100 years ago, 1926 — After attacking the Robt. Takvam family, farmhand Bill McRae was sent to the Brandon asylum; the RM passed a bylaw to provide street lighting in Homewood; The Carmania sold candy mixtures for 10 cents per lb. on weekends only; P.C. Mallory was Carman’s Chevrolet dealer; DAS Fair booked acts including Kanazawa Japs, the Flying Moores and Conklin Midway; the Percheron Breeders Club was formed; three bars of Palmolive soap sold for 25 cents at A.F. Higgins Co.; local doctors asked the RM for reimbursement for unpaid rural calls.
75 years ago, 1951 — Joe Pethybridge received council approval for pumps at his south-end store; the Collegiate Quintet won an A.C.T. radio contest, with Darlene Cates placing second and Shirley Nesbitt third; Robinson Stores promoted itself as the place for Valentine’s gifts; Alf Strachan was named president of the Manitoba Swine Breeders Association; members of the Homewood Seed Club received two bushels of Redman wheat seed for plots; Clarence Bedford gave weekly legal talks at the collegiate; a Legion dance featuring the Mit Woods orchestra, with square and spot dances, cost 50 cents; listen to Billy Graham Sundays on KFGO Fargo.
50 years ago, 1976 — Midland High School recorded the lowest pupil-teacher ratio among rural schools at 17 to 1; Elton Sharpe dispersed his purebred herd established in 1933; Carman Radio and TV, Parkway Motors and Laycock Motors all announced new facilities; Safeway advertised chuck roasts for 85 cents per lb.; the Senior Citizens Club and Drop-In Centre amalgamated to form the Friendship Centre; the RM received a $10,000 lottery grant for arena and CN station use; RCMP captured cultivator shank thieves; the chamber suggested businesses keep the same hours and days.
25 years ago, 2001 — Major upcoming Main Street changes were announced; Debra Kattler was chamber president; Johnston Farm Supplies launched its annual oil sale; the Have a Heart concert featured George Watson on trumpet, Bruce Wood on bagpipes and the TeBokkel musical family; Carol Wadge opened a satellite office for a Winkler accounting firm; the SEMHL celebrated its 50th anniversary with an old-timers tournament; TG Promotions came to Carman; Bill and Shannon Girling thanked Carman for support at Countrywide Furnishings; the Riverwalk Café featured chicken cordon bleu as a Valentine’s Day special.
