80 Years Ago
March 22, 1939
–Lennox and Addington County councillors voted unanimously not to accept solicitor J.M. Simpson’s resignation.Simpson felt council did not have full confidence in him as he spotted W.M. Nickle, the counsel for Ernestown and Camden in a Toronto courtroom while he made his case on tax equalization. Simpson believed his position had been compromised by members of council consulting Nickle about Napanee’s legal challege of equalization.
– The Village of Tamworth was threatened by one of the worst fires in its history at David Drew’s residence. Strong northwest winds posed a threat to all of the buildings south of the residence and the heat did damage a few neighbouring structures. The local fire department put out calls to Enterprise and to Napanee for assistance. Firefighters worked a series of hand pumps to ensure there was enough water available for their effort.
– Premier George Drew was called a dictator in the Queen’s Park legislature by an opposition member. The remark came after the Conservative Drew said his government would not spend time debating its throne speech, but instead wished to move forward with the business of the legislature.
30 Years Ago
March 15, 1989
– A coroner’s inquest recommended the soil around the Napanee Mall be monitored, then removed. Testing showed the soil was saturated with more than 80,000 times the safe level of benzene, a component in petroleum gasoline. Officials from the provincial Ministry of the Environment indicated they plan to remove the soil in the spring when the ground thaws. The jury also recommended changes to the Ontario Health and Safety Act to introduce new training for workers operating in confined spaces.
– Two Napanee teens had a Florida vacation cut short when they were arrested in Harrisburg, PA for robbing an all-night fast food restaurant and gas bar. The 16 year olds, who couldn’t be identified, were accused of pulling a rifle on a 28-year-old female clerk and demanded cash. She gave them less than $100. The teens were charged with armed robbery. A Pennsylvania police official told the Beaver they would likely be handed over to Canadian officials at sentencing.
– Napanee council approved a plan to quadruple the rates for 201 downtown parking meters from five cents an hour to 20 cents. Bylaw enforcement committee chair Mac Bradshaw told councillors the rates hadn’t been altered in close to 20 years. Council also voted to remove free parking on Wednesdays and to create a two-hour limit on downtown parking compared to a previous five-hour limit.