In this week’s archives of the Cherokee Scout and Andrews Journal:
10 years ago – Aug. 27, 2014, Scout: Voting was set for three seats on the Blue Ridge Mountain Electric Membership Board of Directors amid a scandal. Former chair Terry Taylor was accused of not paying $48,643 in power bills for his company, Taylor & Taylor.
- Murphy Middle School teacher Mary Beth Cornwell published a children’s book called She’s Still My Mother. Her neighbor, Cecilia Champion, said the book will touch everyone’s heart, regardless if they have a disability. Cornwell lost a leg during a motorcycle accident five years before.
- After losing to Darlington the year before, Murphy crushed the Tigers 35-12 to kick off the football season. Senior running backs Gaige Cox and Deion Johnson combined for 271 yards and three touchdowns.
Aug. 28, 2014, Journal: Cellular 911 calls in the Andrews Valley were being temporarily routed to Robbinsville because the local Verizon tower was not set up with enhanced 911 features.
- Jane Blue of Woodbridge, Va., was hired as the new librarian at the Andrews Public Library. She also served as a U.S. Air Force and Army broker.
25 years ago – Aug. 25, 1999, Scout: Enrollment at Tri-County Community College in Peachtree reached 1,250 students, an all-time high for the 30-year-old institution.
- Robert Garland of Hiwassee Dam, owner of Vengeance Creek Stone, talked with the Cherokee County Economic Development Commission about improving access to the industrial park in Ranger.
- Mitchell Allen Harris, 22, of Madisonville, Tenn., was killed when the all-terrain vehicle he was driving wrecked on a dirt trail in the Nantahala National Forest.
Aug. 26, 1999, Journal: If alleged Olympic bomber Eric Rudolph would agree to surrender, the International Bureau of Missing Persons would “guarantee his safe transition into custody with the Southeast Bomb Task Force.”
- The Rock Christian Youth Center in downtown Andrews was in need of renovations. Dr. Edna Seal donated the building to be used for a faith-based youth center. Update: We’ve missed The Rock ever since it closed.
50 years ago – Aug. 29, 1974, Scout: Charles Clinton Odom was found dead inside his locked mobile home in Grape Creek. An autopsy showed he died from natural causes.
- The Cherokee County Chamber of Commerce received a grant to print new brochures designed to attract more tourists to the area.
- Murphy head coach Terry Postell said the Bulldogs were a bit “overconfident” heading into the 1974 high school football season.
Aug. 28, 1974, Journal: Former Andrews resident Shirley Ann Jones Myers was called “a heroine” after throwing herself into the path of an oncoming car to save a 4-year-old neighbor child in Marietta, Ga. Myers suffered four broken bones and back injuries, but the child was not hurt.
- Cherokee County residents were still continuing recovery and cleanup efforts after three tornadoes struck in April. The Disaster Relief Program was helping the 89 families made homeless by the storms.
– Publisher David Brown