Other days

100 YEARS AGO

April 3, 1924

■ Appointment of Dr. William L. Holt, state epidemiologist and assistant to Dr. C. W. Garrison, secretary of the state Board of Health, as city health officer to succeed Dr. John Thames, will be recommended to the City Council Monday night, it was learned yesterday. … Dr. Holt has had extensive education and experience in public health work. He is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Medical School and received his A. B. and M. D. degrees.

50 YEARS AGO

April 3, 1974

■ In a special election Tuesday, Pulaski County voters defeated by a sweeping 4-1 margin a proposal to raise property taxes by 2 1/2 mills to pay for construction of a proposed community college on a site adjacent to the North Little Rock Veterans Administration Hospital. … The sponsoring Pulaski County Community College Committee said the college would have provided training adaptable to the needs of business and industry — a role the Council said was not being fulfilled completely by existing vocational-technical programs. … Opponents contended the community college tax would hamper future efforts to increase public school taxes and that a community college would duplicate existing facilities already under-utilized.

25 YEARS AGO

April 3, 1999

■ People hankering for a nip of schnapps or sloe gin on a Sunday may be able to buy it under a new state law that allows retail alcohol sales on the formerly dry day of rest. But they shouldn’t rush to the liquor store just yet. Some store owners and elected officials say Sunday liquor sales — subject to approval in a city or county special election — probably wouldn’t be profitable and may even cost businesses money. Zay Whitaker, manager of Hillcrest Liquor in Little Rock, said fellow liquor store owners and employees agree that they don’t need, or want, to work on Sundays. “I think it’s going to be more of a hassle than a help,” Whitaker said. “I don’t think that Sunday sales will be big enough to justify staying open.”

10 YEARS AGO

April 3, 2014

■ A wholly owned subsidiary of Catholic Health Initiatives, parent of Little Rock-based St. Vincent Health System, announced Wednesday that it has reached a stock-purchase agreement to acquire QualChoice Holdings Inc. One of the nation’s largest nonprofit health systems, Denver-based Catholic Health Initiatives operates St. Vincent Health System in Little Rock, and now Mercy Hospital in Hot Springs. The system’s news about its plan to buy QualChoice came one day after it announced that it had bought Mercy Hospital, a Catholic institution that had been owned by Mercy Health System of St. Louis. QualChoice Holdings, based in Little Rock, is the parent company of QCA Health Plan Inc., and Qual-Choice Life and Health Insurance Co. Inc. It is a distant second to Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Arkansas in market share.