August 16
100 Years ago – 1924
About 1,500 people attended the annual farmers picnic at Hairston Spring, also called Rock Spring, 2 miles north of Martinsville, near Beaver Creek. Farmers were to bring their families and dinner and mingle with each other. Speakers were J.Y Joyner of LaGrange, N.C., and Prof. John R. Hutcheson of Blackburg.
75 years ago – 1949
The operator of the U-DRIVE Inn on West Church Street was fined $200 in City Police court on charges of illegally keeping alcoholic drinks in a licensed restaurant. He also was ordered to post a $500 bond against violation of the same law during the following 12 months.
A permit was issued to L.A. Thomas and R.P. Thomas for the construction of a theater at the corner of West Fayette street and King’s Row in West Martinsville.
1960
Martinsville and Henry County schools were still segregated, but four new school systems would undergo integration for the first time, bringing the total of 10 Virginia localities with integrated public schools. The new ones would be Richmond and Roanoke, voluntarily, and Fairfax County and Pulaski, by order. They joined Alexandria, Arlington, Norfolk, Charlottesville, Warren County and Floyd County. The State Pupil Placement Board was keeping track of that.
50 years ago – 1974
The Martinsville-Henry County Woman’s Club raised more than $1,200 over 10 months by collecting scrap paper for recycling. They used $500 of it for playground equipment for the new Jackson Street park and $300 to send children to Camp Easter Seal and were planning to use more of the money for furnishing and decorating two rooms at Anchor House II, a probation home for girls soon to open on Brown Street.
25 years ago - 1999
Water restrictions were made mandatory for the 2,800 customers in the southern part of Henry County, served by the Marrowbone Water Plant. Rules included: No watering lawns; no watering gardens between 6 a.m. and 7 p.m.; no filling swimming pool or construction tank trucks; no washing cars at home; no running dishwashers or washing machines with less than a full load; and no washing pavement or buildings.
— Information from museum records and the Henry Bulletin and the Martinsville Bulletin.