Looking Backward
25 years ago
Four former Ava teachers were the first inductees into the Ava Alumni Foundation’s Hall of Fame last Saturday night. They are Shirley Piland, Daisy Ellis, Florence Garrison, and Una Ellison.
A large portion of the camping and picnic area at Rippee Wildlife Area east of Ava on Bryant Creek was washed away by the heavy spring rains earlier this year, but the area has been rebuilt and is ready for Memorial Day weekend visitors.
The Ava City Council approved the purchase of two 1,000 gallon fuel tanks at Monday night’s regular council meeting, and with the purchase approved the placement of the tanks at the Street and Water maintenance building on NW 8th Avenue.
Viline (Stout) Millsap will be celebrating her 90th birthday on May 30. She was born in Cheney, Douglas Co., Mo., to Louise and William Stout.
Ava High School will take our events and six individuals to the state track meeting in Jefferson City Friday and Saturday. Members competing are Justin Dye, Jason Burton, Shelton Mackey, Tim Meyer, Chip Silvey and Jason Churchill.
The Alpha Rho Tau Art Festival was held this year at Cabool on April 29 and 30. Alpha Rho Tau are the Greek letters for art. Ava High School art students who participated are Tracy Garrison, Elishe Miller, Crystal Stephens, Shawna Engelhardt, Rachel Grand, Dan Andrews, Tim Kastning and Michael Bagley.
BUCKHART –– Zella Mae Coonts and Vera May Lovan stopped and had coffee at the Vanzant Cafe Wednesday morning. Thanks for the coffee, Donnie.
Jean Ann Nichols of Ava has earned a spot on the Central Missouri State University Dean’s List for the spring semester. Jean Ann is the daughter of Tom Nichols and Barbara Lowe, both of Ava.
50 years ago
Mr. and Mrs. Lee Russell have received word from their son, Sgt. John Russell, that he has been wounded in enemy action in Vietnam.
Ava High School to graduate 117 members of the senior class Friday, May 23 when diplomas will be awarded at the commencement exercises. Glen Harvill is valedictorian, and Connie Jones, salutatorian. Students in the top ten percent of the class are Roberta Turner, Connie Jenkins, Charles Denney, Charlotte Irby, Sherry Plaster, Stephanie Hobbs, Mark Musich, Alan Horner, J.C. Mathews and Rita Heath.
Ava’s 27-voice “Sing Out” chorus consisting of fifth and sixth grade students appeared on Channel 27 in Springfield at noon Tuesday. Mrs. Verla Lemings, elementary music director, was in charge.
The Ava R-I Schools this week were accredited as AAA, according to Supt. O.T. Tallent.
Jim Holobaugh, 32, a native of Northeast Arkansas, has been employed by the Ava R-I Board of Education for the position of junior high principal next year.
Mrs. G. B. Wilson of Ava celebrated her 99th birthday anniversary Monday at Springfield Baptist Hospital where she is recovering from a broken ankle. A native of St. Joseph, Mrs. Wilson served as the first housemother at the School of the Ozarks from 1910-14. She and the late Mr. Wilson resided in Ava for more that 54 years, during which time he practiced law.
Mr. and Mrs. Baxter Gaulding, who were observing their 72nd wedding anniversary very quietly at their home in Ava on Friday, May 9, were surprised to hear news commentator Paul Harvey announce the anniversary observance on his nation-wide radio broadcast. Mr. Harvey spoke of the Baxter Gauldings of Ava celebrating their 73nd wedding anniversary today as he gave his regular news broadcast from a Springfield radio station at one o’clock Friday afternoon. There seems to be some controversy among the Gaulding family as to the number of the anniversary, the 72nd or the 73rd. Mrs. Gaulding says 72, a brother says 73. Evidently Mr. Harvey’s informant was a 73rd believer.
Mr. and Mrs. Cody Lambert are the parents of a 6-pound 15-ounce daughter, Loretta Lynn, born April 18.
Anyone who isn’t interested in mutual funds should never marry.
It is perhaps the biggest birthday cake ever used in Ava at the first anniversary of the Town and Country Supermarket here last week. The anniversary celebration is continuing this week. The store is owned by Wayne and Millard Gott and is managed by Larry Johnson.
Leroy Dougherty of Ava scored a hole-in-one on No. 3 green at the Ava Country Club Golf Course Monday. He was playing with Basil Spurlock, Vernon Ray and Ed Bacorn.
NEW YORK–Memo to would-be brides. Sit up and take note, Douglas County has a surplus of unmarried men. The excess of bachelors is such that there are 166 single men locally for every 100 single women.
75 years ago
Delay in the construction of approximately eight miles of rural electrification line just west of Ava to serve the Cowskin Creek community is due to inability to get approval of the project by the War Production Board, it was stated Saturday by John C. Harlin of Gainesville, president of the White River REA.
County Clerk Ramey Smith has received $54 so far toward the $120 necessary to obtain the services of a wolf trapper here. Most of the donations have been for a dollar, but some have been $5, he said.
Priate Ferdinand Gauer of Ava is a member of a basketball team that won the championship in a tournament conducted by the Thirteenth Infantry regiment at Camp Wolters, Texas.
A daughter was born Tuesday afternoon to Mr. and Mrs. Paul Clauser at St. John’s Hospital in Springfield. The baby has been named Marilyn Jane.
HEADQUARTERS US Army forces in South Pacific –– by the direction of the President, the Oak Leaf Cluster in lieu of an additional Air Medal was awarded by Lieutenant General Millard Harmon, commanding United States Army Forces in the South Pacific area on May 5, 1944 to First Lieutenant Willard Pueppke of Ava, Mo., as a pilot from Jan. 12 to Jan. 23, 1944. A bronze Oak Leaf Cluster is awarded for meritorious achievement while participating in sustained combat operational missions of hazardous nature during which enemy opposition is met or during which an area is traversed where enemy anti-aircraft fire is effective or where enemy fighter patrols are habitually encounters.
Miss Hope Finger, librarian o Ava High School, has been employed for the summer in the Val-U-Merc grocery and market. Miss Finger began her work Tuesday morning.
Mr. and Mrs. Jack Vinson and family will move this week from the Harve Haynes property on Spring Street to their new home on the corner of Marvin and Spring Streets. The Vinsons purchased the residence last week from J.F. Holestine and have been remodeling and redecorating the interior. The property was formerly owned by Mrs. Gladys B. Stewart and adjoins the Felda Daivs property.
Pettit Theatres –– at the Avalon Friday, May 26, The Flying Deuces Laurel and Hardy in a laugh riot.
It’s Fly Time and time to be putting up new screen doors. Fred O. Lethco, Clover Farm Stores, home owned and home operated.
Max and Louis Mae Penner and Kenneth and Wayne Coats, attended a birthday party at Cabool Saturday in honor of their cousin, Barbara Ann Hutchison.
Ava will have a canning center at the school this year and it probably will start early in June, Superintendent C.W. Parker announced this week.
100 Years Ago
The road commissioners of Douglas County have entered application through the state commission for four government trucks to be used in road work in the county.
Seven persons were sentenced to terms in the Missouri penitentiary from Ozark County during last week’s session of Circuit Court at Gainesville. Six of the seven were convicted of stealing hogs and given two years each.
The Board of Education of the Mtn. Grove public schools has agreed to erect a gymnasium for Mtn. Grove school children. The building will be 50×80 ft. and is expected to cost about $2,000.
The Murray building on the south side of the square in Ava was sold last week to J.C. Garrison who contemplates opening up a flour, feed and product business at that location within the near future. Wm. Morris who now occupies the building with a second-hand store has been notified that he will be asked to vacate soon, and he is now looking for a new location.
The engineer at work on the Ava – Mansfield road survey is Ed McCandliss of the Rolla School of Mines. The road commission first secured E.G. Harris, but owing to Mr. Harris’ inability to do the work at this time because of other engagements with the state highway department, Mr. McCandliss was secured. It is reported that the net survey on the Bryant hill will be on less than a six percent grade.
The recent session of the Missouri legislature revised the old law placing a bounty on wolf scalps, by raising the bounty to $10. Wolf hunting might be very profitable in certain sections of Douglas County at this price.
At a meeting of the city council on Wednesday night of this week a poll tax levy of $2.00 was place on all male citizens of Ava between the age of 21 and 50 years both inclusive.
Etcyl Guthrie, who received his diploma last week from the Ava High School, has been employed as Supt. of the Gainesville High School for next year.
Plans for a tunnel under the English Channel discussed so frequently during the last sixty-odd years, are now on the verge of materialization. It is announced that England and France are in perfect accord on the subject, and that war experiences have robbed its opponents of most of their contentions. From an engineering standpoint no serious difficulty is anticipated. At the center of its length the tunnel dips to its lowest grade for one mile, constituting a water lock which could be flooded from the shore in case of military necessity.
Ask Lester Pettit, Mose Hodge or Cole Coffeen and they will tell you Timberlake’s Smoke House is the best place in town to buy your cigars.
GIRDNER –– Mr. and Mrs. W. M. Irby are the proud parents of a new baby boy.
BUCKHART –– Mr. and Mrs. Robert Uhlmann are the proud parents of a little son that arrived a few days ago to add Sunshine to their hearts.
125 Years ago
The raging Missouri –– during the 48 hours ensuing at 8 o’clock last evening, the Missouri River has risen nearly six feet at this point. The rise was rather sudden and great damage is being done to property in the vicinity of East Atchison. Business houses and residences are being torn down and railroads are in danger.
The 14-year locusts have established headquarters in Boone County.
It is claimed that the first Protestant Church organized west of the Mississippi was a Baptist Church in Missouri.
It is said that E. G. Marquis of Caldwall County has sheared more sheep in a given time than any man in the United States.
An English sparrow in Joplin stole a $5 bill and worked it into its nest. The English sparrow is a mean bird.
The colored school in Boonville is named after Charles Sumner. The enrollment the past year has been over 104.
Miss Kate Johnson of Hamilton drove two nails in a block of wood in 20 seconds. Who said a woman could not drive a nail?
A farmer living near Carthage has a team of mules that with great consideration for his family refuse to take him home while he is drunk.
Henry Houghby is building a machine for molding and pressing brick on which he expects to secure a patent.
Jefferson Hodge and Lewis Holeman have purchased a saw mill and will located it at the mouth of Sweden Hollow on Bryant Creek.
Mansfield’s business interests seem to be on a boom since the work at the mines have started. Mansfield has a live young newspaper edited by F.E. Adams, a new bank and several new business houses and a prospect for sever new hotels in he near future.
W. J. Turner has raised his storehouse to a full two stories and covered it with a tin roof which adds much to the appearance of the establishment.
Jake Bragg and James Lansdown of Walls Township engaged in a difficulty this week which resulted in an attempt by Bragg to shoot Lansdown. The trouble grew out of a difficulty between the children of the two families, in which the two little girls of Bragg received a whipping for which Bragg had the Lansdowns arrested. Lansdown was before Esquire Snider and swore out a warrant for Bragg and it is expected that if the case comes up for trial there will be a full display of the wickedness of Jacks Fork of Whites Creek.
The two men charged with the Southwest City bank robbery who were arrested yesterday at Fairland. I.T.J. E. Winn and John Sparks were taken to the Pineville jail today. Winn was identified as one of the robbers and also as the man who shot and killed ex-Senator John Seaborn. John Sparks is also identified as one of the robbers. Officers are still in pursuit of the remaining five robbers. Excitement runs high and it is believed both Winn and Sparks will be lynched. McDonald County citizens are determined that the death of Senator Seaborn shall be avenged, and to take them to Pineville, it is regarded as almost certain death for the prisoners. Two lynching parties have been organized here in recent years.
