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This Day in History - May 26-30


May 26, 1993

National Headlines:

  • The end of a television era occurred this week as the last episode of “Cheers” was broadcast.  An estimated 40% of American households watched this much-hyped end to the long-running series.
  • President Clinton signed the “motor voter” legislation that makes it much easier for people to register to vote when they renew driver’s licenses, visit welfare or other governmental offices or stop by a military recruiting office.

State Headlines:

  • SD Governor Walter Dale Miller has appointed Steve Kirby as his Lieutenant Governor.  Miller, the former Lieutenant Governor, assumed the Governorship following the death of Governor George Mickelson in an April 19 plane crash.

Local/Area Headlines:

  • Lori Cope has been named the new executive director at the Aberdeen Chamber of Commerce and Alexander Popovics is the new president of Presentation College.
  • Frederick is hosting a Midget baseball tournament today and the proceeds will be used to help fund the Frederick summer baseball program.
  • There are 21 new street banners in Eureka representing the various European locations that the original Eureka settlers called home.
  • Tony Bergstrom shot a hole in one yesterday on the 123 yard 8th hole at the Aberdeen Country Club.
  • Northern track star Amy Von Wald earned her 8th All-American honor as she finished third in the 400-meter dash at the NAIA outdoor national track meet in Vancouver BC.
  • The University of Minnesota School of Music’s touring opera company will perform at the Roger and Jan Melius farm near Faulkton at the end of June.  Seating for 1000 will be set up on the grounds for the outdoor performance.
  • Warner High School’s Future Problem Solving team of Tyneille Bierman, Ginger Borchard, Karen Ristau, and Jessica Kienow is headed for the national competition in Madison, Wisconsin this summer.
  • The Flame Restaurant in downtown Aberdeen features family night each Monday and Tuesday.  Families with kids receive a 15% discount and all kids under 12 can register to win a new Schwinn bike.
  • The Pheasant Drive-In at Redfield is now open and showing “Bodyguard.”

 

May 27, 1974

National Headlines:

  • The body of jazz great Duke Ellington lies in state following his death earlier this week.  Mourners filed by the casket at a rate of 1000 per hour.
  • The US is suffering from a penny shortage—it is estimated that nearly 30 billion pennies are in piggy banks and sock drawers across the country.  Many retailers are “rounding up” prices in hopes to eliminate the need for pennies in the transaction.

State Headlines:

  • Governor Richard Kneip is facing his first primary challenge as he seeks his 3rd term.  He expects to spend nearly $50,000 in the effort.
  • The South Dakota state retirement system is currently valued at nearly $70 million and if projected interest income of 8% annually can be maintained, the fund will grow to more than $250 million in five years.

Local/Area Headlines:

  • Work began this week on demolition of the front steps of the Brown County Courthouse.  Removing the steps and creating a ground floor entrance will render the building more accessible to all patrons.
  • There are 600 boys at Northern this week for the annual Boys State.
  • Aberdeen’s Prairiewood golf course will be the site of the 1974 NAIA national golf tournament next week.  Bob Wachs, tournament director, says there are 32 teams including Northern, registered for the 4-day, 72-hole competition.
  • The inaugural game of the “Coronary Slow Pitch League” will be between the only two teams in the league so far, the Circus Lounge Clowns and the Club 23 Spades.  Members of this league are at least 40 years old.
  • The Aberdeen City Baseball league has nine teams for the season—Schwan’s Recreation, C&R Transfer, Sandy’s, Juel Eggs, Claremont, Frederick, Warner, Craven Corner and Britton.  Sandy Andree and Doug Heintzman are co-chairmen of the league.
  • Top records this week include “The Streak” by Ray Stevens, “The Entertainer” by Marvin Hamlisch, “Dancing Machine” by the Jackson Five, “Sundown” by Gordon Lightfoot, “I Won’t Last a Day Without You” by the Carpenters.
  • Aberdeen will have professional theater this summer called Stage One Players.  Richard Norquist, drama instructor at Northern, is head of this project that involves 20 professional actors who will present 5 plays over the course of the summer.

 

May 28, 1987

National Headlines:

  • A Bethel Park, Pennsylvania 13 year old is the new national champion speller.  She won by correctly spelling “staphylococci.”  In preparation for the contest, the winner spent 6 hours each Saturday and Sunday practicing as well as whatever available time she could find during the school week.  SD’s entry in the bee was disqualified when he misspelled “kakistocracy” in the fifth round.  (Kakistocracy means government by the least qualified or most unprincipled citizens.)

  • Onida golfer, Curt Byrum, shot an 8-under-par 64 in the Memorial Golf Tournament in Dublin, Ohio, tying the course record.  He has a 2 shot lead in the event after the first round.

State Headlines:

  • Governor George Mickelson says he will make increasing teacher pay a priority for the 1988 legislative session.  The national average teacher’s salary is over $26,700—SD’s average pay is $18,700.

Local/Area Headlines:

  • Stacy Braun, a Warner native, was named the top woman 1st degree black belt competitor at the Grand National Taekwondo Tournament held in Little Rock, Arkansas.
  • Janie Frickie and Myron Floren will appear in Eureka as part of the town’s centennial celebration. 
  • Tommy Roe and Johnny Tillotson will be appearing in Oakes at the 16 annual Irrigation Days festival.
  • Tickets are now available for the grandstand shows at this year’s state fair.  Scheduled entertainers are Willie Nelson, The Oak Ridge Boys, The Judds, and Joan Jet and The Blackhearts.  The Judds will also be appearing in Edgeley as part of that town’s centennial.
  • The Brown County Fair entertainment this year includes Marie Osmond, Dan Seals, Gary Puckett and Sha Na Na.  A button to admit you to all shows is now on sale for only $9.
  • Aberdeen Central High School is one of 271 honored nationally for its outstanding performance.  The selection committee based its choices on a format of 14 attributes of successful schools and seven performance indicators.
  • Tom Brokaw was a weekend guest at the Bristol Super 8 Motel.  Brokow was in town with his mother Jean to present “The Anthony Brokaw Memorial Scholarship” at Bristol’s commencement ceremony.  Anthony, Tom’s father, was a native of Bristol.
  • Pat Klabo was sworn in as the newest Aberdeen city commissioner yesterday.  She lost a mayoral bid to commissioner Tim Rich and is now filling Rich’s unexpired commission term.
  • Wylie Water World Water Slide is now open for the season.  An all-day pass for today only to celebrate “school’s out” is $3.50
  • Tonight on TV:  “Scarecrow and Mrs. King”, “Simon and Simon” and “Knot’s Landing”

 

May 29, 1995

National Headlines:

  • After the April 19 bombing of the Federal Building in Oklahoma City, the country has seen more upgrades in security in governmental facilities as well as on personal property.  In Washington DC, Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the White House is now permanently closed off.  To provide safe havens for workers and families, businesses and individuals spent $64 billion last year on security systems.

State Headlines:

  • President Clinton has declared 38 SD counties major disaster areas after they suffered severe damage from a series of storms and heavy rains persistent since March.  Brown County is included in the declaration.
  • Local government (cities, counties and schools) is the biggest single industry employer in the state,  with over 39,000 people on the payrolls.  Hospitals and other health services rank second with just over 32,000 employees statewide.

Local/Area Headlines:

  • Nathan Aman of Aberdeen, is getting ready to attend this year’s session of Boy’s State in his official capacity as the 1994 Governor of Boy’s State.  Aman is the first Aberdeen participant to be elected to the event’s highest office since David Dornbush was elected Governor in 1967.
  • Some results from the state track meet:  In the AA category:  Aberdeen Central’s Jenny Murphy won the discus with a toss of 132’2”; Central’s girl’s 880-meter relay team of Jenny Graf, Laura Graf, Tonia Burgard and Rebecca Goodman won their event; in Class A, Roncalli’s girl’s medley relay team of Nancy Johnson, MacKenzie Rohl, Jess Cameron and Meg Larson won their event while Meg Larson finished second in 1600-meter run, three tenths of a second behind Milbank’s Jaime Pauli.    In the class B girl’s 100-meter dash, Doland-Conde’s Sara Deckert took the prize while Hoven’s Memory Johanson won the 1600-meter run.
  • The Aberdeen Smittys defeated the Claremont Honkers16-1 in the Bart Berndt Memorial Day Tournament at Fossum Field.  In the same tournament, Wendys-Busch-Robbies defeated Selby 2-1 and Britton defeated Mitchell 8-7.
  • The Aberdeen Pheasants started spring training at Groton due to construction at Fossum Field.  Improvements at the field include a new outfield fence, two sets of bleachers, a clubhouse and four bullpen mounds.  The team is being transported to Groton in the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church bus driven by Pheasant co-owner, Keith Kusler.
  • Tonight on TV:  “The Nanny”, “Dave’s World”, “Cybil” and “Chicago Hope”
  • At the movies: “Crimson Tide” and “While You Were Sleeping” at Midco 5

 

May 30, 1988

National Headlines:

  • The US House of Representatives passed a $1.1 trillion dollar budget and sent it to the Senate for final approval. Some of the line items are $299 billion in defense spending, $13 billion for science and space, $25.5 billion for agriculture, and $278 billion for social security.
  • Former NBA star and current US Senator Bill Bradley was inducted into the Olympic Hall of Fame.  Bradley led the 1964 US Olympic basketball game to the gold medal in the Tokyo Olympics.

State Headlines:

  • The school in Claire City will close today after 69 years of service.  The remaining 60 students will go to New Effington.  However, declining enrollment caused New Effington to close its high school so students in grades 9 – 12 will attend school in Rosholt, leaving only the elementary school open in New Effington.
  • The Sioux Falls Marathon that is traditionally run in September has been cancelled due to lack of participants.

Local/Area Headlines:

  • The Aberdeen Visitor Center at 906 East Sixth Avenue will be open for its 4th season beginning next week according to CVB director, Lisa Sahli Carlson.  Gail Bortnem and a part-time staff of 4 will staff the booth through Labor Day to answer questions about “What’s to do in Aberdeen?”
  • Talking to the Operator will be a different process beginning tomorrow in Aberdeen.  Dialing “0” will connect you with the Northwestern Bell operators who can help you with in-state long distance calls.  For out of state calling assistance you must dial “00” to connect with an AT&T operator.
  • Representatives of the US Census Bureau will be visiting homes in the area to conduct an income survey.
  • The 12 members of the 1988 graduating class of Frederick High School dedicated their yearbook, The Viking, to teacher Tom Oster who they felt had been a special influence in their lives.
  • Jill and Amy Kretchman will teach the upcoming Power Walking class at the Aberdeen Y.
  • Kindergarteners at Simmons Elementary have had a special teacher’s aide these past few weeks named “Quackey Quackers”, a fuzzy duckling hatched from an egg the students tended in a special incubator in their classroom.  Students now take Quackey outside for a walk around the playground each morning and afternoon and are learning lessons about responsibility and nature from the duckling.  At school’s end, Quackey will go to live with other ducks.
  • The Aberdeen Ministerial Association has planned a drought related community prayer service that will take place at the Aberdeen Convention Center.  It is hoped this inter-denominational service will provide comfort and emotional support to those suffering physical and economic losses due to the drought.
  • At the movies—lots of sequels:  “Crocodile Dundee II”, “Rambo III”, and “Return to Snowy River part 2”