April 1961: “FINDERS OF BIG EGGS in last Thursday’s Easter egg hunt on Mills Lawn. Local residents donated about 2,000 eggs, which were collected by Cub Scouts and colored and “hidden” by Girl Scouts, for the annual Community Council-sponsored event, conducted by Mrs. C. S. Adams. About 500 children of kindergarten through second grade age took part.” The Mills mansion, built by Judge William Mills, is in the background. (YS News archive photo)
News from the Past: April 2025
- Published: April 30, 2025
75 years ago: 1950
Mrs. Charity Brown Dies. “Born a Slave, the daughter of Samuel and Eliza Williams, Mrs. Brown estimated her age from the fact that she was big enough to ‘shoo flies’ off the dining table at the time of the end of the Civil War, and concluded that she was probably born in 1860.”
200 Archers Shoot in Glen Helen Meet. “More than 180 archers braved threatening weather Sunday to compete in the Yellow Springs Archery Club’s annual rover meet in Glen Helen. Bowmen and bowwomen from Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky and Florida were in attendance.”
Telephone count jumps. “A big increase in local phone service since V-J Day in 1945 was noted by Ohio Bell Telephone Co … as the company delivered its annual phone book last week and this. The Yellow Springs exchange now has 1,280 phones instead of the 745 it possessed at that time. The Clifton exchange has 161 phones listed in the new book.”
Planning for new schools. “An unofficial census of Yellow Springs shows an increase of 37 percent in the population since the 1940 census. It reveals a population of 2,249 here. The count [was] taken in January and February by members of an Antioch College statistics class … to determine the number of pre-school children in Yellow Springs. … The students decided they might as well count the entire population of Yellow Springs while they were about it. … The survey found 354 children under school age.”
50 years ago: 1975
Glen Garden Plots for Rent. “About 15 50 x100 foot garden plots are available to local residents in Glen Helen in the field west of the entrance to the Yellow Spring [off Route 343]. A $15 fee will be charged.”
Blood tests for Co-op Members. “Members of the Yellow Springs Better Health Cooperative will have blood samples taken Sunday, 8 a.m.–1 p.m. and Monday 8–11 a.m. Monday at Bryan Center. Results of the ensuing blood tests will be explained at a May 21 meeting. This is the first of regular blood tests for Health Co-op members, to be given at six month intervals.”
Bushworks to Open. “Former Yellow Springs residents Chelsie and Pete Bush will open their shop, ‘The Bushworks,’ tomorrow. The shop is located at 144 Cliff St., next to the Lumber Co. Their services will include welding, repair, custom fabrication and a wide variety of metal work. They will be joined later this month by their brother John, who will provide furniture repair, refinishing and fabrication services.”
Covered Bridge to Be Moved to Glen. “The Caesar’s Creek covered bridge will soon be on its way to a new home in the South Glen, where it will span the Yellow Springs Creek below Grinnell Road. … A contract was signed Thursday … to move a 60-foot-long section from the center of the 124-foot bridge.”
25 years ago: 2000
Organic Grocery sold. “A favorite local business has changed ownership. Stacy Arnett, who owned the Organic Grocery for ten years, sold the business last week to his employee Maria Thornton-Bunkley. … The store was first opened in the late 1960’s, according to Arnett. He moved the business from 225 Xenia Avenue to its present location at 230 Kieth’s Alley in 1994.”
Glass Farm. “Council approved a resolution, 3–2, forming a partnership with Home, Inc., a community land trust (CLT), making the group responsible for coming up with a plan to develop affordable housing on the eastern third of the Village-owned Glass Farm on King Street.”
Manager resigns. “Village Manager David Heckler resigned as the Village’s top administrator, after 15 years of public service. Village Manager for the last four years, Heckler has accepted a position with Tri-Cities North Regional Wastewater Authority, where he’ll serve as general manager. … Heckler started with the Village in 1985 as assistant Village manager.”
Clover Buddies. “A new 4-H Clover Bud group is being formed in the Yellow Springs area. Open to children ages 5-8, the group will be named Clover Buddies and will meet once a month for a group session which will focus on craft projects, gardening and/or personal growth. The group will also meet once a month for a field trip to see local farms and visit other Greene County points of interest or to perform community service. … Call Beth Bridgeman … or Jessica Wyatt.”
Ten years ago: 2015
Water plant to include softening. “The need to provide softening became clear following a meeting between Village staff and the largest water users in the village, during which all reported that they spend a significant amount softening local water. … The large users, including YSI/Xylem, Antioch College and the Yellow Springs Brewery, all urged Council to add a water softening component to the new plant.”
Women help women, quietly. “When Moya Shea received an unexpected medical bill from a clinic a few years ago for a procedure she thought was covered by insurance, she was startled. Quite ill at the time, she turned to a local group for help. Not only did the Feminist Health Fund of Yellow Springs agree to pay Shea’s bill but the group’s board members told her how to negotiate to have it cut in half. … Founded in 1980, the Feminist Health Fund raises money from the community and disperses it to needy women suffering from a catastrophic illness.”
Bats crack at Gaunt Park. “The sounds of baseball echoed from the newly-renovated fields at Gaunt Park this week as the Yellow Springs High School boys baseball team opened its 2015 season. Returning for the third year are head coach Ben Cooper and pitching coach Mitch Clark. Hitting coach Kelly Dunn is new to the coaching staff and Ed Amrhein is helping as a roving scout.”
High-speed internet as Village utility. “Like electricity and water, the Internet has become a utility, say community members who are urging Village leaders to construct a fiber optic network that would provide high-speed Internet access for the entire town. As part of that initiative supporters will host a ‘Fiber Forum’ at the MVECA Data Center.”
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