Bits By Betty | Rock County Star Herald

Columns 11 May 2015

1922: Burlgars take everything but the safe from Kanaranzi

The following appeared in the Rock County Herald on May 12, 1922:

BURGLARS RANSACK BANK; BUT DON’T PROFIT GREATLY
Pry Into Drawers, Desks and Safety Boxes; Cut Through Vault Wall — Safe Unmolested
Gaining entrance in the building by breaking out a glass in the front door, the Farmers State bank, at Kanaranzi, was burglarized Friday night. Everything except the safe, was pretty thoroughly ransacked, but the burglars only secured $382.00 in the form of cash and war savings stamps.
Of the swag secured, $300.00 was in war savings stamps, removed from private boxes, and $82.00 was in small change, pennies, nickels and dimes.
The robbery was discovered Saturday morning when Cashier Joy Baker opened the institution, his attention being first attracted to the broken door glass and then to the letters and other matter that had been taken out of desks and strewn upon the floor.
It was found that after ransacking the desks and drawers the yeggmen had chiseled their way through the two-foot brick wall into the vault from the private room of the bank, the hole being cut large enough to enable a man to crawl through.
Not finding anything of much value in this vault proper, the robbers forced open the private safety deposit boxes, and thus obtained a few liberty bonds and a small amount of property of not a great deal of value.
The greatest loss was due to the damage done to the fixtures and equipment in prying desks, drawers and safety deposit boxes open, but the entire loss sustained by the bank will not exceed $400, which is fully covered by insurance.
Before forcing an entrance to the bank, the burglars had apparently gone to the Rock Island railway’s section house, and secured pinch bars, a maul and other tools with which to work.
The fact that the bank building is situated somewhat apart from other buildings, is thought to have materially aided the robbers in working without their presence in the building becoming known.
In some of the safety boxes the yeggs found registered liberty bonds, and they displayed a keen sense of discrimination by leaving these on the floor of the vault.
Donations to the Rock County Historical Society Endowment Fund can be sent to the Rock County Historical Society, P.O. Box 741, Luverne, MN 56156.
Mann welcomes correspondence sent to mannmade@iw.net.

Columns 4 May 2015

1922: Businesses gather for bargain day sale

The following appeared in the Rock County Herald on May 5, 1922:
Next Wednesday, May 10th, Will Be Big Bargain Sale Day in Luverne
Sixty-one Business Houses Join in Holding Community Sale Day, All to Offer Special Bargains in Seasonable Merchandise
Sixty-one of the business houses of Luverne have united for the purpose of making next Wednesday, May 10, a community sale day — a day of unexcelled bargains for those who wish to buy.
Almost without exception, each one of the sixty-one business places will quote unusually low prices on at least one article of their stock in trade, and in most instances prices have been slashed deeply on several articles of seasonable demand.
In short, the day will be one when rock-bottom prices prevail on innumerable necessities of life, but to definitely ascertain just how great a saving will be possible to shoppers, one must turn to the double page advertisement which appears elsewhere in this issue and carefully read the uniformly sized announcements in which the different concerns make their bid or patronage.
Genuine, money saving prices are the fundamental principle back of the project, and the present plans provide for holding one similar event each month throughout the summer and fall, if the plan proves satisfactory.
In keeping with the plan of having the stores remain open Wednesday evening, which was inaugurated this week, the business places will be open in the evening on Community sale day for the accommodation of those who are not served during the day.
The evening, however, will not be the most advantageous time to profit by the special prices, for this is really arranged for as recreation period, and following the supper hour an open-air concert will be given and a pavement dance held. Matinee picture programs will be shown at both theatres during the afternoon at greatly reduced prices for the entertainment of those who finish their trading early.
But the predominating contention is that it’s going to pay for everyone to shop in Luverne next Wednesday.
Donations to the Rock County Historical Society Endowment Fund can be sent to the Rock County Historical Society, P.O. Box 741, Luverne, MN 56156.
Mann welcomes correspondence sent to mannmade@iw.net

Columns 28 April 2015

1922: Nobles County orders concrete, Sioux City orders crushed stone from Rock County manufacturers

The following appeared in the Rock County Herald on April 28, 1922:

TWO LUVERNE COMPANIES SECURE LARGE CONTRACTS

National Concrete Co. Secures $36,000 Tile Order; Quartzite Quarries, Inc., Sells 200 Carloads Crushed Rock
Two of Luverne’s manufacturing concerns, the National concrete Materials Co., and the Quartzite Quarries, Inc., have secured substantial contracts for their products during the past week.
The National Concrete Materials Co., was awarded a $36,000 contract for drainage pipe as a part of a $69,000 drainage system project let last week by the Nobles county board of commissioners.
The Quartzite Quarries, Inc., contract consists of an order secured this week by Manager Harper Shaffer for about two hundred carloads of crushed rock, to be shipped to Omaha, Neb., for use on the roads of Douglas county. An order also was secured for crushed rock to be shipped to Sioux City.
It is expected that operations will be started at the stone crushing plant sometime during the coming week, or not later than May 1.
Donations to the Rock County Historical Society Endowment Fund can be sent to the Rock County Historical Society, P.O. Box 741, Luverne, MN 56156.
Mann welcomes correspondence sent to mannmade@iw.net.