The Mountain Eagle
WHITESBURG WEATHER

The way we were





Clips from Mountain Eagle front pages over the past 50 years

December 5, 1957

Former Whitesburg Fire Chief Remious Day was reappointed to his old job by members of the city council at their meeting Monday night. Day replaces Harold Day, who resigned.

Two new businesses are opening up in Letcher County. The Jack Call Piano Company of Bluefield, W.Va., has opened a store for sale of pianos in the building formerly occupied by Quillen Drug Co. Curtis Adams is building an auction house for furniture sales at Isom. He and Ivan Childers will serve as auctioneers.

Emmett G. Fields, Whitesburg, said this week he is considering contesting the validity of some absentee votes cast in Letcher County in his race against Courtney C. Wells for the office of circuit judge of Letcher and Perry counties. Fields indicated he might file suit in an attempt to have some of the absentee ballots declared illegal.

Frying chickens are on sale for 29 cents a pound at the A&P Food Store in Whitesburg. Leg o’ lamb is 79 cents a pound.

December 7, 1967

“Night of Miracles”, a Christmas cantata, will be sung by the combined choirs of the Methodist and Presbyterian churches. It will be presented at a candlelight service in the Graham Memorial Presbyterian Church on Sunday, Dec. 17, at 5 p.m.

After an opening loss to Letcher High School, the Jenkins Cavaliers took two basketball games over the weekend. Jenkins won by 34 points over the Cumberland Redskins and defeated M.C. Napier 69-37.

Rib roast is on sale for 79 cents at the Whitesburg A&P. Chuck roast is 45 cents a pound.

December 7, 1977 This issue of The Mountain Eagle could not be found.

December 9, 1987

A Letcher Circuit Court jury will begin hearing testimony later this week that will help determine a punishment for confessed killer Donald Terry Bartley. Bartley, 29, of Evarts in Harlan County, pleaded guilty last spring to taking part in the August 1985 murder of 23- year-old Tammy Dee Acker and the robbery and attempted murder of her physician father, 79-year-old Roscoe J. Acker of Fleming- Neon.

If Letcher Countians want to make serious efforts to create new jobs and find sustenance for themselves and their descendants here in their native hills they will find their prospects somewhat encouraging. The elements they will have to supply are spiritual: self confidence and relentless ambition, write Harry M. Caudill.

Two bands from all four high schools in Letcher County participated as a group in Gov. Wallace Wilkinson’s inaugural parade. The Letcher County All-County Band consisted of 181 members including flag corps, auxiliary corps, a field commander from each school, and a featured twirler.

December 10, 1997

Darrell Looney, 62, is the first Letcher County native to win a Lotto Kentucky jackpot. The winning ticket was purchase in Bowling Green were Looney moved less than three weeks ago. The jackpot won by Looney was official $6.3 million but because he chose the cash option, he claimed a lump sum prize of $3.74 million. He got to keep $2,543,200 after taxes.

The official unemployment rate in Letcher County fell to 8.8 percent in October, state officials said this week. The rate for September had been 10.2 percent/

Ralph Hall of Whitesburg, believes the slain police officer sought by a national group of officers probably was his maternal grandfather, Wild Jenkins, who was shot and killed when he went to arrest a drunk at the old KY Hotel on Main Street in Whitesburg in 1914. The officers seeking information about Jenkins are erecting a National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial.


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