West Jefferson in Days Gone By - series 60 by Charlie Miller

____November 19, 1925 – Ed Johnson’s famous “Yaller” dog is dead. Hon. E. J. Johnson of West Jefferson and Arkansas arrived home Wednesday. He had a sad report to make to his hunter friends here that “Yaller,” his famous coon and snake dog, about which column after column has been written, died a few weeks ago. (It was always said that the movie ‘Old Yaller” was based on Mr. Johnson’s dog. He had also written a book about Old Yaller. Ed was a famous lawyer here in West Jefferson and lived down on Heath Lane.) 

____Some 1925 West Jefferson businesses were: Wade’s Grocery; J. A. Baer, Undertaker; West Jefferson Cut Flower and Plant Co.; Britton’s Meat Market; Grover Burrell Grocery; West Jefferson Building & Loan; Madison County Finance Co.; West Jefferson Elevator Co.; Headley-Maddux, Cars; Buckley’s Hardware; Exhibit Theater; Commercial Bank; John Murray & Son Grain & Lumber; The Moss Store; Farmer’s Cream Station; Pence & Blaluser Undertaker & Furniture; W. E. Poulson’s Store; Pence & Baber Used Cars; Sunset Oil Co. and Gillivan’s Hardware. 

____December 18, 1925 – Lot D. Hull, Civil War Veteran and former West Jefferson Mayor, passes away…..L. D. Hull, 87, died Monday at his home on W. Main St. He came to Jefferson over 50 years ago. He was a charter member of the Wilson Burrows G.A.R. Post #389 and held the honor of the first Commander of the Post. (L. D. Hull served as Post Master from 1898-1919. He also served as a Corporal with the 12th Ohio Infantry and fought in the 2nd Battle of Bull Run, South Mountain, and Antietam. He served from June 1861 to December 1865.) 

_____January 28, 1926 – Bill Strosnider has bought the West End Filling Station from Baley & Spencer. (This is currently a Deli on the intersection of Main St. and London Rd.) 

____March 18, 1926 – Motor Cop Bill Clark is riding a new Indian Motorcycle this week, the result of action taken by the Village Council at their last meeting. 

____May 3, 1926 – E. E. “Pete” Gregg is a high scorer in the big trap shoot at Vandalia, Ohio. He was a high gun at the State Shoot at Vandalia with a score of 183 out of 200. There were over 150 sportsmen participating. (E. E. Gregg was Edwin Earl Gregg, also known as Earl Gregg, Pete Gregg, or just Pete. He was a character. He sold insurance, a forerunner of Gregg & Hay. He served as Village Clerk for many years; he was also a Justice of the Peace. He once swore in the Mayor of West Jefferson at Christmas time dressed as Santa Claus. Earl had ridden motorcycles most of his life, and he now had a motor scooter. Evil Knievel had just jumped the Snake River on a motorcycle. Earl said he would jump Little Darby on his motor scooter.) 

____May 17, 1926 – The Columbus Citizen – Some comments from West Jefferson residents about why they liked West Jeff. Z. R. Taylor, proprietor of the Rexall Drug Store, “There’s no dirt, little noise, clean air, and good water. Many residents of West Jefferson are back several generations; most of us are real natives.” J. W. Kubitschack, owner of the Star Hotel, is one of the oldest businesses in town. "I’ve liked the place for 34 years, and I’m going to keep on liking it.”

West Jefferson in Days Gone By - series 61 by Charlie Miller

____May 30, 1926 – Two of the five surviving West Jefferson Civil War Veterans were escorted to the Alton Cemetery. They were: James “Daddy” Chambers and W. R. Borland. The five are: Thomas Pearce age 90, James Chambers, 87, George Prugh, 85, Corwin Carter, 83 and W. R. Borland, 80. 

____ June 28, 1926 – Beginning July 1st, the old custom of ringing the ‘curfew’ will be put into force again. But in accordance with the changing of customs, the curfew bell at the Hall will not be used, but a siren will be sounded. (How many of you reading this remember this siren?) 

____July 1, 1926 – The London National Guard is one of the oldest in the State of Ohio, being formed as the 154th Regiment, Ohio National Guard on May 9, 1864. Capt. Alexander Swanston of West Jefferson commanded Company C of that Regiment. A number of West Jefferson men served in it. 

____September 6, 1926 – George Stephenson who conducts a blacksmith’s shop on N. West St. is the prize “Smithy” of Ohio. He was given this honor at the State Fair last week when he took home first honors from a field numbering in the hundreds. (George was born November 26, 1885, in Shipton Thorpe, Yorkshire, England. He immigrated in 1909 and was naturalized in 1918. He diedon  October 22, 1966. He had his shop behind the large building on W. Town St. He was called upon by Anhauser Busch to shoe their Clydesdales when on tour. He never lost his accent, he would come into the I.G.A. and order “A af of pund of amberger.” 

____September 16, 1926 – Fred Weber, head of the West Jefferson Elevator Co, announced that a contract had been let for the construction of a new elevator, which is to be built at a cost of $30,000. The plant will be built on the site of the old one but will be on the level, thus eliminating the hard pull. 

____November 18, 1926 – One of the town’s oldest businessmen, William Haislett, age 73 died. He came to Jefferson in 1885 and set up his hardware store. ( The store stood on the current site of the parking lot of the Huntington Bank. He was born in 1852 in New London, PA. His wife Pattie was born in England in 1882 and immigrated in 1885. He was a Tin Smith. The store was a large two-story brick, a store on the west side and a residence on the east side. When I was a kid in the 40s the store was always dark inside, we kids were scared of her she always looked like a witch!) 

____February 24, 1927 – “New Elevator Is Completed”- It stands on the site of the original elevator built in 1894 by Myron Silver. The new plant cost $30,000 and has a capacity of 30,000 bushels of grain. It is located on the Pennsylvania R.R. at the west end of town. (In the future it held Hartco Printing.)

West Jefferson in Days Gone By - series 62 by Charlie Miller

____April 25, 1927 – Lukens and Rader open a new funeral Home service in West Jefferson. (Luken’s had a funeral home in London for a number of years.) 

____April 25, 1927 – Mr. and Mrs. William Wanzel will open the “Ye Olde Trail Dance Pavilion” on West Main Street. (This was later Al Longstreth Dance Hall on the current site of the Dollar General Store on the northwest corner of Blair Rd. and Main St. Wanzel was born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa in November of 1865. His father was born in Austria. In 1900, he owned a saloon in Chicago and opened one in West Jefferson in 1905. The building still stands at 25 W. Main St. ) 

____May 16, 1927 – The Commercial Bank closed; it was organized in 1882 by Ashton A. Gregg. 

____May 30, 1927 – Only two West Jefferson Civil War Vets are left. W. R. Borland and James Chambers were given the ‘honor seats’ on the stage of the Opera House at the program given there to commemorate Memorial Day, 1927. 

____Col. Charles Lindbergh, air hero of the New York to Paris non-stop flight, passed over West Jefferson Friday at about 12:28 on his way to St. Louis. He was flying fast and leading his escort planes. The entire town turned out for the occasional and the siren was sounded and auto horns were blown, but it isn’t likely that he knew about it! 

____June 30, 1927 – Hume’s new 5 cent to $5 Store is to open here Saturday in the building formerly occupied by Zack Taylor’s Drug Store. (This was at the west end of the big brick building located at 15 W. Main St.) He went by Z. R. Taylor. He was born in January 1850 in Champaign Co. His father was born in Scotland. Z.R. came to West Jefferson and set up his Drug Store in 1873. He died February 17, 1838, and is buried at Pleasant Hill Cemetery, His brother, S. M. Taylor, was appointed Ambassador to Scotland in 1897 by President William McKinley) 

____October 1927- A traffic light has been installed on Main Street. (This was at the intersection of Main and Walnut Streets. This just had red and green lights, no yellow. It stayed this way until the 1950’s.) 

____November 1927 – It is predicted that by 1935, the population of West Jefferson will be between 3,000 and 5,000 people. (They hadn’t quite reached 5,000 by 2020) 

____January 28, 1928 – A beacon light is to be built near West Jefferson for an emergency landing field for government aircraft hauling mail, etc. The beacon tower will be 80’ high. (I remember the beacon light on the west side of State Route 29 about across from Jefferson Industries)

West Jefferson in Days Gone By - series 63 by Charlie Miller

___February 23, 1928 – Plans are being made to make Federal Route 40 a four-lane highway through Ohio. 

___April 12, 1928 – Land has been leased from R. R. Sidner two miles south of town, along the Lilly Chapel Road, for use as an airfield. 

___April 19, 1928 – A Greyhound track is to be built on the farm leased from Anthony Frey. It will give a grandstand with a capacity of 5,000 people. Work will start on construction on June 30th. (This track took in the west end of Fellows Ave. and most of the Merriman Addition.) 

___May 10, 1928 – Ray Miller, Frank Kaufman, and Robert Boyd are the incorporators of the Hi-Grade Milk Company. (The company later moved to Columbus.) 

___The Farmer’s Co-op Cream Station run by Lem Gregg, has moved to the brick building back of the Town Hall. (It actually sat on the northwest corner of Walnut and Town Streets.) 

___June 1, 1928 – A new Drug Store, owned and operated by Merrill H. (Doc) Mellott, has opened up. (This sat on the northeast corner of Main and Walnut Streets. The original building was a grocery store and was torn down in the 1940s, and the present building, now occupied by Dr. Garwood, was built. There is a picture of the original building in the Library on the “West Jefferson Remembers” website.) 

___July 4, 1928 – The Greyhound races opened today with a crowd of 7,500 people attending. 

___July 8, 1918 – An old and prominent citizen, Henry Brown, 74, died. 

___July 12, 1928 – Work has started on the new village sewage plant. (This was at the end of the Mill Road) 

___August 30, 1928 – Another old settler passes away. Luther Johnson, father of Frank, Howard, and Walter Johnson has died. 

___October 18, 1928 – The new beacon light on the Lilly Chapel Road is now in operation. 

___March 1, 1929 – Gene Compton and Lon Campton have opened up a garage on N. Walnut St. 

___May 1, 1929 – Air and Army maneuvers were held in the West Jefferson area. A company of men was stationed at Lilly Chapel. 

___May 16, 1929 – Dr. Kerr has installed a new emergency hospital in the Kuehner Building on W. Main St.

West Jefferson in Days Gone By - series 64 by Charlie Miller

____May 23, 1929 – The local dog races are coming under fire from law enforcement officials. 

____June 27, 1929 – The Dog Track is still going strong; a twenty-day season recorded 40,000 in attendance. 

____July 18, 1929 – Dr. J. Wm. Hurt, a recent graduate of the College of Medicine, Ohio State University, is now associated with Dr. George W. Kerr. 

____February 5, 1929 – Lou Reason will move the White Kitchen from the Stutson Building, where it is now located, to across the street and a little bit east to the corner recently vacated by the Biggert Confectionery. (This was on the northeast corner of Main and Chester Streets, in the old Mantle House.) 

____October 10, 1929 – A restroom is to be built by Frank Olney on the lot west of the Town Hall. It will be ten feet off the back of the Fire Department room. 

____West Jefferson’s sanitary sewer system is to be completed by January 25, 1930. 

____November 14, 1929 – “New Mayor Gets First Page Story” -M. W. Stutson, Mayor-Elect of West Jefferson, was given prominent mention in the Sunday Dispatch. The article was headed “Mayor of a half-century ago returned to office in West Jefferson.” Mr. Stutson is 81 years of age – is full of vim and vigor and determined and perhaps enters with as much interest in the community growth as he did 57 years ago, or to be exact, 1872. He is quoted in the Dispatch as saying, “After I had served my term as Mayor I thought that I was through, but my friends wouldn’t have it any other way at the last election and I had to consent to run,” he said. “And you know now that after I have been elected, I am glad I did run because I think I have lived long enough to know what is good for the Village,” he added. “One of the first things that I’m going to do is get rid of the Motor Cop. I see no need for such an expense on the Village since the State has changed the speed law and it will just save the village government $2,000 a year.” 

____December 26, 1929 – Dr. Harry F. Jackson, 60, a well-known dentist of West Jefferson, died suddenly of heart trouble. He came to Jefferson 33 years ago, in 1896, and had practiced dentistry from that period of time. (Dr. Jackson was born in November 1869 in Cadiz, Ohio. Dr. Jackson’s office was on Main Street, above the Gillivan Hardware Store, the current site of the Culp, Parsons, and Murray Building. The downstairs entrance door to Dr. Jackson’s office is displayed at the Hurt-Battelle Library.) 

____February 6, 1930 – Dr. George M. Kerr dies. He had spent all of his professional life in the community, first at Lilly Chapel and later at West Jefferson. His practice had been exceedingly large, and his work among the flu patients during the epidemic was never-ending.

West Jefferson in Days Gone By - series 65 by Charlie Miller

____March 4, 1930 – Alex Strain, Village Marshal for years, dies at age 70. 

____The manager of the Orient Theater has contracted for the installation of the Superior Sound Pictures, which will be in operation by the middle of the month. With this new sound device, all the latest and approved sound effects are given as sound is taken directly from the film. The Orient is one of the prettiest picture houses in Ohio. (This was in the building that was erected in 1862 and was the Methodist Church. It sat just west of the old Huntington Bank Building. Your writer worked there cleaning it and posting bills in 1951, Bill Strauss was the projectionist.) 

_____April 10, 1930 – The West Jefferson Flour Mill burned to its foundation Monday afternoon with a loss of $10,000 or more. The West Jefferson Flour Mill was recently purchased and put into operation by Mr. W. A. Rush, caught fire in the upper portion of the mill Monday afternoon, and burned to the ground. Mr. Rush had made extensive repairs and had installed new machinery. The mill was probably 100 years old, yet had been built of solid oak timbers that were still in a fine state of preservation. The mill was operated by water power for years when the waters of Little Darby were utilized. (This mill sat at the end of the Mill Road along the Creek.) 

____April 27, 1930 – James Chambers, 93, died at the home of Eugene Chambers west end of town, Monday morning. Mr. Chambers was a Civil War veteran and one of the few remaining soldiers of that Army. He was a member of the local G. A. R. Post. (James was born January 10, 1838, in Burlington County, New Jersey, the same county where the founders of New Hampton came from. He served in Co. A, 40th O. V. I. During the Civil War.) 

____July 3, 1930 – Monday, July 7th the Columbus papers will probably give West Jefferson a little more free publicity with first-page articles, for that is the date set for Mayor Stutson’s hearing before Gov. Cooper. A petition bearing the names of 200 persons asking for the Mayor’s removal, was filed with the Governor. Following this, a petition with an equal amount of names has been presented asking that the Mayor be retained. 

____July 18, 1930 – A hearing against Mayor Stutson has been postponed until August 18th. 

____August 21, 1930 – Charges against 82-year-old Mayor Stutson of West Jefferson will not be received by Governor Cooper.

West Jefferson in Days Gone By - series 66 by Charlie Miller

____August 28, 1930 – The hardest hail storm any of the old timers ever witnessed or heard of in West Jefferson fell Saturday noon. Hail was estimated at a 2-inch depth over the entire town. 

____April 28, 1931 – Thomas Pearce, 94, a Civil War Veteran who served with Company A 40th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, was found dead Sunday morning at his home near West Jefferson. (Thomas was born June 17, 1836. his father, Samuel, was born in 1799 in Kentucky. The Pearce’s were early settlers of the West Jefferson area.) 

____April 28, 1931 – “Ohio Bell To Buy Home Phone Company.” A petition was filed with the PUCO to purchase the property of the West Jefferson Home Telephone Company.”- The West Jefferson Home Telephone Company was organized about 30 years ago by Mr. Boyd, Harvey Pence, and Ligget to provide phone service for West Jefferson and surrounding areas. About 25 years ago, a competing concern, The Farmer’s Telephone Company, was formed and constructed lines and maintained an exchange at West Jefferson, Resaca, and Hillard. In 1915 West Jefferson seceded from the Resaca and Hillard Farmers and entered into a contract with the West Jefferson Home Telephone Co. On July 1, 1915, the two exchanges were combined. R.W. Boyd is President and W. L. Cary is Secretary – Treasurer. Elmer Moore is the Plant Chief, and Lillie Millikin is the Chief Operator. 

____ July 8, 1931 – The new reinforced concrete bridge to replace the present bridge over Little Darby Creek on E. Main Street, has an estimated cost of $28,083.30. The length of the improvement is 625 feet, with a 52-foot roadbed and a 4.5-foot sidewalk. The date of completion is set for November 30, 1931. 

____July 30, 1931 – Matthew W. Stutson, 83, Mayor of West Jefferson, dies at his home at this place, Sunday morning following an illness of cancer of the throat. 

____August 16, 1931 – Seven places were raided Tuesday night by dry officers with six dry hauls and in the seventh, only a few bottles of home brew were found! 

____September 17, 1931 – A community fire engine was purchased Tuesday night at a meeting held at the Mayor’s office. Through the efforts of a solicitor, pledges in the sum of nearly $5,000 have been made for the purchase of a new community fire engine, a 350 gal. pumper and chemical engine for the whole community to be used by the communities between Rome and Lafayette. It’s possible that the fire company at this place will be reorganized, then four men will be trained to operate the outfit, and each of the other communities will have the assistance of the other firemen. The officers for the Community Fire Department elected at a meeting held a few weeks ago were Sam Feder, President, and R. I. Blauser, Secretary. 

____October 29, 1931 – The following is from Recob’s Meat Market: Fresh Callies-10c lb. Smoked Callies-12 1/2c lb. Bacon-17c lb. Loin Pork Chops-20c lb. Shoulder Chops-17c. lb. Sausage-15c lb. Hamburger-12c. lb. Frankfurters- 15c. lb.

West Jefferson in Days Gone By - series 67 by Charlie Miller

____November 12, 1931 – John M. Gillivan, 65, local hardware dealer, passes away. He had conducted a store in West Jefferson starting in 1886, then in 1890, sold out and, with his brother George, took over their father’s hardware store. In 1903, after his brother George died, he ran the business on his own. He is survived by two sons, Ralph F. “Paddy” and Allen C. Gillivan, and one daughter, Mrs. Lucille Ewart. (Gillivan Hardware was established in West Jefferson in 1866 by James Gillivan. James was born in Ireland in 1835; he immigrated in 1855 and was married on October 25, 1857, in Hamilton, Ohio, to Mary Manifold, also born in Ireland. He was listed as a Tinner. James was appointed Post Master at Gillivan, Ohio, on March 17, 1887, and served until 1890. Gillivan was never laid out and was a crossroads at U. S. Route 42 and the Blair Road. In 1915, it contained a hardware store, a Blacksmith, and six houses.) 

Gillivan Hardware sat between what is now Dr. Garwood’s office and the Old Red & White store on Main Street. George Gillivan was Mayor of West Jefferson from 1902 until he died in office in 1903. After John died, his son Paddy took over the business. The business lasted about 100 years when Paddy retired. The building was torn down, and a new one was built for William S. Culp, Attorney; in 1966, Mr. Culp died the following year, and Attorney Ron Parsons moved into the building. 

____November 26, 1931 – Miss Glayds Stickle is moving the White Kitchen Restaurant from the Stutson Building to the Mantle House Hotel, its former location. Miss Stickle will operate the White Kitchen and hotel, catering to the tourist trade, and give the same good service to the local trade. (The White Kitchen was a busy place in the 1930’s. U. S. Route 40 was the main east-west route through the country and was always busy back then. It lasted until around the 1970’s. In the 1940’ when there was an Ohio State home football game, our one policeman would stand at the intersection of Main and Walnut, turn off the one traffic light, and direct traffic) 

____August 1, 1932 – Last Sunday, the Bill Cody Wild West Show caravan of nearly 100 trucks and automobiles passed through West Jefferson. A stop was made at the Strosnider Filling Station, where 241 gallons of gas and 41 quarts of oil were purchased for their machines—a pretty good-sized order. 

____September 1, 1932 – Cement work on the 10-mile stretch of the National Road between Summerford and West Jefferson was finished on Wednesday afternoon. This stretch of highway replaces a narrow crowning highway and joins a good road at either end, as the Springfield end was finished last year. Another job on the National will no doubt be started in the next two years to Columbus, a distance of about 9 miles, which would make the National Road paved from Hebron to Indianapolis.

West Jefferson in Days Gone By - series 68 by Charlie Miller

____September 19, 1932 – An ordinance has been passed allowing the Mayor to contract with the West Jefferson Power and Light Company for electrical service for the lighting of the streets of West Jefferson. 

____September 29, 1932 – West Jefferson will have a new gas station by the time winter sets in. T. J. Creedon has purchased the vacant lots just east of the residence of Mrs. Carrie Miller. (this is probably the current site of the Certified Gas Station) This station will make the 10th on Main Street. A. F. Dietsch-Texaco, Mr. Harrison-Sinclair, Harold Biggert and Emmett YoungStandard, Voss Brothers-Ford Garage, William Hughes-Shell, Martin Miller-Standard, William Strosnider-Linco, Ira Hunter-Sinclair and the Cochran Pure Oil at the intersection of Main Street and Blair Road. Ralph Parsons on North Walnut Street is the only one off Main Street. 

____December 29, 1932 – The machinery of the Hi-Grade Milk Company was moved from this location to 1562 King Ave, Columbus. Under Ray Miller's management, this plant has built up a splendid business in our city, and he feels it would be better to have the plant located nearer his customers. The plant here will later be remodeled for making butter and cottage cheese. 

____January 12, 1933 – Paul Miller was elected president of the Business Men’s Club, and Ralph “Paddy” Gillivan was Vice President, with Jacob McCoy as Secretary-Treasurer. The Club numbered 52 members and met at the Wise Restaurant and enjoyed a chicken supper, then adjourned to the Mayor’s Office for the business session. 

_____June 1, 1933 – Corwin Carter, 93, was the only Civil War Veteran to attend the 1933 Memorial Day Services. 

____June 29, 1933 – Lightning struck a binder in a wheat field on the Sidner farm just south of town Saturday. Three men, Charles Gregg, James Long, and Charles McCarty, who were under the binder, had stopped the team and had taken shelter under a canvas under the binder, while James Lowe and Lewis Cox took shelter under a wheat shock. Gregg, Long, and McCarty were stunned severely while one of Mr. McCarty’s shoes was torn from his foot and thrown 100 feet. Gregg, Long, and McCarty were taken to Dr. Sheetz later on; Cox and Long were returned to the horses, and as they approached the barn, lightning struck the fence, knocking Cox to the ground. Long continued to the barn, and as he approached a silo, it started to fall, and he ducked under a flat hay wagon. When the ladders fell off of the wagon, they struck Long and knocked him unconscious. 

____May 9, 1933 – H. G. Putnam was elected Mayor, and the Council elected Herbert Allerton, Steve Martin, Frank Peters, James Palmer, Merkle Miller, and Harrison Smith. Frank Biggert as Justice of the Peace and B. A. Sargent as Clerk.

West Jefferson in Days Gone By - series 69 by Charlie Miller

____November 9, 1933 – Results of the 1933 election: Mayor H. G. Putnam – 251 votes, O. P. Van Schoik – 240, Ellis Jackson – 197, H. Bradfield – 14. Council – Herbert Allerton – Steve Martin - Frank Peters – James Palmer – Merkel Miller – Harrison Smith. Justice of the Peace – Frank Biggert. Clerk – B. A. Sargent. 

____January 1, 1934 – Council appropriates $13,238.00 for the year 1934. The January meeting of the Business Men’s Club will be held at the Star Hotel. 

____January 11, 1934 – “Old Big Foot’s” cunning finally failed him. The monstrous 28 lb. Raccoon, whose stealing of chickens, geese, and ducks in the vicinity of West Jefferson for the last five years has made him a mark for many hunters, is dead. He was shot on the farm of Henry Feder north of Jefferson after a three-mile chase. 

____March 13, 1934 – Ora B. Horn, 56, a well-known barber, died today at Mt. Carmel Hospital. Mr. Horn came here 19 years ago and opened a shop in the Metropolitan Building. (The building sat on the southeast corner of Main and Walnut Streets, the site of the current bank.) ____April 2, 1934 – A new motorcycle has been purchased by the village for $375. 

____April 5, 1934 – E. E. Gregg, Secretary of the West Jefferson Gun Club, celebrated his 10th anniversary as a trap shooter in a very auspicious manner when he won the “Crooksville Shoot.” He was presented with a 35-piece of Crooksville China dishes for his marksmanship. 

____July 30, 1934 – Miss Grace Webb, member of the ‘B’ Centralized School teaching corps, was one of the graduates to receive diplomas in the Elementary Teaching course at Capital University. August 2, 1934 – James Kehoe, 89, a retired railroad man, died at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Frank Wise, on S. West Street. “Granddad Kehoe” was a native of Ireland, born in County Tipperary on May 5, 1845. He had resided in Jeff for more than 60 years. 

____August 16, 1934 – The greyhound races will be resumed at the West Jefferson track on Saturday. 

____October 8, 1934 – Capt. Walter Seamon, Fellows Ave., veteran army man, was promoted to Major on October 1, 1934. (Major Seamon, as he was known, lived in the big brick house on the corner of Fellows and Frey. He was born August 28, 1883, and died December 2, 1987. He is buried at the Pleasant Hill Cemetery. His first enlistment was before 1900, and it is believed that he fought either in the Spanish-American War or the Philippine Insurrection 1899- 1901. He re-enlisted a number of times. He was commissioned a 2nd Lt. In 1917 and Capt. in 1918. He fought at Asiene-Marne and St. Michiel. He was severely wounded on July 19, 1918, and was cited for gallantry. He was also awarded the Croix de Guerre from France. He was discharged on January 1, 1938. Shortly after that, he was elected Mayor of West Jefferson. He had a son, Walter Jr., who served as a Captain in WWII, and a son, Jack, who served in the Air Force as a Lt. Col.)