150 Years Ago
Home & Vicinity – On Wednesday, Blend’s fine new hall over the Herald Office, was first opened to the public by ladies of the Presbyterian Church who held there a sociable which was fully attended and profitable in results. An experiment so pleasant all round, will bear repeating. The proceeds, over $50, go for cushioning the seats of the church.
Also, on Wednesday, a wood train backed up at the depot and smashed the express wagon, the horse narrowly escaping the carelessness.
March 1869

125 Years Ago
For Woman’s Suffrage – The women’s suffragists have arranged for county mass meetings to be held in Oneonta at the Metropolitan Theatre Wednesday and Thursday of next week. The sessions will open at 3 and 8 p.m. The object of these meetings is to discuss the advisability of amending the constitution of our state so as to enfranchise women. All persons, whatever opinion they may hold upon this subject, are invited to be present and to take part in the discussions. The leading speakers will be Susan B. Anthony, Rev. Anna H. Shaw, Mary Seymour Hall, and others. A prominent feature of the Wednesday afternoon meeting will be a “Symposium on Equal Suffrage,” in which some of the leading women of our country will take part. It is expected that people will come in from the surrounding towns and help to make this one of the most successful of any of the sixty county meetings to be held in this state during the coming months.
March 1894

80 Years Ago
Members of the House Judiciary Committee, in virtual agreement, sought a way to pigeon-hole a resolution looking toward impeachment of Secretary Frances Perkins for alleged failure to enforce the immigration laws. Although the matter had not been brought to a vote, both Republican and Democratic committeemen said they had found insufficient evidence to warrant removal of Miss Perkins. They added they would undoubtedly would end their investigation as soon as they could devise a method which would avoid charges of “whitewash.” Some committee members wanted public hearings “so we can have something to base our acquittal on.” Rep. J. Parnell (R-N.J.) introduced a resolution six weeks ago calling upon the committee to investigate charges that Miss Perkins and two of her aides were guilty of “high crimes and misdemeanors” for suspending proceedings against Harry Bridges, CIO West Coast maritime leader. Thomas accused Bridges of being an alien Communist. The Department of Labor suspended the Bridges case pending a decision by the Supreme Court whether membership in the Communist Party alone is adequate grounds for deportation.
March 1939

60 Years Ago
An internal military security unit will form in Oneonta with headquarters at the Armory, Lt. Col. Kenneth M. Coleman, commanding officer of the 42nd Internal Security Battalion, reports. Dubbed Company D, the infantry unit will be composed of 100 officers and men and will provide local security “in case of an emergency and the National Guard unit is called to active duty,” he said. Battalion headquarters is in Binghamton. Similar units are being developed in Walton, Cortland, and Elmira. All will be part of the 42nd Internal Security Battalion commanded by Colonel Coleman. The unit, which will be composed of veterans who have at least one year’s active duty would draw all its equipment from the military in the event the National Guard has to leave. The unit is set up on a nonpaid volunteer basis.
Lt. Col. Coleman said it was up to the local commanding officer how drills would be worked out.
March 1959

40 Years Ago
Seventy members of the Concerned Citizens and Taxpayers group of the Unatego School District heard Unatego High School Principal Jim Wilson say Monday night the district faced a serious alcohol and drug problem among its students. “We have a problem with alcohol, as big a problem as drugs, just like any other school. Wilson told citizens who came to the meeting to discuss the taxpayer group’s organizational plans and the need for purchasing two new school buses. Wilson noted that the problem has been found to start among the district’s fourth-graders and continue through senior high school. Several parents expressed surprise and concern when Wilson revealed that the school district has had New York State Troopers patrolling the school parking lots periodically on the lookout for alleged drug transactions.
March 1979

20 Years Ago
With every limp down the court, on each drive to the basket and in every tear she contained, Krissy Zeh fought for one more day on the court. Fifty games have passed since she has been on the losing end. Her next loss is her last game in an Oneonta uniform. But not yet. Not Friday. Zeh, the center of attention for a bruising Corning East defense, scored 35 points, leading Oneonta to a 63-41 victory in the Section Four Class B championship at the Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena. That’s 50 straight victories for Oneonta and three straight Section titles. The Yellowjackets (23-0) take on the winner of the Section One Tournament at Dutchess County Community College in Poughkeepsie.
March 1999

10 Years Ago
At a joint press briefing in Bassett President & CEO William Streck’s Cooperstown office, he and his Fox counterpart, John Remillard, announced that talks over possible shared services had turned into something more serious, and predicted the two hospitals may achieve a formal corporate affiliation by mid-summer.
March 2009