THE TIME MACHINE

From past files of The Star News

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Remember When — January, 2002

The Stetsonville Volunteer Fire Department responded to a house fire at the Tammy Ogle residence on CTH A, Stetsonville at 3:40 a.m. on January 9. No one was home at the time and the fire was called in by a county highway employee who was checking the highway. The house and contents were a total loss.

January 21, 1971

An accident occurring at 1:15 p.m.

Friday 31/2 miles north of Hannibal on a town road was investigated by county officials. Elmer Anderson, Ingram, was traveling east when his auto slid into a truck operated by Lee Cornell, Sheldon, route 2, which was backing from a driveway. The entire front end of the Anderson auto was damaged an estimated $600 and at $25 to the back of the Cornell truck.

January 17, 1946

The Harvey Manufacturing Company of Medford suffered a loss of about $8,000 to 10,000 in stock in a fire which broke out in the Methodist gymnasium in Medford about 4:30 o’clock Friday afternoon. Damage to the structure of the Methodist gym was estimated at $1,500.

The fire was believed to have been started from an overheated chimney, according to Fire Chief Henry Brost. At the time the fire broke out many of the firemen were at the curling rink taking part in the bonspiel. They and many outsiders responded immediately to help fight the fire. Four lines of hose were used by the Medford fire department to extinguish the flames which didn’t let up until 9 o’clock that evening.

January 24, 1996

Last Thursday’s snowstorm could have been more dangerous than it was, according to Taylor County Sheriff Bill Breneman. There were numerous vehicles disabled because of the snow, but most were stuck on roads, not in the ditch, he said.

The only significant accident reported, Breneman said, involved a United

January 20, 2011

The Medford Area Public School District voted January 13 to spend $140,000 in fund balance and borrow the rest at 3.17 percent interest to pay off a debt of about $1.4 million to the Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS).

The debt, also referred to as a prior service liability, was created in the 1980s when retirement systems combined to form the WRS which put retirees on equal footing. Medford has slowly been paying the debt down, but at a current interest rate of 7.8 percent.

Lisa Voisin of Robert W. Baird, a firm that works with schools on financing issues, said Medford scored a very low rate because January is historically a great time to sell bonds and the district’s bond rating was upgraded to AA-. “Moving from A to double A is huge,” she said.

January 19, 1921

A small number of citizens whose Parcel Service truck on CTH M which went into the ditch and rolled onto its side. The accident occurred at 5:02 p.m. The accident showed how bad the roads really were, he said, because UPS drivers are, in general, very careful.

125 YEARS AGO

January 18, 1896

Senator Davis, of Minnesota, of the committee on foreign relations, has been giving considerable attention to the Alaskan boundary dispute. He has found nothing in his investigation which would cause him to change the lines which have always been understood as the boundary and upon what both countries have been proceeding years. He says that the only question in dispute is whether the ten marine leagues from the ocean meant from the mainland or from the adjacent islands. Mr. Davis says that this does not even present a case of arbitration because it is manifestly plain that the shore of the mainland of the continent is the basis of the true line.

property abbuts the streets which it is proposed to pave attended a meeting at the city hall Saturday evening. They were invited by the city council to express themselves regarding any preferance they might have in regard to the kind of paving to be used on the streets this summer. Mr. Hall, an engineer from Eau Claire, was present to answer any questions regarding same that might be put to him. A representative of the cement companies was also present. It is reported that the sentiment seemed to favor concrete which it was thought would cost about the same as the last year’s estimate, about three dollars and fifty cents per square yard, while brick would be a dollar or so more.