Legal drama and military bureaucracy dominate this date’s headlines. In 1949, a brigadier general earns public ire after refusing to open Poplar Bluff’s armory to flood victims. Decades earlier, the Springfield Court of Appeals takes up a local farmer’s lawsuit against the Missouri Pacific railway.
__Jan. 25, 1924__
• The Springfield Court of Appeals denied two re-hearings in local lawsuits today but granted a third.
The denied appeals are for injury lawsuits against Missouri Pacific Railroad and A.W. Greer. Missouri Pacific must pay plaintiff Edith Holland $3,500 in damages after a train let off steam, startling her horse, which threw her to the ground. Meanwhile, Fred Smith will receive a $4,000 check from his former employer, A.W. Greer, for injuries sustained on the job.
The appeals court will re-hear the case of Alf Edmonston v. Missouri Pacific. Edmondston also sued the railway after he fell off a train while accompanying his cargo of livestock. Missouri Pacific contended Edmondston forfeited his right to damages by not giving written notice within 30 days of the accident, while Edmonston insisted he’d written two letters within that period, spoken to a railroad claim agent, and was even barred by railroad staff from boarding his train home after the accident until a doctor looked him over.
The jury ruled in favor of the railway, but the court of appeals overturned that decision and will re-hear the case when it returns to Poplar Bluff in March.
• A stroke victim somehow vanished from his family’s farm in Ellsinore and reappeared in Poplar Bluff. Andrew Ward, age 40-ish, was picked up by local police after he was observed clutching his head and crying out in distress. His brother Robert Ward worked in Poplar Bluff and was notified. He told authorities Andrew suffered recurring effects from a heat stroke several years ago, including disorientation and head pain. No one knew how he got to Poplar Bluff.
__Jan. 25, 1949__
• After days of rain, the Black River flooded a swathe of Butler County on Jan. 24 and displaced families sought refuge in Poplar Bluff. But the weather wasn’t their only obstacle: for a full day, the National Guard refused to let the Red Cross and flood refugees into the local armory.
The armory was largely funded by the city and built during WWII. Officials cited a change in regulation forbidding organizations from using the building for free, even though it had sheltered natural disaster victims at no cost in the past.
A scathing editorial published alongside the article lambasted the regulations. “Dances can be held there for $22.50 and 10 per cent at the gate — but no refugees, driven from their homes by an act of God, are permitted.”
The Red Cross unsuccessfully sought out then-Gov. Forrest C. Smith last night. Today, the Daily American Republic managed to phone Missouri’s adjutant general, Brig. Gen. John A. Harris, who claimed a federal inspection was underway and “use of the armory for refugees interferred [sic] with activities of the National Guard.”
The newspaper representative replied with heavy criticism of Harris’ priorities and he eventually agreed to open the armory. A time frame was not given, but it is assumed the estimated 200 refugees could be allowed in tonight. Displaced residents are currently sheltering at the Missouri Pacific rail station, courthouse, American Legion and VFW, and in private homes.
• The cause of mysterious midnight explosions that rattled Poplar Bluff on Jan. 24 are revealed. Although they sounded like artillery fire, the source was a backfiring bus.
Witness Gilbert Finney reported one Missouri Pacific bus trying to tow another on Highway 67 to restart its engine. The bus backfired for about half an hour before finally restarting. The noise was heard across Poplar Bluff.
“I watched it for quite a while. It really made some racket,” Finney said.
__Jan. 25, 1974__
• 18-year-old Randy Copeland was arrested yesterday after police confiscated $800 worth of marijuana from his trailer home. The bust followed three months of investigation by city police. Copeland’s wife, age 16, was placed into the custody of juvenile authorities. Their seven-month-old baby was taken to Edgewood Children’s Home.