Today’s a lively date in local history. Readers learned of a governor’s unlucky fishing trip in 1924 and a massive attempt to bribe local councilmen in 1949. The front page in 1974 was doubly dramatic, with the mass resignation of the Butler County Volunteer Fire Department and an international manhunt for murder suspects.
100 years ago
July 19, 1924
• Missouri Gov. Arthur Hyde might be jinxed. His last hunting trip in Southeast Missouri ended when his houseboat caught fire, and on his latest visit, he managed to cast a fishhook into the eye of the state game commissioner.
Hyde and several others went fishing on the Current River in Ripley County two weeks ago. Commissioner Frank H. Wielandy was sitting behind him and got hooked by a stray cast. The misfortunes didn’t end there — the boat’s motor died and it had to be towed back to civilization, then the physician arrived without the pincers he needed to remove the fishhook’s barb. The crew found and sharpened a pair of mechanic’s pliers, allowing him to nip off the end of the hook and remove it.
The little luck on the trip was all Wielandy’s. The hook punctured his cornea, but narrowly missed his pupil. The commissioner was reportedly a good sport throughout the ordeal.
75 years ago
July 19, 1949
• The Poplar Bluff City Council was shocked to learn local tavern owners raised a massive “slush fund” to swing its vote on liquor ordinances.
Mayor E.W. Robinson told the board local bar owners were “assessed” by their peers to raise a bribe for the city government. The Daily American Republic and “other authorities” also received this information through multiple channels over the past few days. It was confirmed by a tavern owner whose name went unprinted.
“We understood that part of this money was to be used to handle the Mayor and Council,” he said.
The money raised was $425 — according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, this is equivalent to over $5,500 in today’s money.
The vote that inspired the bribe was on whether to reduce the number of taverns in city limits. The council voted to limit taverns through two separate proposals.
50 years ago
July 19, 1975
• Most of the Butler County Volunteer Fire Department resigned today over longtime opposition and inadequate funding. As of midnight tonight, it will no longer respond to calls.
A prepared statement read, “Their decision stems from actions of the Citizens for Fair Taxation group who have continually opposed the fire district,” plus underfunding by the department board. However, if the board of directors “moves in a way to bring about adequate fire protection which includes providing money for fire stations and equipment, they (the firemen) would be ready to continue providing fire protection.”
BCVFD Chairman Larry Hendrickson called for community support and promised to do everything possible to “make this a good fire protection district.” He blamed board members Harry Templemire and Louis Kalkbrenner for stymieing measures to improve funding.
The mass resignation comes in the wake of longtime instability. A petition to remove Templemire and Kalkbrenner was recently submitted to the circuit court, alleging their actions led to “grossly inadequate” funding.
• Surveyors visited a murder scene today to pave the way for prosecution. The hunt for the suspects is going international.
The body of Riley H. Hastings, a 59-year-old Steele man, was found in the Gatewood area of Mark Twain National Forest three weeks ago. S.H. Smith Consulting Engineering will determine which county the site is in, Ripley or Oregon.
Meanwhile, the hunt for the suspects stretches upwards into Canada. Young couple Pogey and Valerie Sue Schmidt are accused of murdering Hastings with his own shotgun for his cash and belongings. They were last seen leaving the Buffalo Creek campground in his truck on June 23. Hastings’ body was found four days later.
Two postcards to Valerie Schmidt’s mother in St. Louis suggest the fugitives fled to Canada. The first was mailed July 1 from North Dakota and said they were en route to Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, which spans the border. The second was sent from Montana three days later and confirmed those plans. Canadian authorities are on alert — a bulletin was issued to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Schmidts were added to Canada’s computerized crime database.
Investigators believed the Schmidts switched Hastings’ license plates with stolen ones to avoid detection.