This is just the beginning! Our collection holds over 300 years of history, including rare newspapers, obituaries, marriage records, birth records, and so much more—most of which you won’t find anywhere else!
This newspaper page contains 12 articles. Subscribers can read the full text of each article.
Newspaper
Decatur Daily
Location
Decatur, Alabama, United States of America
Date
Dec 31, 1957
Page
6
Alabama farmers faced a tough 1957 with rising costs and weak prices. Peanuts suffered 15 million in lost income due to bad weather, while livestock and crops provided mixed results. Cotton acreage hit a war-era low, with Soil Bank effects cutting overall cotton income and farmers unsure about 1958.
The year opened with Cold War tensions as the Eisenhower administration pursued a Western alliance against Soviet influence in the Middle East while facing domestic illness. Khrushchev rose in Moscow amid ICBMs and Sputnik, with leadership shakeups in the USSR and Western nations. U.S.-Soviet talks continued behind closed doors as allies argued over Suez and regional policy in Egypt Syria Jordan and Cyprus.
Reynolds Metals accelerates growth in Listerhill and Alloys Plant expansions near Sheffield Alabama. A $70 million reduction plant will raise capacity to 112 500 tons yearly, with the Alloys Plant adding a 170 inch hot mill and new mills to boost tubing and production.
CAMP GARY Tex Army 1st Lt Edward L Harris wife Vivian lives in Tuskegee Ala. He graduated Dec 19 from a four month primary flight training course at Gary Army Air Field Camp Gary. Harris is a 1946 Decatur High School grad and 1955 Tuskegee Institute graduate. grandfather Edward Harris lives in Decatur.
Two 19 year old gunmen held a bar owner, a woman, and six men for nearly three hours before tear gas forced them out. Police booked Howard Lee Scott and Roger A Hoskins of Inglewood on suspected robbery charges. None of the hostages was harmed.
Public Safety Director Bill Lyerly urged Alabama residents to resolve to drive more carefully to save lives after more than 800 people were victims of traffic accidents this year. He called the deaths a tragedy from avoidable crashes.
The article reviews a year of heavy rainfall droughts and floods in Cullman Lawrence and Limestone counties with records at Belle Mina noting 14.14 inches in November and 64.68 inches yearly through Dec 29. It details cotton losses total flooding damage and economic impacts plus infrastructure projects and civic actions across Decatur and Morgan County including drought relief efforts, industrial expansions, and public works plans.
Alabama employees will see a smaller unemployment deduction starting tomorrow. The rate drops to 0.1 percent on the first 3000 dollars of annual earnings, with a maximum of 3 dollars per worker per year. The change could save up to 2.5 million dollars for the state’s workers in 1958.
The Wheeler Wildlife Refuge report for 1957 shows corn 52 000 bushels sorghum 8 000 soybeans 2 700 oats 2 200 wheat 360 tons hay and 500 cattle pasture on 6 247 acres with a total crop value over 94500. Goose numbers above normal while ducks below. hunting yielded 1 069 permits and 4 252 animals. New birds sighted include Mississippi kite blue winged warbler Franklin's gull White pelican and whistling swan. foreign visitors and 21 schools colleges and church groups attended. Timber sold 2 500 black locust posts 3 500 cords pulpwood valued around 11500. Candid notes on staffing grants and patrols wrap the year.
The Housing and Home Finance Agency announced approval for a special type mortgage to finance 1,720 low cost private housing units in Birmingham Alabama. Mortgages may be insured by the Federal Housing Agency up to 100 percent of appraised value with a minimum cash payment of 200 dollars and maximum insurable amount up to 9000 dollars with amortization up to 40 years.
Tuskegee Institute delays its year end race relations review to January 15 to include major developments. President L H Foster cites rapidly moving year end events and a more intricate analysis of legal actions and volunteer group activity in 1957 as the most significant year since school segregation was outlawed three years earlier.
A 16 year old girl fleeing police in a stolen convertible at over 100 mph crashed into a sports car on the Hutchinson River Parkway Bronx causing the death of 47 year old Richard H. Sperling of Newtown Connecticut. Sperling died instantly and the teen was charged with vehicular homicide and grand larceny while police described her earlier run ins and the crash as she attempted to evade officers. Sperling left a widow and a 13 year old son.
We want people to find what they are looking for at NewspaperArchive. We are confident that we have the newspapers that will increase the value of your family history or other historical research. With our 7-day free trial, you can view the documents you find for free.
People find the most success using advanced search. Try plugging in keywords, names, dates, and locations, and get matched with results from the entire collection of newspapers at NewspaperArchive!
You can also successfully find newspapers by these browse options. Explore our archives on your own!
Browse by location and discover newspapers from all across the world.
Browse by date and find publications for a specific day or era.
Browse old newspaper publications to find specific newspapers.