Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
On this date ...
1946: Portales hosted a veterans rally and barbecue.
Republican senatorial candidate Patrick Hurley and Republican gubernatorial candidate Ed Safford were guest speakers.
About 2,000 people turned out.
1951: U.S. Sen. Dennis Chavez and U.S. Rep. John Dempsey announced the Clovis Air Base would be reactivated on Sept. 1.
The base had closed after World War II but reopened after local businessmen known as the Committee of Fifty lobbied Chavez and other lawmakers.
The base was to become home to jet fighters and bomber planes and be used for “both training and general tactical purposes,” according to Washington officials.
The base name was changed to Cannon Air Force Base in 1957.
1951: Clovis Chamber of Commerce officials were warning area residents that peddlers were in town.
The Chamber’s Better Business Bureau asked residents to let it know if they were solicited by “outside interests;” Chamber officials also asked the peddlers themselves to report to the Chamber before seeking to sell things or work in the city.
1953: A 23-year-old Clovis man was treated for cuts and bruises after the car he was driving crashed into a utility pole.
The man said he lost control of the vehicle trying to avoid another car that was being driven on the wrong side of the street.
Police investigators did not believe another car was involved.
They reported to the Clovis News-Journal that the man’s tracks showed he drove east on Grand - on the wrong side of the road - crossed Thomas at a high rate of speed and - still traveling on the wrong side of the road - knocked down 11 mail boxes, which were scattered for 90 feet.
The man was booked into the city jail, charged with reckless driving.
1955: Mr. And Mrs. Jim Joiner, pioneer homesteaders northwest of Elida, observed their 61st wedding anniversary with a family reunion and picnic at a Clovis park.
Five children and “a host of grandchildren and great-grandchildren” attended the festivities, The Portales Valley News reported.
1961: A deposit bag containing about $7,000 in cash and checks was “either lost or stolen,” Clovis police said.
An employee of Wayne Wallace Motor Co. told police the money was either grabbed from under her arm or picked up when she laid it down in a store.
The employee said she had stopped at a clothing store on her way to the bank and was looking at shoes when she realized the bag with the money was missing.
1969: Price checks:
• Burger Chef cheeseburgers were six for $1. The restaurant slogan was “Take a time out for Burger Chef.”
• Piggly Wiggly offered Farmer Jones hickory-smoked sliced bacon for 74 cents per pound. Saltine crackers were 19 cents for the 1-pound box. A six-pack of bottled Coke: 25 cents.
• Guthals Co. was having a lawn mower sale. Its 21-inch mower was $115.90. The 18-inch mower was $84.95. They both came with “sturdy” grass catchers.
1971: All-Around Cowboy and Cowgirl winners at the Curry County 4H Club Rodeo included Joe Calvert of Clovis and Sis Echols of Clovis.
Each received hand-tooled leather saddles.
1975: Clovis city commissioners learned that two city liquor establishments were operating within the law serving alcoholic drinks on Sundays.
City Attorney Harry Patton said Boothill Saloon and Riley’s Switch were following standards set by a recent New Mexico Supreme Court ruling that could not be prohibited by municipal ordinance.
1975: Clovis city officials announced plans to repair “long-neglected, deteriorating stretches of First and Seventh streets,” the Clovis News-Journal reported.
Clovis Mayor Chick Taylor said the New Mexico Highway Department was pitching in 45% of the funds for the $140,000 projects.
1977: Robert “Polar Bear” Anderson had won a basketball dunking competition at Clovis High School. Anderson defeated defending champion Mike Grant, who finished second.
While Bubba Jennings received most of the press coverage, Anderson, 6-foot-7, and Grant, 6-foot-5, led the Wildcats’ inside game over the next couple of seasons.
In other local sports news, the Dodgers had won the Minor team Little League championship, while the Elks had won the Major team title.
The National Little League of Clovis published a list of “people who helped make the 1977 season a very successful one.”
The five dozen businesses and individuals named included J.R. Dickenson, Joy’s Toy Box, Tony’s Sporting Goods and John Yankovich.
Lynn Cannaday won the fundraising side of beef.
Pages Past is compiled by David Stevens and Betty Williamson. Contact:
