Forum Flashbacks: Dec. 4-10
MARYVILLE DAILY FORUM, DEC. 8, 2000
25 YEARS AGO: The Line Was Too Long – Connor Nelson, age 2, and Lenora Volner, age 5 months, were among the last to sit on Santa’s lap during his visit in Skidmore, for “Breakfast with Santa.” Nelson gave up trying to stay awake, the line to Santa was too long a wait for him.
50 years ago
Maryville Daily Forum, Dec. 4, 1975
Vandalism Not Major at R-II Schools
The State Department of Education reports that vandalism is becoming an increasingly expensive problem for Missouri public schools, particularly metropolitan or urban schools. In Maryville, however, the tide of vandalism seems to be at ebb.
The last major incident of vandalism at Maryville R-II District public schools apparently occurred in March 1974 when 17 windows were shot out at Washington Middle School and Eugene Field Elementary School was broken into but nothing was reported taken.
Three elementary students were found responsible for the vandalism. Arrangements were made for restitution of damages to the buildings and contents by parents of the students and the school district.
Dr. Robert Hale, superintendent of schools, said vandalism is just not that much of a problem in the R-II district. “In the Maryville school district, we have very few acts of vandalism that are costly to taxpayers,” Dr. Hale said.
The school district does suffer frequent minor acts of vandalism such as jamming a thermostat in a hallway or various types of breakage, but Dr. Hale noted that they amount to isolated instances and not costly occurrences.
Most of the minor acts of vandalism apparently occur at the high school. Dr. Hale explained it is an isolated campus and the age bracket of the students makes for a more fertile atmosphere for vandalism.
One example, pointed out by Dr. Hale, was that the low ceilings in the high school corridors will occasionally suffer a broken ceiling tile from students jumping up on impulse and punching a hole in them. “It’s hard to say the student’s at fault,” he said. “It’s just part of the process of growing up.”
75 years ago
Maryville Daily Forum, Dec. 4, 1950
Holiday Season Gets Under Way in Maryville
Crowds of holiday shoppers thronged the downtown district of Maryville all day Saturday as the Christmas season got under way.
For the youngsters, the big event of the day was the arrival of Santa Claus shortly after noon. Driven by Fire Chief Claude Stults in one of the Maryville fire trucks, Santa took his place in his bungalow on the courthouse square and visited with Nodaway county kiddies for several hours. Each child was given a sack of Christmas candy as he registered his Christmas request with St. Nick. Between 900 and 1,000 sacks of candy were given away during the afternoon.
Mayor Welcomes Shoppers
The shoppers were officially welcomed to Maryville by Mayor Clyde Roberts and Charles Baumli, president of the Maryville Chamber of Commerce. The children received an added treat when they were given rides on the fire truck assisted by clowns James “Bozo” Vann and James “Bojangles” Bryant, and patrolmen Fred Auffert and Edward Ballenger.
Many shoppers were heard to comment favorably on the newly-installed Christmas decorations throughout the downtown district. The decorations, which were purchased and installed under the sponsorship of the retail committee of the Chamber of Commerce, feature Christmas greenery, colored lights, and lighted red plastic bells at the major intersections.
Santa Hands Out Candy
Santa Claus will make an appearance in his bungalow on the square every Saturday afternoon from now until Christmas. He will be on hand from about 1:30 until 4’clock with free sacks of candy for all the kiddies who visit him.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The 75-year flashback is courtesy of the Missouri Digital Newspaper Project from the State Historical Society of Missouri, accessible at shsmo.newspapers.com.
