slideshow

From the LaGrange Daily News, 1937

Front Page News:

Community Chest for City to be Investigated by Chamber of Commerce Board — Empowered to act as sole representatives of the LaGrange Chamber of Commerce, the executive committee today prepared to investigate the possibility of a community chest for LaGrange to facilitate the work of soliciting funds annually for various locally supported organizations.

In a lengthy discussion at the regular monthly meeting of the board of directors of the Chamber of Commerce yesterday, the idea was aired with the result that the executive committee was given full investigative authority, and if it sees fit can then setup adequate organization to carry out the program.

Campaigns for funds for five worthy causes would be combined into one big drive yearly. Organizations affected would be The LaGrange Welfare Association, the Salvation Army, The LaGrange Boy Scouts, the LaGrange Junior Drum and Bugle Corps, and the Georgia Warm Springs Foundation.

Heads of the various organizations will be contacted to obtain their views on the proposed plan.

Courthouse Must be Completed in Year — Troup County’s new courthouse must be completed and ready for occupancy by officials within a year after a contract has been entered into with the successful bidder, a legal advertisement appearing in today’s issue of the LaGrange Daily News revealed.

Calling for letting of a contract on Jan. 27, or soon thereafter, the advertisement advised all contractors and interested parties to have their bids in the hands of the County Commissioners by 11 o’clock Thursday morning, Jan. 27. Work on the new $212,000 home for county officials must begin within 10 days after a contract has been entered into with the successful bidder.

According to specifications, the courthouse is to be a three-story, “fire-resistive building having reinforced concrete and steel skeleton or frame.” The building is to be constructed on the site of the old courthouse building, the advertisement stated.

Gay Wreaths, Lighted Trees Scatter Joyous Yuletide Wishes Over the City — A merry Christmas! A merry, merry Christmas to all!

So says every little house and every large house along every narrow lane and every wide boulevard in the city in hearty greetings to each passerby, whether stranger or friend.

Little wreaths and large ones, soft lights and gay ones, in windows everywhere, holly mistletoe, smilax, glistening trees – once more a drab winter city is transformed into a brilliant holiday playground.

Fingerprints Aid in Fight on Crime — The skill and dexterity with which the various sections of the local police department work in harmony to defeat criminal advances in LaGrange are proving dangerous to criminals of all types who pick out this city for their misdeeds.

The fingerprinting department and the detective bureau are combining forces to form a dreaded combination against the ravages of crime, especially burglary cases in LaGrange.

The entire police personnel, the radio department, identification officer Gene Hawkins and detectives C. C. Cornett and Grover Cole are all working together to stamp out crime and make LaGrange a safer place to live.

Local Poet Publishes ‘Every Year An April’ — “Every Year an April,” a volume of poems written by Miss Carrie Fall Benson, is off the press and in the hands of the author.

The volume was published by Kaleidograph Press of Dallas, Texas, and contains 90 poems, whose lovely lyric quality is earning wide national interest for her work.

Editorial:

Community Chest — From time to time there is a discussion in club committee meetings in LaGrange on the advisability of a Community Chest taking the place of the now numerous community drives for funds for many organizations. So far these discussions have resulted in no action, but now the matter is receiving more attention than at any time in several years.

The only question is the minds of those responsible for raising the funds is the question as to the financial results. If the people in LaGrange who give the money for the multiple drives will give as much for one drive as they have been in the habit of donating to all of the drives, then there is not the least doubt as to the advisability of instituting the one-drive plan.

Perhaps the only way to find out what the givers will do is to try this plan one year. If successful, it will be a boon to the community. If unsuccessful, we can go back to the nuisance of the multiple drive plan.

Julia Dyar, a retired journalist, is active in the Troup County Historical Society.