What Stocktonites Were Doing 98 Years Ago
The state law provides for a school board convention to be held annually in each county. In order to facilitate the attendance at this convention of school board members, the County Superintendent this year called the convention in sections, one section of which met at the Stockton High School on December 15. About 20 members of school boards from this portion of the county attended. About 30 school districts are included in this section. The convention was well attended by high school students who participated in the opening program, and a goodly number of patrons of the Stockton schools.
Mr. Kerr’s classes in General Science and English, which meet in the basement, had to be dismissed early because it was impossible to warm the classroom. Mr. Bickle, the janitor is making an heroic effort to keep the building warm but tons of coal under his best efforts cannot successfully compete with the north winds on cold days. It is necessary that he carry coal from the basement to the second floor where a stove in the eighth grade room supplements the heat supplied by the steam radiators.
Harold Junior, infant son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry L. Colburn made his advent into this world on December 12, 1921. Just a little bud of hope, bringing a ray of sunshine into the home, fulfilling an expectancy in the parent heart. The demise of the little one occurred in the early morn of Dec. 15th. A very brief stay, yet fulfilling a mission that no other life could.
Last Friday morning about one o’clock, Woodston was awakened by the fire alarm to learn that the Shutts Flour Mill in the northwest part of town was on fire. The fire was discovered by some young folks who were coming home from a dance in Alton, and they immediately spread the alarm, but by the time anybody was there it was too far gone to do any good, as the whole building was on fire by that time. Fortunately the wind was from the southwest, and if it had been in any other direction it would have meant a fight to save other buildings.
The Webster football boys came to Stockton last week where a group picture was taken of the team. This is Webster’s first football picture, which will be placed in the trophy case along with the other athletic teams produced during the year.
December 14th, both boys and girls basketball teams invaded Lenora, where they played their first game of the season with Lenora’s high school basketball team. All were well treated and the games were closer than the score indicates. Both games were lost, girls 11 to 32, and boys 21 to 30.
The National State Bank, with some of the businessmen participating, installed last week extensive apparatus for recording weather conditions. A large receptacle placed on the roof of the building conducts rain water to the bank lobby and shows in a large glass gauge the exact rainfall to the hundredths of an inch. Records are provided to show the rainfall over a given period up to a year. The gauge is as accurate as scientific ingenuity can make it, and hereafter we need never be in any doubt as to how much water has fallen, should it ever rain again. A large barometer and thermometer have also been placed on the outside, by which we may know the weather conditions with a greater degree of certainty than we have hitherto enjoyed.
We have had splendid ice making weather, but unfortunately there is very little water, which is quite as essential to ice making as zero temperature.
Carpenters worked all day Sunday putting in supports for the fourth floor of the courthouse building. Cement and brick laying have had few interruptions on account of cold weather. Hitherto the work has been almost continuous, but from this time on it will probably be spasmodic. A half story of wall has yet to be placed, after which will come the laying of the largest and heaviest pieces in the structure. Everybody is waiting to see the 14 stone columns put in place.
Chas. Cadwaller of the Lincoln Hill & Fur Co.,was last week in Stockton and bought and shipped the immense stock of furs accumulated by the Ken-worthy & Bryant establishment. There were over 7,000 hides in the shipment.
Every business man and every citizen of Hays is interested in the Phillips-burg-Great Bend stage, which passes through here and which affords north and south communication for us. Everyone who has north and south traveling to do should investigate this service before going elsewhere.
