Aug. 28
In 1912, a local man was fined $10 and sentenced to 60 days in jail (with time off for good behavior) after a clown with a visiting circus was hit in the back of the head the night before by a rock or other hard object. The wound left a trail of blood all the way to a doctor’s office on Main Street, but the 18-year-old clown later left by train with the rest of the circus performers.
Aug. 29
In 1911, former Charlottesville teacher Clarence E. Dunbar pitched a no-hitter for the Superior (Nebraska) Brickmakers in a 6-0 win over the Winona (Minnesota) Pirates.
In 1917, three companies of Ohio artillerymen left Greenfield for Fort Harrison after spending the night at the local fairgrounds. The nearly six hundred men drew a crowd of local residents downtown, as the soldiers were entertained by the Masons and Temple Club with a dance and refreshments until midnight. “The theatres were crowded and restaurants were almost eaten out of house and home,” according to the Aug. 29, 1917, edition of the Daily Reporter.
Aug. 30
In 1977, Greenfield Board of Works awarded a contract for $4,674,000 to Charles H. Shook Inc. of Dayton, Ohio, to build a new wastewater treatment plant.
Aug. 31
In 1912, the Hancock County Progressive Party met for its convention at the opera house in Greenfield and nominated candidates for several county offices. The Rev. Marcellus Walker of Vernon Township was named county chairman of the party and thanked the audience. “He said it was only once in a lifetime that a man was called to preside at the formation and birth of a new party in a county,” according to the Aug. 31, 1912, edition of the Daily Reporter.
Sept. 1
In 1921, Greenfield residents were surprised to find crews cutting and removing the sidewalk at State and Main streets. The action followed an ordinance, passed by the city council four days earlier, that prohibited building a driveway across a sidewalk within 150 feet of the Hancock County Courthouse. The measure appears to have been intended to prevent Standard Oil Co. from using the corner for a gas station; instead, the company simply removed the sidewalks.
In 1956, the Memorial Hospital Guild announced it would sponsor a chapel for what is now Hancock Regional Hospital. Donations given to the guild in memory of friends or loved ones would be the nucleus of the fund to establish the chapel.
Sept. 2
In 1918, a patriotic demonstration took place in Fortville, organized by the Fortville Liberty Guard. Major Gordon Sandford of the British army was the guest speaker.
Sept. 3
In 1977, a fire wrought extensive damage to the Spring Lake Community Center, forcing the town board to meet in nearby Philadelphia.
In 2000, Todd Yoder played in his first National Football League game as part of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The New Palestine High School and Vanderbilt University graduate had signed as an undrafted free agent and would play for three teams over his 10 seasons in the NFL, winning a Super Bowl with Tampa Bay in 2003.
