Good Old Days 02-05-16

Compiled By Delaney Uhrig

These stories from the past first appeared in The Sidney Telegraph. Original writing is preserved, though some stories were shortened for space reasons.

50 Years Ago

'Strong C of C Membership Is Assured For 1966 Program'

Feb. 2, 1966

The concentrated membership drive conducted by the Sidney Chamber of Commerce is eliciting outstanding response, according to Manager Ron Mercer.

The 11 Chamber of Commerce directors, with teams of five assistants, opened the member drive last Thursday with an all-day canvass that netted 175 paid up members.

In a board meeting Monday night the directors divided among themselves 150 additional cards for a cleanup campaign which they will conduct this week on their own.

On request of members, 75 "are being billed from the office."

Therefore, over 500 contacts are being made.

Mr. Mercer said that, of all the contacts made, only two percent of the responses have been unrelating "No's."

"The spirit is good and the response encouraging," he said.

At the Monday night meeting, directors expressed optimism for 1966 and predicted that the membership list will hit an all-time high.

Chamber President Lloyd Carr said the C of C agenda activity for the year is crowded with events designed to focus new attention on Sidney and the surrounding area as a good place to do business."

40 Years Ago

'New Rate Increase

to City Reflects Direction of Costs'

Feb. 9, 1976

An indicator of how rapidly the cost of generating electricity has risen can be seen in the monthly natural gas bills the city pays, according to City Clerk Gordon Tobin.

Tobin said the figures illustrate the extent operating costs have risen in the past 25 years. Tobin and City Manager Maynard Dils said Friday that soaring operating costs is forcing the city to consider hikes in utility rates.

The city purchases natural gas for its power plant from Kansas-Nebraska Natural Gas Co. A typical month's consumption of 24 million cubic feet will now cost the city nearly $17,000, based on the city effective Feb. 1. In 1980, the cost would have been $4,600.

Tobin said that although the cost will be passed on to consumers by way of a fuel adjustment clause in their electric bills, the increase won't cover other operating expenses that are rising. Thus, the proposed general rate increase was studied.

A table compiled by Tobin indicates that the cost of natal gas to the city has risen 266 per cent since November, 1950. Nearly 125 per cent of that total was absorbed entirely by the city before the fuel adjustment clause was initiated in April, 1974, Tobin said.

An increase of 151 percent was recorded between Feb. 1, 1964 and Feb. 1 this year.

Tobin said that since the city first started purchasing natal gas for electrical generation on Nov. 30, 1950 there have been eight rate increases to the city. Seven of those have taken place since 1971.

The Sidney electric generating plant first used natal gas in 1950 under a contract with North Central Gas Co. dated Nov., 30 1950. The ant continued to use natal gas under the North Central contract until 1964 when Kansas-Nebraska purchased North Central. The plant continued to purchase gas fro K-N under a new contacted dated Feb. 1, 1964.

25 Years Ago

'Ag Land Valuations Take Unexpected

Big Jump'

Feb. 5, 1991

The Cheyenne County Board of Commissioners ended a routine meeting Monday with an unofficial discussion of agricultural land valuations just received from the state. The commissioners said that the state has raised Cheyenne County farmland valuation in the 2D1 dryland category from $425 an acre to $600 an acre. This is the highest valuation in the entire Panhandle area, the commissioners said.

Exactly what this will mean in terms of tax assessment still has to be sorted out, the commissioners said. Last November, for instance, the voters passed a constitutional amendment granting the legislature the authority to change the manner in which agricultural land is assessed. There are at present four different bills before the legislature which address the question. Although most of the bills are intended to reduce assessments, the net effect may not create a tax reduction, at least in Cheyenne County where valuation has increased $175 an acre. The average valuation is determined according to actual market sale price of land that has exchanged hands.

The commissioners noted that there were over 400 protests by county farmers last year regarding assessment procedures, and it appears likely there will be more this year. "Ken Larson will be taking those calls," joked fellow commissioners Frank Rauner and LaVerne Thomas. On a more serious note, Rauner said that as yet no rational and well-rounded approach has been taken to solve the on-going problem of how to evaluate farmland. "Drastic and arbitrary decisions have been made, such as by the Supreme Court, but no long-term, conclusive policies have been formulated."

10 Years Ago

'Tags for 4-H Market Beef Down Slightly'

Feb. 7, 2006

A shiny new trophy may have been won by a team from Pittsburgh this weekend, but Cheyenne County 4-Hers took another step toward their Super Bowl by tagging livestock to be shown at the County Fair in August.

Local 4-H members brought 81 market beef steers to the Cheyenne County Fairgrounds Saturday morning to be eartagged. The tag helps identify livestock that will be showcased at the fair. Contestants are allowed to exhibit two steers at the fair.

"We were down 10 head from last year, but not enough to show a downward trend," said Kerri John, extension assistant.

Other cattle that will be tagged and shown at the fair include: breeding beef, stocker feeders, breeding heifers and bucket calves. It usually takes about two years to develop market beef from the time they are born and those steers start out in the stocker feeder program. Stocker feeders usually weigh in at about 500 pounds by fair time.

Bucket calves are those that have been orphaned and were raised on a bucket or bottle.

Only the larger livestock are eartagged for the fair.

This identification is also attached to market and breeding sheep, meat goats and market swine. They are all tagged toward the end of May.

Beef is the largest program in 4-H currently, but swine has picked pin recent years, John said.

Area 4-H clubs include the Dryland Toughies (Sidney), Lucky Livestock (Sidney), Goodview (Lodgepole), Shamrocks (Sidney), Bunker Hillbillies (Sidney), Cheyenne County Junior Leaders (County High Schoolers), and Sidney Wranglers (Sidney horse club).