Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
On this date ...
1941: A Portales family had sent five sons into the armed services in the previous four months.
Alexander, Joseph, Frederic, James and William Johnson had enlisted. A sixth brother, Neal, had tried to enlist but failed the physical exam.
“Then there’s Ray,” said Frederic Johnson. “He’s 17. ... As soon as he’s old enough ... I reckon he’ll want to join us. After all, he sings tenor in our sextette.”
1941: After 31 years in the same location — 112 W. Grand Ave. — Steed Mortuary moved into a new home, at 1500 Pile St.
A name change was also made; it became Steed’s Funeral Home.
Charles V. Steed Funeral Service Parlors was established with the founding of Clovis in 1907.
Steed died in 1938, leaving operations to his wife, Una Steed.
1954: A fire near Grady in northern Curry County killed 1,600 hens and 1,000 pullets at Bill McCary’s poultry farm.
Unofficial estimates placed the financial loss at $7,500.
Cause of the fire was not immediately known.
1965: Edwards’ Shoe Store at 512 Main in Clovis was having a 1/2 price sale.
Shoes regularly marked $5.99 to $26.99 were being sold for $2.99 to $13.49.
Plus, customers were signing up for a free Admiral color TV to be given away in April.
1969: A Clovis News-Journal editorial addressed used automobile tires. “... In general, nothing is more of an eyesore, burden and source of pollution than the mountains of worn out tires that dot the landscape,” the editorial read.
“This may not be true much longer ... In recent experiments, scientists obtained surprisingly large quantities of chemicals, oil liquids, gas and tar by heating shredded tires in a reactor. ... This is an example of what is going to have to be the normal thing in the not-very-distant future.”
1973: The Sunday menu for Furr's Cafeteria at the Hilltop Plaza in Clovis was topped by a choice of pepper steak for 85 cents, or roast turkey with sage dressing, gravy, and cranberry sauce for 75 cents.
Sides included apple crunch nut gelatin for 28 cents, fresh fruit salad for 30 cents, German boiled cabbage for 25 cents, and beets with orange sauce for 22 cents.
Diners could top off their meals with a slice of raspberry ribbon pie for 30 cents, or a wedge of "Furr's famous millionaire pie" for 35 cents.
The serving line was open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
1975: U.S. District Judge Edwin L. Mechem declared a mistrial in a case involving Clovis attorney Dan Buzzard.
Multiple Clovis liquor dealers, including Buzzard, were accused of price fixing.
The mistrial occurred after a witness implicated Buzzard as the attorney of a liquor dealer alleged to have “set up” a competitor who may have sold liquor to a minor.
Buzzard was ultimately convicted of the price-fixing allegations and in April 1975 was sentenced to pay a $5,000 fine.
1976: Police raided Santa Rosa High School, at the principal’s request, and arrested 12 students for marijuana possession.
The Associated Press reported a “small quantity” of marijuana was found after students were removed from their classrooms and searched in the hallways.
1982: Three Eastern New Mexico University basketball players had been named to the District VII NAIA women's team.
Barbara Nuckols, Lisa Lamb and Donna Corley were selected to the first-, second- and honorable-mention teams, respectively.
1988: New Mexico Gov. Garrey Carruthers declared Portales to be the state capital for the day, and set up shop in the Portales Inn to host a breakfast where he called the recently completed legislative session one of the most productive in history.
He then set off on an ambitious schedule for the day that included a visit with the New Mexico Peanut Growers Association, a tour of the ethanol plant, addresses to students at Eastern New Mexico University and Portales High School, a tour of the Roosevelt General Hospital nursing home, and a town meeting in the Portales City Council chambers.
Carruthers also headlined the annual Lincoln Day dinner, hosted by the Roosevelt County Republican Party.
1997: Eastern New Mexico was dealing with ice-covered roads and snow.
Front-page photos in the Clovis News-Journal featured children sliding down a snow-covered hill on Norris Street and a couple using a sled to carry home groceries "because of the ice on West 21st Street."
Warmer temperatures were on the way.
Pages Past is compiled by David Stevens and Betty Williamson. Contact:
