Jan. 30 through the years

1924

Ad for C.W. Holt & Co., “Style of the Times”: Kerchiefs, new, crisp and clean – dainty effects in plain and fancy designs, 19 cents; Dainty Philipine Gowns, Fresh from the makers, $2.25; One Lot Boy’s Union Suits, Very good quality, Wilson Bros. make, sizes 10 to 16 years, 85 cents. Suits and overcoats on clearance sales, with prices ranging from $50 suits re-marked to $39, to $30 suits re-marked to $24.

1949

Kent Mathewson of Asheboro is named first city manager, effective March 1. He was the president of the N.C. City Managers Association.

1960

Livestock within Martinsville city limits was a controversial issue. There were still pens and stables housing the community livestock. However, the City Council was considering barring hogs from city limits. Cows, chickens and horses were still welcome, as long as they did not constitute a nuisance and kept mostly out of public view.

1974

In the Stroller: “Chief Grady Ratliff of the Patrick Henry Volunteer Fire Department says his firemen are being roused from sleep at odd hours by patrons who apparently don’t know how the phone-alarm system in that area operates  … Home telephones of 10 members have a dual connection with a special fire department number. When that number is dialed, all 10 telephones sound a special intermittent ring until answered. In case a phone is busy, the users will be alerted by a special signal that someone is trying to get a fire alarm through. The 10 firemen (9 actually, because one is at the station) the special calls as they can, and not in any special order, Chief Ratliff cautions fire department patrons to exercise care in dialing the special alarm number. If it is misused too often, it will diminish the firemen’s efficiency. They might react like the man did in the story about the little boy who cried wolf too often.

1999

Country Cookin’ at Liberty Fair Mall served up your choice of chopped sirloin, mesquite salmon, liver & onions, steak & gravy or grilled tuna for $3.99. Side dishes were choice of baked potato, french fries or onion rings; each meal also included a salad, vegetable, soup, bread, soft serve and desserts.

2024

DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) is a school-based drug use prevention program taught by police officers for middle and high school students. It was started in 1983 in Los Angeles and spread rapidly after the U.S. Congress passed the Schools and Communities Act to promote drug abuse education, according to the National Institute of Justice. Its initial curriculum was used through 2009. In recent years Henry County Public Schools has been using the “Too Good for Drugs” program by Piedmont Community Services, but the school system decided to switch back to DARE, the Martinsville Bulletin reported. PCS, established in 1972, is one of 40 community service boards in Virginia, operated under regulations by the Virginia Department of Health and Developmental Services.

— By Holly Kozelsky and Pat Pion

— Information from museum records and the Henry Bulletin and the Martinsville Bulletin accessed on microfiche at the Martinsville Branch Library.