Yesteryears

Walnut Ridge High School baseball coach Derek Bramlett has been selected to serve as head coach of East All-Stars at the 2013 All-Star baseball games in Conway next month. Bramlett guided the Bobcats to a 29-7 record and a trip to the semifinals of the 2A State Tournament in 2013.

Black Rock High School students Moses Webb and Megan Carey received the Herschel Bryant Award during the school’s athletic banquet.

Hillcrest High School will be implementing a new way of teaching called New Tech this fall. In the new curriculum, lessons will be more project-based and teachers will act as facilitators rather than giving lectures. This is planned to better prepare students for college and real world situations.

Pat Johnson, director at the Eddie Mae Herron Center in Pocahontas, was the guest speaker at the United Methodist Women’s meeting at First United Methodist Church in Walnut Ridge. Johnson, spoke about growing up in segregated schools. The center has served as the hub for religious and educational activities for the African-American community in Pocahontas and surrounding communities for almost half a century.

20 Years Ago

More than eight inches of rain has fallen in Lawrence County in the past week, much of it coming in strong downpours.

Ashley Hufstedler, a junior at Walnut Ridge High School, has been named to the All-Region softball team.

Brandon Evans and Ryan Belcher, Walnut Ridge High School athletes, were name to the AA Region 4 All-Region baseball team.

Britany D. Hancock and Liz Hancock will represent Hoxie High School at Girls State. Krystle McClung, Amy Ray, Ashley Hufstedler and Alissa Walter have been chosen to represent Walnut Ridge.

Cole Schiller, Andrew Ballard, Andrew Watson and Ryan Cole will represent WRHS at Boys State.

Daniel Doyle received the William H. Hughes Shakespeare Award at the Hendrix College Honors Day Convocation. Doyle, a junior English major and French minor, is a graduate of Hoxie High School and is the son of Mike and Robyn Doyle of Sedgwick.

Jeremy and Dedra Riggs of Walnut Ridge have announced the birth of a son, born May 14, 2003, at St. Bernards in Jonesboro and named Jeremy Tee (Jake) Riggs, Jr.

30 Years Ago

Valerie Turnbow, a senior at Hoxie High School, has been selected to receive the Arkansas Governor’s Scholarship.

Lynn Superintendent Larry Glenn will step down and say goodbye with his commencement address Friday. Mr. Larry, as Lynn students and faculty call him, has been the superintendent at Lynn for more than 24 years.

First place winners in Walnut Ridge High School’s annual art show are Jay Jones, Keith Binkley, Jennifer Clark, Joey Beck and Kris Williams

40 Years Ago

Jayme Caspall, son of Mr. and Mrs. Dan Caspall, has been named valedictorian at Walnut Ridge High School. Vonda Gale Davis, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Mack Davis, is salutatorian.

Matt Jansen has been named president of the Walnut Ridge High School Student Council. His father, Jim Jansen, was WRHS’s Student Council president in 1954-55. This is the first father and son to serve as Student Council presidents at WRHS.

Mark Belk and Angie Harris have been selected as Mr. and Miss Hoxie High School.

Walnut Ridge Junior High Cheerleaders for 1983-84 include: Blair Murphy, Jennifer Cox, Gwen Mullen, Cathy Cooper, Linda Allison, Shannon Spades, Carmen Johnson, Vadra Haynes and Leighia Walker.

Snapp Motor Company’s team ranked first among Monday night bowlers in the Ridgette League. Team members are Joan Clopp, Jean Helsel, Alice Stevens, Marie Eversmeyer and Bettye Claxton.

50 Years Ago

Dr. D. Jack Nicholas, 40, a native of Pollard, was elected president of Southern Baptist College in a meeting of the Board of Trustees. Dr. Nicholas will be the institution’s second president, assuming his duties July 1.

Daniel Midkiff has been awarded the John Phillip Sousa Award, which is annually given to the outstanding senior student by the instrumental music department at WRHS.

W.R. Glenn, faculty sponsor of the Key Club at Walnut Ridge High, received an honorary membership in the Kiwanis Club at a ceremony last Friday at the Davy Crockett.

Farris Edward Madison, aged 61, of Alicia, died Sunday night at 8:30 in the Marshall County Hospital in Holly Springs, Miss. Mr. Madison, an Alicia merchant for many years, was a veteran of World War II, and served as Lawrence County’s State Representative in 1941-42.

60 Years Ago

Honor students in the sixth grade at Walnut Ridge School are Paul Doty Jr., Julia Sue Hart, Thomas A. Moore, Linda Jo Jones, Sheri Lynn Pickett, Mary Louise Willmuth, Julia M. Beakley, Marta Louise Easterly and Mary Jo Heafner.

One of the worst early-year droughts on record is being experienced here. Only eight inches of rain have fallen so far in 1963.

Pvt. Freddy W. Collins of Walnut Ridge has been assigned to a unit on Okinawa.

Sara Jane Grissom won the piano medal at a Hoxie recital.

Bobbye Recker is the new president of Future Homemakers of America chapter at WRHS. Others elected to office were Margaret Ann Heard, Paula Ponder, Sharon Miller, Lyn Montgomery, Connie Snapp, Phyllis Recker, Anita Bartlett, Linda Blanchard and Linda Hart.

70 Years Ago

Joe Segraves, son of Mrs. Gertha Segraves of Walnut Ridge, is the valedictorian and Dean Todd, son of Mr. and Mrs. Clyde Todd of Alicia, is salutatorian of the graduating class of Walnut Ridge High School.

Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence Sloan drove to Lynchburg, Va., last weekend to visit their daughter, Virginia, who is a student at Randolph-Macon. They were joined by Ensign Tommy Sloan.

The May issue of the Progressive Farmer had a feature on the Girls Ensemble of Walnut Ridge High School. The magazine printed a picture of Claudette Harris and Martha Williams with Carolyn Glover at the piano, tuning up for a public appearance.

Mr. and Mrs. D.E. Oldham of El Dorado announce the engagement and approaching marriage of their daughter, Kay of Hoxie, to O’Neal Kellim, son of Mr. and Mrs. W.W. Kellim of Delaplaine.

Henry M. Rainwater was recently elected to the Board of Directors of the Arkansas Retail Jeweler’s Association.

Gary Rainwater, son of Mr. and Mrs. A.W. Rainwater, was notified last week that he has again won first place honors in State Editorial writing.

80 Years Ago

Kenneth Benson of Walnut Ridge and Lowther Penn of Lynn are among the members of the senior class at Arkansas State College, Jonesboro, who are being graduated with distinction.

The Marvin Watson Post of the American Legion has paid and ordered sent to the Walnut Ridge company now on duty in Alaska, 10,000 cigarettes. The Red Cross sent 10,000 cigarettes to American troops under Gen. MacArthur in Australia. This shipment was directed to Lt. Van Ellis, former high school coach here, for distribution.

Lt. Paul Robert, who has been stationed at McChord Field, Wash., has been sent on special duty to attend a two weeks course in engineering aviation camouflage school at March Field, Calif.

Mr. and Mrs. James Rogers of Alicia had a letter from Corporal Terrell Rogers (no relation), a patient in Walter Reed General Hospital, Washington, D.C., in which he told them of meeting their son, Adrian Rogers, serving with a hospital unit in India.

Kathleen Sharp, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. R.P. Sharp, is the valedictorian of the Hoxie senior class, and Bernice Risenhoover is the salutatorian.

90 Years Ago

Former County Superintendent R.S. Rainwater was elected by the teachers of the county to serve as County Examiner at a meeting held Saturday afternoon at the Walnut Ridge High School building.

The citizens of Walnut Ridge cordially welcome the coming of the First National Bank to this city. For several months, Walnut Ridge has been without a bank and would have been put to a great inconvenience in the transaction of their banking business had it not been for the window opened here by the First National Bank.

Jay Myers and Jake Krone, president and vice president, respectively, of the First National Bank of Black Rock, purchased the Lawrence County Bank building from the receivers, Wednesday. The consideration was $1,800 in cash and $12,000 in deposits. Myers and Krone purchased the building as individuals.