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Gratiot County During Depression and War – July 1941: “In the Good Ol’ Summertime – Before the War”

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From above: Gratiot County’s first aluminum drive; Local boys enjoy ten days at the Alma Rotary club’s summer camp; The 64th anniversary of the St. Louis Leader led to a special newspaper; America confronts the Nazi invasion of the USSR and its intentions regarding which natural resources were affected.

The Winds of War Blow Toward Gratiot County

Many in the county hoped that the nation (and Gratiot County) could avoid another world conflict. However, events in what was the last July before the war began indicated the war was coming.

Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox, who happened to be an Alma College graduate decades before, said publicly that he believed the United States should use its Navy to clear the Atlantic Ocean of all German threats. His statement came on the heels of the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union earlier in June.  Knox believed now was the time to strike Germany. In response to the Nazi invasion of Russia, President Roosevelt ordered “all necessary steps” to be taken to protect shipping lanes between the United States and Iceland and to ensure the area’s security. Because Germany also claimed that Iceland was within its war zone, conflict with that nation seemed imminent. Although Iceland would be occupied by America, all troops would leave the country at the end of the war, per agreement.

When it came to the draft for the month of July, 44 men reported to Alma draft headquarters to prepare for the trip to Detroit. After a meal at George W. Myers Legion Post Hall, the men headed out on a chartered bus. Heading the list were Homer Kunkel and James Green, both of Alma. The first ten men in the group were volunteers, and many others were Alma College students.

Gratiot’s boys, many of them homesick for home, wrote and told of their new life in the military. Private Don McMullen wrote from Camp Davis, North Carolina, about how busy he was. Twice daily hikes, an hour of drills, and then classes on modern warfare were required of all. Located northeast of Wilmington, North Carolina, this 3,200-acre former area of swamp and scrub pine now holds 20,000 troops. McMullen’s group was the first from Fort Custer to reach this new camp, which currently held 15,000 men, most of whom were from Michigan, Illinois and Wisconsin. Despite their drilling and work in the extremely hot weather, the men had Saturday afternoon through Sunday night off, which allowed many to visit area beaches.

 In a strange twist of history, Gerald Eastman of Breckenridge wrote home from Pearl Harbor, Honolulu, Hawaii, dated June 7. Eastman, like the rest of America, had no idea that his location would just five months later mark the start of the United States’ entry into World War II. After leaving San Francisco by ship – and 50,000 miles from home – Eastman said he was chipping the paint off the sides of boats, of which fifty now rested in the harbor. Eastman also gained twenty pounds in just two months – in small part from having eaten twelve fresh oranges, which he said were all very good. Second Class Seaman Eastman would soon draw an incredible monthly paycheck of $36, up from the $10 he currently received.

Three other Gratiot men received promotions to corporal: Donald McMullen, Russel Criswell, and Ward Lyon. The first two were stationed at Camp Davis, North Carolina, while the other carried out duties at an air base at Everett, Washington. Richard Terwillger, Jr., of St. Louis, was appointed as a reserve ensign by Secretary of the Navy Knox. Terwilliger would complete his studies at the University of Michigan, then probably be called to service as a chemical engineer. He had previously worked summers at the Michigan Chemical Corporation.

Alma battery men Major Howard Freeman, Lieutenant Ken Church, and Sergeant Phillip Collins all made it home on a short pass in order to spend the Fourth of July with their respective families. They arrived in Jackson, Michigan, at 7:20 a.m. on Friday morning, came home to visit, then returned to Jackson for their train to Fort Leonard Wood at 9:00 a.m. Sunday morning. For their travels, the men had about 48 hours with their families.

The Gratiot County Red Cross continued to create shirts and dresses for refugees in war-torn countries. More sewers were needed, and production chairmen Mrs. C.O. Way and Mrs. Charles Bloss both asked for more volunteers. Interested helpers need only to phone Ithaca at 343 to get involved. Other war-related activity occurred when Redman Trailer in Alma announced it would expand by adding a 90×110-foot building for final trailer assembly. As it was, Redman’s could not meet the monthly quota of 200 trailers. Over at St. Louis, the Oak Grove Cemetery Board purchased $15,000 of Series G National Defense Bonds. The purchase was believed to be the largest purchase in the region at that time.

There was big news in Gratiot County about an oncoming conflict that would engulf the United States in the county’s first aluminum drive. While the government denied that there was an actual aluminum shortage at the moment, the Michigan Defense Council asked all American Legion posts to supervise the collection of aluminum in their areas.  Boy Scouts were also asked to show up and help the Legion collect used pots, kettles, and utensils. Set during the week of July 21, the country hoped to gather enough aluminum to help build 2,000 more fighter planes. Louis Dines oversaw operations in St. Louis, along with John Tuger and Murvel Peacock.

In other work, the county’s USO drive went on toward its goal. St. Louis had a large thermometer painted on the north side of the D & C store, showing that St. Louis had reached the halfway mark of its $500 goal by July 23.  Other towns and villages in the county also contributed to their government-assigned USO goals.

Selective Service Continues; More Gratiot Men Leave

On Tuesday, July 2, a total of 192 young men who turned 21 since the first draft registration in October 1940 did so at Alma City Hall. A total of three draft board members, office staff, and two volunteer assistants helped with the work. Changes to the Selective Service draft came down from Washington starting July 1, as Washington declared that the new draft age would be up to  27. By mid-July, the government used a new lottery to select those men aged 21 through 27 who became liable for a year of military service. It also meant that these men were more likely to receive an early call for the 750,000 men who registered on July 2. The number drawn from the Washington draft bowl to be integrated into the new draft order found its way to Gratiot as No. 98, which turned out to be Laurence Laverne Sherwood of Ithaca.

 Leaving for the draft again became reality as Gratiot County needed to supply 44 men to leave on July 16. This was Gratiot’s eighth conscription so far. Ten of the men in the group were volunteers; some selectees were Alma College students who had previously had deferments. Among the volunteers in this group were Homer Kunkel of Alma, Robert Keck of Perrinton, and Benny Zamarron of Ashley. Leslie Romaine served as the group’s leader. On July 29, the Gratiot  Draft Board called another 10 men for the August quota to leave on Monday, August 4.

 One problem that the Gratiot Draft Board had to deal with was Clifford M. Thrush of Alma, who was originally serving as a conscientious objector at Camp Onekema in Copemish. Thrush wrote, asking to be reclassified for military duty as 1AO, meaning he could be drafted to serve anywhere. Thrush was dissatisfied with not being paid for his service and with having to rely on other groups to pay his $35 for board and his own clothes.   He also did not like the drab routine, continual work in the woods, and nothing to do at night except go to bed. Thrush also asked the board to publish his letter to advise those considering becoming conscientious objectors on religious grounds.

Another issue the Draft Board examined was the status of men who entered into marriage to avoid the draft. The board had instructions to examine all cases of men who had married since the first registration draft on October 16, 1941.  Any man married after this date had to convince the board that it was “a manner consistent with the ordinary course of human affairs” and not a way to avoid the draft. Draft registrants had to prove in a written statement that they were not doing so, and then a man could receive a 3-A deferment.

New Deal Programs Endure Reductions

WPA and NYA news topped the list of New Deal program news in July. People in Gratiot County could visibly see a reduction in the number of WPA workers being cut by the government or leaving for other jobs.  This reduction in workers occurred despite the county having 205 youth in NYA programs at the end of June.  As a result of the July cuts, summer recreation activities were affected, including limited supervision at Alma’s pools and at Turck Beach.  After a city swimming meet in Alma on July 3, Darrell Milstead, WPA director for Turck Beach, planned a series of junior and senior lifesaving classes. To qualify, participants had to swim 440 yards and remain on the water’s surface for 10 minutes. A total of 91 boys and girls signed up for elementary swimming training to learn to swim. The American Red Cross oversaw the classes. During this struggle to maintain enrollment in WPA recreation programs, director Darrell Milstead resigned and sought work elsewhere.

 Other things in St. Louis, like the temporary closure of the grade school recreation center, activities on Wheeler Field, and open-air dances, also kept the WPA busy. Those WPA programs that planned to continue included work on Wright Park tennis and shuffleboard courts and fourteen blocks of paving in Alma. WPA workers involved in a project at M-57 were now transferred to work in Alma.

To address the labor shortage, NYA Youth Administrator Howard Jones certified 40 new members for work in St. Louis and Alma. Most worked either on summer projects in Alma and St. Louis or at the sewing and weaving project in Alma. Even with the new additions in Gratiot County and across the state, county relief roll numbers continued to plummet to their lowest levels since 1933.

Over at Alma, a group of 150 or more WPA workers and their families paused to have an Independence Day picnic. The Americanization Committee, chaired by Grace Rowell of Alma, organized the event, which included sports and recreation and a call for dedication to national service. A dance closed the day’s activities. To keep people interested in summer sports, the Saginaw News again sponsored a tennis tournament for novice players in St. Louis, Alma, Midland, Mt. Pleasant, and Saginaw. Some local names of participants included Jim Horgan, Bob McIntyre, Francis O’Melia, Wayne Davis, Don Wilkinson, Bob Ode, Wilton Slocum, and Jim Burlingame.

There was some good news for 68 employees of the Gratiot Highway Department. They received a ten percent pay increase starting July 2. However, the county road commission stated that it might be necessary to curtail wages if winter-weather work affected the annual budget. From April through November, employees worked a 50-hour workweek. Between November 1 and April 1, workers might work a 54-hour workweek, depending on the demands of winter service.

Farming in July

It was hot and dry for parts of July, as crops suffered until heavy showers hit the county at the end of the month. Some named the hard rain that ended the hot weather a “blitzkrieg” of relief, which helped beans. Beets and corn continued to keep growing. Oats, barley, and wheat were thought to have been severely damaged by the dry conditions in June and early July. Still, Gratiot agricultural agent C.P. Milham voiced concerns about the effects of corn borer damage. How extensive was the damage, and what would be its effect? Milham lamented that the county likely suffered more damage this year than last, despite efforts to educate farmers about this issue. Not a single farmer in the county could avoid participating in plowing under their cornstalks in order to get rid of the borer. However, too many farmers still refuse to properly dispose of their corn stalks.

 The third annual St Louis Beet Growers picnic took place on the Ithaca Fairgrounds on July 31. Bring a basket lunch – the company furnished ice cream and lemonade.

Earlier in the month, farmers were urged to get their apple orchards sprayed. Farmers also received good news: starting with the upcoming hunting season, a new law took effect requiring hunters to have written permission to hunt on farmland.  Hunters had to carry the documents with them, and the law went into effect before the start of pheasant season. Southeast of North Star, farmer John Foote went to find his young cattle in their pastures in the woods when he found them in the swamp next to a young buck with antlers “of considerable length.” It was big news in the North Star area.

A farm accident reminded people of the dangers on the farm. Arden Holton, 31, of Ashley, had his foot amputated after an accident he incurred while working on a combine, and ended up having the foot removed at Smith Memorial Hospital.  Holton was working to clean out the wet straw and oats lodged inside when he tried to stamp down on a cylinder with his foot in order to dislodge everything. A young hired hand heard Holton’s cry, shut off the machinery, and tied the area above the ankle with a handkerchief. Farmer Stine and the hired hand, Howard Massey, drove Arden Holton directly to Smith Hospital.

Summer Brings the Gratiot County Fair

There is nothing like a fair; this one ran from August 5-9 (Tuesday through Saturday) and featured “a week of thrills,” according to a late-July advertisement. Two weeks before the fair opened,  fair secretary Leslie Simmet had a group of workers cleaning the grounds and exhibit buildings. In addition to fair exhibits, three afternoons featured horse racing; fair attendees could watch a horse-pulling contest, the Hill-Wilbur Circus, and the WLS Barn Dance Show. All young men in military service got in free, as did children under the age of twelve. Wilbur’s Circus, which featured a fleet of miniature ponies, performed twice daily. Another feature involved the Gasca Brothers – Michael, Don, and Leo – who performed circus stunts twice daily. Miss Virginia Alverson planned to be part of a public wedding (her future husband was not mentioned). Lois Sanders, Willoann Rayburn, Nina Burt, and Mary Donahoe were all part of the wedding party. A big fireworks display took place at the end of the fair on Saturday night.

Public Health Issues and Stories

Strange, bizarre and tragic – three words that described what happened to some people during July. The Harold Nevills of Chicago nearly lost their grandchild to a drowning accident north of Sumner near the dam. While fishing, grandfather Harold did not notice that his little girl was playing in the water with a sailboat. The child followed the boat as it drifted farther down the river, then stepped into a hole and disappeared. Luckily, another woman who was fishing heard Harold Nevill’s cry for help, jumped in a car, headed to Sumner for help, and returned with two men, John Carter and Don Pimnan, both of Alma. Both men jumped into the river and found the child submerged, then grabbed her and pulled her to the bank and worked on her until she regained consciousness.  The grandfather then collapsed from the shock of the incident and had to be taken to Sumner, and a doctor was called. Both grandfather and grandchild survived the scary incident.

A tragic swimming accident took place over at the North Star gravel pit involving young Rudolph Zamarron, age 21. Zamarron was with a group of swimmers who sought to escape the heat. It was believed that the young man, who could not swim, crossed a pontoon bridge over the pit and fell into a deep hole. After the group discovered Zamarron was missing, the sheriff’s department was called, which dragged the pit for the missing man, who was found in 20 feet of water. This was a tragic loss.

In another strange incident, a bee caused an accident on US-27 north of Ithaca. John White of Ithaca was going north when he pulled off his cap to swat a flying bee. The car then swerved off the road and crashed into another driver traveling in the opposite direction. Luckily, both drivers were only shaken up, although White’s car suffered significant damage. In another instance, Melvin Thrush was hit by lightning on a Thursday morning when it came through the ceiling of an ice house. It left a hole twelve inches in diameter, landed five feet away from Thrush, and turned a nearby piece of iron black. Thrush fortunately suffered only temporary shock and ringing in his ears for fifteen minutes after the incident.

Ileen Kristal, three years old, of St. Louis, received second-degree burns when she backed up and sat down in a kettle of scalding water at home.  She was rushed to Smith Hospital. Marilyn Dubay, another three-year-old from Alma, fell off the porch with a milk bottle, suffering serious lacerations around her right forearm and wrist. Reverend W.H. Bell of Shepherd, and formerly of Alma, was rushed to Smith Memorial after he fell off a ladder while painting a schoolhouse south of Shepherd and fractured his shoulder. Arthur Zimmerman of Ashley broke his kneecap when two rolling logs from a truck hit him while he worked at the Garno Elevator. Fortunately, the logs hit the ground first before they hit Zimmerman, or the results would have been much worse. Zimmerman would be in a cast for several months.

A dental health clinic returned to Gratiot County for 12 weeks to treat children who could not afford dental care. By this time of the summer, the clinic had moved to Alma and was treating approximately 100 young people each day, courtesy of the Children’s Fund of Michigan. Fear of another, more serious wave of poliomyelitis began to be talked about in newspapers as the summer moved toward August. In 1940, a major wave hit the state and extended into September. The Upper Peninsula was hit especially hard at that time.

The Long Arm of the Law  Continues

During the previous month, June, Gratiot County courts recorded 59 convictions, 47 of which involved traffic violations. Simple larceny, drunk and disorderly, and statutory charges were among some of the crimes. Generally speaking, newspapers reported that the Fourth of July was quiet with respect to law infractions in the county.

 Charges against R.J. Pung of Alma were dropped in connection with an incident dating back to January. Pung reached a satisfactory settlement with the Saginaw Financing Corporation in two cases on two dates, and the cases were dismissed. Lois McKay, 25, of Alma, found herself in jail after stabbing a deputy sheriff at the Midway Tavern on the Gratiot-Saginaw County line. McKay was involved in an altercation while dancing, engaged in an argument, and was kicked out of the tavern. The deputy met her at the door when she tried to re-enter and then stabbed him in the arm. The tavern had previously existed near Wheeler, was closed due to licensing problems, and then moved just across the county line into Saginaw County.

Law enforcement was called to the scene of the Yost Bridge, 3 ½ miles west of St. Louis, on the morning of June 30, involving a traffic accident. Two young men from Muskegon were on their way to the home of Carroll Curtice when the driver went off the road and hit the bridge, killing both young men. Young Curtice, age 18, apparently fell asleep at the wheel.

Thieves, thieves everywhere. Someone broke into the Wheeler Elevator on a Thursday night and stole $34.50 in money, 90 packs of cigarettes, and 5 candy bars. This all happened after closing at 9:00 p.m., when a thief broke in through a window on the north side of the office. Four St. Louis youths did face justice for the damage they caused at the city park late on a Sunday night. The youths overturned benches, broke trash containers, destroyed shrubbery, and threw a table from Wheeler Field into the river. The group was found and required to make restitution for damages done.

To combat juvenile crime, the county moved toward leasing a new detention home for delinquent and unfortunate children by leasing the old Ralph Petit home at 412 North Pine Street in Ithaca. A new home was needed because the courthouse basement, formerly used to detain youth, was being repurposed. This new home featured three rooms, complete with bars, and in good sanitary condition. Mrs. George Sanders would be the new matron of the home.

And So We Do Not Forget

The Alma Rotary Club sponsored a ten-day trip for fifteen girls to attend the club’s fresh air camp on the Pine River. Another camp for boys took place prior to this gathering in July…The Alma Record urged citizens to be considerate of their mailman by offering a cool ice water or lemonade during the hot July heat…Vigil Barton, 18, and Marcia Haas, 18, both of North Star, became the latest victims of Cupid’s arrow during the week of July 14 by purchasing their marriage license…P.C. Thomas and Company of Breckenridge reminded vacationers that their business had everything they needed for their upcoming camping trip. Don’t forget your picnic supplies…The Bannister school district still contemplated what to do now that its building was lost during last spring’s fire. Up to now, Bannister had a K-12 school, but discussion now leaned toward having students in grades 9-12 attend either Ashley or Elsie High School…The St. Louis softball association published its second-half schedule for the season, starting July 7 and ending August 28.  Lake Shore Sugar took on Christian Church in the first game on July 7…The Alma Chamber of Commerce announced that Mardi Gras would replace the old Harvest Jubilee, which had taken place each September since 1931. Alma’s Mardi Gras would take place September 10 to 12…V.K. Beshgetoor, Alma pastor and ardent prohibitionist, wrote a letter to the Alma Record letting it know that beer should not be made available at Army camps – a good way to corrupt young men with the beer-drinking habit.

John Probst of North Star gave his wife a shampoo with 258 fresh eggs when his car skidded off the blacktop near Furgason’s gas station. On the way to Ithaca to sell 30 dozen eggs, the Probst car went off the road, flipped twice, and landed on all four tires. Both people survived the incident; they were covered from head to foot. Two eggs survived…Buffalo Bill Cody’s second cousin, Harriet (Cody) King of Sumner, died at the age of 97. Harriet lived an active life, lived with her son George King, and was an active member of the Crystal Congregational Church…John Wayne, Betty Field, and Harry Carey starred in “The Shepherd of the Hills” at the Strand Theatre. Ten- and twenty-cent tickets got you inside…President Franklin D. Roosevelt gave a radio message on July 4, the 165th anniversary of American independence. America had to remain “ a fertile oasis” for freedom and democracy in the midst of the world situation…Clare M. Troub was named the postmaster general in Middleton. Because of increased business in the past year, the Middleton office was now promoted to third class…Half-year plates went on sale at all county auto license bureaus. There appeared to be increased demand for plates now that fruit growers needed workers and as people prepared to leave their homes for summer vacation…Fred E. Himes was chosen as the new commander of the William Fields American Legion Post in Alma. He replaced Milton C. Townsend.

The village of Perrinton prepared for its annual homecoming, to be held August 25-26. Baseball, bands, foot races, nail driving contests, pop-drinking contests, and necktie races were planned. Dancing to take place each evening at the Community Hall…Big news in St. Louis – Harry Heilmann, Detroit Tigers announcer, planned to broadcast a game in St. Louis from a Cleveland-Detroit game on August 8. He also planned on conducting his popular program “Man on the Street” afterward. Detroit Tigers fans in St. Louis were excited…The Edgewood Church of God planned to dedicate its new sanctuary. Dr. E.A. Reardon, pastor of Park Place Church of God in Anderson, Indiana, planned to give the dedication sermon…The St. Louis Lutheran organization held a picnic at Alma’s Conservation Park, drawing an estimated 1,000 people. Many had to bring their own tables. The grounds were said to be used almost every night of the week for recreation and meetings…Breckenridge Schools considered purchasing buses to provide transportation for students who wanted to attend the school. As of July, Breckenridge was the only district without buses to do so.

Wow, there was a run on Gratiot County marriage licenses. A total of 172 had been issued as of June 30, up from 125 at the same time in 1940. Cupid was indeed busy…Alma State Savings Bank celebrated its 40th anniversary on July 1. The original meeting of bank stockholders took place on May 21, 1901…The fourth annual Michigan Chemical Corporation was planned at Lumberjack Park for August 2. At least 250 people were planning to attend… Dr. T. D. Gilson of St. Louis created and installed an air conditioning unit on the second floor of the Commercial Bank Building. Gilson stated that his offices now had temperatures reduced by at least 16 degrees. W.T. Bradley and Claude Smith helped with carpentry and metal work. This was considered the first air conditioning in St. Louis…William Kesl, proprietor of the Park Hotel in St. Louis, officially planned to open the “Travertine Coffee Shop” on August 1. The new coffee shop sat on the north side of the hotel, in an enlarged space that had been a private dining room. The café got its name from the travertine stone covering the lower walls. Opening seven days a week…The grand opening of the Ithaca Dairy and Locker Plant took place July 25-26 and provided a place for farm families to store their food. Also, special deals on the weekend for ice cream sundaes (2 for 15 cents)…O.E. Buanning’s Beehive Restaurant at 322 North State in Alma got a fresh coat of white paint. People noticed.

Four hundred people at the new St. Joseph Catholic Church in St. Louis heard the dedicatory sermon on June 29. Mrs. Lanshaw played a newly installed electric organ…Frank Vanderook, pioneer editor and publisher of the St. Louis Leader, spoke at the St. Louis Rotary Club’s weekly luncheon.  Vandercook recently observed his 91st birthday…St. Louis Schools planned to operate country bus routes now that it had two new 48-passenger buses. There would be a $25 per-student transportation charge per year…The Andrew Sisters and Abbott and Costello appeared at the Ideal Theatre in “Buck Privates” July 20-22. Tickets cost ten and fifteen cents. Lots of Sunday matinees…The ten-day-long Gratiot County Holiness Association camp meeting at Ola closed after ten days. On Sundays, the tabernacle was full and over 200 souls sought God during the altar calls…The Ithaca Rotary Club hosted another Rotary member, Leonard Allen of Ketchikan, Alaska, for their weekly lunch. Allen, a teacher, gave a presentation featuring scenic, colored pictures of salmon fishing, totem poles, Native Americans, and Native boats. The presentation was said to be interesting…Softball games took place at least three nights a week at Rathbone Park in Lafayette Township. Rathbone had both a men’s and girls’ team…Local Perrinton barber Nicholas Surdenik developed a sanitary toothpick dispenser and got a patent for it. The dispenser only presented one toothpick at a time. No more mauling of toothpicks.

And that was Depression and War during July 1941.

Copyright 2026 James M. Goodspeed

Gratiot County During Depression & War in June 1941: “Trying to Catch a Break”

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Above from the top: “Michigan Days” promotion for the summer of 1941, courtesy of the Gratiot County Herald; The Stars and Stripes Forever flies even though parts of Europe fall to the Nazis; Michigan migrant school opens again for the second year at the Washington School in Alma; Three Gratiot boys head a group to the annual Boy Scout “Camporee” in Breckenridge.

After the talk about war preparation, the draft board suggested that there might actually be a pause in calling young men from Gratiot County to the military.

Still, Gratiot men moved from Fort Knox to Fort Leonard Wood. Letters from some of the men showed their travels from rural Gratiot County to faraway military camps in the country, a trip not taken since World War I.

Efforts to contribute to the county’s war preparation were led by the Red Cross, and the need for USO centers was recognized.

The number of Gratiot people involved in the NYA and WPA programs appeared to be leveling off as people found jobs in war plants.

People still needed medical care. Farms need workers.

It was June 1941, and Gratiot residents would not know a “peaceful” month of June for over the next four years.

Could Gratiot County just catch a break?

Gratiot County Continues War Preparations

War news did not stop. The government announced that it needed to recruit approximately 40,000 Michigan citizens to work in the growing war plants. A new bomber plant in Ypsilanti was planned to employ 60,000 workers alone. Fifty Alma workers pushed for an Alma unit of the USO (United Service Organizations for National Defense) and raised $1,200 as part of a national drive to raise over $10,000,000 for recreational centers for those in the military. The government also announced the closing of all German consulates in the country, as well as all German nationals associated with those consulates. Concerns over Nazi interference and potential sabotage floated across the country. At the end of the month, the government announced a 20% cut in rubber use for the next six months. On June 21, the Second World War took another turn as Germany launched a surprise and successful invasion of the Soviet Union, which appeared to be caught off guard. Hitler’s early successes with the invasion had people wondering how long the Soviets would last, but Russia was a very big country.

As the summer started, a new draft registration sounded on the horizon. An estimated 300 Gratiot youths were expected to register who were 21 after October 16, 1940, and before midnight on July 1, 1941. This time, registrations would only take place at Alma City Hall. Aliens between 21 and 36 who came to the United States since the first registration now had to officially register as well. Early in the month, a list of 10 volunteers and 35 conscripts appeared in the newspaper. The Navy also wrote a letter to Alma Schools superintendent F.R. Phillips, inviting young men in Alma to help with national defense. Superintendent Phillips encouraged young Alma men to consider joining the Navy now. Two of nine registered conscientious objectors, Clifford Thrush of Alma and Bruce Meads of Riverdale, were to be sent to the Onekama Camp in Manistee County. However, the camp was not ready to receive them when their order went out. Five more conscientious objectors were sent to Camp Bluffton, Indiana, for training. These included Nathan Benner (Middleton), Clifford Hibner (Ithaca), Judson Hill (Wheeler), George Smith (Ashley), and Emerson Yordy (formerly of Alma, now in Detroit).

The Gratiot County Red Cross sought to support war preparations by sending 229 articles to a Jersey City warehouse to aid war-stricken nations in Europe and Asia. Among them were 76 women’s woolen skirts and 30 women’s woolen dresses, as well as 25 bed shirts. When more yarn arrived in Alma to meet the Red Cross British quota, Mrs. William Ellis called for more volunteer knitters. The county chapter also planned to call 120 people who had passed the standard Red Cross exam to form a first-aid unit.

News from the boys already in training appeared with more regularity in the newspapers. Jay Alverson, who was inducted in Saginaw, Chauncey Bradley of Riverdale, and other Gratiot men, such as Harry Bassett and Russell Snook, gave glimpses of Army life. Changes and modifications to West Coast weather, how to roll a Bull Durham, how Army uniforms and shoes failed to fit properly, or off to see the sights when on leave – all were mentioned in the letters. News also told how Ned McKee of Alma fractured his knee at Camp Davis, North Carolina. Harry “Hap” Jones of Alma arrived at Fort Custer and entertained his fellow soldiers by performing juggling tricks, magic, and comedy. Jones had been a circus performer for 14 years. William Keyes of Elwell appeared in the motion picture “I Wanted Wings,” which was shown at the Strand Theatre in Alma. Keyes was a cadet who completed his training at Randolph Field, Texas, and would soon be on active duty at Kelly Field.

Those men from Alma who had been called to service at Fort Knox continued to send updates on their status. Although the wives and girlfriends of at least six Gratiot men stationed with the Anti-Tank Battery, 2nd Battalion, 177th Field Artillery, received a visit, the unit would soon be on its way to Fort Leonard Wood. Private M. E. Hartig sent letters to the Gratiot County Herald informing readers about what the unit was doing as it went to Fort Leonard Wood. Major Howard L. Freeman designated Hartig to be the official correspondent with the county newspapers since so many men were sending letters to the Herald offices. By the end of June, another 36 men, many from Michigan, joined this group, bringing the total to 92 men and 2 officers. Also, in early June, Alma Mayor Charles R. Murphy was promoted to Major Murphy to create a new group of Michigan State Troops based in Alma. This new group consisted of 46 men to replace the 177th Field Artillery Unit that left for Fort Knox. Major Murphy was now assigned to command the areas of Muskegon, Newaygo, Montcalm, Gratiot, and Saginaw counties.

The NYA, WPA Programs

New Deal programs like the National Youth Administration (NYA) and Works Progress Administration (WPA) continued to offer employment to young and old alike. However, the numbers seemed to drop as people left for higher-paying jobs, now that war preparation meant work in defense plants and other workplaces.

Gratiot County now had 902 NYA youth, ages 16 to 24, employed on out-of-school projects. Shirts and garments, as well as photographs of boys’ handicrafts, appeared in the windows of the Perry Building in Alma on the corner of Superior and Woodworth. Those youth working at Turck Park learned the concessions business and raised $18.75, enough to purchase a defense bond. Approximately 75 NYA workers received free health x-rays as part of a statewide health program. All workers at the Washington School received x-rays, as well as some Alma College students.

In order to accentuate the value of WPA projects in Gratiot County over the past five years, a state WPA administrator cited several accomplishments. The building of 40 blocks of streets, 263 culverts and improvements, and 165 miles of road headed the list. Also, sizeable additions were made to Riverdale and Ashley Schools, as well as to the new Wheeler Field in St. Louis. An average of 300 Gratiot residents were employed by WPA projects. Current work in Alma included ongoing work on streets, curbs, and sidewalks, as well as new shuffleboard courts in Wright Park and wading pools for small children.

Health Problems Require Help

Assessing and treating victims of tuberculosis continued in Gratiot County. In early June, 66 people underwent X-ray examinations at Alma Junior High School with help from the Michigan Tuberculosis Association. Bette Spies, field worker, oversaw the operation. Prior to this, two patch testing clinics were held in Alma on the morning of May 21 and again in Ithaca in the afternoon. Readings of those tests a few days later showed 17 positive results in Alma and 16 in Ithaca. Another 33 people also took tests as recommended by physicians. The entire work was financed by the sale of tuberculosis Christmas Seals.

Another attempt to address health matters in Gratiot County involved providing free dental care to over 1,300 children, from preschool through age 16. Ithaca started the clinic and hosted the program for five weeks, then at Alma High School for four weeks, and ended in St. Louis for three weeks. Those living in the countryside could attend the center closest to their home. Another health clinic later took place in St. Louis involving the immunization of children for smallpox and diphtheria. Dr. A.D. Hobbs and two nurses oversaw these free clinics, which operated for an hour on June 16 & 30.

There was some happier health news. Smith Memorial Hospital installed a new 200-watt fluorescent light in the operating room, equivalent to the one at nearby Wilcox Hospital. This greatly helped with operations at Smith. The Smith Memorial superintendent announced that the staff would honor Miss Georgiana Freuhauf, a nurse at Smith, in honor of her upcoming marriage, and she received a miscellaneous shower, complete with pink ice cream. Also, Miss Ellen Rush offered her home to host a steak fry for the Gratiot County Nurses Association and invited all county nurses to attend.

The Long Arm of the Law Continues in Gratiot

When it came to law enforcement, the resulting news was sometimes hard to read. Still, it revealed some of the social problems that Gratiot County had in 1941. During May, Gratiot County courts recorded 51 convictions, 39 of which were for traffic violations. Fines brought in $687.30, and costs amounted to $241.95. While checking forgeries, assault and battery, and drunk and disorderly routinely appeared in the news, it was a collection of several “sordid” cases that readers found disturbing. Alice Sanders of Ithaca was arrested and sentenced to one to four years in the Detroit House of Corrections for administering drugs for unlawful purposes to a child to procure an abortion. Sanders had 16 children and was arrested as a result of another troubling investigation. This one dealt with a statutory crime against a 15-year-old Alma girl by a Mexican field beet worker, Raymond M. Ortiz, 23, who lived on Euclid Street in Alma. The beet worker got five to ten years in Jackson Prison. As this case continued to be investigated, more young men in the Ithaca area were believed to be involved. Another name involved was Ygnacio Reyes, 21, of Ithaca.

In other cases, Dwight Morris of Ithaca got a $10 fine for using indecent language in front of women and children. Four Breckenridge boys, ages 13 and 14, were arrested for breaking and entering the Pere Marquette Depot in Breckenridge. After entering the building with a skeleton key, they stole a quantity of firecrackers. They each got parole in charge of the Breckenridge village marshal. A Vestaburg truck driver, Earl J. Evans, also made the news as a result of charges and conviction of indecent exposure and received $275 fines and costs, or face jail time. Lyle E. Bearup, 19, of Ashley, was arrested at the county jail for stealing chickens from his father. He had to pay a $30 fine and serve 60 days in jail. If he could not make payment, Bearup would serve 90 days.

Life and Challenges on Gratiot Farms in the Summertime

The summer was hot and dry until rain fell intermittently starting June 12. The rain broke a drought in the county, reviving suffering crops. Sugar beets, which had recently been blocked, were now expected to take off and prosper. The county agricultural agent again warned farmers who had not done enough to combat the corn borer problems of 1940. While many Gratiot farmers pledged to work their previous year’s corn fields more thoroughly, too many still failed to take the corn borer problem seriously. Damages in 1940 due to corn borer resulted in a loss of $400,000 in Gratiot County. Other anticipated farm problems included a perceived shortage of farm labor due to the Selective Service and a shortage of migrant workers.

Those who believed farm life in Gratiot County was easy had another thing coming. During the month of June, several farm accidents occurred, with at least one ending in death. Ervin Hoffer, age 8 of Washington Township, tragically died as a result of lassoing a cow on the family farm west of Banister. After milking the cow that evening, Hoffer took a noose of a rope, looped it around his waist, and then threw the other end over the cow’s head. The 1150-pound cow then panicked and dragged the child 60 rods to the back of the farm to a woodlot. When Ervin failed to show up for dinner, the family searched for him and found his lifeless body attached to the cow. The boy suffered a severely torn scalp, and his waist, surrounded by the rope, was only about four inches in diameter, which caused fatal internal injuries. After summoning the coroner, he decided no inquest was needed. Ervin Hoffer left his parents and four siblings.

Another accident in the county involved Cardwell Hoard, 14, of Pompeii. Hoard received serious injuries when his team became unattached to a drag and ran away, after being spooked by the farm owner’s car, where he worked. When found after being dragged 60 rods, Hoard was unconscious, suffered a fractured skull, and was taken to Smith Memorial Hospital, where he remained in grave condition. Young Howard Comstock of St. Louis was thrown by a horse on his father’s farm and received a serious concussion. Carl Cole of Breckenridge injured his arm when he slipped on a load of hay and fell to the barn floor. He was admitted to Smith Memorial for X-rays. In some other very sad news, Odel Snook, 58, a retired farmer near St. Louis, took his own life in the Oak Grove Cemetery as a result of despondency over his own physical health. He ended his life in the cemetery and was found at his parents’ gravesites.

The anticipated Mexican school in Alma was delayed as improvements continued at the Washington School building. This was the second year for the school, and it was one of only two in the entire state in 1940. When the school did open, it welcomed 48 children on the first day, only to have 60 the following day. Within a week, 75 children attended the school. Miss Merle Farni, Miss Gertude Herman, Miss Nell Zydyk, and Miss Virginia Coldren all made up the staff. All of the women were from outside of Gratiot County, and a few were from out of state. The Gratiot County Council of Churches and Sunday Schools sponsored the school. Mexican families were invited to attend services at the Alma Methodist Church Fellowship Hall on Sunday evenings. Reverend Albert Mareno of Shepherd led the programs. On Monday, June 30, the Washington Center opened for an open house. The school operated from 10:00 am to 3:15 pm daily.

There was also a selection of tidbits of farm news in June 1941. Rademacher Motor Sales of Alma urged farmers to consider buying a Ford Tractor with the Ferguson System for only $695. The “Our Gang” 4H Club at Banister was organized at the Ensign home. Alma Production Credit Association moved its offices to the southeast corner of State and Center Streets in Alma, opposite the post office. The downstairs offered four good-sized rooms and a hall for offices. Sheep dipping in the county ended in early June with the C.V. Tracy farm of Newark was one of the last locations for the season.

And So We Do Not Forget

The Alma Chamber of Commerce held its first discussions about another possible late-summer celebration. Continuing the “Harvest Jubilee” in Alma had been a tradition in recent years in August…Billiroy’s Comedians made another stop in Alma and set up camp across from Leonard Refineries. The vaudeville show on its 18th tour of the Midwest featured eighty people, “most of them girls,” the handbills proclaimed. Tickets inside the tent theatre cost 25 cents for adults, 15 cents for children, and ladies free with a paid adult ticket…The Thrasher Dairy Bar inside the remodeled Goodenough Store Building in Breckenridge featured new frosted malted milk shakes. Generous servings and dancing privileges allowed…The Meteor Café in St. Louis, owned by Rocky and Charlie Piccolo, now plans to serve “Chick-En-Hand,” cooked in its own grease and served in wicker baskets. Customers received half a chicken without silverware…Police announced that the newly paved Michigan Avenue between Alma and St. Louis would be closely monitored following a tragic accident near the CSA Hall. Speed restrictions and zones are now ordered at 20, 30, and 35 miles per hour in different areas.

The St. Louis Lions Club had one of the biggest memberships in central Michigan. Adolph Schnepp served as president of the 41 Lions in St. Louis…The McLean filling station on M-46 in Breckenridge lost two high-test gasoline pumps when two cars crashed into them on a Friday afternoon. An estimated $500 to $600 in damages occurred…The Gratiot County Herald published a special insert on June 9, 1941, entitled “Michigan Days for Michigan Prosperity.” Several pages featured advertisements of county businesses and businessmen…Little Rock Lumber and Coal Company of Alma sold 8x8x16 cement blocks for eleven cents each…A new state bill required Alma to raise its pay for city policemen. Those on the beat for more than a year had to be paid $17,000 annually, up from the previous $15,000…The St. Louis Hatchery sold “Michigolden Ducks” and chicks. See W.V. Hess at the hatchery…Free softball games were held on a Wednesday night, when the Ithaca All Stars defeated Michigan Salt, 14-6. Games were played four nights a week in Ithaca (Wednesdays excluded for church night)…Alma Chief of Police Earl Willert again warned residents to stop chasing fire trucks that took off to fight fires. A state law banned such activity. A recent fire on Valley Avenue caused such disruption that fire trucks had difficulty getting close enough to the building.

Three Ithaca boys were among a larger group from Ithaca that took part in the spring camporee in Breckenridge. Edward Nestle, Jr., Lloyd Young, and Max Plankenhorn appeared in the Gratiot County Herald…Daily Vacation Bible School opened under the leadership of Pastor Kelsie Martin from East Superior Christian Church. The three-week event was sponsored by the Alma Federation of Churches at the Lincoln and Republic Schools… The twenty-third annual Ola Camp Meeting opened courtesy of the Gratiot County Holiness Association, beginning June 29. A new two-story building was built to house the kitchen and dorm rooms to support the growing work at Ola…Eleven Gratiot graduates of Central State Teacher College in Mt. Pleasant joined the ranks of new teachers. Margaret Todd of Middleton (limited certificate) was one of the graduates…St. Louis Police Chief Edward Barnes completed his fifth year of protecting St. Louis young people at the corner of Washington and Mill streets from being hit by reckless drivers. Barnes first came on staff in St. Louis in 1931 and had been a veteran of World War…Melvyn Douglas, Joan Crawford, and Conrad Veidt starred in “A Woman’s Face” at the Strand Theatre in Alma. Admission was ten and twenty cents…Get the new Gibson Freez’R Shelf refrigerator at Clapp Hardware in St. Louis for only $94.95….Art Farnsworth just moved his Chrysler and Plymouth Dealership to 219 West Superior Street in Alma, featuring a new showroom, sales, and service.

The Ithaca High School track team won the Valley C Conference title. Coach Keglovitz led and coached the team…The Michigan Department of Health planned to conduct its second ragweed pollen count in the summer. Hay fever sufferers hoped for relief as the department planned to determine where the lowest counts occurred in the state…Conservation League Park in Alma planned a Paul Bunyan pancake supper complete with syrup tapped from the park’s own trees…The George W. Myers American Legion Post Number 164 presented “Golgotha,” a full-length movie about “The Passion Play,” which was shown at the Alma High School Auditorium on June 17. Four showings were planned and cost 35 cents. This movie was the first to be based entirely on the four Gospels’ account of the last week of Christ’s life. Many firms and businesses in Alma supported bringing the movie to town…George E. Marr continued to improve the St. Louis GEM Theatre by bringing in up-to-date pictures and attracting many out-of-town patrons. A remodeled front was another hope for the GEM…Barkoot Brothers Shows would be in Alma from June 23 to July 2 on the Pere Marequette Lot south of Center Street, between Lincoln and Prospect streets. The American Legion sponsored the rides and shows. A daredevil, death-defying high wire act took place every night…Ladies, want a new type of dress? Rayon clothing, planned to debut in the summer of 1941, was washable, comfortable, and stylish.

L.W. Hartig, the owner of Alma Tire Service, moved into his new location at 614 East Superior Street, which was formerly the Sadie Soul property. The brick building was built by Henry Soule and once served as the Green Fern Hotel. Prior occupants of the building before Alma Tire moved in were the Gratiot County Social Welfare Commission and the Gratiot Social Service Bureau. Both of those occupants moved their work to the Gratiot County Courthouse…Bannister School voters approved a $13,000 bond to build a new school building, which burned down in the spring. However, a measure to raise the tax limitation of 15 mills for the purpose failed by two votes. What would be the district’s next move?… “Ellery Queen’s Penthouse Mystery” played at the air-conditioned Alma Theatre. Viewers got to see the recent serial of “Adventures of Captain Marvel.” All for only ten or fifteen cents…In a surprise, St. Louis residents were told that Detroit Tigers announcer Harry Heilmann may come to town for a rebroadcast of a Tigers game. Somewhere on Mill Street, Heilmann planned to conduct his popular program “Fan on the Street” early in the evening. This was big news for Tigers fans in town…Business at the St. Louis Park Hotel was shut down for a few weeks as owner William Kesl remodeled the north side of the main floor into a new coffee shop. The kitchen also would be moved from the rear of the building to another spot in the hallway between the main dining area and the lobby…

Breckenridge High School graduated 37 seniors in the class of 1941. Over at St. Louis, 61 graduates made the grade and graduated…A couple of ladders and improved lighting at Turck’s Beach in Alma allowed safer swimming conditions. A false alarm at the beach caused the Alma Fire Department to arrive after a call from the beach was over the leader for ladders and light bulbs…Some Alma teachers took off on their summer vacation outside Gratiot County. Hildegarde Empkie took off for her home in Kalamazoo, and Margaret Laage headed back to Grayling. Some teachers planned to remain at home in Gratiot; others, like Melva Giles, were on trips, traveling to Quebec. Finally, six St. Louis fast-pitch softball teams elected new officers for the 1941 season. Wayne Green served as treasurer; Frank Curtiss, president; Wayne Davis, secretary.

And that was Depression and War in June 1941 in Gratiot County.

Copyright 2026 James M. Goodspeed

“Murder on the St. Louis High Banks”: The Percy Kiter Murder Case, 1922

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Above from the top: Percy Kiter in an undated photograph that appeared in the June 8, 1922 issue of the Gratiot County Herald; a very young Adolph “George” Wallaghen in a photograph taken years before his murder; looking northwest along the Pine River in toward the possible area of the St. Louis “high banks,”; opposite of the former location of Velsicol plant; family burial plot of the Wallaghen family in Oak Grove Cemetery in St. Louis; the only marker on the family plot belongs to the Wallaghen parents.

“Murder on the St. Louis High Banks”: The Percy Kiter Murder Case, 1922

Gratiot County newspapers called it a bloody and shocking juvenile crime which was unequaled in the history of mid-Michigan. And it happened because of a missing pipe and nine cents.

It happened in 1922, in St. Louis, and this tragic murder left a deep mark on the city’s history for the next thirty-five years. For many people living in St. Louis, the death of a young boy was the most terrible event since the town’s earliest settlement.

An Early Summer School Day in St. Louis

This murder took place on an early summer’s day as the school year came to a close at the Oak Grove School northwest of St. Louis. The compact, square box-shaped school, with its three narrow windows on each side and a small set of steps leading to the front door, was located near the Oak Grove cemetery. Because of the school’s location, students frequently walked a short distance to the nearby Pine River or to town by crossing the millpond bridge.

As summer approached and the school year ended, young boys went swimming in the Pine River. One of these spots, known to many as the local swimming hole, was on the north side of the Pine River and sat near a spring. Farmlands abutted the river, and the northern area on that side contained what locals called the “high banks” shores. These river banks sometimes dropped by 20 feet or more in some spots to the edge of the Pine.

Before the 1920s, it was not unusual in Alma or St. Louis for youth to engage in activities in town that concerned the merchants. Theft, vandalism, and horseplay all caused business owners to be on the lookout for unaccompanied children. Youthful offenses ranged from stealing money from an unattended cash register to taking fruit without paying. Knocking over stands and even breaking windows put businesses on alert. Incidents became so frequent in Alma that the police chief stepped up efforts to crack down on misbehavior by arresting youngsters.

On May 31, 1922, young Percy Kiter made a trip into town and back after finishing his examinations. Two other boys, Alex Wallaghen and Donald Smith, also left the school with Kiter and also wanted to have a good time, so they pooled their money, and Kiter went into town to purchase a pipe and tobacco. However, this morning, their time together changed their lives.

Three Boys, Tobacco, and Nine Cents

Percy Kiter, 12, was the second of eight children. The Kiters moved to St. Louis from Grand Rapids, and his father, Perry Kiter, worked on a tile ditching machine, also known as a “ditcher.”

Following Kiter around on that morning was Adolph “George” Wallaghen, age 13, one of two sons born to Alouis and Sidonie Van Wallaghen. The family moved to St. Louis from Detroit sometime before 1920. Both parents were immigrants from Belgium, but appear to have arrived in Gratiot County during a time of Belgian immigration early in the World War I era. An immigrant train arrived in Alma in February 1915, bringing 30 families courtesy of the Burt, Sharrar, and Moore Company. Although the Wallaghens were not on that train, they were one of several Belgian families in the county. The Walleghen family spoke Flemish at home, and later changed their last name to just “Wallaghen.” Alouis Wallaghen worked as a laborer in the St. Louis area.

The third party in this story was young Donald Smith, who was 10 years old. Little is known about Smith’s background, and his name does not appear in any records tied to the Oak Grove School. His father’s name was Ira, and Ira Smith had a farm not far from the river. Donald Smith appears as the young follower who went along with the older students just to belong and for fun. Due to his youth, Smith was intimidated by his peers. One interesting aspect of this story of these boys is that newspapers described them as being a bit older than they really were. For instance, Van Wallegen was about 4 months away from turning 14. Likewise, Percy Kiter was only 3 months shy of being 13, yet newspapers “rounded off” their ages. Consequently, the reports portrayed a story involving childhood and early teenage years.

During a break from morning examinations on Wednesday, May 31, the three decided to go for a swim and a smoke about three-quarters of a mile above the St. Louis dam. Although the boys obtained the tobacco and pipe, they had no matches. That job went to Donald Smith, who made the trip into town but returned empty-handed. Percy Kiter then decided to make another trip and came back; this time, he had just three matches. As the boys gathered close to the bank upon Kiter’s approach, George Wallaghen teasingly accused Kiter, saying he would tell Kiter’s parents about Kiter stealing things in town and about his smoking. A war of words immediately broke out between the two boys over Kiter’s thefts and smoking.

As Wallaghen bent down to take off his shoes to go swimming, Percy Kiter hit him hard in the head, knocking him down. When Wallaghen attempted to get back up, Kiter hit him a second time, then kicked him, sending Walleghen backward down a steep bank that extended fifteen to twenty feet deep toward the water. On the way down, Alex Wallaghen hit a branch of a tree that jutted out of the water, which had come to rest there after winter storms. As Kiter jumped down the bank after Wallaghen, he approached Wallaghen and continued choking him and hitting him. It was then that Kiter saw blood come from Wallaghen’s ears and nose. As Kiter examined Walleghen, Kiter realized that a sharp tree branch had lodged in the back of Wallaghen’s head. Kiter then checked for a heartbeat, but Wallaghen was dead.

The Cover-Up

Upon realizing that George Wallaghen was dead, Percy Kiter instantly ordered Donald Smith to come down to help him and dispose of the body. Young Donald Smith also came down the bank, frightened and intimidated by Kiter. Kiter and Smith then stripped the body, folded the clothes, and took a moment to try to wash the blood off the back of Wallaghen’s shirt. The two then pushed the body out into the Pine River with a large forked stick in an attempt to make the incident look like a drowning. The stick left gouge marks on Wallaghen’s neck. Just before they climbed and left the high banks, Percy Kiter went back to Alex Wallaghen’s clothes. Kiter took nine cents out of the pocket (another report said a dime), and the remaining tobacco, pipe, and matches they were going to use that day. The two boys then made their way toward school, where Kiter attended another session of school examinations after lunch. Just as the two boys left the high banks, Percy Kiter threatened Donald Smith again, telling him never to say anything about what happened. One boy was dead, another intimidated, and a third just went about his business at school.

By late evening, George Wallaghen’s parents began searching for their son, who had not come home for dinner. The search continued into the next day, when a farmer, while dragging his ground near the high banks, went to the nearby spring for a drink and found Wallaghen’s clothing. Soon afterward, some men returned to the location, and Wallaghen’s body was discovered and removed from the river. Soon, a woman recalled seeing the three boys walking toward the high banks, prompting the police to question Percy Kiter and Donald Smith. Smith seemed very nervous, under pressure, and unwilling to talk. Once the police separated the two boys and questioned them separately, the story gradually came out, especially from Donald Smith. The two boys’ stories seemed to agree – Kiter did the kicking, pushing, and choking of Alex Wallaghen. Smith helped move the body due to pressure and threats from Kiter. It took until Friday afternoon to learn the full story of Alex Wallaghen’s death. But once in jail, Percy Kiter finally confessed fully to his role in the murder of his school “chum.”

The inquiry and police work covered six days from the murder until the official announcement that appeared in local and state newspapers. The delay in releasing the investigation was due to the police and the prosecuting attorney wanting to make sure they had the facts, the story, and the guilty party all in line. One of the hidden aspects of the murder investigation involved the fact that the coroner’s jury judged that Wallaghen had no water in his lungs. This fact ended any speculation of the event being an accidental drowning. Instead, it was declared a murder, and a violent one at that.

Prosecution, Judgment, Consequences

Although Percy Kiter confessed to the death of his schoolmate, Wallaghen, there were limitations on what charges Gratiot County prosecuting attorney Romaine Clark could bring before Judge James G. Kress due to Kiter’s age. When Kiter appeared before the judge ten days after the murder, as a minor, Percy Kiter could only be sent to the Industrial School in Lansing until his eighteenth birthday. That length of sentence would be true if Kriter proved he could be a “model inmate.” If not, he would remain there until age twenty-one.

Life was hard for the Wallaghens after the death of their son, who was buried in the family plot in the North Section of Oak Grove Cemetery under what today are several trees. Alouis, the father, died in 1929 and was buried next to his son. He left his wife, Sedonia, who worked as a housemaid for others until she died in 1948 in St. Louis. Strangely, George Wallaghen never had a marker placed on his grave, but his parents’ names appear on theirs. Their other son, Emil, moved out of the St. Louis area and became a social worker.

Donald Smith disappeared back into history, old enough to have witnessed a murder, seemingly granted grace as a child who was intimidated under threats and pressure into helping to cover up a crime. Nothing appears on Smith in any school records. However, Donald Smith’s name appeared in the news again in the 1930s when he suffered a serious injury in a traffic accident.

There was more to the story of Percy Kiter, who served his time and was released back into life in St. Louis by 1930. It is not clear whether he left the Lansing Industrial School at age eighteen or twenty-one. Still, in the 1930 census, he is listed as a common laborer and the eldest of the remaining Kiter children still at home in St. Louis. Married by 1940, Kiter, his wife, and two children moved to Carson City, where Kiter worked as a truck driver for Guy Gossett. Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, the Kiter family held reunions outside St. Louis. By 1950, Percy Kiter moved to California, where he worked as a mechanic and did auto repair at a garage. He eventually died on November 23, 1974, in Riverside, California.

A Wallet, $22, and a Small Boy

However, in retracing Percy Kiter’s later years, a strange story was found. One day during the Christmas season in 1933, Kiter worked on a CWA project in St. Louis. The Depression was on, and money was hard to come by. On his way across town to a gas station one day, Kiter lost his pocketbook that contained $22 and papers. After advertising for its recovery in the newspaper, Kiter gave up and forgot about his loss. About a month later, a ten-year-old boy appeared at the CWA worksite and asked if someone had lost his wallet. It turned out the boy had found the wallet, but his mother insisted they keep the money, as times were hard and Christmas was coming. A month later, the mother regained the money and sent her son to find Kiter to return the wallet, cash, and papers. Upon finding the owner, the boy handed over the items to an astonished Percy Kiter, who wanted to give him a reward, which he refused. Kiter was so excited at the return of his money that, as he showed his fellow workers, he had failed to get the boy’s name.

Did Kiter pause at any time to remember that this boy was the same age as Donald Smith, whom he had coerced into helping to cover up a murder almost twelve years earlier? How often did Kiter think about the other boy he murdered, George Wallaghen, by knocking him down a steep bank on the high banks and choking him as he died?

These questions were all part of the lives of children and teens in St. Louis’s past. And so the story of a murder on the St. Louis high banks moved into history, where a kid killed a kid for a smoke and nine cents.

Copyright 2026 James M. Goodspeed

Gratiot County in Depression and War: January 1941, “The Start of the Last Year of Peace”

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From the top: The St. Louis Park Hotel prepared for the annual “President’s Ball” to raise money for the fight against infantile paralysis; the New Year began with more calls from President Roosevelt to prepare and arm the great “arsenal of Democracy” in wake of the war over England; “Gone With the Wind” made its second appearance in Alma – a tradition of reappearing at least once each decade until the Strand (II) closed in the early 1990s.

Christmas and New Year’s ended quietly in Gratiot County, but talk of America’s involvement in the European war increased.

Another group of young men left for the military even as a line of volunteers dwindled, meaning that the draft board would soon be forced to call men to serve.

The National Youth Administration remained very active by taking in young people to work on various projects.

And winter hit Gratiot County, sometimes shutting down towns and villages, even for just a day or two.

It was January 1941 in Gratiot County.

The Holidays Pass Peacefully

Just before New Year’s, local towns and villages revealed the winners of their Christmas home lighting contests. Milton Townsend, chairman of the St. Louis contest, announced that Carl Johnson of 422 East Washington won first place and was awarded five dollars. For the first time in St. Louis, the city sponsored the contest, but for some reason, there were fewer entries than in 1939. The Alma Chamber of Commerce awarded first place to Paul Woodland of 510 Republic Avenue (personal home) and to the Michigan Masonic Home (institution/business category), which received $10. Over at Breckenridge, the Garden Club rated B.C. Wood first place for the most original display; Mary Shepard got second for the most appropriate; Doctor E.S. Oldham placed third for the most individual; and Walter Neitzke won fourth for the most extensive display.

On Christmas Day, the St. Louis Leader noted that the St. Louis Knights of Pythias Lodge Number 49 held a dinner for 86 children in the lodge quarters above city hall. Following the dinner, each child received a free theatre ticket and a sack of candy from Santa Claus. The lodge put on the entire program and dinner.

“A Nation in an Undeclared War?”

That was what a column in the Alma Record-Alma Journal declared in early January. “We are at war without having declared war” with Nazi Germany, claimed the columnist, by helping Great Britain, and that “the die is cast.” When will war be declared and by whom? In response to concerns that America would soon be involved in a war, President Roosevelt called up America to be “the great arsenal of democracy” and to prepare to defend the nation as Nazism threatened the entire globe. The race to help Great Britain, according to President Roosevelt, had to include the construction and export of more planes, ships, guns, and freighters.

Across Gratiot County, the tone of speeches and presentations also implied that war was not far off. Professor Ray Hamilton of Alma College described Nazi Germany as having a pagan government as he spoke to the Ithaca Rotary Club. Hamilton also said that a former Alma College professor was now being investigated for un-American activities. Other voices, formerly from outside the United States, warned the county about Imperial Japan’s status and actions. Dr. K. Ping spoke to the Alma Rotary Club about why he believed the Japanese would ultimately be defeated, in part because they took over too much of China and could not control it. Ping also stated that both the Communist and Nationalist Chinese had put aside their own differences to unite to fight the Japanese. Doctor Elmer Boyer, recently from Korea, gave a pair of talks in Alma about the harsh life under Japanese rule. As Christianity grew in Korea, the Japanese were very oppressive toward Koreans and extremely distrustful of all Americans.

The Gratiot County Draft Board invited men to volunteer early and join the Army or Navy, even as nineteen men made up the January quota and prepared to leave for Saginaw. Among them were Carl Deline, Herbert Wolford, and William Keon, all of St. Louis. As men were called, the Draft Board realized it would soon be interviewing men who were not volunteers. Members of the board, such as Lyle Whittier, attended meetings, including the one at the Alma Rotary Club, to explain the examination and classification process for the next 14 men to be called in February. Already, Alma lost some of its young men, like Captain H.L. Freeman, who headed the National Guard in Alma and who had been called to Fort Custer.

In other events related to the theme of war, the Redman Trailer Company of Alma became one of eight businesses nationwide approached by the government to build house trailers capable of holding eight bunks for soldiers. Such a contract meant that the Alma Company would need to expand its plant and employ day and night shift workers. A letter from David Glass, Alma College graduate, arrived home explaining his training with the aviation corps at Pensacola, Florida. A total of 976 aliens had registered in Gratiot County by the late December deadline. Ithaca postmaster James O. Peet announced that 415 aliens appeared to register as required by law. Many of those registered were of “foreign extraction” who worked in the sugar beet and farm fields. In other words, they were migrant workers. The Greek Relief Fund in Alma continued to grow from donations. By mid-January, the fund had raised $831.94 to buy supplies for the relief of the families of Greek soldiers who died as a result of fighting Italy. Over 500 local communities across the United States organized Greek relief funds. In Alma, James Stamas, George Goutis, and James Stavros formed the committee. The Alma Record openly endorsed the relief and asked readers to do the same. Doctor and Mrs. B.N. Robinson of Alma received word that Mrs. Robinson’s parents were safe and living in Southern France. It was the first word they had had of the parents since the Nazi invasion in June. The DeWachters formerly resided in Paris and had evacuated from the city. Word reached Alma through American citizens who met the DeWachters in Biarritz.

Life in the Great Depression/New Deal Programs

During the winter of 1941, the National Youth Administration sought to expand its work in Gratiot County by providing young people with work experience through gainful activities. One of these events involved planning the Alma Ice Carnival on Saturday, February 1. Several NYA boys worked as a crew to get an arena ready on the Pine River. The boys sought to create a track almost 300 feet long for various events, including speed skating, sled events, and several novelty events to take place that afternoon.

Alma Schools embraced the idea of using the old Washington School for classes that could enroll up to 100 young people. By offering woodworking classes for boys and home economics for girls, this NYA program dovetailed with the idea of preparing young people for the national defense program. As such, the federal government would cover almost all the expenses associated with ten-week classes that ran for eight hours a week. A.C. Heying would oversee shop work there while Mrs. Marvin Utter would have charge of the home economics classes.

The Works Progress Administration and the St. Louis City Council discussed spring work projects for eight city blocks, including curbs, gutters, and storm sewers. It would cost St. Louis $12,386, but the WPA covered $8,112 of the amount. Areas around North Pine, Washington, Mill, and Center streets were targeted. At the same meeting, city clerk Frank Housel told the city council that 15 able-bodied men owed the county labor on the roads, which amounted to $2 per day. This “work or no relief” policy in the county emerged earlier in 1940. On a lighter WPA note, Darrell Milstead, County WPA recreation director, said the WPA was testing a “toy lending library” at the Republic School recreation center. In this program, a boy or girl would check out a toy for up to two weeks, then return it to the school. If no one was waiting for the toy, the boy or girl could check it out again.

The Long Arm of the Law

During December 1940, 46 people were convicted of crimes, bringing in $222.75 in fines and $232.80 in costs. Three people were sent to Jackson prison and three to the county jail. A number of the court appearances involved game law violations such as carrying a loaded shotgun in a vehicle, violating the Horton’s Trespass Law, or transporting dressed venison. William Batten, 21, of Detroit, and Charles Van Atter, 31, of Eaton Rapids, stood mute to stealing a calf from the George Bates farm during the past summer. Batten got a $25 fine and costs, or 30 days in jail (where he initially went), and Van Atter went to prison on a $200 bond default. The two men picked up the Bates calf, which stood near the edge of the road, and made off with it. There was no word on what had happened to the calf.

Three area men were arrested, and more details emerged about the February 1939 break-in at the Lobdell-Emery plant, where 960 pounds of Downmetal and scrap aluminum were stolen. Arrests of Carl Baker, formerly of Alma, Charles Langin of St. Louis, and Charles Thompson of Alma meant more appearances in front of Justice Howard Potter in Ithaca. Baker had been the key suspect in the cases and was finally apprehended in Kalamazoo. The other men denied knowledge of the crime and requested an examination. This 1939 crime amounted to $100 worth of stolen metals.

Other various crimes and situations made the January newspapers. Russell Smith, Alma’s “heating engineer,” again caused trouble for officers and appeared in court on pretenses for not completing heating repairs. Smith had still not paid his nearly $10 fine for court costs. Hazel Ellsworth remained lodged in the county jail on charges of arson. Ellsworth appeared to be off her hunger strike, but continual attempts to harm herself meant she was under constant watch by a jail matron. Norman Skaggs, 22, of Cheboygan, appeared in court and pleaded guilty to starting a December 1939 fire on the Clarence Clark farm, three miles south of Alma. Skaggs claimed he started the fire while Clark was away, all on a whim. Skaggs hoped he might gain more work by rebuilding a barn to better support his wife and child. Skaggs left the area after the fire and could not make it on being paid five cents a bushel for husking corn. Skaggs now made a complete confession, asked for his punishment, and wanted to clear the matter.

The biggest news of the month concerned a strike by sixteen drivers at the Kress and Son trucking operation in Grand Rapids, which transported Midwest Refineries’ products. When replacements were hired for the striking drivers, several Kress and Son trucks were stopped in Alma and south of Ithaca. When a group of five men stopped a car south of Ithaca and told the driver he had better leave for his own good, the driver walked to the sheriff’s office and filed a complaint. In another instance, one Kress truck was sabotaged while enroute from Owosso. The A.F. of L. union called for the strike, and later that month, fifteen men appeared in court, charged with infringements against Kress Trucking. All seemed to have attorneys supported by the union, and they were released on bonds ranging from $250 to $ 1,000 each. Later, Roland Reitz, 45, of Saginaw, received a $50 fine and $60 in costs for his involvement in a truck holdup in Alma. The sheriff’s department called in special deputies and the Alma Police Department to address a strike situation.

Gratiot Farmers and the Winter

The snow was deep, and the weather was cold, but Gratiot farmers turned out for different programs to get them thinking about the 1941 farming season. The St. Louis Beet Growers Association held its 10th annual program at St. Louis High School and was impressed by the 1,100 people who attended – well above the anticipated number. International Harvester had a meeting for forty dealers at the Park Hotel in St. Louis, with luncheon served in the main dining room. Adolph and Henry Schnepp organized the meeting’s program. The St. Louis Co-operative Association held the city’s second big program of the winter, also at St. Louis, and planned to offer a tour of the new $50,000 creamery on North Mill Street. A group of 500 farmers and wives was anticipated for the February 1 assembly.

In other farming-related news, Breckenridge offered a 10-week adult education course in agriculture. It started on January 15 and was held on Tuesday evenings. Frank Longnecker of Vestaburg made the county newspapers when he announced that one of his pullets laid two oversized eggs in one month. The latest measured 6 ½ and 8 ¾ in circumference and weighed six ounces. A rabid skunk attacked Robert Monroe’s heifer southeast of St. Louis. Monroe saw the skunk bite the heifer on the head, then killed the skunk. The head was then sent to Doctor Frank Erwin, who had it analyzed in Lansing. The skunk was positive for rabies, and Monroe was told to give his heifer a series of shots to save the animal. He also watched the rest of his herd for fear that other rabid animals had attacked and bitten them.

Health Matters

Much of the Gratiot news about health in January centered on infantile paralysis. During the Depression, the annual President’s Benefit Ball took place in St. Louis on January 30 at the Park Hotel to raise money to combat the disease. As a result of recent fundraising, the Gratiot County Chapter of the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis supported seven cases without making the recipients’ names public. As of January 1941, the group had $300 in its balance and hoped to raise more money through the President’s Ball to support those who needed braces, special shoes, or appliances. Tickets for the ball went on sale, and members were asked to fill coin collection boxes and folders that held $2 each in dimes. Vere Nunn, cashier at Commercial Savings Bank in St. Louis, served as treasurer of the chapter.

Still, other people and events related to health matters were tied to Gratiot County. Two people who were x-rayed at a recent Michigan Tuberculosis Association clinic in the county faced immediate hospitalization. A total of 39 people attended the clinic; 25 of them had been x-rayed before. Of that group, two were deemed active, three were suspect active, and five healed of tuberculosis.

A wave of influenza hit Alma Public Schools hard, with four teachers out and fifteen percent of the student body absent on one day. By mid-January, local doctors believed that the worst of the flu had passed. William Lator, an Ashley High School sophomore, was in critical condition at Smith Memorial Hospital with blood poisoning. Lator had been sick for two months after receiving a scratch or prick while working in the woods. After admission, he improved slightly after a blood transfusion. Two-year-old Alfred Roberts of Middleton also nursed an infected arm. When his mother left the little fellow alone for a moment, she found him caught in the wringer. The rollers caused nasty wounds and required seventeen stitches to close, and then became very uncomfortable due to inflammation. This toddler also fell into a bucket of boiling water a year earlier, then later drank kerosene. Needless to say, young Alfred had seen more than his share of troubles. Another sad Middleton story involved the discovery of Charles Luscher, 69, who was found frozen to death in a ditch southeast of Middleton. He had been there approximately 2 ½ days and was found carrying bottles of beer and some meat, only two rods from his shack. Another sad story took place near Sumner, where Melvin Blackburn was found in a snowbank on the Ben Humphrey farm. Little hope of recovery was given due to prolonged exposure to cold weather and snow.

And So We Do Not Forget

Basketball games between two Fulton teams and Fulton alumni took place before New Year’s. In both cases, the alumni won: the girls’ alumni defeated the Fulton girls 26-16, and the boys’ alumni defeated the Fulton boys 28-23…The Gratiot-Clinton Bar Association feted Circuit Court Judge Kelly S. Searl by having a dinner in his honor at the St. Louis Park Hotel. A collection of approximately 175 circuit court judges, lawyers, and friends attended the dinner…Seventeen people enrolled in citizen classes at St. Louis High School on Monday nights. Three in the group took a course on “English for Newer Americans” led by Grace Niggeman. Some of the students included Anna Sabatavich, Mary Yanik, Anna Simonovic, and Cyril Sedlacek…The city play “Womanless Wedding” was again a big hit at St. Louis High School under the direction of the St. Louis Lions Club. John Brown starred as the bride and Doctor T.D. Gilson is the groom. Proceeds went to the Sight Conservation and Health Welfare fund of the Lions Club.

The final cost of the new county road garage outside Ithaca was $53,871.73 and was primarily funded by state funds. A complete financial report appeared in the St. Louis Leader…A group of 153 people in Porter Royalty Pool, Incorporated, found themselves dividing oil royalties after the state Supreme Court ruled on a case dating back to 1933. In a unanimous decision, the court dismissed charges by Glenn and Mildred Hathaway and 24 others, thus releasing the money…The Kroger Grocery and Baking Company moved to a new location on Mill Street early in 1940 and introduced self-service, which many customers liked. Oren L. Boyd worked as a manager and appeared in the newspaper…A wet, soggy snow left six inches in Gratiot County on Sunday, December 29, and lasted into the evening. It took workers in places like St. Louis most of the night to clear enough roads and streets for people to get around the next day.

A group of 400 people attended the annual stockholders meeting of the Redman Wholesale Grocery Company in Alma. The meeting took place at the Alma Methodist Church, which offered the group a free meal and entertainment after listening to financial reports and the election of officers…Two different groups of Alma people headed to Mexico for a few weeks to avoid the Gratiot County winter. Lester Welch, assistant manager at Martins, led a group of tourists to Durango, Monterey, and Mexico City. James Clark, JC Penney assistant manager, took his family on a three-week trip to Mexico…Temperatures in Alma on January 13 dropped to zero, but rose to 18 degrees above two days later…Alma’s ice rinks opened after the freeze south of the State Street bridge and on one above the dam. Snow had been removed to allow skating there, and it proved very popular with skaters…Cupid’s arrow struck Maynard Peackock, 23, of St. Louis, and Bertha Dickens, 22, of Alma as they tied the knot.

The Gratiot County Herald checked up on the 1940 winners of the baby contest. One year later, Judith Joan Russell, Elm Hall, Lee Arnold Cowles of Alma, and David William Seaman, also of Alma, all had their photographs and biographies as one-year-olds on the front page…The winner of the 1941 Baby Contest went to Raymond Kennedy, Jr., son of Mr and Mrs. Raymond Kennedy of Alma. He appeared at 2:56 a.m. at Carney-Wilcox Hospital and weighed 8 ½ pounds…Doctor Lewis Berg, psychiatrist, sociologist, lecturer, and columnist, spoke during the Town Hall Series at Ithaca High School gymnasium on “The Successful Personality.” Rotary clubs from around Gratiot County sponsored the presentation…One of the Detroit Tigers’ “G-Men,” Charley Gehringer, was the first Detroit Tiger to sign a 1941 contract…Jay Stahl of Ithaca received the Ballard Trophy at Ithaca High School for his football season, as well as being the team captain…A collection of former Ithaca High School football players from the 1906 to 1909 championship teams showed up for the all-sports banquet sponsored by the Ithaca Chamber of Commerce to honor Coach Steve Keglovitz.

”Gone with the Wind” for the second time reappeared at the Strand Theatre in Alma for three dates on January 28-30. Evening tickets cost 55 cents, and one showing took place at 7:30 pm… George Gates took over the location of “Bill’s Popcorn Stand” in Alma on the Masonic property south of the Consumers Power Company building on South State Street. Gates now mainly sold apples and sweet cider…Ben East, wildlife lecturer and writer, appeared at Alma High School on January 14 to show moving pictures on “Islands of the Inland Seas.” The Gratiot County Conservation League supported the presentation…Mrs. Rebecca Louise Stevens, age 107, and the former wife of Dr. L. S. Stevens in Alma, passed away in San Diego, California. Doctor Stevens passed in 1899 and was buried in Riverside Cemetery…Lem Rowley of the Rowley and Church gas station in St. Louis did a neighborly thing for a person in need. Walter Gibbs lost his two Irish Setters and had little hope for their coming home. When neighbor Don Keane heard noises in his father’s barn a week later, he found the two dogs in a holding box, in poor shape and worn out. When called upon by Keane, Lem Rowley helped find the rightful owners of the two setters. Needless to say, Walter Gibbs was thrilled and grateful for the return of his two dogs.

And that was Gratiot County during the Depression and the War in January 1941.

Copyright 2026 James M. Goodspeed

Gratiot County in Depression and War, November 1940: “NO THIRD TERM! Elections and Draft as Winter Approaches”

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November 1940 in Gratiot County from the top: President Franklin Delano Roosevelt loses Gratiot County for the first time in his three elections, but wins the Presidency in the rest of the nation; John Giles of St. Louis, Vice President and General Manager of Michigan Salt Company, wheels George Hart down Mill Street from Washington Avenue. Giles bet on Wendell Willkie for President, and had to wheel Hart through downtown St. Louis. George Hart, as manager of Hart Brothers Elevator, prepares Gratiot’s first Selective Service Group to leave Alma for the military. Grant Angelus, Forest Proctor, Roy Bigler, and Wyomah Vick made up the group. They received their draft notices early – all near Coleman, Michigan. Derwerd Cary, Charles Van Deventer, and George Cary showcase their successwith a Thanksgiving poem and prayer as it appeared in a local newspaper near the Holiday.

The Nazi Luftwaffe increasingly bombed and decimated English cities as the air war over Great Britain continued.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt was nominated and ran for an unprecedented third term as President of the United States. The prelude to the national draft began as several thousand Gratiot men registered in each township.

A terrible November storm struck Gratiot County as the holidays appeared on the horizon.

It was November 1940 in Gratiot County.

The World at War

As the war raged in the battle over Great Britain, foreign correspondent Orin W. Kaye, Jr. of Lansing, told members of the Alma Rotary and Lions Clubs that he believed England would not be dismembered or conquered by the Nazis. Kaye had been in Paris when the Germans invaded and stated that he believed that morale would be the deciding factor in the war. Before and after the dinner, the group sang patriotic songs and other popular numbers. The program came on the heels of German bombings on Birmingham and Coventry. The Nazis boasted that the attack on Coventry was the “greatest air attack in the history of aerial warfare” as it laid waste to the city and resulted in over 1,000 casualties. 

In other news, state budget director Gus Hartman announced that he rejected any plans to build new armories in Michigan in 1941 due to the war. The state military establishment requested $3.5 million to develop and improve armories across the state. To commemorate Armistice Day, students at St. Louis High School held a program in the high school gymnasium with help from the William Fields American Legion Post. Commander Milton Townsend was one of two speakers. The program concluded with the playing of Taps. Over at Alma, plans for an Armistice parade with floats, bands, and American Legion members had to be changed due to the weather, even though the Alma City Band and Alma High School Band marched downtown and arrived at East Superior Christian Church, where a service was held.

With the war continuing in Europe, Sheriff William Nestle set out for Washington, D.C., where a national defense conference took place. Much of the conference centered on how police and sheriff’s departments would step in to cover duties previously performed by the National Guard in their areas. William B. Kyes, formerly of Elwell, left for the Officers Training Corps of the Air Division of the United States  Army at Parks Air College in East St. Louis. Kyes took a three-month course, then would go to either Texas, Alabama, or California to finish his training. Since June, Kyes had taught at Freeport High School.

Alien registration continued in Gratiot County, with 601 aliens registered as of November 21. All aliens age fourteen and older had to register in person. Those under the age had to be registered by their parents or guardians. Any change of address needed to be reported to one of three post offices in the county.

New Deal Life During the Depression

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) announced that the Stillwell Junior High gymnasium opened on Monday evenings to boys and girls not attending Alma schools. While NYA boys and girls were encouraged to use the gym, the facilities remained open to other students from 7 pm to 8 pm for girls and 8 pm to 9 pm for boys. Lester Fillhard, WPA recreation director, served as supervisor.

Foreman and timekeepers from WPA projects met at Alma’s city hall to form a national defense council. Organized by the federal government, the councils were formed mainly “for the purpose of detecting and nipping any subversive activities” within federal aid groups. Even though some WPA workers faced layoffs for a week, upon returning to work, they continued preparing the grounds in Wright Park for new tennis courts. The group removed trees and stumps, then waited for the excavation and grading of the ground to be completed before installing the courts.

The NYA (National Youth Administration) role in Gratiot increased by 100 people to carry out new projects, such as rehabilitating used toys for Christmas gifts for needy children and expanding girls’ sewing and home economics projects. Project workers earned $18 a month, and some foremen, aged 17 to 24, received as much as $24 for 60 hours of work. The NYA program provided young people with practical experience through useful work and aimed to encourage good work habits. Jack Acker, WPA recreation leader at Alma’s Republic Recreation Center, oversaw a new club called the “East End Canaries.” Eighteen boys and girls participated in the first meeting that promoted recreational activities of a “wholesome nature.” Benie Simons served as president of the newly formed club, and its first project was to host a Christmas party. In November, fifty NYA workers received Red Cross first-aid training, and a notice went out that any youth over the age of seventeen could receive instruction.

Two WPA recreational leaders from Alma went to Flint for a special recreational training institute. Lester Fillhard and Jack Acker represented Alma at the meetings. Darrell Milstead, county WPA leader, announced that NYA workers continued repairing Christmas toys in the basement of the Salvation Army (toy shop). The NYA and the Salvation Army hoped that every child in Alma would have a toy for Christmas.

At the Gratiot County Courthouse, the Bureau of Social Aid moved to make way for the Community Welfare Department. Both had new locations due to changes in the courthouse basement. The bureau had two NYA workers.

The Election of 1940 – No Third Term?

In November 1940, Gratiot County and the rest of the nation faced an unprecedented situation. Should the United States re-elect the President of the United States to a third term in office? The United States Constitution then did not bar Presidents from a third term. However, by tradition, two terms of office had been the maximum that any then-sitting President held. Now, President Franklin D. Roosevelt had been called by his fellow Democrats to run again for office – and Gratiot County was floored.

Roosevelt won convincingly in the county in 1932, and then by a much narrower margin in 1936. Now, Republicans everywhere warned people of the threat of a Democratic “dictatorship” with mounted signs and advertisements in Gratiot County that read “No Third Term!”. Another issue bantered by Republican opponents centered on the continued deficit that Michigan and the nation ran in operating Roosevelt’s New Deal programs. Republicans asked, why was the deficit as high in 1940 as it had been in 1932? The answer was the Great Depression—an economic nightmare the nation had never experienced before. Unfortunately for Roosevelt opponents in Gratiot County (which elected Republican Wendel Willkie), FDR won a third term in office.

The Draft

Following the national draft lottery in Washington, D.C., 155 Gratiot men were among the first called to military service. The public found out who these men were by reading the long lists printed in the Alma Record-Alma Journal. Three men from Alma headed the list: Russell Swinson, Joe Prahin, and Louis DeRosia. However, before any of the list were officially called,  at least a half dozen men volunteered. Soon, four men stepped forward as the first volunteers from Gratiot County. The four included Grant Angelus and Roy Bigler of Alma; Forest Proctor of Ithaca; and Wyomah Vick of Alma, who recently moved to Edmore. A special program at the George W. Myers Post of the Alma American Legion recognized the volunteers, and each received a gift package from the Alma Community Christmas League. Inside were things like writing paper, a fountain pen, candy, and two packages of cigarettes. The Salvation Army chaplain also gave each volunteer a small testament. On this wet, snowy day in Alma, a parade assembled at Alma City Hall, then made its way down to the bus station on East Superior Street. The four volunteers rode in an automobile with signs on the side that read “Gratiot’s First Volunteers” along with their individual names. It was not long after this that another 12 men requested that the Gratiot County Draft Board accept them as Gratiot County’s following volunteers.

Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas

Over in St. Louis, 500 children drank nearly 40 gallons of cider and ate 100 dozen doughnuts. Just before the Halloween festivities, someone threw a cabbage head through Colonel J.M. Thrasher’s large front window on Main Street. Police continued to investigate who the culprit might be. New Deal programs like the NYA and WPA helped sponsor a Halloween gathering in Alma, where 500 children also turned out for a parade from the Tourist Park to Rademacher Motor Sales garage starting at 7:30 pm. Helpers inserted toy balloons with prize slips into the balloons, then let them loose from the tops of several downtown businesses. A bonfire back at the Tourist Park concluded the night.

A Woman’s Page Editor in the Alma Record-Alma Journal suggested an ideal Thanksgiving menu with four types of dishes. Just how many were realistic for most people’s Thanksgiving dinners was a matter of conjecture. Turkey, duck, and chicken were the main choices. Gilmore’s Grocery in St. Louis (“Where Values are Quality”) urged shoppers not to forget that they could get all their Thanksgiving trimmings at Gilmore’s. For Thanksgiving, the Gratiot County Herald published a copy of “The First Thanksgiving Proclamation” by President George Washington.

By golly, Christmas was just around the corner in Gratiot County, and the Santa Claus Club held its first meeting in Ithaca’s village hall to plan the community programs. Alma led all the festivities with its Window Night on November 29, featuring new flashing lights on the main street, a parade, and the debut of Christmas trees along light poles. The Strand Theatre offered a free matinee to children who donated a canned good. St. Louis planned to kick off the official Christmas shopping season on December 6 with Window Night. At 7:15 on that Friday night, the fire siren would sound and Santa would appear on the streets. The St. Louis Lions Club and the GEM Theater planned to sponsor a free children’s movie. Merchants with the best decorated windows also received prizes, and the St. Louis Trade Association expected visitors from throughout Gratiot and Midland counties. St. Louis also planned a home lighting contest for the best-decorated homes in the city. Ithaca planned its Window Night with Santa on December 14. Breckenridge sponsored its annual Christmas lighting contest sponsored by the Breckenridge Garden Club.

 November Storms and Farming

On Monday, November 11, 1940, a storm with cyclone-level winds descended across parts of the United States. Gratiot County was one of the places that bore the full brunt of this 50-60 mph storm. In St. Louis, Mary Hoffman was sent to Smith Memorial Hospital after a gust of wind shoved her against the wall of a building with enough force to break her arm. Telephones, signs, and poles across the city were seriously damaged. The storm toppled the brick chimney of Alma’s First Baptist Church, sending it crashing through the roof of the church’s east room. The Beebe store in Emerson Township had its entire roof torn off by the weather. High winds also attacked the farm of Valois and Paul Todd, outside of Middleton, which also had the roof ripped off of their east barn. Other county farmers who lost their barns included John Wilk (northwest of Alma) and Fred Flegel (Sickles). The first estimates placed the damages in the county at tens of thousands of dollars, and according to the Gratiot County Herald, “hardly a single community escaped without some damage.”

Michigan Sugar estimated that 40,000 tons of beets sliced so far only accounted for one-half of the expected yield in the Alma region. Beet fields yielded an average of 8 ½ to 9 tons per acre, which was then considered average production. A freeze-up resulting from the hurricane storm that hit Gratiot delayed the harvest by about a week; however, warmer temperatures allowed farmers to complete the remaining 2,000 to 3,000 acres left in the Gratiot area. In other harvest news, Herman Hoffer of Ashley had a tremendous corn yield of 60 bushels per acre. Reports said that Hoffer’s yield from five acres of ground was as much as the average American farmer received from ten acres. Hoffer planted and harvested DeKalb 204 on his farm. When it came to milk production, the Gratiot Dairy Herd Improvement Association recognized Ralph Densmore and his Holsteins of Elwell for leading the area with an average production of 1569 pounds of milk and 48.79 pounds of fat. A.J. Neitzke of Breckenridge was second with his Brown Swiss yielding 1040 pounds of milk and 41.66 pounds of milk fat.

Newspapers highlighted other farming news in November. Evart Denney, a recent graduate of Ohio University, took over the duties as manager of the 700-acre Balmoral Farms. He replaced Peter McClelland, who had managed the farm since 1925. Instructors prepared for a ten-week night class at St. Louis High School sponsored by the Smith-Hughes Agricultural Program. The program prepared teachers at the area high schools to teach students with help from the Michigan State College extension department. The Future Farmers of America Chapter at St. Louis High School also held its fifth annual community fair on November 28-29. The Breckenridge FFA also helped provide the program of free movies, corn husking contests, music by their bands, a style show, and ended with a school judging contest. At least 65 boys and girls participated in the fair.

Alma Production Credit Association prepared for its sixth annual meeting at the Strand Theatre. The meeting gave members updates on the organization’s business and financial reports. It featured a free noon-day luncheon for several hundred farmers and their wives. In some unfortunate news, Harzey Fisher of Crystal was seriously injured while working on the Henry Tompson farm near Sumner. Fisher got his coveralls caught in the drive shaft of a corn picker as it went around a tree. Harzey held onto the lever until the shaft stopped; however, the force of the shaft stripped off the coveralls, pants, and underwear, and heavily lacerated his leg. Fisher was transported to Edmore Hospital for observation and treatment.

If it is November, the Nimrods are Here

As the nimrods descended upon Gratiot County to hunt pheasants, so did the game warden. However, overall pheasant hunting was considered poor in Gratiot County. Still, George Howe and Robert Lee of Alma were arrested for stalking on lands northeast of St. Louis without permission. They each paid a fine of $14.85. On the last day of pheasant season, Gus Claerhout and Claude Taylor jumped a fox on the Jack Dicken farm south of Ithaca. The male fox fought the collie the pair had with them until Taylor shot the nice male. Some of those from the county who went deer hunting came home with a buck. Leo Podgoresek led a group of successful hunters from Riverdale, including Vera Johnson, who shot her first buck five times to make sure he dropped. Charles Smith of Elm Hall brought in a very nice 16-point buck. A group of 16 game wardens enforced a blockade at the intersection of M-46 and US-27, northwest of Alma, to monitor illegal hunting. The wardens did a car check on each vehicle and found eight violators that day. Violations included carrying a loaded weapon in the car, removal of the sex of a deer, hunting without a proper license, and possession of birds shot out of season. Fines ranged from $10.85 to $50.00, depending on the case.

The Long Arm of the Law, Health Matters

During the previous month, Gratiot courts reported 91 convictions, including 20 for game violations. Some of the less common offenses included possession and sale of adulterated food, failure to send a child to school, and failure to pay a dog license. Fines and total costs brought in $287.55 to the county. Daniel Fisher, age 70 of Ithaca, suffered a concussion and lost both of his horses when his wagon was hit by a Stockbridge driver on a hill just north of Ithaca. While the wagon was unlit, the driver was cited for driving too fast and for causing the accident. Edward Vela, age 18, Mexican beet worker, and Geraldine Pego, of Indian descent and age 19, were arraigned on a morals charge. Vela got four months, and Vela received sixty days in the county jail. St. Louis police picked up a trio of violators on a drunken driving spree in a car with small children. Jessie Joseph (Fisher), Joseph Williams, and Edwin Burr, all of Mt. Pleasant, were arrested and served thirty days each for failure to pay fines of $25 to $35 each. Joseph (Fisher) and Williams were identified as being Indians. On a more positive note, Mrs. J.H. Keep, janitress at the Strand Theatre, turned over to management a wallet containing $106. A light cable and aisle seat kept the wallet out of sight until Keep found it. It turned out that the wallet had been lost by a Detroit salesman who watched a movie at the theatre some ten days earlier. Mrs. Keep was commended for honesty in turning in the wallet to Strand manager V.A. Jaeckel.

One of the most critical health issues in the county remained the battle against tuberculosis, and the Michigan Tuberculosis Association held a clinic at Alma High School. Tuberculin tests were given, and the Vollmer patch test was used for the first time. A total of 215 students at both the middle and high schools took the tests conducted by Dr. Charles DuBois. After examinations, anyone who tested positive had to undergo an X-ray. At Smith Memorial Hospital in Alma, the R.B. Smith Auxiliary purchased a modern incubator for premature babies. The incubator, engineered by the Ford Hospital, allowed the hospital to transport babies 20 miles without changing the incubator’s internal temperature. The device had an automatic thermostat, humidity control, and oxygen intake controls.

And So We Do Not Forget

Murray Brown of Kalamazoo moved to Alma to open a photographic studio in the southeast corner room of the Wright Hotel. Go to the first floor to find his studio…Henry Fonda and Jackie Cooper starred in “The Return of Frank James” at the Strand Theatre in Alma. Tickets were ten and twenty cents – all for a movie, news, and cartoon…Mrs. Reid Brazell served as chairperson of the Alma Red Cross. Brazell urged the Gratiot community to support the Red Cross as it helped with disasters across the country…A new brick covering went up over the office entrance to Carney-Wilcox Hospital. With the latest addition, the staff could now keep the area clear of snow and slush during the winter…Alma Iron and Metal Company solicited muskrat, mink, and skunk hides. Highest prices paid.

More window-soaping in St. Louis prompted Mayor Sumner to warn that repeat offenders would face harsh punishment if caught. While Halloween had been fun, the continued soaping of windows was too much, and Sumner asked the St. Louis police force to apprehend all “soapers”…The Brice Store in North Shade Township burned to the ground on November 13. Owner Henry Fockler was awakened by his dog at 3:00 am and called the Perrinton and Carson City fire departments for help. Unfortunately, a strong west wind quickly fanned the flames, resulting in a total loss. Fockler had some insurance on the building, which was a landmark in North Shade Township.

The Alma First Presbyterian Church held its annual bazaar on November 7. A roast chicken dinner costs fifty cents for adults, twenty-five cents for children twelve and under…Denver Hole of 412 Ely Street in Alma announced that he was returning to the blacksmith trade. Following training with his father in the old Charles Fishbeck shop,  and after trying another job, Hole opened a shop in the back of the Consumers Power Company and was turning out trailer hitches for motorists…Tex Ritter starred in “Rhythm of the Rio Grande” at the Alma Theatre. Shows cost only ten and fifteen cents—and it was air-conditioned…Art Farnsworth of Alma moved his used car headquarters to a new location on East Superior at the Bridge Street approach. He advertised nine vehicles, including a 1940 Plymouth 2-door…Mrs. Fred Bennett filled in for her husband as a truck driver for the St. Louis Fire Department while he went on a hunting trip. Mrs. Bennett was the only known fire truck driver in the United States.

Professor Arpyal Toth wrote from Budapest, Hungary, to the Alma Chamber of Commerce requesting copies of local newspapers. The card came written in legible English…Mr and Mrs. P.H. Deal of Elwood, Indiana, arrived in Alma to take over the running of the kitchen at the Wright Hotel. Vern Daymon of Elwell was hired as the new night clerk..Oliver Haight of Alma celebrated his 87th birthday by going deer hunting with his grandson near Oil City. The pair brought home a buck on the second day of hunting…New Christmas toys started to appear in Alma as Santa and “Window Night” on November 29 approached…The sale of deer licenses in Alma was up by approximately two-thirds from a year ago. Dick’s Package Shop sold 285 licenses, with Mapes Hardware close behind at 225.

Gene Autry and Smiley Burnette starred in “Carolina Moon” at Ithaca’s Ideal Theatre…An estimated 300 volunteers for the Gratiot County Red Cross fanned out across the county in an attempt to increase membership in a drive from November 11-30…The Ithaca Methodist Church invited the community on Thanksgiving Night  to see the new motion pictures, “Life of Christ” and “Passion Play.” The film was produced in Europe, the Holy Land, and Egypt…The McCormack Store in Ithaca had a new, modern black-and-white glass front. New modern lettering was added to the top of the entrance in black on a white background. The owners stated that the new glass brick admitted 74 percent natural light.  Also, dry goods and vegetables would now be placed on one side of the display window…Stovall Studio and Camera Shop of Alma advertised itself as “The Old Reliable Studio of Central Michigan.” Photographs made great Christmas gifts…The Ithaca Yellow Jackets finished their season 5-0-2 and did not give up a single point.

The Alma Theatre wanted patrons to know that a new seating plan included only one aisle through the center of the theatre, replacing the old two-aisle pattern. This allowed for closer seating to the screen, which raised seating capacity to 324 people… Redman Trailer planned to build a new building on East Superior Street that would cost $6000. Made of cinder blocks, it would measure 70×90 feet and stand 10 to 14 feet high…After 20 years of planning and wishing, a new Gratiot County Road Commission building opened in Ithaca, and an estimated 1,000 people attended a two-day open house. Music and dancing were provided, along with tours.

And that was Depression and War in Gratiot County during November 1940.

Copyright 2025 James M. Goodspeed