25 Years Ago — Dec. 12, 1990
The archives from the Then & Now Historical Library this week did not have a copy of the Penasee Globe for that week. Therefore, this edition will have to be skipped.
Hope springs eternal for resumption next week.
50 Years Ago — Dec. 8, 1965
Hopkins defeated Wayland 63-56 in a neighborhood rivalry basketball game at the Hopkins gym Tuesday night, 63-56.
Wayland senior Gordon Hudson has received word that he has been named honorable mention as an end on the Class B all-state football team.
A front page photo showed the Rev. Forrest Crum and committee co-chairs Grayce Delp and Gene Weber breaking ground on an education addition at the United Methodist Church, corner of Maple and Church streets.
The annual Wayland schools’ Christmas Concert is planned for Dec. 16. Included will be performances by the seventh and eighth grade choirs, the Choraliers, junior and senior high school bands, the Girls’ Glee Club and the Robed Choir. Coordinating the events are choral director Helen Gambee and band director Steven Working.
The “Corpuscle Caper” benefit dance, featuring the Terrible Trubadors, was a huge success, raising better than a quarter of Wayland’s annual quota for the American Red Cross. Co-chairs Mrs. Ed Nickels and Richard Clack announced that the total take was $252.25, which eventually will be used to help pay for processing blood collected at local drives.
A memorial service was held at Ft. Bragg for Wayland native Phillip VandeWeg, who was killed in action in Vietnam. VandeWeg had been an Army veteran and paratrooper for 13 years.
Storey Ford submitted the lowest bid of $4,108.77 for a new fire truck for the City of Wayland.
The new night school program for Wayland area adults will get under way on Jan. 2 at Wayland High School under the directorship of high school science teacher Daryl Fleser.
Wayland merchants are planning a “Nite Owl Sale” for the downtown from 7 to 10 p.m. Friday, Dec. 10. The event will include a visit by Santa Claus.
Charity drives were big in the news this week. Besides the benefit dance for the Red Cross, there was news the American Cancer Society campaign exceeded its $15,000 county-wide goal with donations totaling $16,176. And the annual Salvation Army fund-raising campaign, with chairman Irvin P. Helmey, was about to start at the beginning of January.
75 Years Ago — Dec. 13, 1940
We are sure that every farmer and keeper of cows has been watching with interest the steady, but not rapid, rise of butter prices on the Chicago and New York markets. Wayland, being the “Cow Town of Michigan,” receives no little part of its income from the sale of the product of the dairy cow.
As a result, we are sure that you will be interested in learning that milk prices at the Pet Milk Co. will again show an increase for the first half of December over the November price. The new milk price will be $1.62 for 3.5 milk; $1.68 for 4% milk; $2.05 for 4.5 and $2.24 for 5%.
Berlin claimed and London admitted that Southampton was in flames after a bitter day and night attack by the Nazis. England’s chief southern port town, Southampton is 80 miles southwest of London. Once the main port of call for transatlantic liners it was the object of the constant pounding by the feared dive bombers. While German dispatches stated that the city was in flames, London admit ted that many fires had been started, but they were put under control.
Significant meanings surround Christmas, according to superstitions believed in various parts of the world:
- In Holstein, Mistletoe is not only supposed to be a cure for all green wounds, but will insure success in the chase and give strength to the wrestler.
- Daughters born in Vosges, France, on Dec. 25 will be wise, witty and virtuous.
- A baby born on Christmas in Silesia will become either a lawyer or a thief.
- All animals in the German Alps can speak on Christmas Eve.
- A Bohemian wife will die within a year if she burns a Christmas cake.
- Ashes must not be thrown out on Christmas Day in some sections of Europe for fear they might be thrown in the Savior’s face.
- A person who is born on Christmas will have power to see and command spirits, according to a Scottish belief.
- Some families in Scandinavia place all their shoes together on Christmas. This will cause them to live in harmony throughout the year.
Services were held for Walter B. Sherwood, 44, who died at the family home in Wayland. He had been a virtual invalid in his later years because of a serious accident, but he still managed to serve as village clerk, justice of the peace and an employee of Jay L. Smith and the Business Men’s Paper Co. A carpenter by trade, he had attended Indiana Normal School early in life with hopes of becoming an educator.
The recent spate of cold weather has resulted in the complete freezing over of Gun Lake this early in the winter season.
David Gilger, 74, died at his home east of the Village of Wayland. His funeral was at the Methodist Episcopal Church and he was buried in East Martin Cemetery.
Fifteen dollars was raised by the Wayland Circuit of the Methodist Church and then sent to aid relief efforts in war-torn Belgium.
The auctions at the Williamson store downtown continue to bring in huge audiences daily. Lots of people are interested in buying and selling for profits.
John Chamberlain has moved into the village after leasing his farm to Elliott Jackson.
Allegan County Sheriff Mack Short and Deputy State Game Warden F.B. Salisbury were in town this week for undisclosed reasons.
Miss Fannie Hoyt gave a fascinating presentation on the lives and habits of different kinds of spiders to members of the Ladies Library Club.
Guy E. Smith and Ira Slater were elected to the top two posts for the local branch of the International Order of Odd Fellows (IOFF).
Joseph Bowman, Wayland Township Treasurer, announced he will be at the Wayland State Bank offices next Saturday to collect taxes.
C.G. Mabey won two prizes for his White Leghorn chickens in a poultry contest in Battle Creek.