Sedgwick County Genealogy Kansas Newspaper Stories

LOWER PLANE FLIGHTS DUE FOR OFFICIALS

Planes used by sheriff's officers in emergencies may fly low over the city, City Manager Russell E. McClure said Wednesday.

This will require an ordinance amending one on flight regulations over the city, McClure said. The ordinance prohibits flying at less than 3,000 feet, but the amendment will permit planes at less than that.

The City Commission has given tentative approval to the amendment. County peace officers will use planes in manhunts, searches for lost persons and other work.

The manager can give permission for flights at less than 3,000 feet for a specified time and purpose such as aerial photography. Sheriff's deputies need to get into the air rapidly without going to the City Building for a permit, McClure said. (Wichita Eagle, April 18, 1963)

SPRINKLER ALARM SENDS FIREMEN TO MACHINE SHOP

The alarm from an automatic sprinkler system in the Wichita Machine Co., on the southwest corner of Market and 29th sent firemen to that location Wednesday night.

The fire probably was caused from a short in electric fan motors in the paint shop located in the rear of the building, according to District Fire Chief C. W. Young.

The automatic sprinkler system in the paint shop had the fire under control when firemen arrived, Young said. Water from a tank truck quickly disposed of the remaining flames.

Young said damage would be minor and the exact estimate would depend on the amount of damage to the fan motors. (Wichita Eagle, April 18, 1963)

GREAT FRIEND TO WICHITA

Mr. Davis Who Secured the University for the Friends

It is understood that the $60,000 endowment for the Friends' university, which, when the building was turned over to the Society of Friends, was required within five years, is about raised, although the institution has been under the present management about three years only.

By the way, one of the best friends Wichita has in the world is James M. Davis, who secured the Friends' university. He is a New York man, who was born in the west, who understands the certainty of its development, who appreciates, too, the spirit of Wichita, the superiority of its location, and correctly estimates its future. It is said that he is much gratified at the fine showing the Friend's university has made so far. (The Wichita Daily Eagle ~ Wednesday ~ January 16, 1901)

El Dorado Boy, 11, Dies At Scene Of Head-On Crash

An 11-year-old El Dorado boy died in a head-on collision Sunday night on K-196 in Butler County, the Kansas Highway Patrol said.

Austin Alexander died at the scene on the highway between El Dorado and Potwin, officials said.

The accident occurred about 10:20 p.m. when a 1999 Toyota pickup driven by Potwin resident Clint Brewer, 32, crossed the center line and struck a car driven by the boy's mother, Ann Alexander, 44, of El Dorado, an accident report said. Brewer's truck was headed north when it collided with the southbound car, the report said.

Brewer was in serious condition, and Ann Alexander was in fair condition Monday at Wesley Medical Center.

The speed limit at the accident scene is 65 mph. The highway patrol said the boy was wearing a seat belt.
(Wichita Eagle ~ Monday ~ 16 Sept 2003)

METROPOLITAN BAPTIST GETS A FRESH LOOK

Metropolitan Baptist Church is undergoing a face-lift, 30 years after it was built at the southwest corner of Douglas and McLean Boulevard.

Scaffolding covers the east face of the building as workers replace paneling installed when the church was built. "It had become soiled and warped," said Blaine Lair, administrator at the church. The new facing is a man-made material that looks like stone but isn't as expensive, he said.

"We've been working on it now for a couple months, but it takes about four months to complete the job. It's a pretty good-sized job." The work is being done by Midwest Drywall Co. at a cost of about $140,000, Lair said.

The work on the east face is part of "a long line of projects that we've been doing" at the church, said Lair, who estimates the total cost of renovation when completed to be about $750,000.

The 3,000 members of the church are "very excited about getting the building renewed, in the way it looks," he said, adding, "anxious to get it done, as a matter of fact."
(Wichita Eagle ~ Sunday ~ 16 July 1995)