115 Years Ago – Oct. 14, 1902
The dreaded S-word — The first snow of the season came last Thursday, October 9. It was only a little flurry and melted as rapidly as it came.
Haying — A Republican reporter last week saw a farmer hauling in a load of hay from the field. Haying on the 11th of October is not a very common occurrence in Aroostook and we doubt if the season was ever quite so late before.
100 Years Ago – Oct. 18, 1917
Fall enrollment — The Caribou schools began their fall session Monday with an able corps of teachers. The enrollment in the high school is 220.
75 Years Ago – Oct. 14, 1942
Disy award — Tony Disy, proprietor of the Caribou scrap salvage yards, was in receipt the past week of a voluntary service award from the Office of Price Administration for “meritorious service in war effort- devotion to his country’s needs through the free and patriotic sacrifice of personal interest on the execution of a War Price and Rationing Program.”
Unwelcomed visitor —A partridge intent on visiting the residential area of Caribou last Sunday got into difficulty in trying to fly through a closed window at Mrs. Emily Tibbett’s house on Glenn Street. Mrs. Tibbetts, who was sitting on the back porch, heard a noise, and upon investigation found the bird on the ground with a broken neck. It is needless to say that she enjoyed a nice pound and a half of partridge for dinner.
50 Years Ago – Oct. 18, 1967
Brakeless — A 1953 Ford truck laden with the equivalent of 85 barrels of potatoes lost its brakes as it approached the busiest section of Sweden Street Friday as it wove through afternoon traffic and the main intersection of Sweden and Main Street without mishap, thanks to an alert operator. The driver, Herbert Snowman, a Caribou schoolteacher, managed to halt the truck by steering it up the incline of High Street beside the police station. Traffic thankfully came to a complete standstill and sidewalk onlookers began to gather. Snowman later commented about the incident, “I sure was lucky.”
Book store opening — Edge O’ the East Paperbacks, a new bookstore, will officially open to the public Saturday afternoon at 2:00 at 138 Sweden St. Chamber of Commerce representatives are expected to the present at the ribbon cutting ceremony. Daniel Harlan, proprietor of the new store, says he is gearing toward 3,000 titles in all fields of literature, as well as an exhibit of local Art Club members’ paintings.
25 Years Ago – Oct. 14, 1992
Reduction and closure — After Jan. 31, 1993, no more babies can be born at Loring Air Force Base, according to officials. The reduction of military personnel at Loring Air Force Base will begin June 30, 1993, according to Lt. Col. Robert B. Manning, director of the base closure office. Manning told members of the Loring Readjustment Committee Oct. 7 that the military “draw-down” may take place three months before the aircraft leaves because things have to “start happening in ‘93 … to have things completed by ‘94.” Beginning next July, the numbers will be reduced by an average of 100 a month until October, when the losses will increase to somewhere between 200 and 300 a month. By January 1994, a total of 1,520 personnel will be stationed at Loring. The reduction will drop to 91 personnel in June 1994.
