Music and poetry joined hands in 1917 to ring in the iconic clock of what is now Field & Main Bank.
"The Ohio Valley Banking & Trust Company has again come to the front as a public benefactor by erecting on the corner of its building a musical, electric, illuminated clock, with large dials facing in both directions" on Main and Second streets.
It came as a surprise, to me at any rate, to learn that the clock originally had chimes. And not just any chimes – it rang the traditional tune associated with Westminster Cathedral.
If you find that description a little confusing, you might want to watch this YouTube video -- http://bit.ly/2rEGUSc -- which has a similar 1918 O.B. McClintock clock going through its paces.
The story also indicates the clock originally carried the name of the bank at that time, Ohio Valley Banking & Trust. The bank has undergone a number of name changes since then, but for at least the last six decades it said Ohio Valley National Bank.
The same day's Journal edition carried a short piece, which also surprises me a little, because poetry was traditionally considered by newspaper editors to be the bane of their existence. But, yes, the Journal published a poem about the new clock. I don't know the author's name; it was written over the initials L.A.N. But it's short, so I'll reprint it in full.
"When last I heard that soothing chime.
The bank building itself didn't rate any poetry when it was erected in 1904, but The Gleaner's story was full of praise when the plans were unveiled, according to the March 25, 1904 edition.
I'm not sure when the chimes stopped working. They obviously were history when The Gleaner published a story Feb. 23, 1975, announcing the bank was setting up a special telephone line that would tell callers the time and temperature. The service was hooked to batteries to ensure the time would remain accurate even when the power failed.
However, a story by Judy Jenkins in The Gleaner of July 16, 1989, tells about the bank paying Diebold Inc. in Evansville $6,000 to rebuild the clock, which had long since failed to keep proper time. She referred to it as a "chimer," which indicates it still retained its chimes at that point, although whether they functioned is highly doubtful.
The story went on to say, "A few years ago when the bank briefly toyed with the idea of replacing the clock with a contemporary digital device that would give the time and temperature, certain history-conscious citizens strongly objected and the bank rethought the notion.
That's almost accurate. As originally built, the bank had wooden window frames, which ignited when fire struck The Princess theater next door on Second Street, according to The Gleaner of Feb. 13, 1916.
For the second year in a row Henderson's American Legion post honored local war dead by placing crosses in Central Park, according to The Gleaner of June 2, 1942.
Construction of the Henderson County Water District's distribution system was not without casualties, according to The Gleaner of June 2, 1967.
A ditch cave-in on Kentucky 1078 about four miles east of Zion killed Carl Wayne "Curly" Lewis, 21, of Henderson. Jesse Dollar, 31, of Fayetteville, Tennessee, was also in the ditch but was able to cover his face and dig an air hole through the dirt until he could be freed, which took about 50 minutes.
The C.F.W. Construction Co. of Fayetteville was in the process of extending water service to all of the county's smaller communities under a $2 million contract.
Dark horse candidate Tom Barlow unseated longtime U.S. Rep. Carroll Hubbard in the Democratic primary, according to The Gleaner of May 27, 1992, although Henderson County favored Hubbard.
Hubbard was Kentucky's first incumbent member of Congress to lose a primary since 1978. He had been crippled politically by numerous overdrafts at the House bank.