Over 100 years ago
An abundance of dandelions prompted Mayor Medbery to declare May 16th, 1914, as Dandelion Day, a day to eradicate the unsightly weeds blooming in town. The entire community was encouraged to participate. Teachers took students outside to dig weeds during the school day. Huron College hosted a competition to see which class could collect the largest pile. Several business owners contributed cash prizes to the children who collected the largest number of dandelions. Roy Gilland won first place with 22 bushels.
The newspaper was full of advice on how to eliminate the weeds. The local Commercial Club suggested burning the weed piles to prevent the spread of seeds. A professor from the state agricultural college recommended applying kerosene to the plant to kill the roots. The city continued Dandelion Day until 1917, but Huron College kept the tradition alive until the 1940s.
82 years ago
In April 1943, the Evening Huronite began publishing a page called Home Front News in its Tuesday edition. It was printed on one page that could be cut out and mailed to servicemen anywhere in the world for three cents.
Local businesses sponsored the printing of the page, which included advertisements, photos, and three to four brief articles about local events.
Stories in the first issue included: high school students volunteering to assist farmers with planting crops; Governor Sharp encouraging Food for Victory garden programs; and the American Legions campaign to collect hunting knives, which would be sent to the armed forces overseas. While the Legion acknowledged that the knives were not standard issue, they emphasized that they would be useful for digging foxholes and in close combat situations.
The Home Front News continued to be published every Tuesday until the war ended. News from home helped boost morale and reminded military personnel that their hometown supported their efforts.
57 years ago
May 11, 1968 was an exciting day for Huron. Two Democratic nominees for president visited the city. Vice-President Hubert Humphrey was welcomed in the morning for his annual Mothers Day trip to Huron. The Vice-President did not consider the trip to be part of his campaign tour but instead spent time talking with reporters, reminiscing about his fathers drug store, and visiting his mother in the nursing home.
Later that afternoon, Senator Robert F. Kennedy, also running for the Democratic nomination, arrived at the W.W. Howes Municipal Airport to a crowd of 1,500 people. The crowd had broken through the gate and spilled onto the tarmac, trying to get close to Kennedy. The senators security and Huron police escorted him through the crowd to an open convertible car, where he waved to the crowds as he rode along Dakota Avenue to Huron College, then back downtown. Kennedy gave a brief speech, picked up candy for his wife from Humphrey Drug store, then returned. His stay in Huron lasted only a few hours, but he promised the crowd that if he was elected President, he would be back to have his prescriptions filled at Humphrey Drug.
Historical Happenings was written by Jennifer Littlefield, Reference Librarian at the Huron Public Library. The information was taken from past editions of the Huron Daily Plainsman. For more information about Hurons history, visit the library or search the librarys digital archive.
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