Looking Back Loomis: 1949 - Shootout wounds Roseville officer, transient

75 years ago April 1949 William Kaseberg, a rancher in Roseville, reported a man stealing a rifle and pursued him. The man eluded William and the police were called. Roseville Police Chief William Elam and Officer Harold Munselle cornered the man, a local transient named Simon LeBano. In a shootout, Officer Musselle was wounded in the shoulder and LeBano in the head, with both being hospitalized. Fred Boyd, a 1943 Placer High School graduate, made the Honor Roll at the University of Nevada. He was a WWII veteran intent on getting a college degree. Local farmers will hear a discussion on the irrigation problems, including water holding capacity in Placer County soils and the Permanent Wilting Point concept. Playing in Auburn was "The Best Years Of Our Lives," starring Dana Andrews, Frederic March, Myrna Loy and Virginia Mayo. An idea commonly accepted was that children cannot learn to read until they have reached a certain mental maturity called reading readiness, at about 7 years old. Phonic readiness was found to be a success during second grade. One of 75 youngsters, little Danny Hardy, son of Mr. and Mrs. R.L. Hardy of Loomis, was awarded first place in the Baby Contest put on by the Tahoe Studios. Master Hardy would be a contestant for the State Prize. Loomis Postmaster R.E. Horton reported a new 1-mile rural route would be added to the present mileage, making the total 83.75 miles. The new route was on Highway 40 between the Hill-Top Cafe (now the Valencia Club) to where the old highway joins Highway 40. (Standing Guard-oral histories) Sierra College and surrounding area sits on land once owned by Japanese farm families. Homer Takahashi's father harvested pears in the area called "the quad" at the college. Lila Sasaki's husband's family farm encompassed the stretch of land to the west of the college. 50 years ago Feb. 27, 1975 Two fires destroyed properties locally. The family of Charles Thompson watched helplessly as a fire took their home in Clover Valley. Earlier that day, a blaze consumed the downtown Loomis cobbler shop owned by Frank Theirs. Also lost in that fire were 17 appliances owned by Ed Nelthorpe that were stored in the business. Marine Pvt. Roy Logan Jr., son of Mr. and Mrs. Charlie Poteet of Loomis, completed Infantry Training School at Camp Pendleton. Airman Joyce Hackbarth, a 1974 Del Oro High School graduate, will receive training in the security police field. The Rocklin Jubilee was an enjoyable event. Organizing committee members were Shannon Hesson, Kathy Robinson, Serina Hardy, Deanie Plank, Hank Gayaldo, Kay Lynne and Chairman Mrs. Kay Lynne Descoteaux. Church Women United will sponsor the 89th International World Day of Prayer with a prayer chain spanning six continents and connected in 1,000 languages. For the Roseville area, a full day retreat was planned. Western Airline pilot Larry Horton entertained Loomis School first- and second-graders with films of his aviation adventures. Annie Oakley gasped in surprise during a performance of Del Oro High School's musical "Annie Get Your Gun." Laura DuPriest played the role of Annie and her involvement with Buffalo Bill Cody's Wild West show. A historical note: A photograph showed Al Pendleton along with his son Norman as they drove into Loomis in their Thomas Flyer automobile. The car was bought in 1905 or 1906 for $5,000, second hand. They parked for all to see in front of the Loomis Drug Co., operated by Mr. and Mrs. Bill Hughs and Carl McFall's Barber Shop on the east side of the highway. Ora Crossley provided the names. 25 years ago May 2, 2000 Funeral services were held for Isamu (Sam) Fujitani, 88, a native of Los Angeles. He worked as a section foreman for the Southern Pacific Railroad for 30 years. The Placer-Nevada Cattlewoman's Association gave scholarships to high school and Sierra College students in Placer and Nevada counties. Kathy Dombrowsky of the association presented the book "Building the Beef Industry" to Loomis Librarian Beth Enright. Pastor Mark Aufdenberge, Principal Craig Kiecker and Building Committee member Judy Cortiani helped break ground for a classroom expansion for the Hope Lutheran Church in Penryn. Tuesday, March 7, will be the first Presidential Primary Election of the century. Major party candidates were Democrats Al Gore, currently vice president of the United States, and Bill Bradley, former U.S. Senator. On the Republican side were George W. Bush, governor of Texas, and John McCain, U.S. Senator from Arizona. Sandy Harris, Miguel Ucovich and Ted Gaines were in a race for a seat on the Placer County Board of Supervisors. Loomis School teacher Ed Nakamoto released salmon fry (young salmon) into the Sacramento River. The fifth-grade students raised the salmon in their classrooms starting from the egg stage. One of the old San Diego-Coronado ferries was docked on the river just below Old Sacramento. Megan Cloney, Laura Zapp and Carrie Beeman wore traditional kimonos for the 46th annual Oriental Food Bazaar sponsored by the First United Methodist Church of Loomis. Among those preparing kushiyaki were Denny Rieke, Greg Lewelling, Ken Iwasaki and Jim Makimoto. All the sushi - Imari (brown sack), Maki (rolled) and Bara (vegetable) - were made the day of the event.