125 Years

March 23, 1892

John Heiser, who makes the celebrated Eagle plows, had 600 of these ready for the spring trade, and thought he had enough. They all left his ware room last week and he is at it again. He makes six plows every day, and will keep at it indefinitely.

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The fairgrounds committee will meet tomorrow afternoon. It will visit the fairgrounds and will recommend to the board of directors such improvements as the visit will suggest. It is understood that several members of the committee are strongly in favor of enlarging the grandstand by an addition of 60 feet. The improvement will pay for itself for two fairs.

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George W. Hull, state fish and game warden, will bring a car load of fish to Sidney tomorrow and place them in Tawawa lake.

100 Years

March 23, 1917

James Papas has sold the Colonial restaurant to Aleck Zygomalas and Steve Peters, both of Dayton. Both are experienced restaurant men and have taken over the operation. A Greek by birth, Mr. Zygomalas is a naturalized American citizen and has served five years with the U.S. Calvary, three years of which were spent in the Philippine Islands.

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At a meeting of the city park commission last evening, a number of residents of the Fourth ward were present and discussed the development of a park and planting of trees along the Glennova addition near the fairgrounds.

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As a “house warming” for the new rooms of the Phi Delta Kappa fraternity the members invited a number of friends to enjoy an evening of cards and dancing last night. The new Victrola furnished the music for the evening. Mr. and Mrs. S.V. Wilcutts were the chaperones.

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A complimentary dinner was given at the K. of P. lodge last evening for the 30 members of the cast that presented the K. of P. minstrel several weeks ago.

75 Years

March 23, 1942

Members of the cast for the junior play to be presented next weekend at Sidney High school include: Mary Bess Joslin, Suzanne Kiser, Dick McVay, Pat Dill, Judy Kah, Doris Jean McClure, Bob Bertsch, Tom Ferguson, Sam Milligan, Dick Crusey, Maclin Hall, Bernadine Wiessinger, Lois Kennedy, Wayne Garrison, Tom Laws. The play is directed by Robert Kinney.

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John Foster, Paul Sherman, Voress Loudenback, Harley Clark, Lewis Boyer, Fred Pruden, Charles Benjamin, Taylor Cummins, and Dr. R.C. Comstock attended the second district American Legion conference at Bluffton Sunday.

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A total of $136.64 was realized by the Sidney Defense council as a result of the scrap campaign in the First and Fourth wards on Saturday. Collected was a total of 11,739 pounds of metal; 10,200 pounds of newspapers; 1,375 pounds of magazines; 915 pounds of rags, and 150 pounds of old rubber.

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Robert Scheiber, of Sidney High school, received a superior rating for his violin solo in the district instrumental contest at Wittenberg college on Saturday. Excellent ratings were received by the Sidney High school band, and Misses Dorothy Dull, Lois Whitney and Doris Jean McClure with their piano solos.

50 Years

March 23, 1967

James Rickey, son of Mr. and Mrs. Richard W. Rickey, 214 Cherokee drive, was named today winner of the Optimist-sponsored Oratorical Contest for boys held this week at Parkwood Junior High School. The winner is scheduled to give his speech in further competition at Springfield on Thursday, April 6, against other area winners. Final prize in the national contest is a $1,000 college scholarship, awarded by Optimist International.

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Fred Linker, fair board president, huddled with Lloyd E. Lutz, Extension Service agent today on plans for the proposed multi-purpose building at the fairgrounds. Linker said the executive committee has agreed on a pole-type structure 55 by 96 feet in size. He and Lutz planned to go to Bellefontaine this afternoon to inspect a similar building on the grounds there. Estimated cost is about $5,000.

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Fire shortly before noon today completely destroyed a large barn at the farm residence of Robert Zerbe on the Doorley road, approximately a mile southeast of Sidney. Sidney firemen responding to the alarm found the inside of the structure in flames and directed their efforts to protecting several nearby buildings

25 Years Ago

March 23, 1992.

LOCKINGTON- Today Lockington is a rural bedroom community with about the same population of 214 that it had in 1870, but that doesn’t mean things have always been the same. In fact, at one time the village was a real boom town. “It probably came as close as any to the Hollywood-stereotype of a gold rush town-fairly violent and boisterous with rampart vice”. For Lockington the cause of the boom was not gold, but water-canal water. Lockington,then called Lockport was platted in November of 1837. Lockport was laid out with the expectation of locks, Its whole function was to be a boomtown for the Miami-Erie Canal.

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PORT JEFFERSON- Verna Taglieber has been honored by the Shelby County Genealogical Society as its “most valuable person”. The awards ceremony took place last week. Mrs. Taglieber became the 13th recipient of such an honor.