Oct. 21
100 Years ago – 1924
S.S. Stevens of Martinsville won the grand prize in the apple show in Danville for the best showing of 10 kinds of apples. He won $20. He also won other prizes for Maiden Blush, Grimes Golden and Jonathan apples. A.R. Griggs of Stuart won second place for the showing of 10 kinds, and his prize was $10. R.E. Lyons of Stuart won first on plates of York, Albermarle Pippen and Ben Davis.
A write-up on the latest meeting of the Martinsville Woman’s Christian Temperance Union was on the front page of the Henry Bulletin. It included this paragraph: “It is reported that at the Olympic games in Paris last summer, the United States and Finland, the driest nations in the world, led in winners … We are told that all bars and liquor advertising were removed from the locality where American athletes were quartered.”
This “Appeal to Parents” was published in the Oct. 21 Henry Bulletin: “In the interest of ‘Safety First’ I wish to call your attention to the school children who cross the railroad on their way to school. Do you know that they cross all the way from the station to the American Furniture factory? And they also walk down all of the sidings leading toward the school. Now, it is almost impossible to keep track of all these children when we are shifting cars in and out of these sidings. It would hurt every member of our crew should one of these little ones get injured or killed. Wont you please co-operate with us and keep the children off of these tracks and have them cross at the regular crossing. Yours truly, J.W. Blunn, Eng. N&W Ry.”
75 years ago – 1949
Aubrey Bradshaw, Bobby Merriman and Hubert Pratt won first place honors in statewide 4-H club contests.
A Hereford bull owned by L.F. Prillaman sold for the highest price at the sale in Staunton - $2,000.
1960
Ann Pannill, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Banks Pannill of Orchard Street, was the first child of the year Santa Claus received a letter from, according to the Martinsville Bulletin’s Stroller column. The letter read: “I want 26 doll dressed for my 3 year old doll she wears size 3. And a winter coat and a summer coat for my 3 year old doll. And a folding playhouse. And a red wagon. One pair of play shoes, one pair of Sunday shoes for my 3 year old doll. Love.”
50 years ago – 1974
The Fieldale Towel Mill closed for a week due to what officials called economic problems, putting 1,300 workers out of work. It was the firm’s second shutdown in several weeks. Another 1,500 of Fieldcrest Mills’ employees were put out of work for a week at the Eden, N.C., mills.
The County of Henry bought 21 acres along the Smith River near Koehler from Fieldcrest Mills for $40,000, to be the place of a $10 million Upper Smith River sewer project providing service from Koehler to North Bassett.
25 years ago - 1999
Enrollment at Patrick Henry Community College reached a record high of 3,115 students. (Enrollment for Fall 2023 was 1,932, according to SCHEV.)
— Information from museum records and the Henry Bulletin and the Martinsville Bulletin.