25 years ago: Feb. 28, 2001

Three area legislators discussed activity in the state Legislature during a coffee last Saturday morning at the former Ratliff Drug Store in downtown Tonganoxie. Lawmakers are pictured on stools – Rep. Ray Cox, Sen. Bob Lyon, and Rep. Ken Wilk.

Dee Ketchum, chief of the Delaware Tribe of Indians, spoke for about 90 minutes to member of the Tonganoxie City Council, who had invited him to talk about the possibility of a casino in Leavenworth County. Area residents packed the chambers and stood outside. Ketchum is looking for suitable land – and endorsements. “Its’ got to be a good fit for the Delawares and it’s got to be a good fit for the particular area,” Ketchum said. The Mirror included several other stories in this issue about the Delaware legacy in and around Tonganoxie.

Volunteers answer calls to fight fires. The fire last week was fought by volunteers. Charlie Conrad, fire chief, noted that the fire truck was on the scene four minutes after the fire was called in. “That’s very good for a volunteer system,” said Conrad, who also works for the Leavenworth County Emergency Management Services. Within seven minutes, three fire trucks and fifteen people were working, slipping and sliding on thick ice that spread across the concrete and grass. The fire department’s $80,000 budget covers one firefighter’s salary, as well as payments on its building and trucks. This was the worst fire in Tonganoxie since July 4, 1975, when a gasoline station at Fourth and Delaware Streets burned.

50 years ago: March 3, 1976

Downtown Tonganoxie looks a little better these days thanks to the efforts of one local citizen, Eugene Keck, who took it upon himself to pick up the trash and litter that other inconsiderate people left behind. Seeing Eugene Keck walking down the street with a large sack of Tonganoxie litter is not an unusual sight. Our thanks go Mr. Keck for seeing a community problem and doing something positive about it instead of complaining about it. If all of us had the same attitude this would be an even nicer place to live.

Actions speak louder than words. Jack Bailey is speaking loudly. Bailey is building a fire truck because he is tired of watching people’s houses and property burn for lack of fire protection. Bailey has been working on the truck for about a month and a half in his spare time.

A hot meal a day, five days a week will be served to Leavenworth County Senior Citizens at the Christian Church. The dining center is centrally located and will begin serving 50 participants.

Congratulations are in order to Coach Steeples and the basketball team. They finished the year as Co-Champions with Gardner of the Pioneer League. Construction is expected to start on a new 100 bed nursing home in Oskaloosa with industrial revenue bonds issued by the city of Oskaloosa.

A horse owned by Paul Russell was killed when it was struck by a tractor trailer truck on K-32. James Sawyer, Towanda, told sheriff’s officers he swerved to avoid hitting two horses in the road when one of them ran into the side of the tractor and the trailer ran over the animal.

75 years ago: March 1, 1951

A sad report from the Bobby Burroughs’s family. The first direct loss from Tonganoxie has occurred as his parents have received a war department notice that their young son had been killed in Korea. Bobby, who was not yet 18 had been in Korea for the past six months. The events leading to his death are not yet known. Suffice it to say, after WWII, we had hoped this was the end of world conflicts and our involvement. Bobby enlisted just before his junior year in high school and his presence will be sorely missed. He had pressured his parents to give their permission for his enlistment.

The REA maintenance man, Fred Johnson got a several hundred dollar bill from Gamble’s in Lawrence. As he has not used that account for many years, he inquired about charges. Fred learned that someone else had used his old account and forged his name.

The consolidation of rural schools continues to be a situation the city will have to solve. The grade school is currently handling 190 students, which is the max for the building and teachers. Two rural schools are already sending their pupils in and more schools are sure to follow. The question is about a new building-one for 200 pupils or 300 or more? Rural schools must be adjoining our district, however, Mound is separated from our district by Pleasant Prairie and is currently transporting their students here. The school board has a hypothetical question before them. What if more and more schools decide to consolidate, would we need a three-winged building? Build one wing to be used with the current school and add second and third wings if the need arises. The board is looking ahead ten years and wondering what the future will bring. 

100 years ago: Feb. 25, 1926

The Pancake Supper given at the school house Tuesday evening, was fairly well attended considering the bad roads and considerable sickness. The demonstration of the pancakes was by the Pillsbury Flour representatives and given under the auspices of the P. T. A. Everyone voted the pancakes, and syrup, sausage and coffee as excellent; and the P. T. A. realized a small sum to add to the piano fund.

It leaked out in some way that C. H. Cain, the druggist, had bought a Packard car at Kansas City and the fellows have been waiting patiently to see it. Monday the car arrived and it is a beauty. C. H. is so proud of it he has it on display in his window. It is a child’s automobile and he is going to give it away to some boy or girl in the community. Mr. Cain will still drive the old reliable. The fellows about town were sold.

Wanted: A married man for farm and dairy work, House and cow furnished. Call 170 C.

Snow which began to fall about eight o’clock last Thursday morning continued until late in the afternoon amounting almost to the proportions of the snow two years ago which came about two weeks earlier. Bus traffic was suspended before noon on Thursday and a number of busses were stranded between here and Topeka and also between here and Kansas City, and two were here until Friday afternoon. The country roads were blocked in many places by the drifts for several days and mail service was greatly handicapped. An unusual occurrence was the thunder and lightning which accompanied the snow Thursday morning.

Dr. LC Cox and Dr. EP Leakey expect to attend a Dental Convention at Kansas City, Monday and Tuesday of next week.

125 years ago: March 7, 1901

The new liquor law went into effect a week ago today. Under its provisions the new officers will not have to prove any actual sales of liquor. If they suspicion any liquor is being concealed anywhere, they can secure a search and seizure warrant from the justice of peace and search the suspected premises. The finding of the liquor will be sufficient proof to convict the dealer, unless it is kept in a dwelling. In the latter event they must prove actual sales.

Tomorrow everything in the Fort Leavenworth post canteen will be sold at public auction. Since the sale of liquor has been shut off business has been so poor that the post exchange council has decided that it will no longer be profitable to operate. For twenty years Tonganoxie has been in a legislative district five miles wide and thirty- three miles long, extending from the Kansas river on the south to the Missouri river on the northeast. The district also took in a Leavenworth ward. The legislature has at last thrown us into a compact district. A new law makes the legislative district the same as the commissioner’s district. Our representative district now comprises the townships of Delaware, Fairmount, Sherman, Stranger, Reno and Tonganoxie. The district is Republican. The old district was democratic.

Kansas, after all, lost the banner for having the best butter at the National Butter Makers Convention. The result was so close that a trifling error gave it to Kansas when it ought to have gone to Minnesota. However, had all the scores been as good as that of the Tonganoxie Creamery, Kansas would have won on a good margin. Tonganoxie scored near the top, 90 1/2, only two Kansas creameries scoring better. The average that won the state prize was a score of a little over 8