Saturday, October 12, 2024
BONE YARD
Mr. and Mrs. Skeleton take their dog for an evening walk at W. Broadway and Miller. | photo by JACK BOYCE
NORTHERN LIGHTS
The Northern Lights were visible throughout a swath of the country late Thursday, with this shot showing the view near CR 800 N and State Road 9. | photo by SHANAE DEES
NOTEBOOK:
The Shelbyville High School No. 1 tennis doubles team, comprised of Aiden Smith and Wyatt Armstrong, triumphed in sectional action yesterday, 6-0, 6-3, over Perry Meridian, to advance to Regionals, which will be hosted at Fishers, Saturday, Oct. 19.
Closed home sales were up substantially last month in Shelby County, from 42 in August to 61 in September. It was the best September for local home sales since September 2021, when 62 homes sold.
Adjusted Gross Revenue was down slightly last month at Indianapolis Horseshoe Casino in Shelbyville, from $22.2 million in August to $21.7 million last month. AGR in September 2023 was $23.3 million.
St. Joseph Catholic Church’s Oktoberfest is set for next Saturday, Oct. 19, 5 - 9:30 p.m. The German feast will be on the St. Joe green space. Food will be eat-in or carry-out.
The City of Shelbyville will reveal its new branding at a public session, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 5:30 p.m., at the Intelliplex Conference Center, 2154 Intelliplex Dr. (Editor’s note: The time was added to this post from yesterday.)
NATIONAL NEWS: For a while everyone was obsessed with “blue zones,” regions where due to lifestyle, diet and any number of fascinating causes, people were remarkably long-lived. But researchers have since reported that the key thing linking these communities together was “poor recordkeeping and lots of benefits fraud,” or people either pretending to be older than they actually were so as to obtain senior benefits early or not reporting the death of a person so as to continue to receive their social security. (Man, we were really banking on “olive oil and light exercise.”) Anyway, a new preprint examined data from 236 states and nations and found that the places with lots of centenarians tended to be places with bad recordkeeping, such as Okinawa, Japan, where the birth records were destroyed during American bombing raids and which has conspicuously more centenarians. When Greece audited its centenarians, 72 percent of them disappeared, and when Costa Rica investigated theirs, 42 percent were lying. (NPR/Numlock)
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SHS Courier Archive Highlights:
December 16, 1966
Students submitted letters to Santa. Mike Asher assured Santa he had made an “all out” effort to please his teachers. They had said they didn’t want to see him come to class unprepared, so he was only showing up “on the average of twice a week.” Asher asked for a special hunting license for “bunnies,” which he said were popular “in areas like Chicago, Los Angeles and New York.” He added, “P.S. Bring me a 5’5” blue-eyed blonde surprise.” Kevin Shaner asked that Mr. Sever receive a white rat “that wouldn’t bite poor Jerry Berry.” He also asked that Mrs. Thurston receive a voodoo doll in the likeness of David Ogden. Gingi Branson asked for “a free haircut at Crosby’s Barber Shop.”
New Year’s Resolutions were also listed. Michelle Wyszynski resolved to teach Mr. Blind how to say her name. Rod Dickmann resolved not to get his hair cut anymore. Mike Lemerick resolved to quit acting conceited, “even though I am handsome.” Mike Kelley resolved not to fight in Student Council.
The “Have You Noticed…?” section included: Dianne Skinner and Bonnie Ellison arguing in home management? The boys throwing pennies in last hour study hall? Jeff Walker putting down female drivers? The way the curtains shrank in Mrs. Butler’s room when laundered? Judy Phares’ crumpled fender? Janie Miller and Candy Edwards begging off detention? Sue Graham not getting out of it?
The “Happiness Is…” section included: For Mr. Boyd - mopping up Coke off the gym floor; For Tim Ash - a piece of gum to chew during the ball game. For Pete Jarvis and Mike Wilson - Summer Blonde. For Bill Hensley - catching up on his sleep in class.
Pet Peeves were listed: Pepper Higgins - cats; Jeff Walker - The noise in 6th hour study hall interferes with my sleeping; John Cunningham - All the whistling, frisky construction workers.
This Day in Shelby County History
News around Shelbyville and the surrounding area as reported on or about this date in history. Selections are curated from the Shelby County Public Library Genealogy Department.
2014: Editor’s note: Due to a microfilm processing error, the 2014 section for the next couple of weeks will serve to memorialize a local individual who passed away that year.) Tommie E. Ellerman, 75, died. He had been born in Rushville to Chester and Mabel Ellerman. He married Donna Sue Davis on Sept. 14, 1957, and she survived in St. Paul. He was survived by his son, Douglas Ellerman. Tommie started Ellerman Roofing in 1957 and was joined by his son in 1976. He was still an active partner at the time of his death.
2004: Knauf officials announced the company was staying in Shelbyville and would add a $150 million expansion. The new plant would cover roughly 400,000 square feet of warehousing and production facilities and would give Knauf 50 percent more production capacity for industrial and commercial products.
1994: More than 1,000 government officials elected Shelbyville Mayor Bob Williams to the executive committee of the Indiana Association of Cities and Towns. He would serve in an at-large position and help formulate policy for the organization.
1984: Major T. Jester was one of 40 members in on an agreement by a delegation of Taiwanese officials to buy nearly $38 million in Indiana corn.
First Christian Church celebrated its 150th anniversary. The church had been organized in 1834, and members met at their homes until a second-story room was procured at the corner of Washington St. and Public Square. It later moved to the old Shelby County Courthouse, also on Public Square. The first church building was built in 1867 at the corner of Pike and Franklin streets. Twenty years later, additional rooms were built at the back of the church. In 1900, that building was sold to another congregation and the present First Christian Church building was constructed. Until construction was finished, the congregation met in a hall at Washington and Pike streets. The present building served in its original form until the 1940s. Then, an addition was planned, with construction starting in 1949. Another addition was built in 1968. Rev. James Horner had been pastor since 1958.
1974: Guinness officially named Sandy Allen, 19, a clerk-stenographer at the Indiana State Board of Animal Health, the tallest woman in the world. Allen was seven feet, five inches and weighed 421 pounds. Allen had written Guinness to let them know she was taller than their listed tallest woman. “I thought that if I had to be tall, I’d rather be the tallest woman in the world,” Allen said. “I am hoping now to have some fun and make some money being tall instead of having to spend extra money because of it.” Allen was born in Chicago but lived most of her life in Shelbyville. She had played basketball her freshman year, but a knee injury made her unable to walk long distances from then on. She wanted to bicycle, but kept breaking the back spokes.
1964: Janet Grigsby, 17, was named Teen of the Month at the Rec. A senior at SHS and member of the Junior Rec Board, Janet was editor of The Courier, and reported school news for The Shelbyville News. She was also a Girls State representative and was active in Forum, Booster Club and Spanish Club.
1954: The annual campaign to secure funding for Booker T. Washington Recreation Center began. David Howard, a Korean War veteran who had been awarded the Silver Star, headed up the drive. Funds would help establish a Boys Boxing Club. Committee members were Maxine Phillips, Nellie Smith, Burton Lyvers, Charles Murray, Esther Robertson, Mrs. Brashear, Morris Roberson, Doris Bennett, Maude Bennett, Anna May Byrd, Richard Byrd, Virgie Pettis and Earlene Smith.
City Food Plan, Inc. opened at 15 West Broadway, in a building that formerly housed the Meloy Gift Shop.
1944: All activity stopped at the Noblitt-Sparks plant in Franklin for a silent tribute to two Shelbyville men and factory employees who had died in the war effort: Pfc. Russell Pike and Pfc. Logan (Johnny) Chappelow.
1934: The Indiana Supreme Court overturned a conviction against Sarah B. Wood, 80, Shelbyville, who would have had to spend one to five years at the Indiana Women’s Prison for unlawful possession of a still and intoxicating liquor. The items were found in Wood’s basement in a secret room reached by two entrances, but Wood rented the house. The Court ruled it could not definitively say she was responsible.
1924: A rat in The Republican press room had managed to evade capture for weeks. But Raymond Huesman finally spotted him. “In less than a minute, Jim Creech, Otto Banker, Paul Hall, Hank Seifert, Charley Slifer and the entire force of the ‘front end’ were in pursuit,” the paper said. “All the men were armed with pieces of gas pipes, moving bars and other implements heavy enough to kill an ox.” The men won.
1914: A Greensburg man leased the Shelbyville City Opera House. The man would be able to pay all his expenses, then the city would collect 70 percent of profits.
OBITUARIES
None today.
I remember seeing the photos of Russell Pike and Johnny Chappelow on the west wall of the Bengal Christian Church sanctuary. Wonder if they are still there, where they are, why they were there, or why I would remember this? A mystery to solve!