‘Years Ago’ is a compilation of newsy tidbits as published in the Crawford County Independent & Kickapoo Scout on this week ten, twenty, thirty, forty, fifty or sixty years ago.
TEN YEARS AGO
MARCH 18, 2010 – It was the 20-year anniversary of Wellness Day at Seneca Schools last Wednesday and as part of the day long activities hypnotist Terry Davolt entertained the students with a positive message of having fun without drugs and alcohol. Davolt hypnotized more than a dozen students at once during his performance. Superintendent Dave Boland credited teacher Diane Yager and her student volunteers for the effort in coordinating the successful event.
TWENTY YEARS AGO
MARCH 16, 2000 – The Log Cabin Heritage Park, Gays Mills, has received a $5,000 grant from Lands’ End of Dodgeville to put toward the restoration of the Larson cabin donated to the park in October of 1999 by John and Martha Cox of rural Soldiers Grove… An animal rights group has claimed responsibility for a Monday night fire at Kickapoo Fur Foods, Inc. in Viroqua. According to a press release, the Animal Liberation Front of North America claims it placed timed incendiary devices inside the business in an attempt to destroy the building. Damage was minimal. Kickapoo Fur Foods, Inc. closed in November, but the building was still used to store beef, chicken and liver for use in making animal food. ALF claims to be an underground movement committed to saving animals from ‘misery and death by destroying the property used to inflict harm on them.’
THIRTY YEARS AGO
MARCH 22, 1990 – A massive manhunt was launched after Grant County Sheriff’s deputy, Tom Reuter, 38, of Livingston, was found shot in the chest with the slug from a shotgun at about 11:30 p.m. Sunday. He had stopped to question the operator of a farm tractor on a rural road near Livingston. About four hours after the shooting, the operator of the tractor was found by the dogs and was hiding in a pole shed. He was to be charged Tuesday with first-degree murder. The slain deputy leaves a wife and five children.
FORTY YEARS AGO
MARCH 20, 1980 – A Lansing, Iowa man escaped drowning in high water on Rush Creek in Freeman Township at 2:30 a.m. Sunday, when his car went off Rush Creek Road and into the swollen river. John T. Keenan, 37, Lansing was northbound when he swerved to avoid deer in the road and went over the road bank. Keenan’s car plunged into eight feet of water and, as the car started to sink, Keenan opened a window and worked his way out. There were no injuries and the car sank out of sight. High waters had prevented recovery of the vehicle as of Monday.
FIFTY YEARS AGO
MARCH 18, 1970 – The music department of North Crawford High School will present the popular musical ‘Brigadoon.’ The cast of characters are in order of their appearance: Mark Olson, Ralph Quamme, Dean Olson, John Drake, Stan Quamme, Kitty Dull, Julie Coher, Maureen Jameson, Dennis Bell, Greg Heine, Nancy Olson, Tim Kuzniar, Jim Leary, Ron McKittrick, Mike Venner, Mike Pettit and Carol Moldrem.
SIXTY YEARS AGO
MARCH 17, 1960 – Some 2,500 people from 23 different communities in Wisconsin, Iowa and Minnesota attended the two-day open house at Johnson’s One Stop Shopping Service in Seneca, March 11 and 12. The event celebrated the formal opening of the new feed mill and modern self-service hardware department, along with the remodeled grocery store. The winner of the Shetland pony was Mary Ellen Cain, daughter of Ed Cain, Soldiers Grove.
