Each week, the Gazette looks back on stories from the past. Here is what happened this week, by year…
1928
– Five men who had been missing since leaving the harbour in Rochester, N.Y. were thought to have been spotted by plane in Main Duck Island. They were thought to be farm caretakers, but the owner didn’t have that many men there.
– At the urging of the Picton Kiwanis Club, County council formally made a request to the United Empire Loyalist Association of Canada to host the celebration it organizes every five years in Picton. Belleville hosted the event in 1924 and its club offered to help.
– C.J. Clapp, a radio fan who was among the first in Picton to own a receiver boasted a new six-tube Stromberg-Carlson unit he said could pick up Pacific coast broadcasts.
1948
-Judge Wilfred S. Lane told Picton council that its investment in a community centre was reducing juvenile delinquency rates in the town considerably. He urged councillors to give generously to keep the building in good repair.
– Picton councillor William Henley brought forward a resolution asking the town to petition Canada’s postmaster general to offer door-to-door mail service. The motion was supported.
– The Prince Edward County Hospital posted an operating deficit of over $6,000 for 1947 as it dealt with a $12,000 increase in wages as well as higher food costs. It drew from nearly $13,000 in revenue from grants, donations, and interest to balance the books.
1978
– Picton Mayor Donald King indicated he would seek the federal Progressive Conservative nomination in an anticipated upcoming election. King said he made his decision after MPP James Taylor said he’d stay at Queen’s Park and not seek the job.
– Information from the Commission on Election Contributions detailed how much Prince Edward-Lennox provincial candidates spent per vote in the 1977 election. Taylor, the winner, spent $3.01. Liberal Mary Kaiser spent $2.25 and NDP candidate Jan Nicol spent $1.62.
– The new $268,000 Picton Salvation Army Citadel opened at the corner of Elizabeth and Queen streets. It featured a 500-seat auditorium and a 60-seat chapel.
1998
-A move to reschedule County council meetings from Monday nights to Tuesday afternoons was defeated. Kevin Gale was among those who opposed the move, saying it didn’t take into consideration the inclusion of people who work for a living.
– The Hastings and Prince Edward District School Board was facing a $2.5-million funding shortfall during its first fiscal year of amalgamation. Fortunately, both the previous Prince Edward and Hastings boards had reserves they could draw on. The province promised a new funding model for September 1998.
– The Hastings and Prince Edward District School Board announced it would revive its Junior Kindergarten programs.