HOMETOWN HISTORY

January 21, 2021

150 Years Ago

Local: The coal bill of Bissell & Yager, for the month ending January 1, amounted to nearly $5,000.
H. Sessions fell from a scaffold on his house a few days since, from which he received quite severe injuries.
E.R. Sabin, T.N. Derby and George Bond have each drawn a silver watch from prize candy packages.
We learn that L.J. Emmons and E.G. Bixby contemplate moving to Kansas during the Spring or Summer.
S.M. Ballard has sold one-half interest in the Susquehanna House to A.C. Lewis of Cooperstown, the firm hereafter to be Ballard & Lewis.
The Round House is now completed. The work was inspected Tuesday and accepted by the company. Men are now working on the water tank. In a few days everything will be in readiness
for engines to take water while standing in the stalls.

January 1871

125 Years Ago

Oneonta: It is proposed to erect a new Congregational Church in the Village of Oneonta.
A special report from West Winfield, Herkimer County, says there are many severe cases of the grip (flu) in that section. One case, it is believed will be fatal. Six new cases, mostly among business men were reported last Friday.
The Susquehanna Journal warns Odd Fellows against a certain expelled member, who is travelling through the country beating lodges wherever he can.
County Medical Society – At the meeting held in Oneonta on Tuesday, an obituary article of the late Dr. George Merritt of Cherry Valley was read by Dr. J.K. Leaning. It was a merited tribute to the deceased.

January 1896

80 Years Ago

When Oneonta High School’s basketball team beats Cooperstown High School’s basketball team – that can be classed as news of some little significance. But when Oneonta defeats Cooperstown 51 to 24 it creates repercussions that can be felt in every nook and cranny of the high school sporting circles of the area. It was a sad exhibition upon which a large delegation of Cooperstown fans gazed last Friday night. It was the first time that Oneonta had beaten Cooperstown since February 1, 1938 when the Redskins went down 45 to 21. And it was the worst trimming the Redskins had suffered since Binghamton Central ganged up on them in March 1939 to the tune of 65-36. Oneonta richly deserved to win. The Redskins were unable to score a single field goal in the first quarter and Oneonta led 13 to 2 and never let up. The scoring totals for Oneonta:
Drago 5; Lambros 3; Hughes 21; Wetmore 2; Cymko 10; Collier 2; House 8. Baker, Swartz and Paparteys played but did not score.

January 15, 1941

60 Years Ago

Frank M. Reardon, Assistant General Storekeeper of the Delaware and Hudson Railroad in Oneonta retired Tuesday after nearly 49 years of service. Mr. Reardon entered the employ of the D. & H. on June 22, 1912 in the Transportation Department at Fort Edward where he served as a switch tender and extra trainman. Later that same year he became a Clerk at Saratoga Springs. He was promoted to Timekeeper in the Engineering Department and assigned to Oneonta in 1917 where he became an Inspector in the same department at Worcester in 1918. Mr. Reardon was transferred to the Stores Department at Rouse’s Point in April 1918 where he served as Material Clerk. He was transferred to the Stores Department at Oneonta in June 1918 where he became “Maintenance of Way” Storekeeper. He was promoted to Division Storekeeper at Oneonta in 1935 and became Assistant General Storekeeper, Purchases and Stores Department, in October 1957 with offices in Oneonta. Mr. Reardon has been outstanding in Oneonta civic affairs and is currently President of the Fox Memorial Hospital Board, Oneonta, one of many positions and roles in numerous Oneonta organizations throughout his career.

January 1961

40 Years Ago

Adirondack Mountain snows may please skiers, but for fish in mountain lakes these snows may be even more toxic than acid rain, according to preliminary research findings from Cornell University. Acid rain is precipitation polluted by large amounts of sulfur and nitrogen oxides emitted from industrial and power plants, automobiles and other man-made sources. Acid snow is its frozen counterpart. Prevailing winds carry the pollutants from large industrial areas in the Midwest to eastern North America where they mix with precipitation to form acid rain and acid snow. Scientists agree that this acid precipitation has caused substantial damage to aquatic life in New York’s Adirondack Mountain region by raising the acidity in lakes to toxic levels.

January 1981

25 Years Ago

Explaining the Language of Change – Excerpts from an essay by Barbara L. Loitsch: “This is a time of historical flux, that is, a flowing out of familiar expectations and an incoming tide of change. Computers are the catalyst. This isn’t the first time a technological advance has created sweeping change. There was the industrial revolution, mass production, electrification, introduction of automobiles, and air travel, each altering whole concepts of living. Industry is finding automation and computerization more efficient and cheaper. As a result, the “hands-on” workforce is diminished by the thousands. History will one day determine if the computer age produced the advancements promised, or if society, collectively and individually found productivity and self-worth decimated – all in the name of efficiency.

January 1996

10 Years Ago

When Ioxus President/CEO Mark McGough graduated from high school outside Pittsburgh, he had to make a choice: semi-pro soccer or Notre Dame.
“I always wanted to be in the Hall of Fame,” he said, although he chose South Bend, then went on for an advanced engineering degree at New Jersey Institute of Technology.
But lo and behold, there he was the other day, key in hand, doing a walkthrough of the National Soccer Hall of Fame’s former headquarters, which soon will house the innovative ultracapacitor-manufacturing company.

January 2011