100 Years Ago - 1920

Some time Wednesday night, burglars visited the general store of M.C. Armstrong at Long Eddy, ransacked the two floors of the building and carried off loot valued at between $500 and $1,000.

Monticello was completely cut off from the outside world for more than eight hours Saturday as the result of a fire which totally destroyed the Monticello exchange of the New York Telephone Co. at 3 a.m. that morning. Damage will exceed $10,000. The central office was located in the old post office building, one of the oldest structures in the village, at the intersection of Railroad Avenue and Broadway. Manager John Hess of the Western Sullivan Telephone and Telegraph Co. of Callicoon went to the county seat Saturday with his men to render assistance in restoring service, but little could be accomplished due to the damaged condition of the switchboard.

F.S. Bury, acting postmaster at Fremont Center, announces that an examination will be held at Hankins, August 14, to fill a contemplated vacancy in the position of fourth class postmaster at Fremont Center. Compensation at that place was $348 for the last fiscal year.

Lillian McAdam of Tennanah Lake is being treated for diphtheria in a light form. Anna Kutger, who had an attack, has recovered. Several city girls proved germ carriers, although they gave no visible evidence of being afflicted. They have been sent back to the city for treatment.

On Sunday next the church of the Scared Heart of Jesus at Hankins will be solemnly dedicated by the Rt. Rev. Mgr. Mooney of New York City, Rt. Rev. Mgr. Lavelle, rector of ST. Patrick's Cathedral, NYC, will preach the dedication sermon. The church in Hankins, started last summer, has been used for services for the past month. The contractor was John Lowe of Callicoon. This is the eleventh church erected by the Franciscan Fathers since 1892 when they first took charge of the missions in this district. Another is to be added shortly to the list, that at Lake Huntington, which will be dedicated August 15.

When a dynamite cap exploded in the hands of John Craig, 14, at Livingston Manor Sunday, he lost the tips of two fingers of each hand.

V.T. Whitaker is making plans to begin early the sawing up of the timber on the McKoon tract at Long Eddy that he recently purchased. He has bought the Doolittle mill at Hales Eddy and shipped it to Long Eddy to be set up on the McKoon tract on the Hoolihan Brook.

90 Years Ago - 1930

Vincent Graziadio, son of Mr. and Mrs. George Graziadio of North Branch, and Miss Rita Fisher, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. George Fisher of Beechwoods, were married by Justice Albert E. Mitchell on Saturday, July 19. A wedding supper was served at the bride's home for about fifteen relatives and friends who attended.

Adelbert M. Scriber, editor of the Watchman at Monticello, has just received notice of appointment by Gov. Roosevelt as a member of the Washington Memorial Commission of New York State. Mr. Scriber is the president of the Sullivan County Historical Society.

Eric Karg, the new owner of the Olympia Hotel, took possession last week when the sale reported in the last issue was finally closed. Mr. Karg is the son of a chef to the former Kaiser of Germany and he is no beginner in the hotel business.

Wednesday morning, July 9, at High Lake R.C. Church, Miss Leora Chambers of Equinunk, Pa., daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Joe Chambers, became the bride of Roy Flynn of High Lake. They were attended by Oscar Flynn and Lavone Chambers, brother and sister of the bride and groom.

Mr. and Mrs. John F. Rutz Jr. of Narrowsburg are rejoicing over the arrival of a daughter, July 15.

The advertised parachute drop which was scheduled for Sunday afternoon on the Nealy flats at Cochecton, was necessarily postponed as the plane and pilot did not arrive as arranged. A large number of people, however, purchased tickets for air trips and the flyers, three in number, were busy during the afternoon making the air voyages.

80 Years Ago - 1940

Miss Ethel, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Soule, and Osmer, son of Mr. and Mrs. John VanSchoick, were united in marriage on July 20 by Rev. Fred Foerster at the First Lutheran Church of Jeffersonville. Miss Agnes V. Griffin of Brooklyn and August Segar of Jeffersonville were the honor attendants. Forty members of the immediate families and friends attended a luncheon at the home of Mrs. Roy Crandall. The couple will live in Narrowsburg.

The Century Hotel, Narrowsburg, in an advertisement, has dinner specials: Duck, broiled dinner or club sirloin steak for 85¢; prime rib roast of beef - 75¢ includes soup, juice or salad, choice of two vegetables, dessert and beverage.

Mr. and Mrs. Lewis Haggett of Jeffersonville are the proud parents of a 9 1/2 pound son, Gordon Keith, born July 24 at the Callicoon Hospital.

Six children were christened at the Cochecton Presbyterian Church by Rev. George Winn on July 21. Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Dexter had their four children christened and Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth Just had their two christened.

A very odd incident occurred in town Tuesday p.m. when a 5-ft. black snake was discovered climbing the windowsill at Charlie's Barber Shop. Some excitement for a spell when Pert Hickox, the hero and snake charmer, grabbed it by the tail and now has it on exhibition. — Cochecton Corresp.

Among the awards made at a recent session of the compensation court at Liberty were two local residents: Edward G. Zieres of North Branch, whose back was injured while he was employed by Peter Schmidt, truckman, was awarded $57.70. John Feigenbutz, who was burned about the face and hands when a tar barrel exploded as he and other roadmen were repairing a highway in Fremont township early last spring, was awarded $10.67.

The Callicoon Center Band won a prize of $10 at the Roscoe Field Day yesterday. Those who attended had the privilege of seeing Miss Sylvia Sietel, Roscoe girl who is now with Billy Rose's Aquacade, give a swimming exhibition.

70 Years Ago - 1950

At the Callicoon Hospital, it was a daughter for Mr. and Mrs. Alfred Rutledge of Honesdale, Pa., on July 20.

Keller's Daylight Department Store, North Main St., Liberty, one of the oldest mercantile establishments in Liberty and in the county, is preparing to close out business late in the summer. Robert P. Keller, the last of several proprietors in the store's existence, will move to Lewisburg, Pa., where he plans to enter a different line of business. The Keller store, established in 1879 by the late J.C. Young and the late Charles M. Messiter, was known in the early 1900s as Young, Messiter & Dodge, with Frank Dodge, now residing in Liberty, as the junior partner.

The First Methodist Church in Auburn was the scene of the July 15 wedding of Miss Ethel Switzer of Auburn and Wilmer E. Sipple of Roscoe. He is the son of Charles E. Sipple of Roscoe and the late Mrs. Sipple. Rev. Warren Odom, pastor of the church, performed the double ring ceremony.

A reunion of the family of the late ex-Sheriff and Mrs. Jacob Dietz was held at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Edward Kastner, Callicoon Center, last Sunday. Included were Mrs. Mary Marold, Mr. and Mrs. F.J. McGuire, Mr. and Mrs. Allan McGuire of Callicoon, Mr. and Mrs. Edward Kastner, Mrs. Wm. J. Dietz Jr. , Mr. and Mrs. Edwin Dietz, Mrs. L.M. Edwards, Mr. and Mrs. F.L. Schips, Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Schips, Frank L. Schips Jr., Mrs. Mathilda Blackman, Mr. and Mrs. Sam MacDonald, Mr. and Mrs. Leon Wehner of Port Jervis and Mrs. Jane Jennings of New York City.

Callicoon is to have a new A&P Supermarket according to contracts signed last week by Elizabeth M. and Charles G. Curtis, owners of the property now occupied by the store. New floors, ceilings and a new front will be included in the renovations, as well as an addition to the back of the building. When completed the store will measure 24 feet wide and 107 feet in depth.

60 Years Ago - 1960

Mrs. Cora T. Dering, 81, who spent nearly her entire lifetime in Callicoon, died Tuesday, July 19, after a long illness.

The first shovelful of dirt was turned over by Edward Peters, president of the Jeffersonville-Youngsville Central School Board of Education at groundbreaking ceremonies Monday. A 10-room addition will be added to the present facility at a cost of about $550,000 and will house an all-purpose room in addition to the new classrooms.

One hundred and two alumni of Callicoon High School and the Delaware Valley Central School met on July 17 for a reunion at the Delaware Youth Center, together with their spouses and friends, making a total in attendance of about 250. Harold Mitchell, Class of 1904, was the earliest graduate present, with thirty-four classes represented. Vernon Molusky of Hialeah, Fla., a 1949 graduate, traveled the farthest to win the distance record. Plans are being made to hold another reunion next year.

George K. Rosenberger of Hortonville celebrated his 98th birthday on July 15. Louis DuBois of Livingston Manor celebrated his 83rd birthday on July 24.

Two babies were born this week at the Callicoon hospital: A son to Mr. and Mrs. John C. Diehl of Tyler Hill on Sunday; a daughter to Mr. and Mrs. Peter Frishko of Bethlehem, Pa., on Wednesday. Discharged this week were Mrs. William Galloway and son of Lookout, Pa., Mrs. Lawrence Tuttle and son, Jeffersonville, Mrs. Ira Ray and daughter of Hankins, Mrs. Donald Miller and son of Callicoon, Mrs. William Gregg and daughter of Damascus, Pa.

Miss Marion Rutledge, 17, Lookout, Pa., placed second in the “Miss High School of Pennsylvania” contest held Saturday night in Scranton at a dinner-dance sponsored by the Lackawanna Academy of Beauty Culture. She is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Rutledge and will be one of seven to compete August 4 at Asbury Park, NJ, for the title of Miss High School of America.

50 years ago - 1970

Mr. and Mrs. Max M. Brender of Ferndale, 1970 Farm Efficiency Award winners, presented a Ford Motor Company Fund grant check of $2,000 to Prof. G.W. Hedlund of Cornell's Agricultural Economics Department, head of Cornell's Poultry Science Department, to be used for research work.

The daughters of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Beiling of Jeffersonville are giving an open house in honor of their parents' Golden Anniversary on August 2 at Chan-Al Hotel in Shandalee.

United National Bank in Callicoon announced the retirement of two directors, W.L. Dodge and Irving Bershader. Earlier this year, Mr. Bershader, who has been a practicing attorney here since 1937, transferred his law practice to William C. and Robert Rosen, partners with their parents in the well-known firm of Rosen and Rosen in Monticello. Mr. Dodge has been associated with the bank and its predecessor institutions for the past 61 years. He was elected to the board of directors as director emeritus, the first man so honored in the bank's history. John J.J. McGough, a commissioner of the Department of Public Works in Sullivan County, and Mr. Herman Feldhusen III of the Narrowsburg Lumber Co., have been named to succeed the retiring directors.

Rose Eck of Livingston Manor, representing the Regen Ridge Hunting Club, was chosen Wednesday evening, July 15, as Miss Sullivan County Sportsmen's Show. She is the 19-year-old daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Ollen Eck and will reign at the fifth annual show of the county's Federation of Sportsmen Clubs to be held September 11-13 in Grahamsville.

At the Liberty-Loomis Hospital, it was a boy for Mr. and Mrs. Marvin Bertholf of Woodbourne on July 11; a girl for Mr. and Mrs. Robert Vandermark of Liberty; a boy for Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Decker of Liberty and, on the same day, a girl for Mr. and Mrs. Fred Weyer of Hankins; July 14, a girl was born to Mr. and Mrs. Clifford McCosco of Liberty; July 15, it was a girl for Mr. and Mrs. David Van Horn of North Branch; and July 17, it was a boy for Mr. and Mrs. Richard Hoffman of Neversink.

Mr. Harold Diamond, principal of the Wurtsboro Central School, was unanimously re-elected Chairman of the Board at SCCC. Fred Starck was re-elected trustee and vice-chairman.

40 Years Ago - 1980

It was a weekend of celebration and colorful pageantry as clergy led by Terence Cardinal Cooke, Roman Catholic Archbishop of New York, parishioners and friends, including Mrs. Lillian Carter, mother of the President, gathered at Holy Cross Church on Route 98 in Callicoon to dedicate the new church on Sunday. Miss Lillian made her first trip to the small river hamlet of Callicoon last August upon the invitation of her personal friend, the Rev. Anthony Moore, O.F.M., pastor of Holy Cross, to officiate at the groundbreaking ceremonies of the new church. Just eleven months later, the church is a reality and so Miss Lillian returned to celebrate its dedication.

A record crowd of an estimated 18,000 persons attended the three-day Ukrainian Youth Festival held this weekend on the 160-acre grounds of the Ukrainian Fraternal Association in Glen Spey, according to the association president Ivan Oleyksin.

The first member of “The Echo,” the official publication of the Basket Historical Society of the Upper Delaware Valley, has just been published by the Society in Long Eddy. Jack Niflot is the editor and president of the group.

Deanna Olsen, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Harvey Olsen of Hortonville, and Michael Tyrrell, who is employed by WSUL in Monticello, were married May 17 at the Hortonville Presbyterian Church with Rev. Shubert Frye officiating.

Donna Jeane Dumont, daughter of Mrs Pearl Dumont of Rock Hill, became the bride of Neal Robert Meddaugh, son of Mrs. Helen Meddaugh, Rock Hill, on June 28 at LaNeve's in Goshen.

Nancy Ann Fersch, Roscoe, became the bride of Robert J. Buck, son of Mr. and Mrs. Richard Buck of Roscoe, on June 28 at the United Church of Roscoe.

Abby Adler and Theodore E. Kagan were married June 29 at Canyon Ridge Country Club, Montague, NJ. She is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Alvin Adler of Woodridge.

Over 170 canoers are signed up so far for the 13th Annual Canoe Regatta in Callicoon.

30 Years Ago - 1990

Members of the Equinunk (Pa.) Historical Society sponsored an authentic living history of the Civil War demonstration with Civil War enthusiasts from the Northeast taking part in the event.

Construction on the Callicoon sewer project will begin on Monday, culminating more than a decade of planning and delays.

Josephine V. Finn of Monticello has been named Town of Thompson Assistant Attorney to fill the vacancy created two months ago by the retirement of Marty Miller.

Engaged — April Lee Schumacher of Denver, Colo., and Michael D. Burkey. He is the son of Donald and Janet Burkey of Livingston Manor.

Laurie A. Robertson, daughter of Frederick and Kathryn Robertson of Woodbourne, became the bride of Patrick Gillespie of Alfred on May 18, in a ceremony performed at the Presbyterian Church in Hornell.

Annette Louise DiPietro of Kingsville, Md., and Fred Tenbus, son of Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Tenbus of Hortonville, were united in marriage on July 7 at St. Stephen's Catholic Church in Bradshaw, Md.

“This boy is going to be a swimmer,” said the midwife when Herbert Alvarado was born October 17, 1934 in Santiago, Chile. Herb accepted the challenge and in the recent 1990 New York State Senior Games, he won fourth place in the 50Y freestyle, and took gold medals in each of the 50Y butterfly, 100Y freestyle, 100Y butterfly and 200Y individual medley races. He qualifies for the 1991 National Senior Games.

Other Sullivanites who garnered medals were Betty Lieberman in bowling and Al Nesin in tennis. Vete Rust was forced to miss the games this year because of a dog bite, but has been invited to parti­cipate in the 1991 Senior Olympics bicycling event on her winning of three gold medals last year in the Senior Games held in Cortland. She then went on to win two golds and a silver in the National Senior Olympics in St. Louis.

20 Years Ago - 2000

According to Bill Burns of Bethel, an archivist/curator and member of the board of directors of the Sullivan County Historical Society, Chief Clerk of the Sulivan County Court Earl Lilley recently called the society and offered them a look at the “dark side” of the county's past. Some of the material will be incorporated into the museum's collection. The cache of historical artifacts includes a crumbling cardboard box containing part of a dirt-encrusted human skeleton, piles of gambling paraphernalia seized by New York State Police and Sullivan County Sheriff's Department raids during the 1930s, evidence recovered at arson scenes, and an old trunk filled with silverware purloined from local hotels.

Eight members of the Class of 1945, Delaware Valley Central School, met for dinner at the Stone Arch Inn on July 15. Attending were Ruth Langgons (Makela), Gwen Milk D'Agati, Vonne Simon (Williams), Doris Deckelman (D'Ambra), Richard Anderson, Leota Deighton Hermann, Lucille Simon and David Bauerfeind. Five companions attended, including Vilho Makela, Andy D'Agati, Ethel (“Sis” Doetsch) Anderson and Anna Bauerfeind. A donation was made to the American Cancer Society in memory of deceased classmates Bob Molusky, George Muth, Richard Hoffman, Karl Sauer, and Rose Mittleman. Unable to attend were Walter Cook, Virginia Worthington, Rose Gagliardi, Edith Kautz and Larry Schick.

A Youngsville family narrowly escaped disaster as they fled their burning home early Sunday morning. John Whitaker was awakened by the urgent barking of their family dog and soon discovered that his family's single-story ranch home was filled with smoke. Immediately, Whitaker ushered his wife and their two small children out of the burning structure, escaping any injury. County fire investigators found that a short in electrical wiring started the blaze.

10 Years Ago - 2010

Monticello High School junior baseball player Bobby Wagner of Mongaup Valley made history when he became the first Monticello HS player to earn a berth on the Hudson Valley Empire State Games Baseball Team. Wagner was named to the Hudson Valley team following a tryout session at Marist College. The Hudson Valley team is made up of 18 rising junior baseball players from Dutchess, Rockland, Westchester, Putnam, Orange, Ulster and Sullivan counties.

After two decades serving the community, Light and Life Christian School (LLCS) in Liberty is not reopening in the fall of 2011. Frank DeMayo, a delegate of the Liberty Free Methodist Church which sponsors the school, explained that the school board told church leaders in June that LLCS should be closed for at least the next year to reorganize citing enrollments were “way down.” Like most private schools, LLCS had struggled with finances, and for the last year, the church itself has been seeking a pastor. DeMayo said a new one will arrive by the end of next month. The school was painfully thrust into the public spotlight in April, however, when former physical education teacher Joshua DiMeo was arrested and charged with disseminating indecent material to a minor, a felony, and misdemeanor counts of sexual abuse and endangering the welfare of a minor. DeMayo stated this did not deter people from enrolling. “Light and Life had a great reputation.” Instead, he blamed it on the sluggish economy, the need to keep tuition affordable and the intense competition for students from private schools.