Past Pages for Saturday, May 9, 2015

140 Years Ago

Contract to women. The contract for furnishing the iron fencing for Capitol Square has been awarded to the Misses Clapp & Babcock, principles of the Sierra Seminary. Their bid was $5,500 in coin. Congratulate the ladies on their success in a new field of enterprise.

130 Years Ago

Piper’s Opera Houses. John Piper is on his feet with a brand new Opera House in Virginia City. His old theatre was on D Street where he had the greatest actors including Booth, the older as he appeared in Hamlet. Goodman & Daggett’s “Sycroscope” was produced and had a big run. One night Alice Oates was singing the drinking song in “Girofla” in lively style and lots of chorus girls were dancing around when the old stage began to shake. Piper rushed around to the wings and said: “Alice Py gimini, let up or de whole stage goes down.” Once a woman who lodged in an adjoining building, crawled overhead between the roof and ceiling to look down the ventilator and her foot slipped between the joists and one leg went through the plaster ceiling and hung in sight of the audience ...

110 Years Ago

All sorts. Hon. Theodore Winters and daughter Miss Neva were in town. W. S. Spencer has been appointed postmaster at Stone House, Nev. Jim Wylie was pretty well shaken up when his horse fell and spilled James and his groceries over about a block of ground.

70 Years Ago

What cars? The Office of Price Administration is enforcing price control on all automobiles offered for sale. Newspaper advertisement must include make of car, model year, body, type, price and statement that the price is within OPA ceilings. There is no price control on model year 1925 and earlier.

50 Years Ago

Births at Carson-Tahoe Hospital. Mr. and Mrs. Jim Bates of Carson City are the parents of twin boys.

Sue Ballew is the daughter of Bill Dolan, who wrote this column for the Nevada Appeal from 1947 until his death in 2006.