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1886Coming of the Rock Island line from the east made business for the St. Joseph & Grand Island, as this route was used to haul in supplies.1892The Journal cited women's take-overs, including the wearing of men's suspenders and hats, playing baseball and riding cycles.A special train carried Fairbury's Republican Club to Beatrice to hear future President McKinley speak on the tariff. Members wore wooly hats and long linen dusters, and carried red, white and blue umbrellas. Four of them were veterans who had voted for William Henry Harrison on the 1840 campaign of "Tippicanoe and Tyler Too" Col. Harbine, Judge Purdy, Capt. Vance and Thomas Shearon were the veterans.County Republican nominees were C.J. Carpenter for representative in the Legislature W.P. Freeman for county attorney and Sid Mackey for County Commissioners.The Village of Fairbury was plastered with circus posters. The county commissioners had ordered that no bills be posted on the fence around the square, by Jas. Ireland, one of the commissioners sold this space to the circus for $50 explaining that the $50 would be used to improve the courthouse.1902Fairbury boosters tried to line up a street carnival or fall festival, after the county commissioners decided not to appropriate funds for the county fair.Dry weather was cutting down prospects for a 75-bushel per acre corn crop.Company D, Fairbury's military organization was preparing to go to Ft. Riley.Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show brought a crowd estimated at 7,000 to 17,000 to Fairbury.1893The Silver Creek correspondent warned that boys who were raiding melon patches were in danger of being shot.The Ed Hawkes 100-acre grove near Endicott was selected as a good spot for the old settler's picnic.1903Will Paetit, playing the snare drum at the Sells & Downs show in Fairbury, had his drum ruined when a circus horse jumped out of the ring.Olive True, Democratic nominee for county superintendent, was only the second woman to run for a county office and the first to win.1917The fountain in Fairbury City Park was installed.1919Beans and bacon, left over from the war, could be bought at the post office. This required a lot of red tape and most folks continued to buy those staples at their grocery stores.1923The retail price of gasoline dropped from 23 ½ cents to 17 cents. This was before gasoline had state and federal taxes.1924Grace Lutheran congregation dedicated its new church building at 11th and G streets.Business was generally good, but The Fairbury Journal editor noted both mortgage debt and taxes were increasing. He cited the tax on the A.H. Colman home at Sixth and I streets, $414, as the highest residential figure in Fairbury.1931Investigation of the water supply of Fairbury showed that the city had a supply sufficient for the town at that time but not for future growth. This was taken care of later by running another pipeline to the springs.After a prolonged hot dry spell, a general heavy rain visited this area, on the last day of July and the 1st of August. About two inches fell. The rainfall relieved the anxiety about the Fairbury water supply which was low at that time.1932The Gladstone rural mail route was combined with Fairbury Route No. 3 but mail still was handled at the Gladstone post office.The LM Welter Motor Co. of Fairbury sponsored the appearance here of a 14 passenger Ford Tri-motor plane, which made a number of trips carrying passengers over the local area from a field south of town.Mrs. Ted Zoellin and her aunt had a special ride, from an alfalfa field east of Steele City, to Fairbury.Acting Mayor Russell A. Davis welcomed members of the Nebraska Sheriffs' Associations at their annual meeting here.The depression was bearing down hard and relief was sought in all directions. The City Council had a special meeting and cut salaries. The county levy was decreased and the county poor fund was found to be all used up.1935Farmers were required to cut their wheat acreage 15 percent under the federal farm program, as there was a surplus of wheat. Fairbury farm prices were hogs, top, $10.25; beef steers, top, $9.75: butcher cattle, $3-7; corn 88 cents, wheat 92 cents, oats 30 cents, prairie hay or alfalfa, $8 a ton: eggs 18 cents a dozen, butterfat 19 cents a pound, butter 25 cents, springs 12-13 cents a pound.1942There continued to be an acute shortage of public-school teachers as so many of them have gone to the armed forces or taken defense jobs. There was a considerable pessimism in Fairbury because of loss of population due to men and women going into the service and war industries. There were complaints from the city and in all business yet conditions were substantially sound. A big crop of wheat had just been harvested and the price was 50 percent higher than a year ago. The Roode Packing Co. closed "for the duration" due to the high price of cattle and federal ceilings on meat prices.Announcement was made that the Dairy Goat Journal, published in Fairbury since 1925, would be moved to Columbia MO. It meant the loss of three families in the community.1945Pfc. Arnold O. Lottman of Steele City was awarded the Purple Heart at Bushnell Hospital in Brigham City, Utah. He had been wounded while helping clear fanatical Japanese soldiers from caves on Okinawa.Fred Becker resigned as Fairbury fire chief. He was succeeded by George Mackay, with Con Chancellor assistant.Herb Asendorf reopened his sheet metal shop after three years' employment at the Martin bomber plant near Omaha.The Fairbury Utilities Dept. bought the Gilead electric distribution system along with 7 ½ miles of connecting line to northwest of Reynolds. Price paid was $5,000.An Izaak Walton League chapter organized here had 137 members. First officers were Lester Childers, president, Arthur H. Ackerman, Chester Bonsall and Charles McLean.

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