Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
On this date ...
1945: Tickets were available at Portales Drug for the upcoming “Benefit Variety Show” at the Portales High School Auditorium.
Acts included a “boogie-woogie pianist” and a “famous escape artist.”
Proceeds were to benefit the Clovis Air Base Hospital. Admission was 60 cents for adults, 30 cents for children.
Organizers reported they cleared $240 from the event, despite the death of President Roosevelt on the day of the show.
1950: Roosevelt County reported its January sales were up 5% from January 1949. Overall, New Mexico reported an 8% drop in retail sales and most eastern New Mexico counties also reported sales down.
Curry County had 9% less sales in January 1950 than January 1949, while Lea County was down 12% the same time period, The Portales Daily News reported.
1956: Two Portales sisters were arrested after they were spotted shoplifting at Montgomery Ward in Clovis.
Officials said the women, age 22 and 26, stole about $31 worth of merchandise from multiple stores.
The women pleaded guilty, were fined $20 each, and instructed to return the merchandise to the stores with apologies, the Clovis News-Journal reported.
1956: Jimmy Self had been named business manager of the Clovis Baseball Club.
One of Self’s primary jobs was to organize a season-ticket drive.
The Clovis Pioneers were scheduled to open their Southwestern League season April 17 at Carlsbad.
The home opener was set for April 23, also against the Potashers.
1966: Clovis attorneys Wesley Quinn and Dan Buzzard were planning to speak to the board of directors of the Texas Bar Association at a meeting in Amarillo.
Quinn said the purpose of the trip was to see “if we can work out a better relationship across the state line with the news media and the bar association.”
The Clovis News-Journal did not explain what may have prompted the meeting.
1972: Addie Money, director of special education in Portales public schools, had been named Mother of the Year for New Mexico.
She had recently returned home from a trip to the governor’s mansion, along with her son Jim, where she was guest of honor at a reception.
1975: A dust storm early in the week reminded eastern New Mexico it had seen less than 2 inches of moisture in all of 1975, but Mother Nature was quickly forgiven as the skies opened and nearly a half inch of rain fell in 24 hours.
“It will really help the wheat and dryland farmers,” said Curry County assistant extension agent Billy Dictson. “As far as those people preparing to plant, it will slow them down, but the moisture will be of so much benefit that they won’t mind.”
Rain was in the forecast again for the next day.
1977: Al Sass was heading up the beard-growing contest for the annual Pioneer Days celebration.
Men who already had beards were welcome to compete, but the contest entry fee was $1. Clean-shaven men who wanted to compete paid 50 cents for entry.
“No,” wrote Clovis News-Journal Managing Editor Bill Southard, “Sass didn’t’ say anything about the contest being open to women.”
1987: One of Clovis’ more prominent businessmen had died at age 83.
Max Meadors owned the Chevrolet-Buick dealership in the city for 25 years. He was also active in civic and political life in the region. He was president of Clovis’ Kiwanis Club and Chamber of Commerce.
Meadors helped establish the Military Affairs Committee in 1951; he worked with Pentagon officials to establish Cannon Air Force Base.
Pages Past is compiled by David Stevens and Betty Williamson. Contact:
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