Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
On this date ...
1946: Harold “Skinny” Holland had purchased Jack’s Body Works from Jack Calkins.
The Clovis auto body shop was located at 512 W. Seventh St.
‘“Skinny,’ as he is known to the people in this area, is considered one of the most skilled and proficient men of his trade,” The Clovis News-Journal reported.
1949: Cricket Coogler, an 18-year-old Las Cruces waitress, went missing. She was later found dead, raped and run over by a car.
Pittsburgh Steelers football player Jerry Nuzum of Clovis was accused in her death, but a district judge declared Nuzum innocent at trial.
“The judge said the prosecution failed entirely to connect Nuzum in any way with the death of the waitress,” The Associated Press reported.
One woman said she saw two state police officers throw Coogler into a police car and drive away after slugging her unconscious, but no one was ever convicted in her slaying.
1955: The underground water level in the new Curry County irrigation area showed a drop of 2 feet, according to a study released by the U.S. Geological Survey.
The number of acres irrigated had grown from 30,000 to 40,000 during the year, the survey showed.
The survey estimated 60,000 acres would be irrigated in Curry County by 1956.
1956: Dunlap’s in Clovis was preparing for its April Fools’ Day specials. Those included:
Foam rubber pillows for $3.99, ladies’ petal pushers for $2 and boys’ double-knee jeans for $1.39.
1956: J.W. Crim, a descendant of Blackfoot Indians, had made his annual moisture prediction for the region --another tough year for crops.
Crim was in his 30th year of predicting the weather based on his ancestors’ ritual of building a fire at 5 a.m. on March 22. He believed the direction the wind carried smoke from the fire indicated how much moisture could be expected in the coming months.
For this year, Crim, whose family farmed near Lazbuddie, had told his sons “they’d better start the irrigation pumps. It’s going to be a tough year,” the Clovis News-Journal reported.
The area received about 10 inches of moisture in 1956, less than half the annual average.
1966: Baskin-Robbins Ice Cream store in Clovis was preparing to name Orange Marmalade Ice as its flavor of the month for April. Baskin-Robbins was located in Hilltop Shopping Center.
1968: Two young chefs earned the right to represent eastern New Mexico at the New Mexico State CowBelles Beef Cook-Off by winning the local competition sponsored by the Cattle Capitol CowBelles and held at Marshall Junior High.
Cathy King, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Joe King, won the senior division with a sauerbraten dish using beef as a main ingredient.
Jamois Christensen, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. J.B. Christensen, captured the junior division honors with “Meatballs, Hawaiian Style.”
The two won cash awards, as well as the trip to Santa Fe to compete at the La Fonda Hotel.
1971: William Arnold Jacobs, one of two prisoners who escaped from the Roosevelt County Jail on March 15, had been captured in Atlanta.
Jacobs was jailed and awaiting sentence after pleading guilty to passing worthless checks. He and fellow inmate Carl Davis used a saw blade to escape from the Portales jail. Authorities said the men split up soon after stealing a car and leaving Portales.
Davis was shot to death by a law officer in Slaton, Texas, a few days after the escape. Authorities said they believed Davis was attempting to burglarize a jewelry store.
1971: Clovis police were searching for a man who failed to pay his hospital bill, the Clovis News-Journal reported.
The man had been treated for a back ailment at Clovis’ Memorial Hospital’s emergency room. After treatment, the newspaper reported he told hospital personnel he needed to get his checkbook from his pickup … but the man never returned to pay his bill.
Cost of the treatment was $65.
1971: A Clovis police officer briefly knocked unconscious in a traffic collision “appears to be alright,” Police Chief Ken Kingsbury told the Clovis News-Journal.
Lonnie Tidwell was responding to a complaint from a liquor lounge when the vehicle he was driving collided with one driven by Jimmy Hall, 20.
Officials said the Tidwell vehicle was “attempting to pass through a red light” when it struck Hall’s vehicle, which was already in the intersection.
No citations were issued and Tidwell was the only person injured.
1971: Lt. William Calley had been convicted of the premeditated murder of 22 Vietnamese civilians.
Tech Sgt. Jack Burris, stationed at Cannon Air Force Base, said he’d seen two tours in Vietnam. His reaction to the Calley verdict:
“The whole psychological outlook is different when you are under fire and faced with the possibility of shooting or destroying anything that moves or breathes.
“Inadvertent killings — civilian types getting hit by bombs or bullets — this happens every day in Vietnam. But premeditated murder? That is ridiculous.”
1975: Two men wearing blue ski caps and armed with a small revolver and a knife robbed the Seafood Shop at 1005 W. Seventh in Clovis about 9 p.m.
One of the robbers put a knife to the throat of waitress Debbie Beanudet.
Another waitress, Ann Meador, was told to empty the cash register and the robbers fled with about $100, officials said.
1977: Eastern New Mexico University’s board of regents approved naming the university library in honor of former President Floyd Golden.
Golden Library was the name recommended by President Warren Armstrong for “years of excellent leadership,” the Clovis News-Journal reported.
Regents in the same meeting approved an increase in cafeteria meal costs. The 13-meal plan for the summer session would be $180, an 8% increase. The 13-meal plan for the fall semester would increase from $250 to $275.
1983: The Hotel Clovis was profiled in the Clovis News-Journal after it closed its doors the previous day following 51 years of business.
The closing was brought on by the loss of a long-standing contract with the Santa Fe Railway system to house employees who had overnight trips.
When the hotel opened in October, 1931, the $300,000 building was said to be the tallest between Albuquerque and Dallas.
Hundreds attended the opening celebration, which featured a banquet. The 12-piece 142nd Infantry Band of Texas provided music for a dance that followed.
Pages Past is compiled by David Stevens and Betty Williamson. Contact:
