KILGOROUND

THE ANNUAL Kilgore Chamber of Commerce banquet is scheduled Feb. 16 at 6:30 p.m. at the Kilgore High School Cafeteria. Guest speaker will be Miles McCall, president of Lon Morris College. More about that later.

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LAIRD MEMORIAL Hospital has opened a new section dedicated to the well-being of senior citizens. New Directions offers counseling, meals, fun activities and more. Dr. Sharon Necessary is the director of the new area. Interested persons should call (903)98343555.

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IF YOU’RE missing one of the smiling faces at city hall, it must be Joyce Speer. Joyce has been under the weather for a while and is in the hospital. Get well Joyce!

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JUST to clarify a point, Mike Green’s new vehicle -the retro-looking Chevy, is not dark blue. Well, it is and it isn’t. Depending on the temperature the vehicle is either dark blue, green or purple.

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THE OILPATCH Kiwanis Club will host U.S. Rep. Louie Gohmert at their 7 a.m. meeting Friday, Jan. 27. The club meets at tKilgore Public Library.

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THIS year, the Kilgore News Herald is celebrating its 75th anniversary, and I’ve been looking at some back issues.

GEE, not only has the design changed but advertising and editorial content has as well. But, then, what would you expect after 75 years? So today I want to share some of the KNH history with you.

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THE JUNE 17, 1932, issue reported Gregg County divorces at a high. “Government figures 91 decrees, 218 marriages in 1931,” it reads. Wonder what that would read today?

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IN A GREGG County raid, more than 1,000 bottles of beer were found by deputies near Liberty (City?). “Deputies in a raid upon a wholesale beer joint, said to have been doing a rushing business, destroyed 1,013 bottles and four 12-gallon containers full of beer. The joint was located near Liberty.”

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THERE was an apparent flour war between grocery stores that year. S. Stiles Grocery and Market advertised 48 pounds of flour for $1 while the A System Grocery and Market sold 48 pounds for 98 cents.

BABY beef or veal sold for 9 cents a pound, fresh dressed fryers were 21 cents a pound and fresh dressed hens were 14 cents a pound.

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THE CRIM Theater was showing Bob Steele in “Riders of the Desert,” followed by Joan Bennett and Spencer Tracy in “She Wanted a Millionaire.” Tickets sold for 5 15 cents. Showing at the Strand, which was “cooled by washed air,” was John Barrymore in “State’s Attorney.”

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GUESS who is also celebrating an anniversary this year? The “Don’t Mess with Texas” campaign. I really didn’t realize it started in 1985. The world’s first adopted highway (Highway 69 north of Loop 323) was cleaned in Tyler by the Tyler Civitans. Here are a few more tidbits about the DMWT program. Blues guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughn was the first Texas celebrity to say “Don’t Mess with Texas” in the first television ad. In 1998, Generation Litterer or Gen L (the biggest litters) was identified as males and females ages 16 to 24. Some 1.25 billion pieces of litter accumulate on Texas roadsides annually.

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BLOWING out birthday candles today are David Stanley, Roger Patterson, Margaret Griffin, John Burton, J. Robert Floyd, Billie Alexander, Robin Dorney, Tammy Pickens, Rebekah Chico, Michael James Moore, Gore Kemp, Pauline Quinn, Lee Ware, Mrs. Diana Myers, Gwynda Gee, Michael W. Williams, Patricia Wheat, Kurton Rossum, Dakota Jackson, Button Sands.

Anniversary greetings go to Mr. and Mrs. Johnny Rucker.