1945 Happy New Year from the Paris Cafe & More

75 Years Ago - New Year's Greeting from the Paris Cafe

Ruben A and Erna Mae (Ehly) Griess

and more following...

Erna Mae Griess - Everybody's 8th-grade teacher.

Was the "Please bring your own Bobby Pins" a war year's consideration?

End of 1944 Football Season

Sutton High took it on the chin in the final football game of the 1944 season as described in this article from The Sutton News on November 16, 1944.

We do get a full list of the 1944 roster. 

1944 - Weber Bros Mill sold to a Denver Man

The Weber Bros. Mill on the north side of the tracks west of Saunders Ave. was sold to a Denver man in November 1944.

As I recall, the mill was called The Sutton Mill in the '50's until it burned down one Sunday morning in a blaze that generated a huge black cloud of smoke that covered the whole southeast sky from our farm northwest of town.

Off the top of my head, I'd date the fire to about 1950, give or take.

Two Sutton Men Met in POW Camp - 1944

The story on the right describes how 2nd Lt. Morris Bauer met his former school mate in a German POW camp. Locals in Sutton figured out the school mate was Sgt. Paul Schwarz - Bauer was restricted from identifying the other POW.

From the November 16, 1944 issue of The Sutton News. 

American Legion buys their current building - 1969

This item appeared in The Clay County News on November 11, 1969 announcing the purchase of the current Legion building in downtown Sutton. 

1919 Prohibition Details

A major story in 1919 was the vote and Constitutional Amendment instituting prohibition. What were the details of that legislation? Here, the Harvard Courier newspaper published their version of those details.

1944 Kansas-Nebraska Gas Lines

Likely an item of narrow interest, but, this is the area map for the Kansas-Nebraska Natural Gas Co. in 1944.

Clause Bar Cafe Menu

This showed up in one of the Goodie Boxes donated to the Sutton Museum. It is undated. Any guesses on the date range for this offering at the Clause Bar  & Cafe? 

1944 County Vote Totals

From The Sutton News - 1944 Clay County vote by precinct.

1944 Sutton Corn Show

The Sutton Corn Show was held November 3 and 4 of 1944. Mary Ann Sharkey was named "Corn Queen for the event.

Mary Ann was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Roy Sharkey. She accumulated 81,000 votes to win. I'm suspecting people could vote multiple times, or something.

Details of the show in the article below.

George Auto Co. Ad 1919

This ad appeared in The Sutton Register in November 1919

1919 Silent Movie ad for Strand Theater - Hastings

The Harvard Courier carried this ad for a major silent movie 

at the Strand Theater in Hastings on November 6, 1919.

The first full-length feature movie with sound was The Jazz Singer with Al Jolson in 1927. Though, recently two talking movies by Thomas Edison from 1913 were found. Those were not commercial enterprises. The prize goes to Jolson. 

1944 - 50th Year of Lewis Jewelry Store

From the October 19, 1944 issue of The Sutton News

The Lewis Jewelry Store was on the North end, West side of downtown Sutton. The Sutton Museum has several items from the families of A.H. Lewis and his wife Laura (Schwab) Lewis. Among those items is the Grandfathers Clock that stood in the window of the store. Folklore has it that railroad men would walk the 1/2 block during stops to set their watches to the Lewis clock.

We have an interesting item and photo of Mrs. Laura Lewis from the 1939 celebration of Sutton's 65th anniversary - HERE

The story of the Lewis Jewelry store gives us clues to the puzzle of the historic configurations of downtown stores. Another on in the same issue of the News is:

So, where was the Blue Valley Store? I remember when it was my parents' grocery store of choice in town (there were three of them). Grover Schneider operated the Blue Valley IGA Store at the north end of the south side on the west where Jessica Moore has her optometry business today. It was Scott Schmer's State Farm business, OK Tire Ted's operation and other uses over time. 

Grover Schneider was the brother of Paul Schneider, south-of-town-farmer and uncle of Paula (Schneider) Bergen. Grover's son Don was in the same class as Paula and myself before his family moved to San Diego.

Test out your commenting skills to tell us more. 

1968 Sutton Football Program vs Superior

Your 1968 Sutton High Mustangs on Oct. 4

You may have noticed that Randy Boals was the only kid over 182 pounds on the Sutton team. 5'10" and 160, plus or minus a little caught most of that team.

On the other hand, many of these fellows definitely could hold down their end of the teeter-totter. 

Class of 1941 - Commencement & 50 Yr Pic

Sutton High Class of 1941

We have the photograph of the 50 Year Reunion of the Class of 1941 in 1991 and the Commencement Program from their class graduation.

Top Row: Dr. James Barbee, Kathleen (Gemar) Flowers, Wayne Erickson, Robert Hunzeker, Hallis Barnell, Cleo Stevens, and Art Ehly.

Center Row: Gloria (Boline) Hallack, Louise (Firme) Hertel, Ruthella (Steiger) Dedrickson, Florence (Harwig) Goesch, Eunice (Serr) Gray, and Marion (Heinz) Baumann.

Front Row: Betty Jean (Gregory) Fryrear, Mary (Carl) Miller, Betty (Willey) Perrella, Betty (McLaughlin) Sheridan, and Suzanne (Pope) Lindahl

The Commencement Service program had a date issue - blame it on the printers, I guess, or maybe the class was in a hurry and moved up the date....

Thanks to Betty (McLaughlin) Sheridan for the program by way of Beth (Sheridan) Bartell who continues to sort through her mother's stuff, occasionally dropping off tidbits for the Sutton Museum, where the hard copy will make it into the files - likely a pile for a while, but these items get better circulation in this venue...

1944 School Directory - Clay County

Clay County Schools - 75 Years Ago

The County Superintendent annually published the Educational Directory for Public Schools. This is the 1944 edition of that publication by County Superintendent Mary Ward Rippeteau.

The primary information included data about each teacher in the county and the list of school board members for every school.