Looking Back

25 Years Ago - December 15, 1998

Falmouth’s Mayor-elect Jim Hammond announced at city council’s December 8 meeting that he will push for a payroll tax when he takes office in January 1999.

Santa Claus came to town in the big shiny Butler fire truck Saturday, December 12, in the Butler Christmas Parade.

Pendleton County Judge/Executive Don Mays thanked Butler Council at their December 7 meeting for their support during his time in office and also presented council with a check for $150,000 as their part of the flood recovery.

50 Years Ago - December 14, 1973

Private ambulance service as provided by Peoples and Woodhead will end when their licenses expire Monday, December 31. After that date there will be no ambulance service available unless other arrangements are made. The Pendleton County Fiscal Court is advertising for bids for ambulance service. It may or may not award a contract.

White Christmas, sponsored by the Falmouth Woman’s Club, will be held this year in the Falmouth Baptist Church Sunday, December 16, beginning at 7:30 p.m. … White Christmas was so named because generous people  bring gifts of money, canned goods, or food that are wrapped in white paper. These gifts are then delivered to the needy families in the county.

There was a change in the market Wednesday on the Paris burley sales floor—with the prices generally being $2 per 100 pounds down from the $100 that the crops were bringing Wednesday.

75 Years Ago - December 17, 1948

Monday morning, there were about four days more of pouring of concrete on New U. S. 27 between Grants Lick and Alexandria, it was reported to this newspaper. We are told that about one mile of road remains to be poured, and when this is done, there will be a continuous stretch of concrete road between Newport and Cynthiana, about 65 miles.

Funeral services for Pvt. Herbert William McAtee were held Sunday afternoon, December 5, at 2:30 o’clock at the Falmouth Christian Church, conducted by Rev. W. M. Lenox. Burial took place in Riverside Cemetery. Pvt. McAtee took part in the Italian campaign where the American Army met some of the strongest opposition, and was killed in action at [place in Italy] on December 22, 1944.

100 Years Ago - December 14, 1923

On Sunday evening, December 16th at 7 p.m., there will be a union Christmas service held at the Falmouth Christian Church. The principal feature of the service will be a Christmas cantata given by the Falmouth High School Glee Club. This is not a denominational service and all the people of the community will be cordially welcomed. One the platform, which will be decorated in white, there will be a white cradle. This will be used as a receptacle for gifts. All who attend are invited to share in the service by bringing some gift wrapped in white. Those desiring to contribute money are requested to present same enclosed in a white envelope. [Editor’s note: from our best research, this was likely the first White Christmas program, and it was named “White Christmas.”]

The local loose leaf warehouse of the Burley Association opened for business Monday. There was about 20,000 pounds of tobacco on the floor. 

John Cornelius has just completed the erection of three new houses on his suburban property on Cornelius Avenue in the West End near Lake View.

The injunction suit of the city of Falmouth against F. T. Chipman to prevent him from erecting two large storage tanks for gasoline and coal oil on a lot near the Burley tobacco loose leaf warehouse in this city, was called before Judge J. C. Dedman in this city last Saturday…. A number of citizens and property owners on Maple Avenue have signed a petition protesting to the city council against the erection of the tanks, stating that it is dangerous and will damage their property. The city has adopted an ordinance against the erection of gas tanks in certain parts of the city.

A mass meeting of citizens and taxpayers of Pendleton County is called to meet in Falmouth Saturday morning, December 15, at 10 o’clock for the purpose of taking legal steps to prevent the county from spending more money on the Greenwood and Grants Lick Pike than that section is entitled to. When the bond issue was voted it was understood and promised that all sections of the county would get some benefit of the bond issue. Under the present arrangements, it seems that almost all of the bond issue will be spent on seven miles of concrete road. When this bond issue was voted it was not the purpose to construct concrete road.