Pages Past: Jan. 4

On this date:

Jan. 4

1948: Playmoor Bowling Alley, at 115 Main St. in Clovis, was looking to hire "pin boys." The jobs were after school, until 6 p.m., and on Sunday afternoons.

1948: Hester Motor Co. in Clovis advertised for "female help." The car dealership wanted to hire a female bookkeeper who was 20 or older and "unencumbered." Anyone interested needed to apply in person.

1953: The former Grady's Food Market in Portales was being remodeled into a F.W. Woolworth store. Local labor and local material "as far as possible," would be used during construction, the Portales Daily News reported. Tentative date to open the Woolworth was May 15. It was located on the town square where the Portales Chamber of Commerce offices are today. Woolworth closed in the early 1970s.

1953: The Clovis Chamber of Commerce released numbers that showed the population of Clovis and Curry County were both up from estimates done two years previously. The 1952 population estimate for Clovis was 19,500, up from 17,318 in 1950. For all of Curry County, the 1952 population estimate was 25,500, an increase from the 23,351 from 1950.

1957: A 12-year-old Clovis boy was suspected in at least five breakins at local businesses. He was arrested with "several dollars in small change and the keys to three soft-drink dispensing machines in his possession," the Clovis News-Journal reported. He confessed to police that he had broken into the Long Bell Lumber Co., the Mitchell Street service station, the White Hut Cafe, the Magic Stream Laundry and Central Auto Electric.

1962: The dawn of a new era in Clovis was heralded when George Swift Jr. turned the first spade full of dirt for the $2 1/2 million packing plant Swift & Company was going to build. Swift said the plant would begin with 60 employees and slaughter 1,200 cattle per week. He said the company would generate about a million dollars for the local economy, 85 percent of it going to cattle raisers and feeders.

1965: A 25-pound practice bomb was found smoking on the playground at Eugene Field Elementary School in Clovis. Cannon Air Force Base officials said the device contained no explosive material. Base officials said it contained a small amount of red phosphorous that ignites on impact and produces smoke to assist spotters in scoring hits.

1967: Clovis police said 836 car accidents were reported in 1966. That number was down from 1,005 reported in 1965. But accidents were more severe in 1966 -- 240 injuries, compared to 179 injuries reported in 1965. Five people died in crashes on city streets in 1966, compared to three in 1965.

1972: Larry Knowles, Ivan Holland and Lance Clayton all scored in double figures, leading Portales to a 79-46 high school basketball win over Eunice. The Rams' record improved to 5-3 for the season.

1972: Stansell's Highland Super Market at Main and Manana offered meat specials of bacon (69 cents per pound), hams (59 cents per pound) and pork chops (59 cents per pound). A 2-pound bag of Jolly Time popcorn was 29 cents. A 2-ounce bottle of shoe polish was 19 cents.

1983: Texico High School football player Earl Bibbs was named United Press International's Class A Player of the Year. During the fall of 1982, Bibbs led the Wolverines to an 8-2 record, rushing 886 yards on 160 carries, and scoring 10 touchdowns. Bibbs' coach David Lynn called Bibbs a "great competitor," and said he was "one of the hardest runners I've ever coached. "Pound for pound, he is one of the best backs ever to play for Texico," Lynn said.

Pages Past is compiled by David Stevens. Contact:

[email protected]

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