Looking Back: 1937 - Search on for water sources

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One year ago

Minnesota West Community and Technical College signed an articulation agreement with Buena Vista University of Storm Lake, Iowa, giving the community college “even more options for continuing their educations,” according to campus dean Dawn Gordon.

Judge Timothy Connell retired from full-time judicial work after having presided over southwest Minnesota courtrooms for the past 24 years.

Minnesota West Homecoming royalty included Tasha Sipaseut, queen, and Derek Stenzel, king.

The final Honor Flight to Washington, D.C., for southwest Minnesota veterans took place over the weekend, with 109 veterans participating.

Minnesota West’s enrollment figures showed about 160 fewer students for 2011-12 than during the previous year. At present, 2,967 students were enrolled.

After 32 years of working with Rock-Nobles Community Corrections, Kathy Reker retired.

Five years ago

The 57th annual Tri-State Band Festival took place in Luverne, with 15 bands marching in the parade competition and 17 participating in the field contest.

Tacos Lupe, owned by Francisco Resendiz and Humberto Piceno, opened at the former site of Club de Leones in downtown Worthington.

Dovray residents volunteered to keep the Dovray Café in business.

Sarah Boever was crowned queen and Joseph Ahrens was named king of the Worthington High School Homecoming festivities this week.

Student enrollment increased about 3.4 percent in District 518 schools this year, a reversal of the prevailing enrollment decline across Greater Minnesota. As of Oct. 1, 2,290 students were enrolled in District 518 schools, versus 2,214 the previous year.

Swift & Co. was approved to begin construction of a building over an existing county tile line on the northeast side of Worthington.

The Heron Lake BioEnergy plant began production on Sept. 21, three years after plans for the facility were first announced.

10 years ago

Luverne hosted the 52nd annual Tri-State Band Festival, with 18 bands participating in the parade competition and 11 in the field show.

KM Graphics hosted an open house at its new location on 1036 Oxford St., Worthington.

Hog prices recently dipped below $20 per 100 weight, while farmers typically need $41-42 per 100 weight to cover their costs, according to Jackson County Extension Educator Jim Nesseth.

Nick Raymo was crowned king and Lakeyta Potter was chosen queen for Worthington High School’s Homecoming week.

Concerns about air quality and water supplies were slowing progress on plans for the Minnesota Soybean Processors plant in Brewster. Groundbreaking was scheduled to take place later in October.

25 years ago

Featured recipes in Dorthy Rickers’ “Mixing and Musing” column this week were Everlasting Salad, Magic Finger Jello and Stuffed Pepper Cups.

Sue Rose was named the Worthington Regional Hospital Employee of the Month. Rose was a respiratory technician who also helped out in the pharmacy department at times.

Two unrelated car thefts resulted in three arrests in Nobles County late last week.

With reported “great yields” coming from soybean fields in the region, the challenge of finding room for the bountiful harvest was before elevator managers. Some elevators were reporting that their bins were filled and they had resorted to dumping beans on the ground. A primary problem was not enough rail cars to service the overflowing elevators.

Jackson officials announced another new industry was coming to town —Technical Services for Electronics, Inc., based in Arlington. The new company was to hire about 60 people, with some of the jobs requiring the electronic assembly skills possessed by former employees of Unisys.

50 years ago

Three cars, carrying a total of 14 people, were involved in a collision Sunday at 4:30 p.m. on Highway 16 seven miles east of Worthington. Officers said only one person was injured seriously enough to require immediate medical attention, but at least three others had sprained backs or necks.

Worthington Junior College instructor Leonard Neil spent the past summer doing advanced studies at the University of Mississippi. He commented that the color barrier at the school had long since been broken for every race except Negroes. That was one of the paradoxes reported by Neil against a background of racial strife at the school.

75 years ago

Worthington turned its attention to an area south of the city in its quest for an adequate city water supply after giving up the latest pasture well, one tested near the north end of the city tract. The water and light commission had ordered new surveys and was awaiting results of a test on the Mr. Voak farm near Org. Explorations revealed an insufficient supply in the tests north of the city, and Commissioner R. M. Richardson was not overly enthusiastic over prospects on the Voak place. Luverne seemed to be another city which, like Worthington, was concerned about its water supply.

Fear that Tom Bruns, Ellsworth farmer, might lose the thumb and two other fingers was expressed today by physicians attending to his injuries at George, Iowa, where Bruns was taken after an accident last week. The digits were badly mangled, and amputation was feared necessary. The injuries were suffered as Bruns tried to snatch some sticks from the rollers of a corn picker being demonstrated in the yard of his home. The machine had just been delivered by the dealer.

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