May 23, 1947

• A lifespan of 86 years, all with the exception of two years spent on the farm where she was born, came to an end Sunday evening, May 18, when Miss Rachael Scamman passed away at the Hamburg hospital. Miss Scamman was born on January 18, 1861, on a Missouri bottom farm which adjoins the site of Rock Port’s city water pumping station on the old Nishnabotna River.

• The Dallas, Texas, Daily Times-Herald ran a story about David Parker, one-time Atchison County resident who is 84 years old, who gave a church party at which the guests included 28 men and women who admitted they were over 70 years old, 26 children from an orphans’ home, and 30 special guests. Mr. Parker has had several close brushes with death and his parties are a way of expressing his gratitude at reaching an old age: He once was in a party of some 20 persons whose vehicle went into a water-filled gully and six of the 20 were pronounced dead, including him (funeral attendants attended the other five first and when they got to him, found signs of life); he once became exhausted while swimming and sank in 15 feet of water, was under for 13 minutes and was revived by pulmotor; he was shipwrecked off the coast of Alaska and floated in frigid water for several hours before being rescued; was in a train wreck in which several persons in his coach perished; and was struck by a street car and carried to a hospital near death, but recovered after several blood transfusions.

May 18, 1972

• There were 50 more births in Atchison County last year than deaths according to statistics. There were 151 live births and 101 deaths.

• Charles W. Shaw received a giant pencil as a retirement gift after 37 years as vocational agriculture teacher. Inside the giant pencil turned out to be a fishing rod.

• Rock Port R-2 graduated 40 members in the 1972 class Thursday night in the first ceremonies performed at the Blue Jay Stadium in the evening under lights as the weather threatened rain most of the time. Miss Jackie Burke was valedictorian and Miss Ann Eilers was salutatorian.

May 15, 1997

• The 11th annual Rock Port Optimist Youth Track Meet was held May 10 at Blue Jay Stadium. There were 203 students who participated. New meet records include: 6 & Under – Damond Wennihan (RP) with a tennis ball throw of 79’5”, Kallie Schoonover (MC) with a girls’ standing long jump of 5’1”, and Tanner Holmes (RP) with a boys’ standing long jump of 4’7”; 8 & Under – Taron Davis (RP) with a boys’ standing long jump of 6’6 1/2”; and 9-10 year-olds – Jessica Rolf (T) with a girls’ standing long jump of 6’10”.

• William White Chapter, DAR, was the recipient of the State Chaplain’s Oldest Cemetery Project presented at MSSDAR state conference in Jefferson City. The oldest cemetery in Atchison County is Millsap Cemetery. It was established near the homes of two early settlers, Callaway Millsap and George Harmon, who arrived with their families in 1839 just three years after the acquisition of the Platte Purchase and before Atchison County was organized. Elizabeth Millsap, six-year-old daughter of Callaway and Sarah Elizabeth Millsap, was the first burial at the cemetery, having been badly burned and dying February 2, 1843.

• Blue Jay Corner – You Know You Have Spring Fever When… By Brooke Ashford: Mr. Williams – “The Chicago Cubs are already out of the Pennant race.” Kandi Herron – “You enjoy riding around town with windblown hair.” Mrs. Miller – “You’d rather clean out a closet than anything else.”