This Week in Odessa History

100 years ago

From The Odessa Record

February 27, 1914

County Superintendent Wm. U. Neeley strongly endorsed the plan for a new civic center auditorium. Neeley wrote a letter in which he pointed out his view of the situation.

The civic center movement has doubtless done more for the widening of the public school system than any other one movement in the past half century. While it is comparatively new to our state, the plan has been successfully carried out in many other states, especially in the State of Wisconsin.

The community center tends to bring all classes together under the leadership of the public school system, because this is the only system upon which all classes are agreed. The public school system is the one democratic institution left us, and this leaves it where the work may be directed largely by local conditions.

Many systems of the past have failed because they were under the direction of private parties, or those organizations upon which people naturally disagree. The newer movement provides for better organization since a large part of the work is done directly through the school itself.

School buildings, in the past, have been built with the one idea in view, that of furnishing class rooms and laboratories for boys and girls during the six hours a day school is in session. The time has come when the school must reach farther than this, and must coordinate, and articulate with the home and the community interests. Many a boy and many a girl have gone wrong because of a failure of the school, the home and the community to work together to direct the social life after school hours. In too many towns, the only place for amusement is the public dance hall, the street or some questionable resort. But personally I can see the clouds clearing away through the advent of the community center.

In the past years the only way whereby this plan could be carried out was through the erection of so-called gymnasiums, that could be used for nothing very practical. A real community center provides for more than the training of a few boys to play basket ball. The last legislature provided that school districts might provide and equip buildings for community purposes, and several districts of Lincoln county have taken advantage of this law to furnish such buildings.

75 years ago

From The Odessa Record

February 23, 1939

The Sprague-Odessa gun club climbed to second place in the Inland Empire trapshoot. One of the winners was Louis Frederick who shot a straight at Odessa.

John Hemmerling, Odessa farmer, Friday filed in the superior court at Davenport an action against the Odessa Union Warehouse company, seeking a judgment for $12,379. He alleges in his complaint that he deposited 15,474 bushels of Early Baart wheat with the company in August, 1937, worth the amount asked as the judgment, and that about November 15, 1937, the warehouse company shipped out the wheat and sold it without his permission.

November 20, 1937, he made a demand for his wheat, presenting his warehouse receipts and the company failed to comply with the demand. August 22, 1938, the complaint continues, the company’s elevator and warehouse at Odessa were destroyed by fire and the plaintiff believes the company did not have stored in its warehouse or premises sufficient 1937 wheat of the kind and quality to cover Mr. Hemmerling’s receipts.

50 years ago

From The Odessa Record

February 27, 1964

Al Scheibner killed a rattlesnake at his ranch last Wednesday, as early as he can ever remember seeing one. The snake, wearing from seven to eight rattles, rattled furiously at Scheibner during the brief moments of the encounter.

J.D. Birge, son of Mr. and Mrs. David K. Birge, recently graduated from Washington State University with a bachelor of science degree in chemical engineering. Birge will be employed by Phillips Petroleum company, Atomic Energy Division, as a reactor operator at the national reactor testing station near Idaho Falls. His work will be in the nature of research. While in college Birge completed his last semester research project working in nuclear factors at Washington State University’s “swimming pool” reactor.

25 years ago

From The Odessa Record

February 23, 1989

Amy Scrupps, a junior at Odessa High School, served as a legislative page in the Washington State House of Representatives the week of January 30, sponsored by Representative Tom Bristow, 7th District Democrat from Colville. Amy is the daughter of Lorus and Judy Scrupps.

After a summer that saw only .48 of an inch of rain in June, no measurable precipitation in July and only .l04 in August, a winter has followed that began with 2.09 in November, followed by .81 in December and 3.35 inches of moisture in January.

Until last weekend, there had been .4 inches in February, but the week’s precipitation added another .9.

10 years ago

From The Odessa Record

February 26, 2004

12 members of the Odessa High School varsity boys team and eight members of the varsity girls cheerleading team have been honored by the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association for having the highest grade point average among all B Schools in the state.

The members of the two teams were: Jill Connolly, Katie Connolly, Amanda Finkbeiner, Kelsie Luiten, Sara Fink, Andrea Largent, Brooke Voise, Kysa Cronrath, Casey Pfeifer, Drew Fink, Tyson Largent, Kory Kolterman, Andrew Libsack, Erick Walter, Travis Iksic, Jesse Scheller, David Johnson, Alex King, Drake Costlow, Ryan Scrupps and Matt Rogers.

When KHQ-TV learned that two teams from the same school had won the awards, a crew was dispatched from Spokane to cover the event.

As a reward, the Odessa School District, proud of the students’ academic achievements, treated the 20 students to a bus ride to the State B games with their admission paid and dinner afterward.