The following are selected articles from a Newspaper titled, "The Higbee News" which was issued out of the town of Higbee, in Randolph County, Missouri from the years 1888 through 1953. The editors and owners were a wonderful man by the name of W. H. Welch and his son H. Scott Welch. This paper covered the Higbee area and also a great deal of the northeastern part of Howard county. It is because of my tremendous admiration for this father and son, that I am transcribing this paper and putting it in a more readable format, so that this work may again be brought to light, to entertain, and teach a whole new generation of the descendants of the inhabitants and neighbors of a little town called "Higbee." The copyright notice at the end of this transcript is there for the sole purpose of keeping this work free to the public, and to ensure that it is not harvested by a fee-based corporate genealogy site, or published in any format for profit. If you decide to use the information from this transcription, PLEASE LIST ME AS THE SOURCE, rather than the paper. My transcription is another generation removed from the microfilm, and would thus be a third generation copy of the original paper. I wouldn't want my own possible errors in transcription, blamed on the editors of the paper. For proper documentation, a researcher should obtain a photocopy of the microfilm for their own permanent records, and use my transcript as a guide or index. The microfilm is available for interlibrary loan through the State Historical Society of Missouri, and a copy is also on file at the Moberly Public Library, generously donated by the Higbee Historical Society. When the Higbee Historical Society disbanded, their material was donated to the Randolph County Historical Society and is still available there. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thursday, 5 Aug 1926, Vol 40 No. 14, pg. 1 Col 1--MRS. O. S. FRAY DIED WEDNESDAY--Passes Peacefully Away at Her Home Near Yates After Long Illness--Interment at Locust Grove.--Mrs. Betty Ellen Fray, beloved wife of O. S. Fray, of Yates, died at the family home on Wednesday morning, July 28, 1926, after an illness extending over many months, and after all that loving care and medical science could do for her. She was the daughter of the Rev. Ezra and M. E. Ward, and was born in Hardin county, Ky., on March 2, 1858, and was in her 69th year. When quite young she moved to Missouri with her parents and had since made it her home spending most of her life in Higbee and vicinity, and had lived in the home in which she died for the last thirty years. She was united in marriage to Oswald S. Fray on April 6, 1876--fifty years ago. To this union five children were born, three of whom died in early youth. She is survived by her husband and two children--Burch Fray of Clark and Mrs. Walter Derby. She also leaves four grandchildren and one great-grandchild, as well as two half brothers--R. G. Duncan of Marshall, and E. C. Ward of Henderson, Ky., besides a host of near and dear friends. Early in life deceased united with the Presbyterian church, to which she remained faithful unto the end. Hers was a consecrated christian life, and the Grim Reaper found her prepared to answer his call, and she stated that she was not afraid to die, and that if her time had come she was not afraid to go. her cheery smile and willing hands will not only be missed in the home, but elsewhere, as she was never too ill or too tired to give a kind word or do a loving deed to brighten the pathway of the sorrowing and suffering. Truly, she was a woman whose life was one of service and sacrifice, as many of our older residents, who knew her when the family lived among us, can testify. Funeral services were held at the home Thursday by the Rev. Wm. Mitchell, her former pastor, in the presence of a very large concourse of sorrowing relatives, neighbors and friends, and interment made in Pleasant Grove cemetery. The NEWS joins other friends in deepest sympathy to husband and children, who have suffered the greatest loss that can befall a member of the human race. Thursday, 5 Aug 1926, Vol 40 No. 14, pg. 1 Col 2--Boys Miraculously Escape Death--Leonard Rumans and J. W. Bryant were badly injured, Willard Newton and Harold Sankpill severely shocked Saturday afternoon while fishing in the Farber lake under a willow tree that was struck by a bolt of lightning. For about two hours J. W. Bryant, who seemed to have sustained the worst injury, was unconscious, while Leonard Rumans recovered consciousness shortly after he was injured. From all indications the lightning struck the tree, under which they were sitting during a light electrical storm that did not have the semblance of having much rain, about 5 feet from the top, serving to scatter the bolt which struck and stunned the boys after the force had been diminished. Young Bryant was struck on the head, rending his cap into halves, a spot about twice the size of a silver dollar being burned on the back of his head, the course following his spine to his waistline and there leaving its daring points visible on his stomach while the main force of the shock continued down to his feet, badly burning and cutting his leg. Young Rumans was not so badly shocked, yet badly burned about the arms and one leg was burned, the force of the bolt leaving one foot torn and his shoe practically demolished on that foot.--Vandalia Leader. Thursday, 5 Aug 1926, Vol 40 No. 14, pg. 1 Col 2--A Town of Bobbed Haired Women--Paris will hold front rank in any bobbed hair census list, if the record established last week on bobbed hair night at the Darr-Gray Stock Co. tent is to be taken as an average. All women between the ages of 15 and 30, who had long hair were admitted free one night at the tent. Only three of the hundreds who attended carried tresses which reached more than a inch or so below their ears. The crowd was a representative one, composed of the women of the age in question from both town and surrounding country--Paris Appeal. Thursday, 5 Aug 1926, Vol 40 No. 14, pg. 1 Col 2--Balls of Fire Follow Lightning--At noon Friday the home of P. J. Short at 323 Hagood street was struck by lightning. A hole was torn in the wall and a big ball of fire rolled across the room. Another ball was seen on the lower step of the stairway and smoke puffed as the fire went out. Mr. and Mrs. Short and the members of the family were at dinner and all saw the balls of fire. No one was hurt or even suffered an electric shock--Moberly Home Press. Thursday, 5 Aug 1926, Vol 40 No. 14, pg. 1 Col 2--John Lynch to Move Back--John Lynch, who moved to Moberly from the farm several months ago on account of his wife's health, will move back next week, and will again embark in the automobile business as a side line, and will return to his old quarters in the store room just west of Andrews and Burton's store. John is one of the best automobile salesmen in this entire section, and the NEWS is glad to know that we are to have such a live wire among us again. Thursday, 5 Aug 1926, Vol 40 No. 14, pg. 1 Col 2--Girl Killed in Car Wreck--A Moberly young lady whose name we could not learn, was killed about 9 o'clock last night on the Moberly-Huntsville road, when the driver of the car she was in endeavored to keep from hitting a car that was standing on the side of the road. The car went into the ditch and turned over, the young lady's skull being crushed. the driver of the car was also injured, but not seriously. Thursday, 5 Aug 1926, Vol 40 No. 14, pg. 1 Col 2--Arm Broken When Car Turned Over--While going to Yates Friday of last week, where he is doing some plastering and brick work, John Cook lost control of his car as he was crossing a small culvert, the car going into the ditch and turning over. Leroy Carter, who was with him, had an arm broken in the spill. The car was not greatly damaged. Thursday, 5 Aug 1926, Vol 40 No. 14, pg. 1 Col 4--Higbee Boys Making Good--The many friends of Ollie Bottoms, who recently moved to Brookfield, where he went to work for the Noel Motor Co. as salesman, will be glad to know that he is making good in a most substantial way. According to a list of sales, published last month by the General Motors Co., Ollie was one of eight high salesmen in the following zones: St. Louis, Dallas, Kansas City, Minneapolis, Oklahoma City, New Orleans and Houston. he was 100 per cent or more ahead of any other salesman in the Kansas City zone. Considering the fact that he had less favorable territory than salesmen in the large cities named, his record is certainly one to be proud of, and the NEWS, along with other friends, congratulates him most heartily. Romie Cooper, also of this place, and who is working for the same company, is also making good. Admittedly one of the best auto mechanics in this section, he has been made general foreman of the Noel garage at Brookfield, and in his line is making the same success as Ollie. Congratulations to "Nubby," also. Thursday, 5 Aug 1926, Vol 40 No. 14, pg. 1 Col 6--FORMER HIGBEE CITIZEN PASSES ON--S. M. Hirsch Dies at His Home in Nevada Sunday Following Long Illness.--Interment at Nevada.--A telegram was received by the editor of the NEWS Sunday from H. M. Hirsch advising us of the death that day of his father, S. M. Hirsch. While the news was a shock to many of Mr. Hirsch's old Higbee friends, they were not altogether unprepared for it, for they were aware that he had been ill for months from a serious stomach disorder and had understood that all hope for his recovery had long ago been abandoned. Mr. Hirsch came to Higbee some thirty years ago and engaged in the general mercantile business, and as he was a fine business man he made a success from the very first. Conceiving the idea that what the town needed, and which would be more profitable to him, was an exclusive ready-to-wear establishment for ladies--a bold venture when the size of the town and the competition was considered--he disposed of his general stock and opened his store for ladies in a new building built especially for him--now the Gem Theater, and which stands as a monument to his enterprise--while predictions were made on all sides that he would fail. But he didn't. The business prospered from the first day, and he drew trade from town thirty miles away in all directions. Wishing to engage in business on a larger scale, he moved to Nevada some fifteen years ago, where his success was equally marked. As here, he showed his faith in his home town by erecting one of the finest store buildings in the city, and later built an elegant modern home. Also, as here, he took rank as among the highest class of Nevada's citizenship, and lived respected and died regretted. He was about 65 years of age and is survived by his widow and two sons, Harry, of Parsons, Kan., who has charge of a branch store there, and Major, who had been in charge of the Nevada store since his father was first taken ill. Interment was made Tuesday at Nevada by the side of his son, Irvin, who had charge of a branch store here, and who died from flu during the epidemic of that disease some eight or nine years ago. The NEWS joins old neighbors and friends in deepest sympathy to the bereaved family. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright notice: All transcriptions in this email are copyrighted by their creator. They may not be reproduced on another site or on any printed or recorded media, CD, etc. without specific written permission from Kathy Bowlin. Although public information is not in and of itself copyrightable, the format in which it is presented, transcriptions, notes & comments, etc. is. It is however, quite permissible to print or save the files to a personal computer for personal use only. Permission is granted to public libraries, and genealogical and historical societies to print and bind for the use of their patrons. Kathy Bowlin Additions, corrections, comments welcome.