This Week in History October 8-14

10 years ago:
Leon Corse, owner of Corse Farm Dairy, was on the cover of the Deerfield Valley News with his recently-acquired 1925 Durant Star. Owning the rare 91-year-old all-original car was a lifelong dream for Corse, who had admired antique cars since he was in high school. It was not the first time a Star had been parked at Corse Farm. At one time, Corse’s grandfather, Merroll Corse, owned the same year and model Durant, which he purchased new when he was 21 years old.
15 years ago:
Wilmington firefighters gave selectboard members an earful over what they said was poor treatment by the board and especially the town manager in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Irene. Firefighters said they were the first to respond during the flood, but the last in line for cleanup and repairs to the flooded Wilmington firehouse. Wilmington Fire Captain Bill Spirka said he was “completely and utterly saddened” by the situation. During the meeting, the board sent town manager Fred Ventresco out of the room to contact two bidders that March recommended. Although he was initially unsuccessful, Ventresco and March agreed at the meeting to hire the lowest bidder who could start the following day.
20 years ago:
“The ’Stack is back” read a headline on the front page of The Deerfield Valley News, trumpeting the ground-breaking ceremony at the Haystack Club, founded by Bob Foise. Foise called Haystack a “jewel that hasn’t been recognized,” and predicted it would become “the finest place anybody’s ever seen.” Gov. Jim Douglas was on hand for the event and said of Foise, “The future is in entrepreneurs like you.” Just four months later, however, Foise abruptly halted construction on the private resort, refunded the memberships he had sold, and began squabbling with local officials over unpaid fees and taxes.
25 years ago:
Deerfield Valley Supply was celebrating the grand opening of their new store, located on Route 9 in the former G.S. Precision building.
Halifax resident Kathy McLean, a member of a disaster medical assistance team, went to “Ground Zero” in NYC. McLean said the site, which rescue workers called “the pile,” was a “nightmare,” but the welcome she and other rescue workers received from New Yorkers was “emotional.” The DMAT team was responsible for the care and treatment of rescue workers.
30 years ago:
The East Dover Fire Department celebrated 48 years of service to the community with an open house at the firehouse. The department was created in 1948 after Earl Yeaw’s house and farm burned to the ground as the family and neighbors stood by, helpless. In those early years, the East Dover department was the only one in Dover, serving East Dover, Dover, and West Dover. The first chief was Archie Clark, and the department’s first truck was a Chevy flatbed with a 250-gallon tank, a Maxim portable pump, and over 1,000 feet of hose.
35 years ago:
The state ruled that Wilmington would need Act 250 permits for improvements to Ray Hill Road and Shearer Hill Road.
The federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission shut down Yankee Rowe Nuclear Power Station after a new study suggested that the plant’s pressure vessel could be more likely to fail than had previously been thought.
40 years ago:
Authorities had no luck in their search for Jonathan Lappin, an autistic man who had been missing for more than a week. The missing man was a 23-year-old student at Green Meadows School on Stowe Hill Road in Wilmington. At the time of his disappearance, he was on a hike with two other students and two counselors. According to witnesses, Lappin was afraid of heights and decided to wait at some rocks near the mountain peak while the others moved forward for the view. When the group turned back, he was gone. More than 2,000 volunteers spent thousands of man hours during the eight-day search, but Lappin was never found.
Mount Snow owner SKI LTD announced record profits. Gross revenues increased by 16.6% to $56.5 million, and the company’s net income increased by 26.5% to $3.5 million. Mount Snow accounted for one third of the company’s gross revenues and earnings.
50 years ago:
Haystack Ski Area owners American Mortgage Investors Inc. were predicting a great season at the financially troubled resort. Tom Barber, AMI’s interim resort manager, said Haystack was “in better shape than it ever has been.”
Bertha and Erving Dunn, owners of Dunn’s Gas Station and Store in West Dover, were glad to be leasing their store to David and Cammy Allen, after a previous lessee failed, forcing the two retirees to return to work to get the business back in the black.
55 years ago:
The Deerfield Valley News published the first Fat City Comix, drawn by and featuring singer and musician Sweet Pie, whose real name was Paul Winer.
Local residents hoped that, by the end of the following year, telephone calls between Bennington and Wilmington would no longer incur a toll charge. According to New England Telephone officials, a customer survey showed that Wilmington residents “definitely wanted the service.”