 21, burning approximately 80 acres in Riley and DeeAnn Dubbert’s field northeast of Holyoke.
    Swimming in Colby, Kansas, June 23, Emily Krogmeier broke two 8 and under girls records set by Holyoke’s own Alyson Colver in 1991 — the 100-yard individual medley and the 50-yard freestyle.
    
    Twenty-Five Years Ago
    July 2, 1992
    United Sports of America, the international leader in motor sports competition, announced that the Phillips County Fairgrounds in Holyoke will host the USA Motor Spectacular July 4-5. In addition to the Colorado Truck and Tractor Pullers Association truck and tractor pull, the weekend shows will feature Keystone Kruncher and Show-N-Off in the USA Monster Truck Challenge.
    A multi-use truck designed by City of Holyoke shop foreman Mark Brown successfully completed its toughest challenge to date this week, debuting Monday as an oil spreader. Using the chassis from an old 1979 trash truck, Brown has fashioned a system by which the truck can serve as a backup trash truck, a snow hauling truck or an oil spreader for street work. He is also working on another conversion that will allow it to be used for the City’s leaf pickup program in the fall.
    
    Fifty Years Ago
    June 29, 1967
    When Mrs. Earlean F. Jung leaves the Phillips County superintendent of schools office tomorrow, she will terminate 20 years of continuous service in that office, which county voters chose to abolish in the general election last November. Because of school consolidation during the past several years, the county superintendent’s office has been abolished in 35 Colorado counties.
    Effective July 1, every person who drives a motorcycle must be specially licensed to operate these vehicles.
    Twenty-three youthful athletes from Holyoke, both boys and girls, participated in the first annual Junior Champ track meet Saturday in Sterling.
    
    Seventy-Five Years Ago
    July 2, 1942
    Three hailstorms Saturday night — the first of which struck Holyoke at 6 o’clock, the second at 9 and the last at 11 — did immense damage to small grain in four counties in northeastern Colorado and two in southwestern Nebraska. In Phillips County, longtime residents claim that the storm was the worst in the county’s history, and estimates of the damage to crops run as high as a million dollars. Grain men and farmers who have traveled over a considerable part of the county place the damage at 50-75 percent as a whole over the county.
    Mr. and Mrs. Clinton W. Kinch, who have operated business establishments in Holyoke many years, made announcement this week that they would discontinue their pool hall and cafe business for the duration of the war.
    President Franklin D. Roosevelt extended the rubber collection drive on Monday for an additional 10 days because collections through Saturday had brought in a disappointing total of 219,000 tons.