100 years ago: “The railroad company built a platform at the crossing last week which was very much needed. Now let us all work for a side track.”
75 years ago: “W.E. Brady of the Alamosa Courier arrived in Durango to spend an enforced vacation here with friends and relatives. He is not able to work because of a finger broken recently. Formerly he was a linotype operator at the Herald-Democrat.”
50 years ago: “The explosion many heard before noon Monday was the malfunctioning Athena missile crashing the sonic barrier shortly before pieces of the projectile plunged into the earth near the El Paso refinery at a probable speed of 120 mph. The event was described to the Herald by Major James Donald, chief of range services division of the U.S. Army White Sands missile center who is in charge of all recovery operations and George H. Ross, the civilian who is a missile flight surveillance officer.”
25 years ago: “Durango resident Jerry Dennison knew he had an instant winner lottery ticket. He just didn’t know how big. It turned out to be $89,000. ... Dennison, a 12-year resident of Durango, plans to buy a boat, set up an educational fund for his 11-year-old daughter Summer, donate a share to the church and then think about taking some ‘interludes’ from his job.”
Most items in this column are taken from Herald archives, Center of Southwest Studies and Animas Museum. Their accuracy may not be verified.
