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Tractor vs. horse debate at Red Willow Literary Society - A Look Back

2000 – 10 YEARS AGO

• With all of the Christmas lights and decoration up, Stettler is quite a colourful town. The second annual Twinkle Tour that took place on Dec. 13 gave people a chance to see many of the home in town that have been decorated for the holiday season. Lloyd and Linda Gimbel won first place for their light display with second place going to Elmer and Connie Beier, and Greg and Karen Hayden coming in third.

• Stettlerite Brett O’Malley has cracked the roster of the WHL’s Lethbridge Hurricanes. The 16-year-old O’Malley was called up to Lethbridge at the end of November, and he’s been with the team ever since.

1990 – 20 YEARS AGO

• Stettlerites were battening down the hatches Dec. 18, as the first major blizzard of the winter closed both town and county schools and left highways almost impassable. Low temperatures and strong winds caused windchill factors low enough to freeze exposed skin in less than a minute.

• Brett Cameron of Stettler can claim Iron Man status after winning the Killarney Iron Man swim meet in Calgary. Besting a field of over 150 swimmers, Cameron had the fastest aggregate time of any age group.

1980 – 30 YEARS AGO

• Dr. Ernest Grafe, veterinarian in charge of the Canadian Government Health of Animals Branch at Stettler for the past 20 years, was recognized on the eve of his retirement. He was praised for his work with exotic breeds all over this region, and in Germany where he was sent to supervise quarantine tests.

• Residents of central Alberta towns will receive between 20 and 25 TV channels on QCTV’s Cablevision service. “This is a significant milestone and a ‘first’ for Western Canada,” said Ed Polanski, QCTV president.

1970 – 40 YEARS AGO

• A Christmas party of bowling and good eats was put on by Family Recreation for member of the Golden Age Club and Bantam boys and girls, with close to 30 taking part.

• Mr. and Mrs. E.T. Adams attended a dinner and presentation in the Penthouse of the Palliser Hotel in Calgary, when Mr. Adams was honoured for 40 years of service with the Alberta Wheat Pool.

1960 – 50 YEARS AGO

• The annual CGIT Vesper Lighting Service was held in Stettler United Church. In spite of the stormy night, the church was filled for this beautiful and popular event, which is entirely conducted by CGIT members.

• We often lose sight of the true meaning of Christmas. Evidence for this can be found in the word “Xmas.” We are not celebrating X’s birthday. Put Christ back into Christmas!

1950 – 60 YEARS AGO

• Miss Enid Blakey of Stettler Health Unit has been chosen to carry out a Field Survey of Polio in the Province of Alberta for the Department of Public Health. Alberta will be the first province in the Dominion to carry out research in this field.

• Town Council passed a “no-smoking” bylaw, which makes smoking prohibited in Stettler Arena during hockey games.

1940 – 70 YEARS AGO

• Mr. and Mrs. H.C. Chapin of Castor got a thrill Sunday morning when their son, Lieutenant George Chapin of the Princess Patricia spoke to them from overseas over the radio. They had not received any work from him since he landed over a month ago.

• Work on the skating and curling rinks at Erskine is progressing quite rapidly. Jimmie Ambrose and Reinhault Reimond are sure they will have ice ready before Christmas.

1930 – 80 YEARS AGO

• The Stettler Baptist Church Sunday School will hold their annual Christmas entertainment Dec. 19. A tableau entitled “The Story of the Nativity” will be told in music and readings.

• The American woman’s beauty bill is $750,000,000 a year, and it is evident that some of them are not getting their money’s worth. The Chicago Evening Post

1920 – 90 YEARS AGO

• The Literary Society of Red Willow was largely attended last week when the subject of “Tractor versus Horse” was debated by Messrs. Fred Creighton and George Hilton for the affirmative and Messrs. Parker and Hughes for the negative.

• There has been a false report circulating that “Botha is full of diphtheria and that nine deaths have resulted therefore.” The report is entirely false.

1910 – 100 YEARS AGO

• Dec. 13, a meeting was held in the store of the Watson Trading Co. near Garden Plains, for the purpose of voting on a school district and electing trustees. The proposed district is in the celebrated 33-13.