From Our Files

• Sept. 23, 1948

Bette Dee, four-year-old daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Orland Krutzfeldt, had the exciting pleasure of riding on the blimp Wonder Ship at Sheldon. Her great-grandfather, J.W. Patton, 90, was also one of the group. He was the oldest man to have ridden on the ship.

Chicken thieves were again busy in the area. The Sioux County sheriff reported that 400 chickens were stolen from a farm southeast of Sheldon. With the high price of chickens, it was expected that other raids would be made on poultry unless extra precautions were taken.

The O’Brien County Board of Education accepted the recommendation of the State Department of Public Instruction to purchase the Every Pupil Basic Skills Testing Program tests. The tests were to be given to students in grades 6, 7 and 8 at all town and rural schools.

• Sept. 21, 1973

Heetland Electric was the low bidder to install lights along Highway 18, west of the existing lights to the edge of the corporation. The Laurens firm’s bid of $17,260, which included galvanized poles, was almost identical with the engineer’s estimate of the project.

Bids for construction of an addition to Mann Nursing Wing totaled $143,748. The total was approximately $40,000 more than the original estimate, but the board of the Hartley Community Hospital planned to go ahead with the project. A tentative completion date of Sept. 1, 1974 was set.

The football field at Hartley High School was dedicated in a special ceremony as Peterson Field, in memory of the late Dr. and Mrs. J.C. Peterson. Superintendent William Hutchinson was the master of ceremonies, and Howard Borchard and Rev. Bernard Sayler were special speakers.

• Sept. 24, 1998

The Memory Park at the Community Memorial Health Center took on a new look with the help of the Hartley Lions Club. Fourteen club members donated their time and expertise on two Saturdays to build a gazebo in the park. The Lions Club also donated $1,000 toward the project.

The first-ever cross country meet hosted by Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn was held at Sanborn Golf Club. Another milestone was reached by the H-M-S girls who won the team title, a first for the program. Top 10 varsity finishers were Erin Hobson, Mary McCarty, Brenda Harders and Amber Hasche for the girls, and Chris Roth and Nick Boelter for the boys.

“Rock ‘n’ Roll onto Victory” was the theme for Homecoming activities at Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn. A full week of school, athletic and community events was planned around that theme.

From Our Files” is compiled by Sentinel-News sports editor/staff writer Mike Petersen.