Above: This ceramic mug found its way back to Gratiot County with the help of my grandparents, who stopped in Plains, Georgia, on their way home in the late 1970s.
Today, on January 9, 2025, the United States paid final respects by laying to rest the 39th President of the United States, James Earl (“Jimmy”) Carter.
Carter occupied the White House from 1977-1981 in what was a time when Gratiot County, like the rest of the United States, sought to recover from a national scandal that shook our confidence in American politicians. Michigan’s closest tie to the presidency was President Gerald R. Ford, Carter’s predecessor, and the only non-elected vice president and president in our nation’s history. Had Ford not pardoned President Richard M. Nixon for potential crimes during Watergate, Ford would easily have been re-elected as President. Before this happened, Ford, a United States Representative from Grand Rapids, Michigan, had visited Gratiot County more than once as a congressman.
However, Gratiot County never carried Carter in the Election of 1976. In its entire history, Gratiot County went Democratic only four times and had not done so since 1964. Only in a time of severe economic or national crisis had Gratiot County helped elect a Democratic President. It either took the Great Depression or the death of President Kennedy to get Gratiot County to go Democratic. My paternal grandmother complained the day after the 1976 election, saying, “THAT Carter won.” He wasn’t Jimmy Carter, he was “THAT Carter” from Georgia.
The late 1970s continued to be a time of severe economic problems, which soon led to the worst economic recession the nation had seen during the Great Depression of the 1930s. We heard the words “energy crisis,” Carter urged the public to conserve energy by curtailing gasoline usage and turning down thermostats to 68 degrees. Inflation skyrocketed as the decade went on. In Gratiot County, by the late 1970s, property owners often opposed votes on school millages, which my father continually bemoaned as a small farmer. All of these things surrounded the arrival of President Jimmy Carter after he became President.
I was never a supporter of President Carter during his time in office. I remember clearly the day after the 1976 election when my math teacher said in class that he voted for Carter because “He (Carter) represented the little guy.” Another social studies teacher, on the day of the election, did the electoral college math on the blackboard in geography class. Mr. Milne told me Ford would win the election if two or three states went for Ford (I remember that one was Hawaii). It turned out that my teacher was wrong, and Carter won. For a time, it seemed that the country wanted to get away from the word “Watergate” by electing Jimmy Carter. Like many other people on that 1977 Inauguration Day, I was surprised by how President-Elect Carter got out of his limousine and walked part of the parade route along with family members. The Secret Service must have had fits with that decision, but that was Jimmy Carter.
According to my research, President Carter’s closest connection to Gratiot County occurred after he left office and went hunting in northern Michigan. According to a story, Carter and his Secret Service agents stopped to eat at a McDonalds (possibly in Clare). While those at the register who took the group’s order did not recognize the Secret Service, Carter later walked up to the corner by himself to ask for a refill of his beverage. The girl at the counter gazed at Carter and said he looked familiar. Jimmy Carter just smiled.
Still, by my first year of college in 1979, President Carter seemed out of favor with most people I listened to or talked to in mid-Michigan. Something we knew as “The Iran Hostage Crisis” was developing in 1978-1979 as the Shah of Iran was forced out of power and fled to the United States. A group of 52 American hostages would be held for 444 days in Iran, and Carter could do little to end the crisis. One of those held in Tehran, Robert Ode, had a sister in St. Louis, which brought the issues of the hostage crisis home. After a rescue mission to get the hostages failed, to some, it looked more and more like war was imminent. I had recently filled out my Selective Service card and sent it to the government. Remember, this was all only five to six years after the end of the Vietnam War, and many young people my age feared another draft. As a result of all of this, Carter was even more unpopular.
For those of us old enough in Gratiot County, we remember how the Carter story ended. In 1980, Ronald Reagan defeated Carter resoundingly, and Carter became a one-term president. As for me, I helped send Jimmy Carter on his way as I voted for Reagan and joined a movement that believed the country needed change.
Jump this story ahead over twenty years. Jimmy Carter has long been out of office, but his personal story intrigues me. This was not so much for his faith and character, for which I came to admire him. It was now how Carter became one of the most successful Presidents AFTER he left office. These works included his commitments to Habitat for Humanity and the Carter Center, working with countries on free and fair elections, and seeking to eliminate Guinea Worm in impoverished areas of Africa. President Carter also had earned a new title, which I heard several times and read about in an issue of Parade Magazine in the late 1990s as “America’s Most Accessible President.”
I found the title correct, as I would go on to meet President Carter three times. The first was when he did a surprise walk-through at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Museum and then reappeared at a dinner held there for teachers. Once, while traveling through Plains, Georgia, I saw the President talking to an area farmer as they examined watermelons that the farmer had in the back of his truck. Only one agent was standing next to the President. Anyone could have approached Carter had he wanted to converse.
Having re-thought Jimmy Carter as the man, the person, the character – and not so much the President – my opinion of him changed. Part of this was a more mature understanding of the significant national and international problems Carter faced when he entered office in the late 1970s. As a result, I decided to write a letter to the President after learning that he often read his mail. In a letter that I wrote to the President in late 2002, I told him that while I did not vote for him in 1980, I had tremendous admiration for him and the problems he faced as President, and how he was seeking to stay active in local, state, national, and even international issues. I also confessed that I had not voted for him in 1980, but my views of him as a person had changed drastically.
It must have been early December 2002 when the secretary called me to the Fulton High School office where I taught. When I arrived, I was told that I had received an important letter and would want to see it. The return address shocked me as it indicated that President Carter chose to reply to my letter. I received a copy of the initial letter, and at the top were the words, “ Jim, come down to Plains (Georgia) and see me.” Even more strangely, the letter I received was shortly after it was announced that Carter would receive the Nobel Peace Prize.
One of Carter’s works was teaching Sunday School at the Maranatha Baptist Church outside of Plains. Before the time of the President’s return letter, Sundays at the church drew people from across the nation and the world. I chose to find out what was happening and visited Plains with another family relative in the summer of 2003. It was hot, it was peanut country, and it was Georgia.
I think we had to arrive at the church about one hour before the church offered Sunday School, and I had to pass a couple of Secret Service agents who “wanded” me down to check for weapons. That morning, we had a pretty good seat only 4-5 rows from the President. Before he began, Carter asked the audience where people were from. While I said “Michigan,” I heard people say they were from across and outside the United States – some even from Europe and Africa. One of the humorous parts of his lesson was when he read a passage from the Old Testament lesson that mentioned a place in Jerusalem, then known as the Water Gate. It got a few laughs and snickers as Carter paused after he read the verse. I also recall looking over my shoulder toward the President, seated in the opposite aisle and behind me during the worship service. I was greeted with a very icy stare from a Secret Service Agent who stared back at me.
At the end of the Sunday church service, Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter offered an opportunity that no other United States President has done. All of those present were allowed to have their picture taken with the Carters outside of the church, under the condition that your camera was ready, you stepped up and stood next to the Carters, and you did not engage the Carters in any discussion. Even though almost everyone thanked the Carters after the photo op, the couple remained stoic, looking almost straight ahead. The Carters probably spent 20+ minutes on the photos, as everyone had been told to be ready as the line moved along for their photo opportunity.
Before the end of the service, President Carter also invited all visitors to Mama’s Kitchen in Plains for lunch. At the restaurant, the Carters sat off from the dining area in a separate room with his Secret Service agents. As Carter promised in his remarks before we left the church, the “Mama’s” menu was excellent. Over the years, I traveled through Plains several times, my last stop being in 2017.
Today, one of the remaining things my paternal grandmother left was a ceramic mug she obtained when my grandparents stopped in Plains, Georgia, during a return trip from Florida in the late 1970s. The souvenir featured the beaming smiling face of then-President Carter.
Today, Jimmy and Rosalyn Carter’s lives after they left the White House still speak to us about pertinent issues that each of us who enter retirement must still answer. The questions are somber but true. What do I do with my remaining days on the earth? What is the meaning of life? How do I respond later in life to the needs of others, injustice, reform, and change in America and the world? How do I live a meaningful life? What is to be my legacy after I leave the earth?
While I never initially supported him as a young adult in the 1970s, I later found Jimmy Carter’s character (Carter the man) to be a good example of how to live and end life.
January 1940 photos from top to bottom: Fred Pernert, manager at the St. Louis Co-operative Creamery, took on the role as county chairman for the Finnish Relief Fund; a picture of Japan’s new three-man pocket submarine appeared in the newspapers; “Mugsey,” the Holstein cow belonged to J. Ward Doyle of Breckenridge. No other cow in the county produced milk at cost as Mugsey did; the dean of American League umpires, George Moriarty, appeared at Ithaca High School.
By January, the holidays passed, and winter finally arrived in Gratiot County, dumping snow and creating colder temperatures. As a new year started, residents wondered if the Depression was beginning to end.
What would happen in Europe as fighting continued?
It was January 1940 in Gratiot County.
Images of War in Gratiot County
County newspapers continued to provide Gratiot readers with glimpses of the fighting taking place in the world. Most news stories seemed to pay attention to Nazi Germany. However, in January, news coverage focused on the Russian invasion of Finland, which took place near the Arctic Circle. Here, Finnish soldiers endured bombings and had to flee to neighboring Norway for refuge. During some of the fighting, the Finns wore white uniforms as camouflage, while Russians fought in their traditional dark suits. Names of Finnish cities like Turku, Hanko, and Tornio all now became newsworthy while they endured Russian attacks. Over in St. Louis, Fred Pernert, manager of the St. Louis Co-operative Creamery, accepted the chairmanship of the Finnish Relief Fund. Pernert received the request from President Herbert Hoover to serve as chairman. This fund sought to help the Finns as they fought for principles similar to America’s. Supporters could send money to the Creamery office or Commercial Savings Bank. In St. Louis, Rotarians heard a speech from John L. Giles entitled “Communism in the United States.” Giles went on to explain his experience with Communist propaganda and urged listeners to be aware of the dangers of “the Reds.”
A cartoon entitled “The Middle Man” in county newspapers depicted the predicament neutral nations found as they tried to sail through the British Blockade, which contained German sea mines. This problem echoed events over twenty years earlier when the United States tried to stay out of the First World War while trading with European nations. In an ironic twist, the Gratiot County Herald showed Japan’s new three-person vest pocket submarine, which started production. Small submarines like this appeared at Pearl Harbor in December 1941.
News coverage also featured two Gratiot men who served the country while the rest of the world was at war. Fireman First Class Arthur Wood of Alma came home on a ten-day pass to spend the holidays with his parents. Fireman Wood, in the service for four years and ten months, told the Alma Record about what he saw during fighting at Soochow Creek, China, in 1937 and rescuing the crew of the gunboat Panay in 1939. Wood was also involved in the rescue of the steamship President Hoover near the island of Formosa. Other journeys led to Vladivostok, Russia; Manila, Philipines; Siam; and journeys through Alaskan and Chinese waters. Over time, the young sailor managed to keep a record of his journeys in a picture album. Sergeant Chester Harvey of the 106th Cavalry of Alma was the other serviceman to return to Gratiot County. Harvey went to Fort Riley, Kansas, for three months of training to prepare for a promotion as a commissioned officer. Harvey, an Alma College graduate, also had the record as one of the best shots from Troop B.
The Depression Rolls Onward
One of the new developments in Gratiot County by 1940 concerned changes for those requesting welfare. The Gratiot County Social Welfare Board made a presentation to the County Board of Supervisors regarding hospitalization for those on welfare, especially afflicted children. Mable Clelland, county agent, was ordered by the Supervisors to handle investigations of the sick and disabled children until the state appointed a person to replace him. One positive report showed that the county had 113 fewer relief cases than a year ago. The Supervisors then transferred $10,000 from the general fund to the social welfare fund, giving it a balance of $24,000 for the upcoming year.
The biggest news concerning welfare centered around Gratiot County’s new program unofficially called Work for Relief. Relief clients who wanted assistance now had to do work provided by the county. One type of employment meant cutting brush along county highways for $1.50 daily. The question was then asked, what about the many clients who would not be able to labor cutting brush? To answer this question, the board asked physicians to designate those unfit for such labor. Still, “work or no relief” caused relief clients to appear at one of five county garages on the first day to get their work assignment, which entailed working eight hours daily. Twenty-two showed up at Alma, eighteen in Breckenridge, ten at Ithaca, nine at Ashley, and seven in Middleton. To help the clients, the county road commissioners furnished tools and supervision.
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) continued in Gratiot County, although it sometimes lacked favor from some, like the Gratiot supervisors. Mr. Morrell, a WPA legal advisor, proposed a five-year federal relief project involving compiling a Gratiot County history to the supervisors. The project would employ five people, and the federal government would finance it with $4,000. Gratiot County had to pay $300. The results? The Board flatly turned the offer down. One commissioner likened the project to a dog chasing a train. What would the dog do with the train once the dog caught the train? In other words, what would the long-term benefit be for creating the history of Gratiot County? In other news, Alma Junior High hosted a state WPA Project where Gladys Bradshaw Perry, state supervisor of the Michigan State College WPA Project, brought an extensive collection of toys created by WPA workers. The collection consisted of stuffed dolls and animals, educational toys, doll beds, and various games done by WPA workers. The federal government paid wages for the workers, and materials came from sponsors and co-sponsors, all in an attempt to give the unemployed jobs and the opportunity to learn a trade. The WPA also did other things in the county, such as holding a city-wide ping pong tournament. Both WPA recreation leaders, Jack Acker and Wilford McWilliams, oversaw the program. Other WPA recreation programs occurred at Alma’s Wright Park, the Old Republic School, the Republic skating rink, and the city skating rink. Over at St. Louis, a new skating rink debuted through the Community Council, which opened weeknights and weekend afternoons. The WPA and NYA (National Youth Administration) had members overseeing activities at the rink. In addition to a weekend of working to create good ice, skaters also had a warming house for taking a break from skating. Over at East Alma Recreation, the WPA sponsored Junior Bug-a-boo, Senior Bug-a-boo, and Girls Doodle Bug clubs. Participants enjoyed food, music, crafts, and dance instruction.
The other significant New Deal Program in Gratiot County concerned the NYA (National Youth Administration). Vernon Davis of Alma was one of only 200 young people chosen to take a two-year program that educated young men interested in aviation. Davis enrolled at the Waterloo Project at Camp Cassidy, which trained men in mechanical engineering. The young men in this program lived in cottages, each with a leader (Davis was elected as one). NYA workers would also be involved with 2,150 Gratiot youth in a nationwide survey to determine unemployment problems for those ages 16-24. The survey attempted to determine how many young people were out of school and did not have jobs. Some of the NYA workers in the county helped conduct the study. Here in Gratiot County, NYA members worked clearing the ground of dead logs around Conservation League Park, built tables and benches, a shelter house, and rebuilt a log cabin. Around city hall, boys in the NYA did shop work and cleaned and painted walls. Over at Alma Schools, several worked in woodworking classes. A sewing project sponsored by the city of Alma involved NYA, and the Salvation Army employed ten unmarried young women aged 18 to 25. The project had help from a local company that loaned machines so the women could condition old clothing and create layettes for newborn children.
In other news, the Townsend Club followers continued to hold meetings in the county. President Charles Reed, who oversaw the Alma club, invited Reverend George Gullen from Detroit to attend a program at the American Legion Hall over Reed’s Shoe Store. Gullen represented the Townsend movement in the state as its attorney. Another Townsend meeting occurred at the St. Louis Park Hotel, where Harry Elliot, a national speaker, planned to discuss the Townsend Plan. Over 200 people attended the program, ending with Edgerton Crandell playing the xylophone.
New Deal programs like the WPA, NYA, and others often faced criticism from Americans who believed the programs to be a waste of government dollars. One such program gave the public millions of surplus apples at seventy cents a bushel. Because farmers could hardly get twenty-five cents a bushel for apples, a critic wondered why the government paid seventy cents for each bushel it planned to give away without helping farmers. On top of that, too many apples seemed to go to waste, and to this county newspaper, the government just seemed to be “shaking the tree.”
The Outdoors, Farming, and Farm Issues in January 1940
After the holidays, Alma urged Christmas tree owners to deposit their used trees at Conservation Park. The previous winter, large flocks of birds appeared and used the trees as shelter. The Gratiot County Herald ran a story about a new winter sport – ice fishing in Michigan. However, a new law prohibited using lights at night to catch bluegills. In another topic relating to fishing, Michigan sugar beet executives met to discuss the issue of epidemic fish killings again in places like the Pine River below Alma and St. Louis. The large number of fish killed was attributed to the sugar beet plant’s inadequate treatment facilities. It took ten miles of chasing, but hunter Charles Boots shot a red box west of Bridgeville along the Maple River but a second red fox got away, and many had been seen between Bridgeville and Maple Rapids. Henry B. Gulick of Mason, Michigan, grew up in Lafayette Township. He recalled what hunting was like as far back as the 1870s in Gratiot County and described the abundance of bears, which made hunting very successful. Within three hours on one hunting day in 1884, Gulick and his family shot three bears in Section 24, and with the help of their wagon, they had them back home by noon. The largest bear weighed 450 pounds.
Farmers met at different shows and meetings as the 1940 winter moved forward. The Middleton Methodist Church hosted the Gratiot-Clinton District Association of Farmers. Middleton merchants furnished roasted meat for the noon potluck meal as a break from the whole day of meetings. Don Sharkey from St. Louis hosted one of three tractor shows in January. Sharkey, who sponsored one meeting at the Community Hardware Company’s implement building, highlighted the use of John Deere tractors and implements. One of the features of the meetings included free talking movies and a free lunch. The St. Louis Beet Growers Association held its ninth annual meeting in the St. Louis High School auditorium. The meeting was expected to draw 500 to 600 farmers, and the Lutheran, Episcopal, Christian Church, and American Legion Auxiliary provided a meal. When the day ended, over 800 people attended. News came from Washington that a government sugar beet program would take place in 1940, but payment rates would be the same as in 1938 and 1939.
Some of the controversial news involving farmers that winter dealt with the sensitive issue of ending Sunday hunting in Gratiot County. The Gratiot County Board of Commissioners voted 18 to 6 to petition the state legislature to allow a referendum vote on the issue. Clinton County also sought to ask the state the same thing. A group of ministers in the Gratiot County Council of Churches and Sunday Schools approached the commissioners and urged an end to Sunday hunting. However, a ban would not be enforced for at least one year. Opinions on both sides of the issue appeared in local newspapers. H.O. Butler wrote a long letter to the Gratiot County Herald telling readers that he was against a ban on Sunday hunting, saying, “It is no more wicked to hunt on Sunday than on any other one of the five remaining work days.” He added that if preachers did more of their job preaching “the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth” from the scriptures, there would be no hunting on Sundays as more hunters would be in church. Butler also added that he did not hunt or own a gun.
H.J. Pinter and D.W. Olson announced the opening of Blue Ribbon Hatchery in Alma, located one block south of city hall. The owners planned to buy poultry and sell Blue Ribbon poultry feeds to the public. Swift and Company of Alma published a fifteen-page annual Yearbook of Swift and Company that covered what the company did in the past year. “Mugsey,” a Holstein owned by J. Ward Doyle of Breckenridge, appeared in the news as a record-grade cow. Mugsey produced 17,708 pounds of milk and 739.7 pounds of butterfat during 1939, returning to owner Doyle $229.79 above feed cost. Doyle wanted to know if any other cow in the county had a higher producing grade.
Breckenridge was busy that January as it hosted its 12th annual community fair. The Future Farmer Chapter and Breckenridge merchants sponsored the two-day event, which enabled 800 people to view exhibits of farm produce, sewing and home economics, and handcraft projects.
Gratiot County also took a moment to pause and reflect on the history of farming. A long article in the Gratiot County Herald reminded readers of the vital role of the County Extension Agent. The article reminded readers that Gratiot County’s first agent went on duty starting in 1917. The current agent, C.P. Milham, provided the history and details.
The Long Arm of the Law in Gratiot County in Winter
If anyone wanted to know the status of lawbreakers, they only needed to read the newspapers. During the previous month, the prosecuting attorney, Robert H. Baker, announced that thirty convictions occurred, with an additional 21 traffic violation convictions. Eight people in the group were convicted of illegally trapping muskrats. Another offense, passing bad checks without sufficient funds, had five culprits.
January began with a settlement in the farm accounting case of Rowland Sexton, a Flint minister, and Maurie Arman. Arman operated as a tenant on Sexton’s farm near Houserville for nine years. The pair settled the accounting issue after evidence was taken to circuit courts. Fines and costs brought in approximately $280 to the court.
Various stories behind some criminal cases contained a mixture of sadness, grief, and even disbelief. Berniece Barry, wife of a Porter Township oil worker, failed to have her driver’s license after being involved in a traffic accident. It cost her $55.05 or 60 days in jail. Cornelius Eichorn, reported to be a well-to-do farmer in Emerson Township, made a petition to regain his automobile license, which had been suspended when Eichorn drove his car against a car off of US-27. Eichorn had not been allowed to drive for several months. Eichorn’s wife petitioned the court to speak on her husband’s behalf in a February hearing. Mike Miczek of Middleton was brought before Judge Potter for stealing coal from Middleton Farmers Elevator. He paid $18.15 for fines and costs or spent 20 days in jail. Newell Little of Wheeler got the book thrown at him when the court sentenced him from 7 ½ to 22 ½ years for forgery. Little forged the name of William Kipp of Wheeler to a check amounting to $12.50. Little had a long line of forgery offenses that came up at sentencing. Kipp was sent to Jackson Prison as a second-offense felon.
Richard Storms, a WPA worker in Alma, stood mute after being arrested for assaulting his wife, who was trying to find medicine for a sick baby. Storms wanted the baby to stop crying and beat her. Storms was allowed to return home while awaiting trial as long as he “lived in accord” with his wife. Theodore Orwig, age 18, of Alma, broke into Clare Shunk’s car on an Alma street. Orwig had previous probation terms and, therefore, went to jail for ninety days.
Jesse Perez’s attorneys attempted to bring his three-year-old murder case back to court. Perez argued that he did not understand the implications of his confession to a murder he committed in Seville Township in 1936. Perez was convicted of killing another Mexican beet worker, Gonzola Silba, after a dispute while working in the field.
Probably the most talked about topic in Gratiot County in January remained the Dewey Glinke embezzlement case. The probe of Glinke’s efforts to embezzle funds from the Gratiot County treasurer’s office now went to state auditors, and Gratiot County had to pay the state for the audits. Had Glinke been manipulating records for only one or two years or more? To know for sure, auditors now suggested a complete probe of Glinke’s work, which went back five years. The current Glinke defalcations ran up to $1,800. Despite this scandal, the state auditor commended and sympathized with County Treasurer William Federspiel for his cooperation and determination in getting to the bottom of Glinke’s crime.
Norman Prange of St. Louis tested the city of Alma’s peddling laws. He made $1 on a sale at one of his door-to-door stops and was arrested after he failed to pay a $40 license fee. The case was to be reviewed in February, as his lawyer argued that the transaction involved interstate commerce. Finally, In the February 1940 term, two county women, Mrs. Never Hole of Alma and Pearl Strong of St. Louis, served jury duty. The rest of the jury pool consisted of men.
And So We Do Not Forget
The Alma First Methodist Church started holding Lenten season evangelistic services over two weeks. Reverend Edward Patsch of East Liverpool, Ohio, served as evangelist…Eugene T. Walker of Alma wrote a letter to the Alma Record Alma Journal regarding his memories of operating thrashing machines during harvest times in Arcada and Sumner Township. Walker described how he threshed a total of 927,194 bushels of grain in his lifetime. Walker also collected and owned old thresher catalogs, which he loaned to interested readers…Gratiot County Treasurer William G. Federspiel announced that citizens of the county continued to conduct good tax collections. Roughly 58 percent of assessed taxes had been paid so far…Viewers continued to see Alma’s Local News Reel on Wednesday and Thursday nights at the Strand Theatre. Also, Billy Farrell entertained audiences from 6:45 to 7:15 p.m. during intermissions each night. Farrell played the Hammond Organ before features on Tuesday and Friday nights…Alma City Manager William Reynolds laid the rules for those using the city skating rink. The number one rule said no games of “I got it,” “Crack the whip,” or “Tag”…The hamlet of Pompeii witnessed a fire that caused over $7,000 worth of damage to the home of L.E. Passenger, which turned out to be a complete loss. Pompeii had no fire department, and all calls had to be answered by the fire department at Perrinton…Members of the Alma Fire Department planned the upcoming annual fireman’s ball. The ball took place on Washington’s birthday.
Used car sales in Alma remained very brisk. Hickerson Chevrolet Sales said it had more used car sales during the winter than could be remembered. Usually, car buyers wait until after winter to make their purchases, but not this January…Mr. Bourikas at the Main Café in Alma announced that the new modern fireproof addition enabled him to keep up with his growing business. The new 20×24 floor space connected to the dining room and helped him serve the busy crowds on Saturday and Sunday nights…The Newberry Store in Alma announced a new addition that called for an 80 percent addition to its existing space. Newberrys planned to lease the adjacent store building, which belonged to Floyd Luchini. The Simi Café that operated next door planned to move. A 40-foot addition in the back of Newberry’s allowed more space. A partition between the two buildings would be removed, and the store would have different entry locations…The first fatal traffic accident of 1940 took place in Wheeler Township when Lawrence Bartlett, age 29, died when his car collided with one from Ricard Jessup, age 19, of Wheeler. Bartlett, who died at Smith Memorial Hospital, failed to stop on M-46 and crossed in front of the Jessup vehicle.
Red Cross contributions thus far totaled $2,230.90. An increase of 408 new members raised the total from this time last year. Emerson Township had 61 members and contributed $75.60….The newsreel man from the Strand Theatre made his way to Grayling to watch the crowning of the Snow Queen during Grayling’s Winter Festival. The queen, Miss Pauline Merrill, previously lived in St. Louis and Breckenridge and was well known in Alma. The movies will be shown before the show each day until February 4. The film also featured several Detroit Tigers players who attended the festival…Bernard Gallagher, who worked at Bragg’s Standard Oil service station, was taken to Wilcox-Carney Hospital for acute appendicitis. After emergency surgery, Gallagher was resting and had much improved…Mr. and Mrs. Louis Gittleman, owners of their style shop in Alma, traveled to Detroit for a fashion show. The Gittlemans hoped to obtain new merchandise for the Alma store and the ones they owned in Greenville and Ionia…St. Louis Community Council announced that the new skating rink for children would soon open on Wheeler Field. Adults who wanted to skate used the rink on the newly lighted softball field…The Alma Public Library continued to grow as demands for books in practical arts, history, and special sciences doubled. The Masonic Home received 442 books on loan from the library, and the Gleaner Home received 108 books…The Gratiot County Farm Bureau held its fourth annual meeting in the basement of the Ithaca Methodist Church. After the business meeting, a potluck dinner occurred at noon, followed by special singing by Mrs. Neikirk. Mrs. Hearn played the piano…The movie “Beau Geste,” starring Gary Cooper, Ray Milland, and Susan Hayward, played at the Strand Theatre in Alma. Tickets were ten and twenty cents…January 22-26 became known as Health Week for Gratiot County, according to county school commissioner Donald L. Baker. All teachers in the county stressed the importance of good health with students. Topics included keeping the body clean, proper care for teeth, getting physical examinations by the family doctor, vaccinations, and good sources of drinking water…Redman Trailer sales experienced a 200 percent increase for 1939 compared to the previous year. The company sold 400 trailers and grossed $220,000. The company employed sixty men with a payroll of $38,000.
The Gratiot County Herald announced its tenth annual baby contest. A list of rules about those who entered the first babies born in 1940 could be found in the January 4, 1940 newspaper. The first prize involved a baby bed with a mattress or a high chair with a waterproof tray. First place went to Judith Joan Russell of St. Louis, born at 4:18 a.m. on January 1 to Mr. and Mrs. Rolland Russell…Young Dale Paul Todd of Middleton won the Gratiot County Herald’s New Year’s Baby Contest in 1939 and celebrated his first birthday on January 1. Now walking around the house using chairs and furniture, young Dale Todd weighed 25 pounds and measured 29 inches…Roy W. Richards of Alma was appointed enumerator for the 1940 census. Richards began a check-up of business property, but the population count would not start until April 1…Alma’s new sander now sanded three blocks of the road with the same material that formerly only did one road…E.R. Erickson and Edwin Harwood completed work at the University of Michigan to obtain their master’s Degrees. Harwood taught English and wrote a thesis for his degree; Erickson chose to do extra work hours instead of the thesis. Both men taught at St. Louis High School…The St. Louis Rollers women’s bowling team, outfitted in their new uniforms, won two of three games at Alma Recreation Alleys. St. Louis merchants donated the uniforms…Over 100 couples attended the annual J-Hop held at St. Louis High School auditorium on a Friday evening. Giant white stars hung from the light blue ceiling while the orchestra’s stage displayed blue lights on Christmas trees. Kenneth Harrier, vice-president of the class, led the grand march along with Elaine Ellsworth. Several classes had graduated in attendance from as far back as 1934…462 Gratiot County teachers with teacher certificates filed their oath of allegiance. Those who had not filed had 60 days to do so.
“The Wizard of Oz” made its first movie appearance in Gratiot County when it debuted at the Ideal Theatre in Ithaca on January 11. Admission was 15 cents and 10 cents…The Perrinton Community Hall underwent renovations, and new seats and furniture were installed. Upon completion, the Fulton High School basketball team planned to play its home games at the hall… Noted columnist and radio speaker Boake Carter appeared in Ithaca as part of the Gratiot Town Hall series. Carter was initially supposed to appear in October, but with the outbreak of war in Europe, he remained in Washington. Carter’s reputation as one of the finest radio speakers of his day meant good attendance for his program…The Gratiot County Rural Letter Carrier’s Association held a potluck supper at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Albert Knapp in Alma…Ithaca Schools gave out standardized tests to students on two days in mid-January. Superintendent McKibben said the tests revealed whether the schools expected too much or too little for children in each grade. The scores told whether students performed at their grade level, or higher or lower…The Ballard Trophy at Ithaca High School went to Ralph Cheney for the most valuable member of the 1939 football team. Elwood Mellinger was announced as captain of the 1940 team…The Mellinger School planned a P.T.A. meeting later in January. George (Elmer) Schleder and his “amateurs” would provide entertainment….The Union Telephone Company issued its 1940 telephone directory with 3,094 names of subscribers. Alma had 1,350 telephone stations… The Christmas weather seemed somewhat light, but cold temps in January dropped to the mercury to four above zero…The Ithaca High School Athletic Club sponsored the dean of American League Umpires, George Moriarty, who spoke at the Ithaca High School gym. Moriarty also showed a movie entitled “Touching All Three Bases.” The Ithaca High School Athletic Club sponsored the event, and entrance was free.
And that was January 1940 in Gratiot County during Depression and War.
Above: Carol Ann Risk, the young St. Louis girl who was murdered in early December 1958; the Risk home as it looked at the time of the murder on North Clinton Street in St. Louis; Michigan State Police divers quickly found the murder weapon in the Pine River on the day after the killing; the only existing picture of Paul Rondeau as he appeared as a sophomore in the 1958-1959 school yearbook. Of all of the St. Louis sophomores photographed, Rondeau was the only one to appear in a tie and jacket.
On December 1, 1958, a young girl in St. Louis was killed in what was then considered the most horrific murder since the town’s lumbering era. Twelve-year-old Carol Ann Risk was suddenly and unexpectedly shot by a neighbor boy named Paul Leroy Rondeau. The Risks lived in a small house at 322 North Clinton Street, two doors north of the Rondeaus. Christian Risk, the father, served as a St. Louis fireman and worked at the chemical plant. The mother, Lova Risk, lost five children to miscarriages and deaths at early ages. Their family consisted of a son, Michael, and a daughter, Carol Ann, who would soon be thirteen. She had naturally curly brown hair and brown eyes and was in the seventh grade. Quiet and studious, Carol Ann also liked roller skating and going to the movies.
The Willet Rondeau family moved to St. Louis from Alpena, Michigan, in 1952. Willet Rondeau was a traveling salesman who sold school supplies and was often only home one night a week. Their mother, Betty, was active in the community. There were two children: their son, Paul, who was fifteen, and a daughter, Beverly, who was younger. Paul struggled with a speech impediment but participated on the school debate team. He was an above-average student with few friends, a “lone wolf.”
On the weekend of November 29, 1958, Paul asked to borrow Christian Risk’s .25 caliber handgun, took it, and kept it inside his high-top boots and under his pillow at night. On the evening of Monday, December 1, 1958, Christian and Lova Risk took their son by car to help him with his paper route.
Two hours later, Rondeau went to the Risk’s home. Carol Ann answered the door, and Rondeau asked if he could borrow Michael’s bike. After letting him in, she resumed watching “The Huckleberry Hound Show.” Rondeau stepped toward a heater behind her chair, pulled out the pistol, and shot Carol Ann through the forehead. Getting up from the chair, she screamed, and Rondeau shot her again, this time through the temple. Surprisingly, no one in the neighborhood heard the shot or knew what had happened. Paul then headed downtown to finish running errands for his mother. Crossing the bridge southwest of Wheeler Field, he tossed the gun into the Pine River.
Entering the living room upon returning home, Christian Risk was first to see his daughter slumped over in her chair. Dr. William Knowles was called and arrived quickly, followed by the St. Louis police. The State Police were also called to assist with the investigation. The police created a list of three possible suspects from the neighborhood. Clearing two left Paul Rondeau. He was picked up and questioned. Rondeau was questioned for only an hour when he confessed. Rondeau’s written confession simply read, “I had an urge to kill someone. I don’t know the exact reason I did it, but I knew after pulling the trigger that I did wrong.” After obtaining the gun two days earlier, he had planned to kill someone. While held at the Ithaca County jail he talked to a reporter from the Detroit Free Press. “Maybe someone can find out what’s wrong with my mind.” Rondeau stated he wanted “what’s coming to me” and described Carol Ann Risk as “an old buddy, a pal, and Michael Risk is my best friend.” He concluded that killing Carol Ann the way he did “was a good setup.”
Upon learning that Rondeau had thrown the murder weapon in the river, Michigan State Police divers found it within an hour. Probate Judge Mildred E. Taft ordered him to undergo testing at the Lafayette Clinic in Detroit. Dr. Norman Westlund certified that Paul Rondeau had a mental illness. In February 1960, fourteen months after the murder, Rondeau was transferred from Detroit to the Traverse City State Hospital for the mentally ill. Doctors believed Rondeau needed long-term care, and he still had not shown remorse for killing Carol Ann Risk. Judge Taft ruled that Rondeau would not be released from Traverse City without consent from her court. When the Gratiot County Prosecuting Attorney Fred Passenger petitioned the court to try Rondeau in a criminal court, Judge Taft would not grant the request until Rondeau turned seventeen.
Times were hard for the Risk family. Carol Ann was buried at Oak Grove Cemetery in a new red dress a neighbor made for her upcoming birthday and the new saddle shoes her mother had gotten for her. Lova Risk died in December 1959 from a heart condition, and her father, Christian, died a year later. Michael Risk moved from Gratiot County, entered the Air Force, and sold insurance. He died in 2010 in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Paul Leroy Rondeau, however, disappeared from Gratiot County’s history. The Lafayette Clinic of Detroit closed in 1982. The Traverse City Hospital, later known as the Northern Michigan Asylum and Traverse City Regional Psychiatric Hospital, closed in 1989. As a result, those records disappeared, and Rondeau’s juvenile court records were sealed; only he could open them. A search shows a man named Paul L. Rondeau of similar age who once lived in Wayne County, Michigan. From there, this Rondeau married, moved outside Las Vegas, Nevada, and died in 2017. Was this Carol Ann Risk’s murderer?
Sadly, all that remains today from this St. Louis murder are three graves located on Oak Grove Cemetery’s east side. Under a shade tree, a young girl buried in a new red dress and black and white saddle shoes rests. She tragically died on an early winter’s day in 1958, the victim of an urge to kill.
Above: An actual photo of the S.S. City of Alma taken in the 1920s; this postcard, supposedly of the ship, was issued with the ship’s name painted on the hull; Esther Rhodes, the daughter of a prominent Alma businessman, christened the ship at a ceremony in 1920.
Sixteen-year-old Esther Rhodes of Alma stepped up on the platform adjoining the ship’s top. Freshly painted battleship grey, the vessel was draped in many flags and streamers. Miss Rhodes then broke a bottle on the ship’s hull and pronounced, “I christen thee City of Alma.” Amid the cheering of the small crowd, the boat slowly slid into the water. With the christening, the group celebrated the culmination of a successful post-World War I war bond drive in Alma.
During the Fourth Liberty Loan Drive in late 1918, Alma earned recognition as one of Michigan’s largest purchasers of Liberty Bonds. Over eighty percent of the people in Alma bought a bond – a record for cities buying $10,000 or less in bonds. By raising over $403,000, Alma led Gratiot County in its effort to raise over $1,000,000 for the war effort that fall. Most of the time, Michigan towns and cities with successful bond drives had tanks named in their honor. After the war ended, the government turned to naming ships in honor of places for their work with bond sales.
On January 20, 1920, at 9:15 AM, nine people went down to the Bristol, Pennsylvania pier. Charles G. Rhodes, his wife, and daughter accompanied Alma’s Mayor Murphy and his wife. Rhodes was a prominent Alma businessman and was vice president and spokesman for the Republic Truck Factory. Two men who helped lead Alma’s successful Liberty Loan Drive, Lieutenant T.A. Robinson and Lieutenant D. Sullivan, also attended. Three people from United States Emergency Fleet Corporation offices also went along.
The ceremony to launch a ship took place at the Merchant Shipbuilding Corporation. Ten boats, in different stages of construction, could all be seen—one of them, the S.S. City of Alma was 417 feet long and 54 feet wide and belonged in the 9000-tonnage class. Onboard, it had “palatial quarters” for its ship’s crew and officers. A fabricated type of ship, it had rolled plates in the hull. These plates had holes punched into them at steel mills hundreds of miles away, a result of a type of production that sped up the building of ships during the war. This ship also had 3000 horsepower and burned oil on three boilers, but it could be converted to coal if necessary.
Still, during the Alma visit, the new vessel was unfinished and would not be ready for several weeks. Despite the delay, the Alma group received a tour aboard a similar ship in the naval yard, and a set of the S.S City of Alma’s blueprints and official ceremony photos went to Alma City Hall for display. When it became seaworthy, the new ship was assigned to the United States Shipping Board and then to the American Steamship Line. The vessel eventually belonged to the Waterman Steamship Company in Mobile, Alabama, during World War II, even though the United States Maritime Commission controlled the boat through a charter.
However, the story of the ship had a tragic ending. On June 3, 1942, while carrying 7400 tons of manganese ore and 400 miles northeast of Puerto Rico, a German submarine, U-172, sank it with one torpedo. The ship sank within three minutes, and 29 out of 39 men aboard died. The ten remaining crew members floated in a lifeboat for four days before being rescued.
Sadly, after 22 years of service, the S.S. City of Alma went to the bottom of the Caribbean.
Gratiot County prepared for Christmas in December 1939: Santa arrives in Ithaca, this time in an automobile. He made more than one trip to the village before Christmas; the Alma Community Christmas League distributed Christmas baskets to 130 families in the area. Pictured from left are Clare Fillmore, Effie Ullman, Fred Towersey, and Captain W.C. Davis of the Salvation Army; the start of the Second World War dominated the year in a review regarding the news.
As winter approached, the beginnings of the Second World War seemed distant and unrelated to Gratiot County. Places with battles and conflicts like Finland and Uruguay made Gratiot residents pull out their world atlas to see where things happened.
The Depression meant again that the holiday season for many in the county would again be a hard one. Santa was here, and trees, houses, and buildings were lit to start the holiday season.
It was December 1939 in Gratiot County.
News during the Depression
The Alma Community Christmas League needed help for the upcoming Christmas season. To prepare toys as gifts for Alma youngsters, NYA (National Youth Association) workers moved from working on the Conservation League improvement project to working in shifts in the Salvation Army’s basement. WPA (Works Progress Administration) crew members resumed projects due to the mild winter weather. Work on Elwell Street resumed after a six-week layoff, and then the crew moved to East End Street. About forty men worked on this WPA project.
Gratiot County supervisors continued to prepare for the new county social welfare commission. The commission needed to appoint a collector who sought reimbursement from adults who had been hospitalized and received treatment at county expense. The county also sought to get reimbursement from parents of disabled and afflicted children who initially pledged to reimburse the state for their child’s treatment. An estimated $25,000 to $30,000 remained outstanding in Gratiot County and the county welfare relief fund had a balance of $1,938.85.
The State of Michigan’s general fund deficit grew, even though many said business conditions were improving. As of June 30, 1939, the state was $30,651,842 in the red, up over $2.2 million in the last few months.
Charles H. Reed became the president of Club No.1 of the Townsend Recovery Plan in Alma. Reed believed that the Townsend Plan, which attacked the financial needs of the elderly, would remedy the problems created by the Great Depression, including unemployment for young workers. Club No. 1 had 310 active members in Alma.
The World at War
Red Army troops broke the primary defenses at Finland’s line of defense north of Leningrad. The Soviet Union continued to invade Finland. News from Uruguay reported that the German battleship Admiral Graf Spee sank in an estuary. The commander tried to avoid turning his ship over to the British before scuttling the damaged vessel. Two other German sister ships that preyed on Allied shipping remained at sea. Holland tried to protect its waters through an intricate system of underwater mines, and the country continued to move munitions to its forts in anticipation of invasion by the Nazis.
Major George Fielding Eliot was a lecturer at the Gratiot County Town Hall Series in Breckenridge. Eliot spoke to 750 people about world war conditions and what to expect if the United States got involved. Fortunately, according to Eliot, the United States was geographically blessed and was outside of possible airplane attacks. Major Eliot had a vast audience of readers and listeners through Life Magazine, CBS Radio, the New York Herald, and Look Magazine.
American farmers received news that France ordered over 6,000 horses from the United States. France needed horses for its farm and army work to conserve gasoline, and its demands improved the horse market.
Christmas 1939 Comes to Gratiot County
The Santa Claus Club, an organization of fifteen clubs in Ithaca, met to create a united Christmas program for the village. Santa arrived in Ithaca to greet children on Saturday, December 9, following the Ithaca High School band. This time, Santa arrived in an open automobile, and the American Legion Post helped distribute over 1500 candy bags to those in attendance. Ithaca also had its annual Window Night, where the village celebrated the start of the Christmas season. Village officials gave out over 1000 tickets for the fifty prizes awarded to those who attended the Friday night lighting of downtown businesses. Although it rained that night, Santa promised to return to Ithaca the following weekend.
St. Louis also had a Window Night opening ceremony on the same night as Ithaca. Monroe Drug Store won first prize for depicting a mountain village and painted background. Those who passed Doctor Waggoner’s home on East Saginaw Street saw large red candles at the doorway’s entrance and red flood lights on the lawn. The Percy Wheeler home at 215 S. Delaware won first prize for having lighted wreaths in the front windows and a lighted tree in the corner of the house. The Wheelers were awarded ten dollars. The Arthur Stinsons and Carl Johnsons finished second and third. In downtown St. Louis, the community hall had a large star, and the Meteor Café had a giant Christmas tree on its roof.
Alma also had activities during the Christmas season. The Alma Community Christmas League provided food baskets for 130 families in the area, and they went out on Christmas Eve. The League got help from children who attended a free two-hour movie at the Strand Theatre. The cost of admittance was either to donate food or a toy. Before the Christmas Eve basket deliveries, the League also had an extensive Christmas program for the town’s youth at the high school. A group of 650 children showed up and received clothing, toys, dolls, and sweets. The gym also displayed an 18-foot-high Christmas tree, and George Urtel, city treasurer, appeared as Santa Claus. A committee made up of Chester Robinson, Mrs. L.R. Kamperman, and J. David Sullivan judged Alma homes engaged in the town’s Yule Decorations Contest. Two contests were offered, one for institutions and the other for homes. As one walked around Alma, businesses like Van’s Wallpaper and Paint, the Strand Theatre, Holland Furnace Company, and Rademacher Motor Sales all had eye-catching Christmas displays for the public. Just before Christmas, city hall lit its large, illuminated white cross with a red frame. As people walked downtown, music played from the second floor of city hall, courtesy of Chamber of Commerce officials and City Manager Reynolds. Fourteen records of Christmas music played one after the other once the record machine started.
One of the big things people saw in Gratiot County that Christmas was a mammoth billboard located on the curve 2 1/2 miles northwest of Alma on the US-27 trunkline. Both cars and passengers on the Ann Arbor railroad could see the rectangular billboard that measured 120 feet long, 20 feet high, and 10 feet wide. The billboard featured a likeness of the Holy Bible, lit up by 24 electric lamps, and displayed a Biblical quote. The sign was sponsored by an Alma and St. Louis resident who had support from Casey Vander Jagt of Grand Rapids, known as Michigan’s sign evangelist. Vander Jagt had other signs constructed along many Michigan highways in 1939.
Farm Life in December 1940
As the decade of the 1930s ended, Gratiot took stock of its schools and students. County school commissioner Donald L. Baker told an audience at the Ithaca Rotary Club that in 75 percent of the school districts, the only people attending each annual meeting were school officials. In 1939, 122 one-room rural schools operated in Gratiot County. Four schools had two rooms, and two had three rooms. In only two instances did the schools have four or five rooms. Three hundred school teachers worked in the county and were employed in 131 school districts. 9,829 students were enrolled, including 5,097 boys and 4,731 girls. In this group, elementary schools had 4,778 students and 2,452 in high schools. It cost nearly one-half million dollars to run the schools, with $393,000 coming from state aid and $107,000 from local taxes.
The Ithaca Board of Education offered a part-time evening school to an estimated 150 boys in the area regardless of whether they finished high school, had never attended, or dropped out. The Agricultural Department conducted the program, which offered training for those who wanted to learn how to rent their farms, buy livestock, buy a farm, or feed farm animals. All boys between sixteen and middle age were invited to participate.
Life on the farm could be dangerous, as Ed Altenberg of Ithaca discovered. Altenberg, who worked at Balmoral Farms west of Ithaca, broke two ribs and was knocked unconscious by a bull. The bull quietly entered a pen from the yard and threw Altenberg six feet in the air before Arch McCall could pull Altenberg to safety. The bull was considered one of Balmoral’s best show animals and had not caused problems until the last year. In better news at Balmoral Farms, ten more purebred Ayrshire cattle arrived from Quebec, Canada. The farm initially started with 75 head of Ayrshires and was a new breed in Gratiot County. Only two cows remained from the original herd that James E. Davidson began in 1925 – Springburn Lucky Girl 6th and Springburn Lucky Girl 9th.
The Ithaca Elevator Company offered a free color movie entitled “Vitamins on Parade” at the Ithaca High School gymnasium. A professor from Cornell University also planned to talk about “Solving Our Poultry Problems.” At the south end of Gratiot County, the Middleton Farmers’ Elevator Company opened a feed department in a new building that measured 20×40 feet. This new building also had seven overhead bins that held 4,000 to 5,000 bushels of grain. The elevator also had a new corn sheller, giant grain cracker and grader. As a result, Middleton now hosted one of the nicest feed elevators in central Michigan.
4-H county club enrollments reached a new high for the winter when Riverdale Hot Lunch Club entered 23 members, and North Star Clothing Club enrolled 12 members. The new county total reached 1,020 members, up from 986 the previous year. During the first year of 4-H in Gratiot County, 40 club members enrolled, and 14 completed the program. In 1935, the numbers included 393 county members with 360 finishing.
The St. Louis Lake Shore Sugar Company announced that beet slicing for the 1939 harvest season would end around December 18-19. Lake Shore processed 81,672 tons of sugar beets. However, the company experienced a fire that started in the bottom of a flue in the pulp dryer and destroyed the building’s cupola. Damage, estimated at less than $1,000, was covered by insurance.
The Long Arm of the Gratiot Law in December 1939
Several arrests and searches took place in December. The Gratiot County Prosecuting Attorney, Robert H. Baker, announced that 75 convictions had been made in November. Traffic law violations made up a total of 46. Fines totaled $539.
Four Gratiot County criminals were all arrested after being on the run for nearly one month. The group confessed that they committed safe robberies in Gratiot, Midland, Saginaw, Bay, and Huron counties and were captured in Columbus, Ohio. All were in their twenties. A trio of young Ithaca men were arrested for the robbery of the Ithaca Dairy when they made off with just over $60. Byron Campbell, Clarence Hyde, and J.C. Wheeler were initially under suspicion, but police could not tie them to the crime. After their arrest, Campbell and Hyde both were placed in solitary confinement for up to 20 days. Wheeler, who concealed some of the stolen money from the car, said that police must have taken it but later pled guilty to a fine of $27 and costs.
Issues with minorities and the law appeared in the news. The Floyd Goins case continued. Goins, a man of color, was charged with stealing 65 bushels of apples and 271 empty crates from Frank Beck’s orchard. Goins’ sons and wife were also arrested but later released. Goins testified that he purchased the apples from a dealer near Greenville. However, Goins had no proof of the sale. The trial lasted two days, and the defense ultimately produced proof of purchase of the fruit and argued that the crates were already at the Goins home in Washington Township when they moved there. Ultimately, Goins was found not guilty and discharged from jail.
Another newsworthy case appeared in Judge Kelly Searl’s courtroom when Jesse Perez, a Mexican beet worker found guilty of murder in 1936, requested a writ of habeas corpus. Perez killed another older beet worker on July 7, 1936, after a confrontation on a beet field near Elwell. Perez shot and killed Gonzolo Silba over where they worked on the field. Perez later claimed he was “railroaded” by the court and that the shooting was in self-defense. The court was confused about why Perez believed he did not get a fair trial.
In another case, the court dealt with a former WPA worker, Don Whitford of Ashley, who had been arrested three times within a few weeks for conduct while intoxicated. First, Whitford was found guilty of assault against a nine-year-old boy, and then again only a few days later in an assault against his son. In each case, public drunkenness was the issue. Over in Alma, police tracked down a pair of men after receiving 15 complaints against brothers Lane and David Lavoy, formerly of Elm Hall. The brothers siphoned gas from the cars and stole extra wheels and accessories. After their capture, the brothers were bound over for trial.
In December, the most significant crime news in Gratiot County dealt with Dewey Glinkie. Glinkie, a World War veteran with a troubled marriage and a drinking problem, was hired by Gratiot County Treasurer William G. Federspiel. Federspiel tried to help Glinkie by giving him a job, but over time became suspicious of Glinkie’s work. Then Glinke disappeared. As of mid-December, Dewey Glinkie embezzled up to nearly $2000. It would turn out that the Glinkie case would go on for years to come as Gratiot County law enforcement searched for the fugitive.
If there was any good news regarding crime in the county, it was that at Christmas, only six people resided in the county jail. People did not want to be in prison for the holidays – save one Don Whitford, who again returned to the friendly confines for violating the game law by having a pheasant out of season.
And So We Do Not Forget
Ross Clagg, an employee at Ithaca Roller Mills, narrowly escaped death when his clothing caught in the line shaft. While working alone in the basement, Clagg’s overalls became entangled while oiling machinery. During this dangerous ordeal, Clagg managed to brace himself long enough to avoid the machinery as it tore off the clothing from his body. The incident resulted in no broken bones, but Clagg was severely bruised around his shoulders, neck, and arms… A dozen Gratiot residents hurried to be among the first to purchase Christmas Seals for the 1939 Christmas season. Joe Battles and Dr. Robert Erwin were those from Alma who bought seals…The Alma Post Office was designated a first-class office by exceeding $44,450 in business for 1939. In 1934, the Alma Post Office managed $34,000 a year in business…The new Hamilton Church of God, located one-half mile south of Edgewood, opened its doors for services. Considered one of the finest rural churches in rural Michigan, it measured 36 x 70 feet with two wings, massive stone steps, and a 10×12 foot vestibule. J.C. Thompson had just arrived as the church’s new minister.
G.A. Giles returned to work at Giles Super Service Station after being confined to home for nine days with the flu…December 22 marked winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. Solstice was to arrive at 1:06 p.m. Eastern Standard Time…All teachers had to have their state teachers’ oath submitted by December 27. An estimated 70,000 oaths had been filed, and Michigan had 35,000 teaching positions…Recent cold, freezing weather meant three new inches of ice above the Alma dam. With its new construction and deeper water near the dam, the ice had a more uniform thickness. A new hockey rink was planned south of the dam on State Street, along with a smaller one at the Republic School and another at Wright Park. Tourist Park was also considered for a smaller rink for children.
Mrs. Leon Dawson announced that the Rainbow Inn in Elwell had re-opened for business. The new inn catered to those who wanted to dance and ate sandwiches and soft drinks. Gone were the elaborate chicken dinners…Reed’s Swing Band planned a “Midnight Frolic” for New Year’s Eve from midnight until 3:00 a.m…A new drug for treating syphilis became available in capsule form, according to Stanford University…The Marx Brothers appeared in “The Marx Brothers at the Circus” at the Strand Theatre…William Bourikas obtained a permit to enlarge the size of the Main Café Building at 117 East Superior Street. Bourikas planned to add a 20×24 foot addition to the back. Bourikas came to Alma during World War I and entered the business with Nick Bardeville…Hot December weather resulted in several people picking dandelion blossoms at Riverside Cemetery.
Vitamin consciousness emerged in Gratiot County as people purchased books on the use of vitamins. Stanley Vliet of the Alma Varsity Shop sold several copies of books on the subject… Approximately fifty people from twenty-four organizations met at the Rotary Room in the Wright Hotel to discuss a project for a city community center…C.P. Milhams hosted a venison dinner for fourteen guests at his home in Alma…The second annual St. Louis football banquet took place at the Park Hotel. The St. Louis Service Club sponsored the banquet for the 1939 squad. Black and red decorations, along with large cutouts of football figures, appeared at the dinner.
And that was Gratiot County During Depression and War, December 1939.
Above: Advertising on the Strand’s marquee told the story—decades of movie-going at the Strand Theatre ended in 1992; familiar Strand advertising from the 1980s until its closing.
It had been a long run, but in the early 1990s, over 75 years of movie-going ended in downtown Alma. At the start of the 1980s, the Strand Theatre faced severe challenges. First-run movies came late – if they played in Alma at all. In August 1981, Harrison Ford’s “Raiders of the Lost Ark” finally appeared nine weeks after being released in Mt. Pleasant. During Christmas 1981, the Strand closed for an entire month, although adults paid $3 and kids paid $1.25 to watch a movie. A year later, in 1982, the Strand started its policy of “All Seats All Shows for Only $1.50.” Even though these were generous ticket reductions, the VHS rental craze started, and soon, in the 1980s, one debated renting and watching a movie at home.
Determining who owned and managed the Strand during its last twenty years is a mystery, especially after owner Keith Musser died in the 1970s. Linda Apple became the Strand’s manager from 1981 to 1986; the theater had nine employees. By then, Apple reported that she only had five days’ notice to get a movie and could only plan showings two weeks in advance. Second runs were a norm then, except for an occasional big release like “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home,” which debuted in December 1986 and had a large turnout. People knew that although ticket prices were low, prices remained high as concessionaires controlled the cost of candy, pop, and popcorn.
The end of the Strand appeared on the horizon by late March 1989. Steve A. Smith from S&R Investments announced that Alma would have a new $750,000 cinema complex in the Pine River Plaza, next to 300 Bowl. The idea of a new cinema corresponded to changes on Wright Avenue as it grew in the 1990s. A new Fisher Big Wheel store, restaurants like Taco Bell, and a new Wal-Mart came along. The new Alma Cinemas featured four screens, had a sign visible from US-27, and opened on September 15, 1989. The first movie shown at the Cinemas was “The Adventures of Milo and Otis.”
On February 16, 1992, a Sunday, the Strand closed its doors for good. For some time after this, a passerby wondered what would become of the old movie theatre with the marquee displaying a message that read “Closed.” However, another group had a dream for the Strand, and that came through the vision of the Gratiot County Players. They wanted the Strand but needed $80,000 from the owners, Craig and Kristin Naffziger. The Players pulled the deal together and showed old movies on weekends to help raise money to pay off their purchase. They eventually succeeded and held performances at the Strand several times each year.
A final goodbye to the movie days at the Strand took place on August 13, 2004. On that day, “Grand Slam at the Strand” was held as former workers and those associated with the Strand from the Depression through the 1950s showed up for a red carpet reunion. Interviews recalled the old days; visitors could leave handprints on the sidewalks. The grand old movie place, a fixture since its start in 1920, had this one last hurrah in Alma and Gratiot County. Looking back, it all began with the first movie at the Opera House. Alma’s movie history then played out with the Liberty, Idlehour, and Alma Theaters, in addition to two different Strand Theaters.
Copyright 2024 James M. Goodspeed
Did you know the Strand’s owners or managers from the 1970s to 1992? If so, please send me a note.
Alma’s Strand Theatre in the 1970s: in response to a belief that ticket prices should be adjusted for teens, Chris Tobin (left) and Barb Hunter, Alma Middle School students, led a picket. A total of fifty young people picketed the Strand on a Friday night in January 1975; movies like “The Legend of Boggy Creek” were among the first in a series of films and documentaries dealing with Big Foot in the 1970s; the coming of cable television to Gratiot County became one of the challenges to movie-going during the decade. “Jaws,” the first of the Hollywood summer blockbusters in 1975, debuted on cable in late July 1979.
In 1970, one often saw long lines of Strand Theatre patrons that extended down the sidewalk on East Superior Street. Many nights, people waited to buy tickets for the next show or to be first in line after missing out on a previously sold-out movie. Despite the crowds, the Stand faced challenges that decade, like the emergence of the nationwide rating system and the playing of adult movies. Across the country, adult-rated movies drew large numbers of moviegoers and produced handsome profits for theatre owners. Many parents wanted a rating system and opposed showing adult movies in Gratiot County. The Strand Theatre also faced competition from places like the newly built Campus Twin Indoor Theatre in Mt. Pleasant and the nearly Skytop Drive-In west of St. Louis. New releases came faster to Mt. Pleasant, where people watched movies in the convenience of a modern theatre. In response to sparse attendance, owners of the Skytop started showing adult movies, and the number of cars skyrocketed. To keep up business, the Strand was tempted to show similar movies.
One event at the Strand in the 1970s centered around young viewers. In January 1975, two Alma Middle School students, Chris Tobin and Barb Hunter, led a group of fifty youngsters who protested the prices charged for 12-17-year-olds (the cost was $2.00 a ticket). The two girls and their group presented a petition to manager Harvey Freeman demanding that the Strand lower the price of tickets for these young people to a more median level. The group then went and picketed outside the Strand during “The Longest Yard,” which starred Burt Reynolds. The next day, newspapers reported that in response to the student’s demands, Freeman tore the petition up and then bluntly stated that there would be no price changes in tickets.
While many big movies of this decade came to Alma, most of the time, they appeared many months after their initial release. For example, “Jaws” (1976) did not arrive until six months after it debuted. In this case, a movie that created the “American Summer Blockbuster” took until December to be shown in Alma. An exception to this was “Star Wars,” which arrived only two months late in July 1917 and played for three weeks (the same movie played for thirteen weeks in a row in Mt. Pleasant). Between the 1970s blockbusters, there were often reissues of older films, such as three showings of “Gone with the Wind,” which appeared between 1970 and 1974. Movies that featured Bigfoot documentaries also became a fad.
As the 1970s ended, community outcry arose over X-rated movies at the Sky-Top west of St. Louis, leading to petition drives and further opposition. Cable television competition became another problem for theatres and arrived in Alma in the summer of 1979. Another of the factors that marked the decline of the Strand was its scant movie advertising throughout the 1970s. After the attention-grabbing promotions of Keith Musser in the 1960s, if one wanted to see a movie at the Strand, now a person needed to call the theatre about show times. Different owners and managers also appeared to follow Musser after he sold the Strand. In a twist, the last movie shown in late December 1979 was entitled “Starting Over.” This Burt Reynolds movie foreshadowed what the Strand must do to stay in business. This final chapter of the theatre’s history, marked by more struggles, lasted throughout its final twelve years.
The Strand Theatre in the 1960s from the top: Keith Musser became the owner of the new Strand Theatre in 1962. One of the improvements in the new Strand was his installation of two 800,000-candle power projectors; Musser’s gift at movie promotions worked in Alma. Here, a group engages in a “Twist contest” in front of the Strand in late April 1962; “HELP!” was the call that drew many teens to see the Beatles’ first movie in late October 1965; the changing times and conflicts of the 1960s can be seen in this memorial service walk conducted by over 200 Alma College students and faculty members in front of the Strand and City Hall. All silently recognized the tragic assassination of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in early April 1968. The walk stopped the traffic in downtown Alma for a few minutes without incident.
After opening in the late winter of 1962, owner Keith Musser sought ways to draw people to Alma’s new Strand Theatre. Musser’s efforts as a promoter and showing of memorable movies continued throughout the changing times of the 1960s.
In many ways, the Strand Theatre during this decade could be called “The Era of Keith Musser.” In one of his first promotions after purchasing the Strand, Musser started a “Twist Contest” in May 1962, where female contestants stepped onto a large platform in front of city hall. The first round of the “Twist-off Contest” coincided with the debut of the movie “Twist All Night.” WFYC radio broadcasted the contest finals, and winners received $25 in cash prizes. The next night, Greening’s Chevrolet Buick gave away a “beautiful jalopy” for anyone who could guess the nearest mileage on the old car. A year later, Musser hired magician Dennis Loomis to escape from a straitjacket while hanging upside down in front of the Strand.
In April 1965, Musser hyped the debut of a new James Bond movie by having a yellow convertible on loan from Mike Pung with the movie title “GOLDFINGER” hanging on the sides. The car also had four lovely girls inside, and the vehicle paraded around Alma. For Christmas 1965, Musser again displayed the Ruskovic Mastodon bones, found in Emerson Township in the 1950s, to the public. Two years later, Musser held a contest where only “red-blooded” teenage boys could win a date with “a real live girl bomb.” He then added that the Strand was “not responsible for explosions.” There were also children’s draws on Saturdays, like when Channel 6 sent His Honor the Mayor and Al E. Khatt to perform live on stage. All of these promotions appeared in local newspapers and sought to draw people to the Strand.
During this decade, the Strand made many improvements inside, such as investing in an 800,000-candle power projector to show Cinemascope and widescreen movies. Musser also installed new drapes in the theatre and purchased a new popcorn popper. He then gave away free popcorn to those passing by the theatre. Free movie passes appeared for contests and giveaways through local newspapers. Twice, on opening night, the Strand invited the public to meet actors who starred in films that were showing, like “Hawaii” and “The Green Berets.”
To those who saw them, movies at the Strand during the 1960s regularly depicted America’s ongoing social changes. In late October 1965, the Beatles starred in “Help!” Musser wanted adults to attend and sarcastically guaranteed that teenagers would not scream during the movie. “My Fair Lady” (1966) was a successful musical comedy movie with solid appeal. So was “The Sound of Music,” which ran for three weeks straight in 1967 and was one of the longest runs at the Strand during the decade. A year later, a movie addressed America’s racial issues in “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner?” It played one month before the assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Sometimes, trying to show different kinds of movies brought about conflicts in Alma. In October 1968, the Strand started showing adult movies, and when “Ulysses” appeared, the movie was met with public opposition. That night, many Alma College students got up and walked out due to the movie’s excessive use of profanity. In response to the walkouts, Musser immediately canceled the show and replaced it with a rerelease of “The Sound of Music.” A year later, the Strand showed its first “X” rated movie, “Midnight Cowboy.” Letters supporting and demanding the use of the nation’s first movie rating system soon poured into the newspapers. All of these letters opposed the showing of adult movies in Alma. While some writers strongly urged parents to screen films before allowing their children and young people to see them, many Gratiot County residents wanted the X-rated movies banned entirely.
Yet, as the decade of the 1960s closed, the Strand Theatre had seen its best days regarding movie attendance. As the 1970s approached, a slow decline began, from which the Strand, like other movie theatres in America, ultimately would not recover.
Above from top: Fire consumes the Strand Theatre on the early morning of November 7, 1960. Even though fire as soon detected, the theatre went up in smoke and could not be saved. Forty years of movie going at this location appeared to have ended on that date; the wreckage and rubble of the Strand would rest on the site for more than a year, creating a public eyesore in Alma; a photo of the new Strand Theatre as it approached its opening in mid-January 1962; new theatre oner Keith Musser (left) had been manager of the Strand for six years in the 1950s. A forty year veteran as a theatre operator, Musser was the man to help put the Strand back on Alma’s map – and got people to come to the movies. Musser accepts the keys from builder A. Carl Schmidt of Hillsdale. In the center is J. Donald Sullivan who was the building inspector in Alma.
Alma lost a well-known place the day before one of the closest Presidential elections in American history.
It was 4:23 a.m. on Monday, November 7, 1960, when John Zigray, a newspaper boy, saw flames and smoke shooting from the rear of Alma’s Strand Theatre. Zigray ran around the corner to the Alma police station to report the fire, and the alarm rang five minutes later. However, in only a short time, the flames shot up 25 to 30 feet above the roof when the first fire truck arrived. By 7:00 a.m., the fire was nearly out, but the interior of the Strand was gone, resulting in over $100,000 in damages. In addition, fireman James Peck fell from a ladder and was treated for chest injuries while putting out the flames.
Although the fire started in the rear of the building, the Strand’s walls failed to collapse. Many who saw the theatre the next day marveled that the marquee remained, hanging dangerously over the sidewalk. The following afternoon, a crane came with a wrecking ball to take down the marquee for fear of it being a public hazard. Alma City Hall remained undamaged, probably due to the double brick walls adjoining the Strand. However, as the Strand’s remains slowly cooled, a pile of debris formed that sat on the premises for months to come.
Before the fire, the Strand Theatre showed movies in Alma for forty years; now, more was needed to build a new theatre in 1960. In response to not having a theatre in Alma, the city quickly supported showing Saturday movies at the Alma Community Center. In April 1961, owner Dolores Cassady offered the city thirty days to purchase the Strand’s 53-foot lot for $25,000. City commissioners quickly replied that the price was too high and gave Cassady thirty days to clean up the remaining debris.
In late June 1961, Carl Schmidt, a Hillsdale contractor and former theatre manager, bought the property to rebuild the Strand. He quickly proposed an “escrow plan” to see how badly Alma movie patrons wanted a new theatre. For $25, anyone could buy advance tickets for 52 future movies. If sales were poor, Schmidt proposed turning the property into a retail store. Fortunately for Alma moviegoers, Schmidt went ahead with his plans to rebuild the theatre. Although the opening date for the new Strand was moved back several times, on Thursday, February 1, 1962, almost fifteen months after the fire, a new Strand Theatre debuted in Alma.
Carl Schmidt surprised many in Alma when he announced that he sold the new building just one month later to Keith Musser, a former manager with ties to the old Strand. Musser was experienced with movie theatres and had many ideas about getting people to the movies. Given the city’s desire for a new theatre, Musser appeared to be the right man at the right time.
This time, the new Strand had only 600 seats and no longer had a balcony. It did have a cry room, party room, wider seats, new projectors, and a screen measuring 36 feet. After Alma Mayor Robert Anthony cut the ribbon on opening night, viewers watched a drama, “Madison Avenue,” and “Swinging Along,” a musical comedy. The first big blockbuster to appear at the Strand took place a month later, on March 8, 1962, with the premiere of “Spartacus,” starring Kirk Douglas. The Strand Theatre was back in business and showed movies in downtown Alma again for the next thirty years.
People and events from November 1939 from the top: Arthur Williams of Ithaca brought home the really big game from hunting season. His moose, bear and deer were all shot while hunting in Canada; the death of Perrinton Civil War veteran John Beckwith now meant that according to the news, only one Civil War veteran remained in the county; Thanksgiving approached and anyone not eating dinner at home could find a dinner at the State Sweet Shop in Alma – for only 45 cents; Hitler and Stalin claim do they do want war with each other – history will prove otherwise.
The harvest season was over, the holidays were approaching, and life continued in Gratiot County. Most of the news centered on how people lived in the county. The Depression went on – a second world war was going on in Europe.
It was November 1939 in Gratiot County.
The DepressionMoves Along
Dr. Francis Townsend, the father of the Townsend Movement, planned to speak in Saginaw, and many Gratiot residents went to hear him. Townsend advocated the idea of an old-age pension, so Townsend Clubs sprang up across the nation. Gratiot County Townsend Club members who sought to hear “the apostle of the old-age pension plan” were urged to attend this meeting – and many did.
Members of the Gratiot County Social Welfare Commission waited for the results of an audit to know how much money existed in the state books of the Emergency Relief Administration. On December 1, the commission took over the responsibility of ERA, and the county audit had to be approved by the Gratiot Board of Supervisors to know the status of funds. This commission consisted of C.J. Chambers, Dan McCuaig, and Earl Davis, and the three men had been overseeing the costs of the county’s poor farm since November 1. Now, they were responsible for all emergency relief cases and hospitalization of indigents. As a result, the state and federal law changes all meant more responsibility on the county level concerning welfare.
By the end of November, 46 young people in Gratiot County had employment with Michigan National Youth Administration work projects. Statewide, a total of 10,917 youth were involved. These youth, between the ages of 18 and 24, had part-time jobs such as working on road and street improvements, in educational buildings, on and around public grounds, working on recreational buildings, sewing, resident projects, nursery schools, and homemaking, to name only a few. Gratiot boys aged 17 to 23 could also apply at the Gratiot County Welfare Office at 614 East Superior in Alma for enrollment in the Civilian Conservation camps. Interested boys needed to apply by early December.
War News
As the war continued in Europe, Captain Charles E. Hixon of the Military Department, Field Artillery, Michigan State College, came to Ithaca to discuss defense preparation. Hixon wanted to address how the ROTC planned to play a part in national defense. His talk took place at the Ithaca Mason Temple.
A recruiting party from Fort Wayne visited Gratiot County November 8-10 at the Ithaca Armory. The War Department, with the support of President Roosevelt, now wanted hundreds of young men to be enlisted. One local volunteer, Harold L. Overmier of Ithaca, joined the Navy. The War Department’s goal was to raise army strength to 227,000 nationwide.
Gratiot County lost its next to the last Civil War veteran when John Beckwith of Perrinton passed at 88. Beckwith, then from Muir, joined the Grand Army of the Republic at 13 and joined Company E (re-organized), Third Infantry, on September 15, 1864. Although Muir did not see the most challenging part of the war, he served in Tennessee, Alabama, and Texas – where he mustered out on May 25, 1866. Beckwith had been a resident of Perrinton for 52 years. This death left only Jasper Norton, age 94, of Elm Hall as the county’s last tie to the Civil War.
Holiday Seasons Arrive
The holidays were in the news in November 1939, even though it rained and snowed on Halloween in Gratiot County. However, in Alma, a Halloween celebration occurred at the Alma Fire Department as youths downed 1,800 doughnuts and drank 100 gallons of cider that Tuesday night. Initially set for Tourist Park, city leaders moved the fire to the fire department, and it went off without a problem. At the fire station, a long line of youngsters came in one door and exited another, and they could eat and drink all they wished. Over in St. Louis, the city still held a costume parade led by the high school band. The St. Louis City Council provided refreshments. In Ithaca, another Halloween parade occurred, and afterward, youths met at the high school auditorium to listen to the high school music department provide music while they received their treats. Station PHEW broadcaster Duane Mellinger oversaw the ceremonies for several hundred boys and girls who came. Halloween parties also took place in other places. The Gratiot County Junior Farm Bureau held its party at the Beebe Hall. At the same time, the Northside Jolly Neighbors in St. Louis met at the M.J. Ingold home on North Seaman Street. A total of 25 attended the party. Mrs. Hugh McLaren won first prize for best costume.
As Thanksgiving neared, the state turkey tour visited ten turkey farms in Gratiot and Clinton counties. A highlight was a stop at the Clark Howland farm in Newark Township, which featured a short talk and dinner. The 75 turkey growers on the tour saw 12,500 turkeys.
By the end of November, places like Alma and Ithaca prepared for Christmas. Santa arrived in Alma on Friday, November 24. Crowds of children lined up in front of the Strand Theatre an hour before Santa appeared. Soon, St. Nick appeared in a sleigh mounted on a red truck, and a police escort had to get him through the crowds and inside. Every seat in the theatre was occupied, with children even sitting on the steps in the aisles. Santa happily gave out free “noise makers” to each in attendance. Then, the audience watched a series of free cartoons courtesy of Strand Theatre manager Victor A. Jaeckel. Starting soon after Thanksgiving, Salvation Army kettles appeared on Superior Street on Saturdays. The city also prepared to help needy families at Christmas as organizations and people gave for Yule Benevolences. Mid-West Refineries gave $50 for Christmas baskets and asked for the names of twenty families to provide gifts for Christmas. Others, like the Alma Teachers’ Club, gave $25, while the Alma Red Cross gave $50 to buy 20 pairs of new shoes for those needy children.
Ithaca began the Christmas season by planning for its Home Lighting and Decorating contest. Roland Crawford headed a committee establishing rules for participants in the 1939 Christmas season. All residents participated in decorating their homes with pleasing displays. The Ithaca Chamber of Commerce planned to decorate the downtown area with individual Christmas trees, each having strings of 24 lights. A large lighted “Merry Christmas” sign greeted visitors on East Center and North Pine streets. The annual Window Night program occurred on Friday, December 1, and a fire whistle blew at 7 o’clock to signal everyone downtown to turn on their Christmas lights. A program took place that night at the bandstand, located east of city hall. Here, Santa arrived, led by the Ithaca High School band. Following a Community Sing, those in attendance were eligible for up to 50 prizes given away by area merchants. Also, at that time, the Ithaca Santa Claus Club prepared to help those who might not have a Christmas. The club asked for new and discarded toys and clothing donations, which could be left at Ginther’s Garage.
The Long Arm of the Law
In November 1939, Gratiot County heard about criminal behavior, from more minor crimes to those that shocked the community. One only needed to read the county newspapers to find out what crimes occurred.
L.E. Grice and his wife were arrested for violating the Horton Trespass Law. Grice cut across the corner of the Nathaniel Thibaudeau farm in North Star while looking for bittersweet. The two were reported and cited for trespassing. L.E. Grice paid $10 and costs. Game violators faced different charges that fall. A group of ten officers from the state conservation department put up a blockade on US-27, two miles north of Ithaca. It resulted in finding two men from Tecumseh who had dressed venison, a result of shooting deer out of season near Beaverton. They paid fines and costs of $58.85 to avoid jail time. A River Rouge man was found with dressed hen pheasants. He paid $16.85 in penalties and fees.
Then, there were other types of arrests. Cornelius W. Eichorn of Beebe had his driver’s license revoked for six months after hitting a tree between Alma and Ithaca. Due to insufficient funds, Beatrice Piggott of St. Louis was arrested for passing a bad check to Alfred Wolansky of North Star for $14.20. She was scheduled for trial on December 2. George Dickerson of Sumner Township refused to buy a license tag for his dog for $1. When told that he had to pay $2 for being late, Dickerson went to Isabella County to buy a license for a lesser fee. Gratiot officials refused to honor the Isabella license, arrested Dickerson, and he had to pay $10.15 for fines, penalties, and a new license. Failure to do so meant Dickerson faced ten days in jail. Dickerson paid the fine.
A family of four in Washington Township made the news because of charges of concealing stolen property. Jesse and Retha Goins and their two sons were arrested for concealing stolen property from the Beck Farm in Clinton Township. Gaylord Beck discovered that the Goins family had 16 crates inside their kitchen with his name on them. When police investigated, they found 71 crates in a shed, with another 200 empty crates packed overhead. The stories about the existence of the apples told by each family member varied, and the sheriff arrested Jesse Goins and his oldest son. The bond was set at $200.
Thievery was always a problem for the law, and safe robbery, which was common in Gratiot County gas stations, continued. Two filling stations, one each in St. Louis and Breckenridge, were hit nearly simultaneously, and $285 was missing. At Bottum Brothers in St. Louis, the safe, which weighed 700 pounds, was hauled to a doorway and then abandoned. The thieves then sought to chisel off the door and saw off the hinges. At Breckenridge’s Hi-Speed Station, thieves got in through a ventilator next to the lady’s room, tore away a York safe, and pulled it off the wall. The criminals then rolled the safe to an alley, where the thieves loaded it. The safe was located two miles north of St. Louis a day later. Justice was delivered in another case where detectives in St. Louis and Mt. Pleasant arrested two Gratiot robbers. Gerald Brown and Archie Clawson robbed a gas station in late 1938 and made off with $54. The station owner, who tried to stop the robbery, was slugged from behind. After being apprehended, the pair awaited trial in Clare County Circuit Court. Two boys, one from Seville Township and another who lived near the Gratiot County line, were arrested and given a week in jail for breaking into the toolbox on a tractor that belonged to the Gratiot County Road Commission. James Cobb and William Pratt made off with $40 worth of tools. The court ordered the two to make restitution, and probation was deemed conditional until the boys paid for six sheep they stole from the William Moody farm near Forest Hill in August.
Crimes of a sexual nature also appeared in the news. A new Michigan law dealing with criminal sexual psychopathic cases meant that Judge Kelly Searl ordered two men to the Michigan State Hospital Commission. The two men, one from Vestaburg, arrested for criminal sexual assault, and the other from Wheeler, charged with indecent exposure, came before Judge Searl. Under the new law, both men were sentenced for no specific period or institution. The two remained in the Gratiot County jail until called by the commission. An Elm Hall man was also charged with committing a crime against nature, and his bond was set at $300. He remained in the county jail. A Mexican worker from Beebe received one year’s probation for a charge of rape. He petitioned Judge Searl to return to Texas and was granted leave.
Harvest, End of Season, Hunting, and Gratiot County
Although harvest season ended in the county, farm-related activities continued. Charles Krepps of Wheeler hosted an organizational meeting at his home to form a Farm Bureau Chapter. After a mixer, some talks, and a fine potluck meal, the new South Wheeler Community Farm Bureau pledged to meet regularly on the fourth Wednesday of each month. The group elected Krepps as its president.
Several Gratiot County Agricultural Conservation farm reporters spread across the county to determine how much wheat acreage would be planned for 1940. The survey also helped the county to determine how many farmers would be eligible for 1940 wheat parity payments.
The sixth annual meeting of the Production Credit Association took place on October 27 at the Strand Theatre in Alma. Three hundred sixty-one people elected three directors and listened to talks by PCA special representative from Minnesota and C.P. Milham, Gratiot County’s agricultural agent. Leon Tolversen, the special representative, held a surprise quiz program for ten selected farmers from across the county. The farmers formed five teams, and the one who answered the correct questions about PCA’s operation received a prize of five dollars.
The Alma Chamber of Commerce offered its annual Alma Farmers Institute program at the Strand on December 7. Mayor Earl Walker and Chamber Vice President Rex Babcock planned to speak to an estimated 600-800 people, followed by talks by C. P. Milham, county extension agent. The Ford German Band, provided by Ford Motor Company, provided entertaining music, and attendees watched a recent Michigan-Michigan State football game film. Each person who attended the institute received a ticket for a free dinner provided by one of several Alma restaurants.
In other farm-related news, Gratiot County 4-H members raised or processed over $12,000 in products from summer clubs with a net profit of nearly $4,000. Harry Johnson of Ithaca moved Johnson’s Power Farm Equipment Store from the Nelson Produce Building one half mile east to a new location. The new store sat on 160 acres of land purchased from George O. Davis, also called the old Long Farm. This new building measured 40 feet by 88 feet and consisted of double tile. Harry Johnson’s three sons, Woodrow, Lyle, and Randall, all who worked with him in the business. Balmoral Patricia, an Ayrshire owned by James S. Davidson of Balmoral Farms, Ithaca, came home safely from the New York World’s Fair. Balmoral Patricia was one of the performers in Borden Company’s World of Tomorrow.
A pair of barn fires took place in the county that November. Donald Oakes lost his large barn in Lafayette Township and its contents for a total loss of $3500. He had insurance to cover $2600. Fortunately, the Breckenridge Fire Department saved the house and other buildings. The fire was deemed to be of undetermined origin. Harold Sandel of Elwell lost his two-story frame house in a fire from a defective chimney. The ten-room house quickly rose in flames, but neighbors helped Sandel retrieve most of his household items.
On a lighter note, it was hunting season, and many Gratiot residents went after wild game.T. Jefferson Hoxie and George Hart enjoyed a pheasant dinner at the Fuller home west of Alma. Bigger game meant that most Gratiot hunters went north to get their big buck. James McWilliams of Ithaca, Morris Eastment of Alma, and Rollie Teachworth of Emerson got deer on opening morning in Roscommon and Midland County. Arthur Williams of Ithaca came home with the real big game – a moose, deer, and a bear – all shot while hunting for five days in Canada. Williams showed off his collection to the Gratiot County Herald office. Two pheasant hunters brought in the first reported red fox of the season. Cyril Tugan shot one on the old Cutter Farm southeast of Ithaca, while Paul Beck got one south of North Star on the Mike Reeb farm. One of the animals possibly escaped its enclosure on Bob Budge’s farm a week earlier. Orrin Moon of Pompeii shot a third one south of Pompeii on a Sunday. A resolution was made by the Gratiot County Council of Churches and Sunday Schools to end Sunday hunting and headed to the Gratiot County Board of Supervisors. Unfortunately, the only way that this ban could occur would be if the Board took up an enabling act after a referendum vote and approval by the state legislature. Gratiot County hoped more local hunting would happen as the state planned to set up a wildlife restoration area in eastern Gratiot and western Saginaw counties. A public hunting area of 19,000 acres would be mainly acquired from tax-delinquent properties.
And So We Do Not Forget…
The Ithaca High School Senior Class performed “Wings of the Morning” on December 6 in the gymnasium. Admission was 25 cents…2,100 Alma School children enjoyed Thanksgiving Break from Wednesday afternoon through Thanksgiving weekend. Many teachers were expected to leave Alma to return to their families for Thanksgiving…Alma Postmaster Joseph L. Winslow urged the Alma public on November 23 to mail Christmas tokens early for those who lived out of town…the Middleton Ladies Aid Society planned their annual December fair. Mrs. Orville Miller led a group in creating ready-to-wear aprons…Pastor Albert J. Anthony of First Presbyterian Church in Alma spoke about his military service during the World War at the Alma Rotary Club…A Riverdale family experienced thirteen cases of smallpox. Dr. William Guinard, village health officer, believed that the outbreak was under control and milk delivery to Riverdale continued. Guinard urged anyone who did not have the smallpox vaccine to visit their physician and obtain a precautionary treatment…Rathbone pioneer E.M. Becker died at the age of 88. Becker lived in Lafayette Township for 74 years, held nearly every township office during his lifetime, as well as postmaster. He also helped to build the first church and school in Rathbone…the Alma city commission agreed to remove the Pere Marquette railroad bridge over the old mill race at State and Woodworth Streets. A sidetrack to Home Lumber and Fuel Company would remain intact…Alma High School students listened to an Armistice speech by Dr. W.E. Kaufmann from Alma College.
The Alma Chamber of Commerce adopted a resolution urging the creation of a community center. Reid Brazell, Paul R. Cash, and Rex A. Babcock led the discussion and resolution…a large Red Cross appeared on the Alma clock tower inset with brilliant red bulbs. The emblem was to be displayed at night until the Red Cross roll call campaign concluded on November 30….the J.J. Newberry store closed for one hour on Friday, November 10, in respect for the passing of Charles T. Newberry, the brother of the founder of the company. The funeral occurred in Tarrytown, New York…extensive remodeling of the former Delavan house on State Street in Alma continued. Jennie Miner, the new owner, ordered a new stone foundation porch in front, a new two-car garage, and a new steam heating system. Extensive remodeling continued inside. The house had ten rooms…No state interference was present concerning Alma’s continued use of angle parking downtown.
A Middleton home was placed in quarantine when a case of infantile paralysis occurred in early November. Colleen Glazier, age 11, was the daughter of Leal Glazier, the owner of a general store in Middleton. Citizens noted that Gratiot County had no effective organization to deal with an outbreak of the disease…the North Star Cemetery Association elected three officers for the following year. E.S. Riest (president), Vern Parling (clerk), and Abbie Mellinger (secretary) planned to serve in 1940…a two-hour movie, “The King of Kings,” was played nightly for one week at the Alma First Methodist Church. No admission was charged for the movie sponsored by the Alma Council of Churches…Morris Johnson, formerly from Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, was hired as the new night clerk at the Wright Hotel…the Strand Theater attempted to offer a local news service two nights a week. Bob (Scoop) Jones was out taking pictures of people and events that took place. Manager Victor (Doc) Jaeckel said he shot events on 16 mm film.
The St. Louis Football team scored four touchdowns and defeated Chesaning by 33-0. Elbridge Wolfgang, a senior tailback, scored all four touchdowns…in Republic Truck history, on October 1, LaFrance-Republic “Sales” Corporation became known as “LaFrance-Republic Division, Sterling Motors Corporation.” The company moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1932. However, the service organization was still in Alma…the State Street Sweet Shop received new steps leading to its cellar, and the kitchen was getting new flooring. More remodeling was planned…E. D. Russell of Alma operated an auto repair shop on Woodworth Avenue. In late November, he received a booklet from the Philippines sent for the inauguration of Bienvenido M. Gonzalez, who was to become the new President of the University of the Philippines at Manilla. Russell met Gonzalez in Baltimore, Maryland, in the early 1920s when both families lived in the same apartment complex. Russell worked as service manager of the Baltimore branch of Republic Trucks. Gonzalez did research work at Johns Hopkins University. The booklet was published in October for the inauguration of Gonzalez as President…Keith DeMott, age 21, of Washington Township, married Naomi F. Smaltz, age 25, of Fulton Township…Mildred Packer, age 10, of St. Louis, would probably lose sight in her left eye due to a BB gun accident. Another student was shooting at a tree, and Packer was on the other side. Packer went to St. Marys for treatment…St. Louis High School and businessmen from the city held their annual community fair starting on November 30, sponsored by the FFA, Home Economics, and Manual Arts departments. The program is from Thursday night through Friday morning… Jake Sattler purchased D. K. McDonald’s implement dealership in Middleton.
All teachers in Gratiot County were reminded again to take their oath of allegiance as part of Act 54 of the Public Acts of 1939 of the Michigan Legislature. The oath could be administered by a justice of the peace, notary public, circuit court commissioner, judge, or any court of record…Perrinton High School held Alumni Day on Saturday, October 28. Alumni classes of 1934-1936 played against the Classes of 1937-1938. The latter won, and 73 people attended the banquet in a church basement. Over at Middleton, 75 guests participated in a dance there on October 28…a notice appeared that Arthur Fowler of Sumner passed away. Fowler was noted for his role in buying the grist mill and property from Henry Hyde. Fowler improved the mill, which was said to be unlike any other in the state and an essential industry in Sumner… Mrs. Francis Clifford of Perrrinton was shocked while visiting the Fredricksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park museum. While looking at old Signal Corps photographs, she noticed the image of her brother, Josiah P. Hackett. The photo was taken after the second Battle of Fredericksburg; her brother was from Maine. Officials at the museum announced that this was the first time a visitor identified someone in their old photographs…the Thompson Home Library was open two hours each evening during National Book Week. A display of Cizek Children’s colored paperwork done in Vienna was on display. A list of new books was also available to visitors…Ashley High School seniors planned to put on an amateur show. A cash prize of $3 would be awarded to the first-place winner. George “Elmer” Schleder served as announcer.
And that was November 1939 for Gratiot County During Depression and War
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