Hometown History

March 2, 2023

110 Years Ago
Resident Manager Roberts of the Oneonta Theatre has closed a contract with C.C. Miller for a thorough rewiring of the theatre and the removal of all the lighting fixtures now in use in that playhouse, and the installation in replacement of complete and modern equipment that will be up to the minute. The new wiring will conform to the highest standards of safety and of the underwriters and will make the house doubly secure from danger from the wires. There will be placed in position new chandeliers and drop lights of the most approved pattern and design. The exits will be plainly marked with illuminated signs “EXIT,” which will be plainly visible at all times. The new installation will represent an outlay of fully $3,000 when completed and will make the theatre even more popular as a place of amusement.

March 1913

90 Years Ago
“The 19th century made this world of ours a neighborhood, but it is the work of the 20th century to make it a brotherhood,” said Rev. George H. Phillips, D.D., pastor of the First Methodist Church at the second annual banquet of the Hartwick Class of 1935 held at the Elk’s Club last Thursday. Dr. Phillips’ subject was “The Shrinking Planet of Ours.” “In your life time the greatest war of all history was fought. We have seen a planet shrink so man is more dependent on one another than any time in history.
When you were born no Bleriot had flown the English Channel or a Charles Lindbergh the Atlantic Ocean. It is a different planet with different problems than your fathers and mothers ever dealt with years ago. Today, in England, the prime minister sits down and takes up his telephone and talks 11,000 miles to that great colony of Australia. A liner leaving New York City tonight carries apparatus that picks up facsimiles of a newspaper page out there in the ocean so a football game played by Hartwick
College can be picked up by that liner going across the Atlantic Ocean to Europe. Science has come into our homes and revolutionized them. Edison said before he died that the next age would be an age of buttons. You will just touch a button and the breakfast will be going.”

March 1933

70 Years Ago
Mrs. Catherine Donlin, 345 Chestnut Street, yesterday received a Bronze Star with a “V” for heroic achievement and a presidential citation telling how her son, Sergeant First Class John F. “Brud” Donlin, lost his life in wiping out a Communist bunker in Korea. The presentation was made in American Legion Home by Major John Michie, Binghamton. The action occurred near Utkkaemugi during a raid on Hill 200, held by the enemy. The citation reads: “The elements of the attacking unit fought their way up the hill until heavy enemy fire became so intense that a withdrawal was imperative. When he saw that one bunker in particular was extremely harassing to the friendly withdrawal, Sergeant Donlin, crawling and running charged toward this enemy stronghold. Upon reaching his objective, he jumped to his feet and hurled two white phosphorus grenades into the bunker, destroying it completely. However, in exposing himself to do this, Sergeant Donlin was fatally wounded by an enemy burp gun. His action in destroying the bunker allowed friendly troops to withdraw with far fewer casualties than otherwise would have been sustained. Sergeant Donlin’s heroism and selfless devotion to duty reflect great credit on himself and the military service.”

March 1953

50 Years Ago
One face in the crowd of candidates seeking the Republican nomination for Otsego County Sheriff is that of Ms. Jan Hageman, 30, of 34 Cherry Street, Oneonta. She is believed to be the first woman ever to seek the sheriff’s post in Otsego County. Hageman is a criminologist teaching in the Hartwick College sociology department. “The investigating and apprehending functions of the sheriff’s office are important, but without considering other issues such as crime prevention, courts and corrections, or rehabilitation, our best efforts will not prevent increased crime rates, turbulent inmate populations, and a general public distrust of our system of criminal justice,” she said.

March 1973

40 Years Ago
The fast action and know-how of a Hartwick College freshman stopped a fellow student from choking Sunday afternoon in the school’s cafeteria. Salvatore J. Pepe, Jr., 18, used the Heimlich maneuver to dislodge a particle of food from the throat of Paul T. Leon, a Hartwick junior. “I was in shock when I went to help him and I realized he could have died in my arms,” said Pepe, a member of the college basketball team. “I was trembling, but I guess I just reacted.” “I blacked out. I don’t remember what happened at all,” said Leon, 21. “It was pretty hairy. My friends told me I was without oxygen and I started turning blue,” Leon said. “I’m just grateful there were people there to help.” Pepe acted only after efforts by two other students to aid Leon had failed. Pepe said he learned the Heimlich technique in high school.

March 1983

30 Years Ago
Friday’s bombing at the World Trade Center in New York City could be just the beginning of a new trend in urban violence for the 1990s in the United States. The blast that rocked the 110-story twin towers killed five and injured thousands. Explosives may as well be added to the weapons list in urban America, said John Lindell, a Political Science Professor at Hartwick College. “Our urban violence had been hand guns. Bombs add a new dimension,” Lindell said. “Maybe, it’s our turn. Maybe urban bombing will be the new terrorism for the 90s – at least in the U.S.”

March 1993

20 Years Ago
With standouts Mike Konstanty and Geoff Bean combining for 35 points and 24 rebounds, and a highly effective 3-2 zone defense, the Oneonta Yellowjackets won the Section Four, Class B title game 51-36, over top-seeded Corning West at the Broome County Arena. The Yellowjackets trailed 7-0 after three possessions when OHS coach Jerry Mackey switched from man-to-man to the zone defense.

March 2003