Looking Back

These stories from the past first appeared in The Sidney Telegraph. Original writing is preserved, though some stories were shortened for space reasons.

100 YEARS AGO

‘Tossed By A Bull’

March 22, 2013

The 14th, Black Friday, was a good day to stay where you were, and nearly everyone had to. A call came from the Carlton ranch that a man, Mr. Eber, had been severely injured by a bull. Dr. Swatzlander, having no other means of locomotion to be secured for love or money, made the trip by walking down the railroad. The sensation was just like being “it” in blind man’s bluff, for eyes were just so much useless impedimenta. He arrived, however, and found the man had sustained three broken ribs and other painful injuries. The Dr. was unable to return that night and the next morning being obliged to return to other patients, he used his tie pass again, until met by W. E. Swatzlander who had gone with a team to meet him, traveling at the dizzy pace of a mile an hour.

Mr. Eber is mending rapidly.

75 YEARS AGO

‘Kenosha Is Leaving Sidney April First,

Officials Announce Operating-Costs In

Nebraska Protested’

March 25, 1938

The Kenosha Auto Transport Corporation will abandon its western terminal in Sidney by April 1, it was announced this week. According to word received from company officials at Kenosha, all activities of the Sidney terminal are to be transferred to the newly established western base in Denver.

Henceforth, all routing will be over Highway 40, which runs through Kansas and Denver, it was announced. The former Highway 30 routing is being abandoned because of fee charges in Nebraska and Wyoming which the company regards as excessive.

The legal department of the company has informed the Sidney Chamber of Commerce that Nebraska’s tow-bar charges are higher than any other state in which the company operates. By going through Kansas and Colorado, instead of Nebraska and Wyoming, the company expects to save at least half of these tow bar charges, it was stated.

The Kenosha company has objected to paying the $12 tow-bar tax, when all of its shipments consist of one truck partially mounted on the towing truck, leaving six wheels on the ground. The state ruled that this type of towing must come under the tow-bar charge, even though no tow-bar actually is used.

Don Berman, manager of the Sidney terminal said the company spent several thousand dollars trying to get this interpretation straightened out, but without success. Berman told the Chamber of Commerce Monday that he appreciated efforts made to keep the company here but he could not say whether the company would move its terminal back to Sidney, even though the ruling was altered.

According to the figures supplied by the legal department of the company, its payroll through the Sidney terminal during 1937 was around $30,000.

50 YEARS AGO

‘Six New Oil Drilling Sites Are

Announced; Activity Leads State’

March 22, 1963

The Denver-Julesburg Basin spotlight this week is back where it started fourteen years ago – Cheyenne County.

The county picked up six new drilling locations during the week to augment two others which are already under way. Four of the locations were made possible by action of the Nebraska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission in approving unorthodox drilling sites.

The commission heard five cases at its regular meeting this week and approved all but one. A denial was ordered in the petition of Amerada Petroleum Corp. to establish eighty-acre drilling and spacing units in the three-well Bush Creek Field area in Hitchcock County. The commission said it could see no reason why development of this field should deviate from the established forty-acre pattern.

The commission noticed a drop in daily average oil production of almost 2,000 barrels from the previous week and was puzzled for the reason. Daily output of 62,370 barrels was a sharp decline from the 64,500 barrel figure of the preceding week. Industry spokesmen had no explanation for the decline.

All of the reported exploratory and development activity reported by the commission this week was in the Panhandle. Action elsewhere is expected to perk up as soon as fields dry and the weather settles down. A commission spokesman said eleven new drilling permits had been issued this week up to Thursday noon.

25 YEARS AGO

‘Murder Comes In 12 Year Cycles To Sidney’

March 23, 1988

Cheyenne County has not had many opportunities to deal with the trauma of murder.

In fact, the most recent murders were 12, 24 and 36 years ago – an apparent 12 year cycle.

According to the records in the Telegraph, the last previous murder occurred in November 1976, when Fred J. Skiba was killed by Jacqueline Simpson Brick and her brother Jerry Simpson.

Jerry Simpson, was convicted of first-degree murder, after a trial which Brick reportedly testified for the state against her brother. He was sentenced to life imprisonment by Judge John Knapp, who added an additional 16 and two-thirds to 50-year sentence for robbery.

Jacqueline Simpson Brick, 34, was sentenced to 40 years in the Women’s reformatory in York in September of 1977 by Cheyenne County District Court Judge Knapp. She had entered a plea of guilty to second-degree murder in the killing of Skiba in November, 1976, two-thirds to 50-year sentence for robbery.

On January 6, 1964 the headlines in the Telegraph read: Murder Probe Cover Large Area; Lie Test is Sought For Pair Now In Custody In Texas.

“Regional law authorities are still probing every possible angle to search out the killer of William Shamis, 66, brutally murdered late Saturday night while working at Glanz Package Liquor Store, 1340 Illinois.

“It has been a frustrating search with no good leads on which to work. Cheyenne County Attorney John Peetz, Jr. reported, however, that a charge of first degree murder will be filed when a firm suspect is located.

“Mr. Shamis was clerking the store by himself when an armed robber or robbers entered, forced him to turn over two money bags containing $535, less a check for $65.01, which was hidden in a drawer in an old table by the two cash registers. An estimated $30 was taken from one cash register – but owner Harold Glanz reported that there was still about $350 remaining in the register.”

“It is possible the robber or robbers were scared away by passing traffic, authorities said.”

“Before they left, however, they made certain Mr. Shamis would never be able to identify them. He was shot at close range by a .25-caliber automatic, a small gun that can be palmed in the hand. Three bullets entered his head, one through the right ear, one at a point just back of the left ear and a third at the inner corner of the right eye. A fourth bullet missed its target, going into the wall behind. Only three expended cartridges were found.

According to the story in the Telegraph, the body was found by Mrs. Don Simpson, Sidney, who glanced behind the counter after entering the store and finding it apparently empty. She immediately left the store and, together with her husband who was waiting outside in the car, notified the police.

The break in the case came less than 48 hours later when Chief Willis jailed Eldon Porter, 40. According to the story which ran Jan. 8, while Porter was being held, authorities armed with a search warrant went to his apartment and found money, a money sack and other items which were identified by Glanz.

Porter was questioned, apparently made a confession and was originally charged with first degree murder. Porter later entered a plea of guilty to a reduced charge of second degree murder. He was sentenced to imprisonment “at hard labor in the custody of the Nebraska Penal and Correctional complex during the term of life,” by District Court Judge John H. Kuhns.

Twelve years earlier Hugh Griffith was found guilty in a jury trial Sept. 25, 1952 for the shotgun murder of his wife, Anna Griffith, on June 20. Jack Knicely was Cheyenne County Attorney and Robert Barlow was Cheyenne County Judge.

The trial was notable for the final decision of the jury, which found Griffith guilty of murder in the first degree and did, “fix the penalty at death.” That was the last time a murderer was sentenced to death from Cheyenne County and the last time a jury was to make the decision. The law was changed soon after.

10 YEARS AGO

‘Area May Enjoy Some Improvement

In Drought’

March 22, 2003

Sidney might see what is termed “limited improvement” in drought conditions, at least through June.

A seasonal forecast indicates the moisture received this week, and the possibility of more precipitation this spring could provide limited improvement but the dry conditions will probably remain.

The three days of rain in the Sidney area left about two inches of precipitation. The storm total at the Sidney Municipal Airport was 1.96 inches. The High Plains Ag Lab received 2.02 inches and the South Platte Natural Resources District weather station measured 1.94 inches.

That is the wettest period in the area since the last week of August, 2002.

Despite the possibility of more precipitation, drought conditions are expected to remain at least until the beginning of summer. The western half of Nebraska has been in an extreme drought status for most of the past two years.

Since the beginning of this year, Sidney’s precipitation totals are the second highest in the past five years. Only 2000 had a wetter start, with 3.20 inches received in the first three months of the year. 2001 had 1.56 inches, 2002 recorded .85 and .60 was reported the first three months of 1999.