100 Years Ago - 1920

The heavy snow is proving too much for some of the building roofs in town. The roof of Henry Meyer's barn caved in Sunday morning, killing all the chickens housed therein. The roof on the Townsend barn next door (formerly the old Kohl place) also went down under the weight of the snow.

With over three feet of snow, traffic and other activities are at a standstill. Automobiles have been laid up and the few remaining horses brought into service for transportation. No mail was received here last Thursday for the first time this winter. Since then there has been but one mail daily.

A number of our energetic young men endeavored to make it possible to resume automobile traffic by the use of a snow plow built at Holmes and Martin Co. garage. On Saturday, with three teams of horses and several shovelers, the plow was run the 8 miles to White Sulphur Springs in about as many hours with 2 cars following in the path. On Sunday, an additional force with 6 teams ran the plow over the 12 mile route to Callicoon, taking all day.

Business is at a standstill. Out of town pupils are kept from school. Undertakers are greatly handicapped in conducting burials. Social, religious and fraternal and other activities are nullified and life is little more than a monotonous nonentity. We are in the land of Rip Van Winkle. Don't wake up until the snow is gone.

Harry D. Mathern is installing electric lights in the house he recently bought of Chris Weiss in Delaware for $2900. Harry got a bargain in that deal.

North Branch — The barns of George Hust and Charles Baker were badly damaged by the storm on Thursday evening, the roofs of both being crushed in and the entire barns destroyed.

Barbara Margaret Geib, widow of Henry A. Reum, died at the home of her son, Valentine, in Beechwoods, February 7, aged nearly 84 years. She was born in Duchroth, Rhine-Bayern, Germany, April 19, 1836, a daughter of Peter Geib and Fredericka Maus. She arrived in America in 1855 and on July 4, 1856, was married to Henry Reum, the ceremony taking place on the farm now occupied by John H. Baum in Beechwoods. She was the sister of the late Philip Geib and Mrs. Elizabeth Baum of Jeffersonville.

The engagement of two Roscoe young couples have been announced — Miss Regina Sipple to Roland Fuhrer and Miss Florence Buck to George Doremus.

Wm. Breiner has bought the village milk route of Robert J. Hoag at Livingston Manor.

Edwin Davis, who served in the World War, is in charge of compulsory military training at Roscoe.

Wm. Kohler is building additional sheds for storing lumber and building materials. Mr. Kohler's lumber mills have been very busy for some time, employing about sixteen hands. He has supplied the materials for a number of new houses in Liberty.

90 Years Ago - 1930

Members of the Lutheran Church choir — Rev. Foerster, Fred Schmidt, Mr. and Mrs. John Wohltjen, Miss Henrietta Schmidt, Mrs. August Hubert, Mrs. Wm. VonBerg, Mrs. L.B. Goodman and L.P. Faubel, surprised James Robisch at his home in Beechwoods Monday night, his 86th birthday. They sang for Mr. Robisch and he reminisced with them. Uncle Jim was for many years a faithful attendant of the church and was a tenor in the choir.

Over 300 attended the annual Lincoln dinner at the new Lenape Hotel in Liberty last night and many had to be turned away. Those from Jeff were John Townsend, Robert Mann, Mr. and Mrs. E.J. VanKeuren and Miss Winifred Lieb.

Postmasters recommended for reappointment include three for third class post offices: Truman Y. Burr at Cochecton, $1700; Mrs. Ella Babcock at Lake Huntington, $1900; and Milton C. Armstrong at Long Eddy, $1400.

Fred Stabbert of the Callicoon Democrat came to Jeffersonville Monday morning to have an ulcerated tooth pulled. With editorial courtesy, we offered to knock it out and save the dentist's fee, but Fred thought we didn't show a proper appreciation of the situation.

Frank J. Costello, the father of Mrs. Chas. S. Hick of Jeffersonville, died at his home in Manlius, near Syracuse, on February 3rd in his 75th year.

George Washington Segar, aged 57, died suddenly of a heart attack at his home at Briscoe on February 7. He was born in what was formerly the Segar Hotel at Briscoe, one of 15 children of Ormalo Segar and Romelia Bull. About 54 years ago, he was married to Mary R. Raynor of Union City and they settled on the farm at the head of Briscoe Pond, which had been in the Segar family for many years and which George bought of his father's estate.

80 Years Ago - 1940

By a vote of 70 to 7, the old union free school district, at a special meeting at the new central school building Tuesday night, authorized the board of education to transfer for a nominal consideration the acre of land on which the old school annex stands. The annex building, which the WPA has ordered demolished along with the main old school building, was turned over to the local Emmett Turner American Legion Post, when citizens here intervened in their behalf to make a meeting place and home for all veterans. The Legion post will remodel the building and furnish it. The annex lot is the original lot donated by Andrew Willi for the first school house here. When the new concrete building was erected in 1916 on the Neuberger (former Willi) lot below the road, the first schoolhouse was sold to the Jeffersonville Grange, who tore it down and used the lumber for their hall, erected on the foundation of Becker's drugstore, which was destroyed in the fire of May 10, 1918. This is now Bucky's Inn, the Grange having been disbanded.

Probably wishing to show no partiality for the South, old King Blizzard came along yesterday and let us know that he hadn't forgotten us. Snow began to fall lightly Tuesday night and by Wednesday morning five inches were on the ground with the flakes still descending. A strong wind started up and soon the whole section was stormbound. Four to six foot drifts are starting to get hard. But the sun is coming out and by tomorrow things should be normal again.

Miss Caroline Brownstein, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Brownstein of Jeffersonville, and Frank Otto Berner, son of Mrs. Amelia Berner of Liberty, slipped away quietly, unknown to family and friends, Saturday night, February 10, and were married at Damascus, Pa., by Justice Olver. They are spending a week in New York and will make their home in Liberty where the groom is a clerk in the Liberty Pharmacy. The bride has been employed in the Amber Store for the past few years.

The 89th birthday of Mrs. Barbara Knise of North Branch was celebrated at the Lutheran Ladies Aid Society's 35th anniversary, Wednesday afternoon, February 7, when a measuring and card party was held and attended by about 20 ladies. Pastors Foerster and Straub were the only stags there. The president of the Aid is Mrs. John B. Krantz.

Fred P. Huff of the Delaware Valley Inn, Hankins, recently underwent an operation for a strangulated hernia at the Roscoe Hospital.

District Attorney William Deckelman, whose birthday anniversary falls on the same date as Abraham Lincoln's, celebrated Sunday by entertaining relatives and friends for dinner at the Mansion House.

70 Years Ago - 1950

The home of Mr. and Mrs. John Pfeifle in Youngsville was the scene on February 4 at 2 p.m. of the wedding of their daughter, Harriett M. Pfeifle, to Staff Sergeant Harold E. Breckenridge of Ottumwa, Iowa. The bride, a Youngsville C.S. graduate, attended Mary Washington College and for three years has been managing her parents' beauty shop. The groom has been in the U.S. Air Force for eight years, four of them overseas. He is stationed at Tucson, Ariz. The bride's father is a son of the late Mr. and Mrs. William Pfeifle of Jeffersonville.

A storm with 8 inches of snow, followed by rain and sleet which began Monday morning, made driving extremely hazardous.

The meeting of the Town of Callicoon Democratic Club, at which officers were elected last Thursday night at Bucky's Inn, was addressed by William R. Schaefer, Democratic county chairman and Francis A. Hanofee, supervisor of the Town of Liberty.

Herman Reber of Barryville has been elected president of the Sullivan County Liquor Dealer's Association. Clarence Davis of Callicoon, Joseph Bartelmen of Narrowsburg and Wm. Wahl of Jeffersonville are vice presidents. Other officers are Burdell Sherwood, Roscoe, secretary; Lee Henry, Callicoon Center, treasurer; Rudy Hermann, Fremont Center, sergeant-at-arms; and Paul DeVantier, Callicoon Center, field representative.

60 Years Ago - 1960

A special meeting of the Jeffersonville-Youngsville Board of Education, in conjunction with the Building Committee, was held last Tuesday night in the school cafeteria. At this meeting, the architects for the new school addition, Davis Hammerstrom and Thomas Benedict of Roscoe, were present to join in the effort to expedite the start of construction. Target date is July 1st for breaking ground.

Birthday wishes to David and Diane Hess, twin children of Mr. and Mrs. Warren Hess, who will be three years old on February 18th.

Mary Abby Elizabeth Hust Mann died at the age of 94 after a long illness on February 11. She was the daughter of the late George and Mary Mauer Hust of North Branch.

Mrs. Margaret Rogers Thomas of Roscoe died at the age of 73 on February 16 at Maimonides Hospital in Liberty, where she had been a patient the past two weeks. She had been in failing health for the last year.

Thirteen members of the Beaverkill Daughters of the American Revolution Chapter of the National Society met at the Lenape Hotel on February 5 for lunch and a regular meeting. The table was decorated in a Valentine motif.

High honors came to this area last Friday when the highest score made by anyone in the state in Regents scholarship examinations was made by Stephen R. Chinn of Middletown, who hit 279 in the test.

50 years ago - 1970

Miss Ann Smallbone, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Willard Westervelt of Fosterdale, is a member of the choir and a music major at Hartwick College in Oneonta. She is one of fifty chosen to tour six countries in March.

A run-away tractor-trailer being loaded with a bulldozer had the brakes released and the entire rig rolled down Swiss Hill in Kenoza Lake last Wednesday, ending up off the stone wall just to the left of the Fern Hotel. In its journey the rig hit a car belonging to Stavros Savopoulos. Fortunately no one was injured. Mr. Savopoulos was at the scene of the loading, jumped into the tractor and attempted to stop it, but was forced to jump back out when his efforts failed.

Governor Rockefeller an­nounced today the approval of a $97,559 program to provide training as licensed practical nurses for 24 unemployed persons in the Monticello area.

Mr. and Mrs. Orvis Whitmore of Callicoon RD 2, announce the engagement of their daughter, Betty Ann, to John E. Sutliff, son of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Sutliff Sr. of Damascus.

40 Years Ago - 1980

Kathy Hector and Doris Cortese, both of Narrowsburg, traveled to LaGuardia Airport last Thursday to greet the Luc family of South Vietnam. After escaping last April from Vietnam by boat and spending the last nine months in a Malaysian refugee camp, the family was sponsored by the community of Narrowsburg and on Valentine's Day the Luc family became residents of Sullivan County. Both Canh and Linh Luc's parents were of Chinese nationality but had migrated to Vietnam. Cahn, 29, served six years in the South Vietnamese Army and after the fall of the country found his situation anything but good. He left his relatives behind, loaded his family onto a boat and headed for Malaysia where they landed after five days at sea.

Robert Jennings, Wayne County Coroner for 12 years, wrapped up his tenure and ended his colorful career with the filing of his official records for 1979 with the Wayne County Court. In all during the last year, Mr. Jennings studied 124 cases.

Late in the evening of February 14, damage in the amount of approximately $3500 was done to the Narrowsburg Central School and annex building were smashed with cinderblocks. Metal frames were damaged and stairs overturned. Window panes in the Business Room, Shop and Title 1 Room were also broken.

Wood stoves, either through faulty installation or because of creosote clogged chimneys, have been causing an average of one dwelling fire per day in Sullivan County through the winter months, according to County Fire Coordinator Harold Kronenberg.

30 Years Ago - 1990

The 10th annual Frederick Douglass Breakfast was held in Woodbourne at the Fire Hall. Professor Joe Shambley, chairman of the Sullivan County Community College Business Division, was named the 1990 Frederick Douglass Award honoree.

The school bus tragedy that took the lives of two youngsters in Orange County recently was not lost on the Fallsburg Town Board last week as it directed its highway superintendent to plow and sand roads that are used by school buses from Fallsburg and Tri-Valley school districts first.

Marie Hogencamp was recently honored with a gold pin and plaque in recognition of her 60 years as a member of the WSS United Methodist Church.

Jeff Greaves was named 1989 Fireman of the Year at the Grahamsville Fire Department installation dinner held January 27.

A special 85th birthday celebration dinner was tendered Lee Wulff of Beaverkill at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City. Mr. Wulff is a renown flyfisherman and has developed some unique flies for use in fishing. Profits from the dinner will benefit the Catskill Flyfishing Center.

The 12th annual Heart-a-Thon raised $40,500 during a broadcast from Kutsher's Country Club on February 2 and 3. Over 150 volunteers participated.

20 Years Ago - 2000

Thursday, legislators approved a resolution establishing what amounts to new parameters for town and county cleanup programs. The 7-2 vote on the issue did not come until after a failed attempt by Legislator Chris Cunningham to table the matter for additional investigation. Cunningham and Legislator Steve Kurlander eventually voted against the adoption of the new plan.

Ida Mae Carstarphen Mitchell was honored by the Sullivan County Chapter of the Association for the Study of African-American Life and History (ASALH) as this year's recipient of the prestigious Frederick Douglass Award.

Saturday was a day for cold fish and chilled-to-the-bone fishermen during the Sullivan County Conservation Club's 15th annual Muriel Hupalo Memorial “King of the Ice” ice-fishing contest. Tyler Lauferswiler, 14, of Monticello, was crowned the youngest ever King of the Ice with a winning 25-inch, 69-ounce pickerel, for a combined total of 94 points.

DEATHS — Gladys Milligan, 83, of Lake Huntington died February 18, 2000 in Honesdale, Pa. The daughter of the late William Jacob and Stella Nearing Bennedum, she was born in Lake Huntington.… Regina Pierson, 85, of Monticello, died February 19, 2000 in Liberty. The daughter of the late John and Katherine Kearney Pierson, she was born in Parksville.… Myrtle Hellerer of Jeffersonville, 76, died February 21, 2000 in Harris. The daughter of Fred and Daisy Leroy Mathern, she was born August 21 in Bethel. She was the widow of Adolf Hellerer.

10 Years Ago - 2010

Sixteen year-old Tri-Valley Central School sophomore Ariana Kaminski will compete with 50 other high school girls for the title of Miss High School America 2010 in Branson, Missouri. Ariana, who now holds the title Miss New York High 2010, has been competing in pageants since she was 9 years old starting out with the Sullivan County Pageant and won Miss Sullivan County Pre-Teen 2004 and went on to win the Miss Sullivan County Teenager title in 2008.

Shanhai Heywood of Rock Hill spent time as an intern at the American Embassy, taking part in New Horizons-Guyana as part of a nation-building and humanitarian exercise. She and more than 200 service members provided such things as medical and dental care, built schools and other community facilities to aid the people of the poverty-stricken nation.

Quick action saved Mrs. Linda Rajlevsky's farm and all her goats who survived a fire that broke out inside the barn on an early Tuesday morning. More than 3 dozen firemen from five fire companies raced to help, luckily some of the firemen were very experienced in farm equipment which helped saved the barn structure. Tom Gain hopped on a tractor and was able to pull the twenty burning round bales of hay out of the barn thus saving the structure. The back wall had to be opened up to fight the blaze but with the burning hay removed, the firemen made quick work of the remaining fire. Rajlevsky, who operates a goat farm with her husband Alan just outside Kenoza Lake, said she was trying to keep four newborns warm Monday night using a heat lamp.

Firefighters from around Sullivan County, along with sponsors from local businesses, met at Holiday Mountain Ski & Fun Park in Bridgeville for the annual firefighters race. The yearly fundraiser has been a joint effort between the Rock Hill Fire Department and the Sullivan County YMCA to support the “Strong Kids Campaign.” This program helps local children participate in youth sports and activities when a family does not have the funds to cover the fees.