The newspaper has called out the Poplar Bluff City Council in 1949 for illegally holding a confidential executive session. In other news, politics visits Poplar Bluff and May is named Senior Citizens Month.
__100 years ago__
May 17, 1924
• A farmer-turned-candidate visited Poplar Bluff today during his tour of Southeast Missouri. Dr. A.W. Nelson of Bunceton is seeking the Democratic nomination for governor and spent the day meeting and greeting in Poplar Bluff, speaking highly of SEMO’s agricultural industry and expressing solidarity with local farmers.
__75 years ago__
May 17, 1924
• The Daily American Republic blasted the Poplar Bluff City Council in today’s edition for holding an illegal “secret meeting.”
Council members voted to hold a confidential session after a regular meeting last night, and everyone, including the DAR’s reporter, was ordered to clear the room. The reporter pointed out media were almost never excluded from council meetings, so to back its decision the council read the city ordinance on executive sessions: that whenever “confidential communications” came from the mayor, the council was permitted to clear the room, discuss it and rule on whether it should be public knowledge or not.
There were two problems with this: the council discussed and ruled on multiple matters during the secret session, and Mayor E.W. Robinson himself told the newspaper today the secret session was unnecessary, as was excluding the press.
“I don’t think it will ever be necessary to have a secret meeting of the Council while I am serving as Mayor,” he said.
The minutes of the secret session showed three firemen and two policemen were confirmed and the city health officer’s appointment allowed to expire. Fire and police department employments were hotly debated at a previous meeting. As for the city health officer, Robinson announced those duties were covered by the county health officer and sanitary engineer.
The secret session lasted an hour.
• In anticipation of “Southeast Missouri’s most beautiful theater” opening, Mayor E.W. Robinson designated June 1 as Rodgers Theatre Day.
__50 years ago__
May 17, 1974
• May is Senior Citizens Month in Poplar Bluff. According to the 1970 census, 20% of Butler County’s 33,500 residents were over age 60. Local resources and programs for seniors include:
• The Service Center, a recreational group providing art classes, bus trips, games, movies, dances and more.
• Altrusa Club, which provides meals for seniors at the Twin Towers and runs Senior Citizens Out of Town, a.k.a. the SCOOT bus.
• The Retired Senior Volunteer Program, which provides opportunities for retirees to volunteer in hospitals, schools and more.
• Southeast Missouri Transportation System’s bus in Butler County.
• The Butler County Council on Aging.
• The Foster Grandparent Program in Poplar Bluff and Sikeston, linking volunteer grandparents with children in the cities’ Regional Diagnostic Clinics.