Nov. 5
100 Years ago – 1924
Mrs. Thomas Moore was the first prize winner of the Henry County Kitchen Improvement Contest, which came to a conclusion with a program the previous Saturday in the Henry County Courthouse. Thirty-five kitchens were entered into the contest. They were visited by county demonstration and state agents and assessed and scored, with attention on how a kitchen could be arranged to save steps, time and labor as a woman carries out her kitchen duties, and all for the least cost. The agricultural engineer of the State Extension Division gave helpful suggestions on how it would be possible to have running water in their kitchens, or at least to install sinks and other labor-saving devices. Of the contestants, four had to drop out for good reasons, and two who remained in the contest were unable to do what they had planned to do. The other 29 made improvements to their kitchens. Prizes went to: First place, kitchen cabinet, to Ms. Thomas S. Moore of Mt. Olivet; second place, four-burner oil stove to Mrs. P.S. Cox of Preston; third place, steam pressure cooker for Mrs. J.A. Richardson of Boxwood; fourth, kitchen table, Mrs. Fred Doyle of Horsepasture; fifth, vacuum ice freezer, Mrs. T.M. Roberts, Ridgeway; sixth, gallon of Vaspar varnish, Mrs. W.R. West, Axton; seventh, Congoleum rug, Mrs. John Doyle, Ridgeway; eighth, set of kitchen brushes, Mrs. J.T. Clark, Mt. Olivet; ninth, kitchen stool, Mrs. George Metz, Oak Level; tenth, jelly strainer, Mrs. S.L. Walker, Ridgeway. Mrs. J.J. Donovant won a special prize for her ingenuity and skill in making use of materials: a chair.
75 years ago – 1949
The Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals announced that it would not review the case of the Martinsville Seven until January, because its docket was too heavy. The Appeals court had agreed on Sept. 6, 1949, in Staunton that it would review the cases on grants of writs of error, brought to attention by Martin A. Martin, an attorney for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Martin had alleged errors on several grounds, including not transferring the trial out of Martinsville and that holding the trials on successive days denied the defendants the due process of law.
Two intersections on Church Street, one at Fayette and the other at Pine, had lots of accidents, so the State Highway department advised Martinsville to improve those intersections with measures including the installation of three-phase signal control, painting lane words “thru,” “right” and “left” in white paint 8 feet high, and marking the curb and yellow signs with black arrows. Their original execution dates had been in July 1949. They were Joe Henry Hampton, Frank Hairston Jr., Booker T. Millner, James Luther Hairston, Francis DeSales Grayson, Howard Hairston and John Clabon Taylor, all black.
1960
It was the day of Christmas Cheer’s annual clothing drive. City housewives were asked to have clothing on their front porches by 1 p.m. Trucks canvassed the city to pick up those clothes. County residents were asked to drop off clothes at their local fire departments. Spencer residents could drop off clothes at Minter’s Store, and in Mountain Valley, Willard Minter’s store. Later, organizers would report that it was a disappointing collection, so they were still hoping for donations of clothes, which could be dropped off at the former Parke’s Bakery building on Bridge Street, or call Mrs. George Harrison and she’d have someone pick it up.
50 years ago – 1974
Martinsville voters rejected a referendum which would have allowed liquor by the drink with a 3 to 2 margin. They also imposed a 47-month period before the question could be brought up again.
25 years ago - 1999
A committee of Rich Acres Elementary School faculty and staff was looking into the school taking the year-round school year. They attended a state conference on the matter and visited such a school in Danville. Under that model, the school would operate on a 45-day basis, followed by a 10-day intersession, which provided additional instructional time for students who needed help; then a 15-day break. Clearview Elementary School was in its first year of year-round.
— Information from museum records and the Henry Bulletin and the Martinsville Bulletin.