HOMETOWN HISTORY, August 16, 2013

100 Years Ago
Melvin A. Warner, a D&H boilermaker residing at 32 Gilbert Street, was struck by switch engine No. 48 about 100 south of the Main Street tower in the yards at 8:30 o’clock Monday night and mangled almost beyond recognition. The engine was backing toward the station on the northbound lead and neither engineer Myron Morse nor conductor Bruce Campbell knew that they had struck anyone. The body was found between the rails of the track by engineer McGuinness of Carbondale, who was walking up to the city from the roundhouse. Death must have been instantaneous, but from the evidence shown by bits of flesh and blood scattered along the track the body was bowled along a distance of fifty feet or more. Both legs were severed below the knee. Both arms were cut off below the elbow and the head hung to the torso by a mere tendon. The entire left side of his body and head was so badly crushed that it was unrecognizable even to men with whom he had worked for many years.
August 1913

80 Years Ago
Shoppers from all parts of the Oneonta community, many from a distance of 30 to 50 miles, thronged this city yesterday for the semi-annual cooperative Dollar Day arranged by merchants and bought heavily and wisely. Because of the low prices prevailing, the dollar volume of business was generally about the same as a year ago, but measured in commodities in many stores a substantial increase was noticed. While the small items were popular, as were final summer clearances of apparel, there was a general demand for all and winter merchandise. Many shoppers bought in anticipation of rising prices which have already taken effect in many wholesale lines and must soon reach the retail levels.
August 1933

60 Years Ago
Heavy rains last night forced area residents to scurry to shelter and flooded Bovina Center, causing thousands of dollars of damage. Bovina Center, at the foot of the Catskills, was temporarily cut off from the rest of civilization about 8:30 p.m. when the Little Delaware River went on a rampage after a cloudburst. Some communities reported no rain at all, but in Bovina Center, Clayton Thomas said “a wall of water all of a sudden hit ka-boom.” Thomas said his garage and its contents were ruined as were hundreds of sacks of feed in the Hilson Brothers Feed Store. A vacant tenant house floated into the middle of Pink Street brook. Fire Chief Floyd Aiken of Bovina said damage would run into thousands of dollars. “It’s a terrible mess. Cellars are flooded, sidewalks and streets ripped and foundations undermined.”
August 1953

40 Years Ago
The long-run viability of our dairy industry is threatened by a succession of events according to 27th District Congressman Howard W. Robinson who released a statement while attending the Delaware County Fair. “The price freeze has had an unanticipated adverse effect on the New York dairy industry. The after effects of Tropical Storm Agnes that resulted in shortages of feed grain and roughage and poor crop conditions this spring along with flooding in Delaware County and other areas, and sky-rocketing feed grain costs have come together to place the dairy industry in New York State in jeopardy. Milk production continues to drop as farmers, because of the high prices they can obtain for cows destined to be slaughtered, sell off part, or often all, their herds.” Congressman Robinson is calling for emergency hearings so dairy farmers can have the opportunity to present their case for increased prices.
August 1973

30 Years Ago
Construction of the new fitness trail in Wilber Park is right on schedule with 12 of the 20 exercise stations already installed. “We’re moving along fine,” said Lucia Colone, coordinator of the Oneonta Youth Employment Service Youth Center. Colone designed the six-week job-training program that put local youngsters to work constructing the trail. “The hardest part is digging some of the post holes,” she said. “In some sections of the park, the ground is rocky.” The remaining eight stations of the fitness trail should be installed within the next two weeks. During the last two weeks of the program, the youths will be involved with promoting the trail, as well as learning how each station should be used and the health benefits of the various exercises. The $3,600 job-training program, in which 10 youths are paid $60 a week, was funded by a $1,800 grant from the Oneonta Common Council and a matching grant from the State Division for Youth. The youths are paid $2.40 an hour and put in five hours a day. The project is supervised by the city engineering department.
August 1983

20 Years Ago
Speaking in Denver, Colorado on Friday, Pope John Paul II challenged U.S. bishops on Friday to take special care of young Catholics. He then sent them throughout the city to evangelize “the church of today and tomorrow.” The pope, on the second day of his U.S. visit for World Youth Day appeared in good spirits. The pope greeted American bishops summoned to Denver to show the Roman Catholic Church’s concern for a difficult-to-reach generation that has shown a declining interest in some religious practices. As American bishops left the cathedral to meet with young people from their home dioceses, the pope met briefly with youngsters at a high school. Then he retreated to the Rocky Mountains for a day of hiking and rest.
August 1993

10 Years Ago
A power outage that began shortly after 4 p.m. on Thursday kept many area towns dark well into the night. Many outlying towns, including Walton, Sidney and Downsville didn’t have power as of 11 p.m. Thursday, and parts of Oneonta, Cobleskill and Norwich also were without power. In Oneonta, lower Main Street had electricity, as did parts of Chestnut Street and the Southside. But Main Street’s business district and many nearby residences did not. Kathy King, NYSEG’s Oneonta area spokeswoman said about 68,000 people across Otsego, Delaware and Chenango and parts of eight other counties were still in the dark at 11 p.m.
August 2003