25 Years Ago — Jan. 20, 1993
The old Wayland Cleaners building on Pine Street. Some things change, some don’t.
“Arnold” and “Pork Chop,” two Vietnamese pot-bellied pigs owned by Windsor Woods two mobile home park families, the Tim VanPolens and the Jeffrey Saltkowskis, have won the right to be kept as pets in the city by the Zoning Board of Appeals.
The wells at the old Sunrise Landfill site in Wayland Township have been declared clean by Pete Lumbert of the Allegan County Health Department. But Lumbert cautioned, “There is still a landfill underneath. A total of 510 metal drums have been removed from the former dump site.
Cindy Cooley of Allegan is suing the Allegan County Road Commission, charging sexual discrimination after she was turned down for employment.
Melvin Veldhouse, 28, of Gun Lake, was killed in a snowmobile crash with a truck near Payne Lake and Cobb Lake roads in Yankee Springs Township.
Franco’s Pizza owner Franco LaFranca and Linden Steeby of Leighton Township have been bound over to Allegan Circuit Court in connection with charges of receiving and concealing stolen property, hot tubs from Quality Pool Supplies.
The Michigan Department of Transportation is promising Wayland a more serious look at repairs and renovations on U.S.-131 expressway between 135th Avenue and the Shelbyville exit.
Hopkins school bus driver Cindy Luke, who has five children with her husband, a truck driver, won $1,000 per month for life with the winning lottery ticket she bought at the Short Stop in Dorr.
Evelyn Hampel, 67, former administrator at the Sandy Creek Nursing Center and co-owner with husband George of the Archer-Hampel Funeral Home, died Jan. 15 at Butterworth Hospital in Grand Rapids.
Sophomore Ryan Rewa drilled a 10-foot jump shot with three seconds left to lift Hopkins to its first basketball victory of the season, 57-55, over Freedom Baptist. Broker Mike led the scoring with 14 points and Rich Dame collected 10 rebounds.
Freshman Richie Guerrant netted a dozen points and 11 rebounds as Martin bested Gobles 50-42.
Tim Kopp and Scott Kelch both had their 14-match winning streaks halted in the semifinals of the Delton wrestling tournament, where they finished third in their respective weight divisions.
Two new wingback easy chairs and a coffee table have been added at the Henika District Library through the LaVerna Hilbert memorial fund. A picture showed Ladies Library Club members Norma Hudson and Dorothy Langley trying them out for the first time.
The Henika Library is beginning to make plans to celebrate its 100th anniversary, noting it came into being on Feb. 22, 1893.
50 Years Ago — Jan. 17, 1967
Harold Keena, trooper at the Wayland post of the Michigan State Police, was presented with the Gerstacker Community Service Award and fellow local trooper George Schogel also was cited. Keena won the honor from the American Legion post for his role in starting up the local Rocket football program.
A whopping field of 15 candidates have thrown their hats in the ring in the Jan. 23 primary election to succeed the late Harold Volkema of Holland in the 23rd Michigan Senate district. Thirteen Republicans will be on the ballot, including former State Senator Fred Hilbert of Wayland. Ellis Wykstra, Republican of Martin, has decided to withdraw.
Government classes at Wayland High School got to try out the new election machines by having a mock convention to nominate Republican and Democratic Party candidates for president. President Lyndon Johnson lost to Senator Robert Kennedy and Michigan Gov. George Romney lost to New York’s Nelson Rockefeller.
The Wayland High School debate teams fashioned a season record of 11-9 and finished second in the Allegan County League competition. Members were Arthur Johnson, Steve Alflen, Sandra Potter, John Bilski, Robert Ayers, Roxie Greenawalt, Linda Clark, Roger Messer, George Towne, Reika Jansen, Tom Arnold, Bob Bell, Joan Lautenschleger, Tom Wilcox and Paul Calkins.
Former Editor-Publisher Rollo G. Mosher, in his column “Observations Here and There, asserted Wayland has the talent and the facilities to do a centennial festival well in the following summer.
Seth Oliver, a 1921 graduate of Wayland High School, was feted recently at his retirement as a telegrapher from Chesapeake and Ohio RR.
Wayland Board of Education President Wallace Wakeman expressed disappointment with the very light turnout for two public forums about the upcoming special election on a proposal for a 14-mill increase for one year. “We are the biggest business in this area, and people pay less attention to us than anything else,” he commented.
The Wayland varsity basketball team came from behind to defeat Middleville 61-60. Jack Konecny drilled a basket with 16 seconds left to give the Wildcats their first lead all night and George Towne dropped in two clutch free throws to ice the victory. Randy Rairigh scored 19 points and Lee Pankratz had 11.
Wayland High Scholl graduate Bill Rantz is now serving aboard the USS Alamo in Vietnam.
Now showing at the Wayland Theatre: “Tammy and the Millionaire.”
Sixth-grade teacher Doyle Disbrow will teach a modern math class for adults Monday evenings later this month at Steeby Elementary.
John Fred and His Playboy Band took over the No. 1 slot among the nations’ top 40 tunes with “Judy in Disguise.”
75 Years Ago — Jan. 22, 1943
The front page headline read “Six more boys win commissions in U.S. Army,” including six photos of Lt. John Rugaber, Lt. Raymond Smith, Lt. Russell Hilbert, Lt. Col. Leon Schuh, Lt. Fredric Deardorff and Lt. William Stockdale.
The mercury dipped below zero degrees and “plenty of snow was thrown in for good measure,” according to Editor-Publisher Rollo G. Mosher, who said village plows were doing triple duty handling side streets, sidewalks and even driveways. He added that the State Highway Department plows were creating windrows as high as four to seven feet along the U.S.-131 corridor.
Lyle Truax is now employed by the Wayland Theatre, replacing Roger Kibby, who is leaving to serve overseas in the military.
Chief Petty Officer Ted Willis is home on leave after a nine-month stint in the Southeast Pacific. He is a graduate of Wayland High School and Michigan State College and was an engineer with the State Highway Dept. before being called away to war.
Nearly 100 Allegan County men were called for pre-induction physicals this month in Kalamazoo.
The Gurney’s Food Department Store’s advertisement this week encouraged customers to, “Slap the Jap, bring in your waste fat.”
War Bond sales for December showed Allegan with $34,000, Plainwell $60,000, Fennville $24,000, Otsego and Saguatuck about $16,000 apiece, Martin $5,400, Hopkins $5,100, but Wayland only $825.
Elizabeth Smith, a Wayland sixth-grade teacher for about 20 years, died at the Plainwell home of her brother in law. She had resigned over the holidays because of ill health.
Now showing at the Wayland Theatre:
- A U.S. government documentary, “The World at War.”
- Ann Miller and Betty Rhodes in “Priorities on Parade.”
- Errol Flynn and Ronald Reagan in “Desperate Journey.”
- Charles Winninger and Charles Ruggles in “Friendly Enemies.”
100 Years Ago — Jan. 18, 1918
The state fuel administrator has issued an emergency order limiting business hours to save tons of coal during the war effort. It was reported that outside of Detroit, there is less than 500 tons available. Wayland businesses reported their compliance by publishing their new hours on the front page of the Globe.
Editor-Publisher George Mosher called it the “worst blizzard ever,” a winter storm packing winds of 45 miles per hour and temperatures reaching as low as 24 below. “Everyone was forced to keep the home fires burning to the limit,” he said.
Pedestrians could not reach the downtown village on Saturday and finally the walks were cleared Sunday. Church services were canceled, but schools Monday reported attendance was good.
The Dorr school has been closed for the last six weeks because of lack of fuel.
Mr. and Mrs. Carlton Ingham of Hopkins made a presentation to the local Grange (No. 37) about their trip to Jackson Grange.
The winter blizzard forced the delay of departure for Francis Hooker and Ray Williamson to enlist in the U.S. Navy at Camp Logan, Ill.
County Deputy Robert Scott was in the area recently to apprehend James Oliver, believed to be a deserter and taken to Fort Custer in Battle Creek.
Ray Gaylor of Wayland was given a suspended sentence in Circuit Court of six months to five years imprisonment or a $100 fine and courts costs for stealing fishing equipment at Streeter’s Resort in Gun Lake.
Only one travel ticket had been sold during the last five days the interurban because of the recent spate of inclement weather.
Nathanial Martin died at age 74 at the Kalamazoo State Hospital, F.C. Wing of Wayland handled the funeral arrangements for his sister of Shelbyville.
A new home economics course is being offered at Wayland High School, taught by Florence Tressler, and already 20 girls have enrolled.
A Mr. Crandall, science teacher at Wayland High School, has arranged to join the military and a successor ois being sought.
