MID-SOUTH MEMORIES
25 Years Ago — 1995
Mayor Dick Hackett is returning to City Hall. When he does, he will be wearing the uniform that rarely varied during his nine years in office: a navy blue jacket, a city seal lapel pin, a red power tie and a white shirt with monogrammed cuffs. This time, however, critics who called the unassuming Hackett stiff and flat will be undeniably correct. Richard C. Hackett, mayor of Memphis from 1982 to 1991, is returning to City Hall as the latest addition to the Hall of Mayors, the lobby-level portrait gallery that presents a visual history of many of the men who have guided the city’s growth since first mayor Marcus B. Winchester in 1827.
50 Years Ago — 1970
Washington – An exuberant Prince Charles and a demure Princess Anne gracefully acknowledged a royal White House welcome Thursday, then skipped off with the Nixon daughters for a round of swimming, skeet shooting and sightseeing. Charles, 21-year-old heir to the British throne, ebulliently capped an evening tour by running down the 898 steps of the 555-foot Washington monument, with David Eisenhower at his side. The sight seeing tour followed a four-hour visit to Camp David. Humid weather and warm words from President Nixon greeted the future British king as he and 19-year-old Princess Anne arrived at the White House for the start of a private three-day visit, their first to the United States.
75 Years Ago — 1945
Nashville – The hotel and tourist court business in Tennessee will boom with the coming of postwar tourists, in the opinion of Sam Bolton, director of the State Division of Hotel and Restaurant Inspection. “We are receiving numerous inquiries from hotel and tourist court operators saying they plan to build in Tennessee as soon as possible, and asking for information on the best sites,” he said Thursday.
100 Years Ago — 1920
Mayor Paine and Commissioner Edgar last night declined the proposal of the Central Trades and Labor Council, representatives of the railroad brotherhoods and editors of the three daily newspapers, by which an amicable adjustment of the differences between city officials and the striking firemen was sought. The firemen had already accepted the proposal. The mayor said that while he is not opposed to unionism, he believes that a union in a vital branch of the government such as the fire department would be as destructive as a union in the army.
125 Years Ago — 1895
President Grover Cleveland’s third child has arrived, and, alas, ‘tis another girl. His enemies will say he never had any interest in the Democratic Party or he would have produced some potential voters.