Pages Past — March 24

On this date ...

1976: Danny Boone, a seventh-grader at Yucca Junior High School in Clovis, won the Curry County Spelling Bee.

Danny spelled “pilfer” and “accent” in the final round, defeating 30 competitors.

The bee went 59 rounds before Danny won for the second year in a row.

1956: A Portales woman was packing her things and planning to move away from her husband, who told police he’d had a dream that he killed her.

John Ratliff told police “vague stories” about a dream in which he choked his wife and might have disposed of her body, newspapers in Clovis and Portales reported.

Police went in search of Mary Ratliff after her husband reported her missing. They ultimately found her in Amarillo where she’d gone to escape her husband.

John Ratliff was serving five days in the Roosevelt County jail for speeding when Mary returned to town for her things.

Media reported police had not told him that his wife had been located, alive, and he was upset when he found out.

When he asked police about his release from jail, an officer reportedly told him it would be when the officer’s feet got well from all the walking about the countryside in search for Mrs. Ratliff’s “body.”

Pages Past is compiled by Editor David Stevens. For more regional history, check out his weblog at:

http://www.highplainsyesterdays.com