HOMETOWN HISTORY, June 13, 2014

125 Years Ago
That the people of Oneonta are thoroughly aroused over the street paving question, was shown by the large turnout of citizens at the meeting last evening of village trustees. A petition generally signed by property owners along Main Street was presented to the board, asking that the street be macadamized. The key to the situation appears to be with the street car company. If it will consent to pave between the tracks with asphalt, it is thought certain that asphalt will be laid; if not, the paving of Main Street may have to be postponed for the present. The position of the street car company it is but fair to add, is that as at present it is making no money and is in debt, it is not in a position to incur the heavy expenditure that would follow the laying of asphalt. On motion of Mr. Price it was resolved that a committee of two be appointed by the chair to meet and confer with the street railway company on the matter.
June 1889

100 Years Ago
One of the pressing needs of this city, which is quite generally recognized among business and professional men generally and often discussed when they meet, is a live and active Chamber of Commerce embracing all those earnestly desiring to promote the communal welfare of the city. Such organization should have a salaried secretary and collect annual dues of an amount that would place a considerable sum in the treasury each year for promotion purposes. It is a disgrace that every time some funds are needed for a public purpose that the paper goes round and liberally inclined subscribe while many others equally interested are missed. Oneonta should have such an organization and the time for action should no longer be deferred. It needs a live and active commercial body of all the business and professional men, real estate and property owners, embracing at least 200 members with annual dues of at least $20. It is firmly believed that every business firm could make no more profitable investment than $20 a year.
June 1914

60 Years Ago
Oneonta, Otsego and Delaware Counties will participate in the first international coast-to-coast civil defense test ever held on Monday. Fire sirens will sound at 10 a.m. for a “Red Warning.” The all-clear will be sounded 10 minutes later. In between, all persons have been requested to take shelter, Otsego County Civil Defense Commissioner Bert Lowe said. Auxiliary state and city police will halt all motor traffic to keep the roads clear. Highway traffic should pull to the side of the road and wait for the all-clear signal. Mr. Lowe said that although the test is day-long, the public will be asked to participate for only the ten minutes in the morning. The Otsego County Control Center at Cooperstown will be on 24-hour duty. The Otsego County sirens will be set off at the Oneonta Fire Radio Control Center.
June 1954

40 Years Ago
Oneonta’s three mini-buses have arrived from Ohio but it will be mid-July before the system is ready to operate. Because the buses will be dispatched by radio, the city must obtain a license from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The office for the mini-bus system is being built on the second floor of the Wilber Mansion and the radio equipment has been ordered. Two dispatchers and six drivers will be hired by the city and application has been made for federal funds to pay the personnel costs. The bus fare has been tentatively set at 65 cents per ride. The route will extend throughout the city and to the town’s major shopping areas. One of the buses will be used primarily to provide service from the Oneonta State campus to the business district.
June 1974

30 Years Ago
The U.S. House of Representatives voted Tuesday to require every U.S. employer of four or more workers to make certain that his employees have a legal right to be in the United States. The House also voted to exempt employers of three or fewer workers from all provisions of the immigration control bill. That would mean for example that households that hire illegal aliens as maids, child care workers or laborers would not be subject to civil or criminal penalties. But, labor contractors who bring migrant workers into the country would still be covered, even if they hire three or fewer. The proposal to exempt small employers was offered by Rep. Sam Hall, (D-Texas) and carried by voice vote. Hall said that subjecting small employers to the bill’s provisions would represent “a threat to mom and pop operations, the shop owners and employers of Main Street, U.S.A.” The proposal to require employers of four or more workers to attest, under penalty of law, that their employees are eligible to work in this country was adopted by a 321-97 vote.
June 1984

20 Years Ago
U.S. Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan said in a prepared statement regarding proposed legislation now before the Senate that would establish universal health care: “The plan’s guiding principles are – everyone should be included; there should be a single standard of care; medical care should be easily accessible; the healthcare system should be administered fairly and efficiently and people should retain the right to choose among available providers of health care.” Moynihan’s version of the bill has been criticized for its lack of coverage for long-term care, pre-existing conditions, prescription coverage, and portability.
June 1994

10 Years Ago
With about 7,000 dairy farms producing more than 12.2 billion pounds of milk annually, New York is the nation’s third largest dairy state. The average dairy farm in the state is family-owned and has 95 cows producing an average of 18,019 pounds of milk annually. In Delaware County this weekend the Meredith Dairy Fest will run for two days to celebrate “everything dairy.” About 25,000 people attended last year’s event. There is no entry fee. Farm animals of every type, large and small, will be on display. There will be milking demonstrations, wool-spinning, and horse-shoeing as well.
June 2004