Dec. 12
In 1917, the sewing and knitting department of the Hancock County Red Cross shipped another lot of supplies. During November and that far into December, the women had made and shipped 163 suits of flannel pajamas, 50 hospital shirts, 87 pairs of operating leggings, 102 pairs of bed socks, 37 bathrobes, 11 operating caps and other items. Knitters contributed 176 pairs of socks, 60 sweaters, 57 mufflers and 56 pairs of wristlets.
Dec. 13
In 1919, an astronomer reassured Hancock Countians that the “end of things” predicted for Dec. 17, 1919, would indeed not occur. He said the coming conjunction of planets to occur that day would not noticeably affect the planets or the sun.
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Click here to purchase photos from this galleryDec. 14
In 1932, Greenfield School Board announced in a special meeting that Christmas vacation would be two weeks long instead of one week because grippe and influenza were causing absences of 100 to 150 students. School officials said they didn’t want to receive less money from the state because of lower attendance rates and also reasoned it would be cheaper to have an extra week of school in the spring, during milder weather.
In 2007, a Hancock County sheriff’s deputy discovered during a traffic stop that a Green Township resident was actually a convicted rapist who had escaped from a North Carolina prison 19 years earlier and taken a different name.
Dec. 15
In 1942, former Daily Reporter staffer Jack Clark penned a letter home to Hancock County from French North Africa, where the newspaperman-turned-technical sergeant was stationed. Near the close of his letter, he expressed hope that censorship would later relax and allow him to write letters more descriptive of the country and its people. “I certainly hope so because this place has many interesting angles, which I would like to pass on to you back home.”
In 1967, Gov. Roger Branigan ordered the new stretch of Interstate 70 between State Road 3 and Greenfield opened. Work was still going on to adapt intersections, including State and Main streets, for the increase in traffic. Two Greenfield police officers spent four hours downtown in “biting cold” helping direct traffic as motorists exited the interstate and drove south toward Main Street (U.S. 40).
In 2007, Cynthia Erwin, owner of Cynthia’s Hallmark in Greenfield, the nation’s largest Hallmark store, died.
Dec. 16
In 1991, Hancock and Shelby county commissioners dedicated a $1.3 million bridge at county roads 500 West and 600 South.
Dec. 17
In 1942, Mrs. Robert Birch returned home to Greenfield with her new son, William Gilbert Birch, from Major Hospital in Shelbyville, where she delivered the 10-pound baby.
Dec. 18
In 1956, Greenfield Mayor James Allen and other city employees moved into the new Greenfield City Hall, vacating space they had rented in the Hancock County Courthouse. County commissioners had already determined who the next tenants would be: The Cancer Society and the Center Township Trustee.
