Bloomington mourns Mayor Frank Shorthose

Jan. 7, 1924: Business will be suspended this afternoon during the hours of the funeral rites for Mayor Frank Shorthose. His body is set to lie in state in the Consistory temple at East and Mulberry streets from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., followed by a funeral service at 2 p.m. Public and parochial schools will be closed during the afternoon. Acting Mayor Frank Blose has requested the temporary closure of all other businesses between 1:30 and 3:30 p.m. 

Jan. 7, 1949: Joseph R. James, acting mayor of Pontiac, rekindled local political interest with an announcement that he had asked for the resignation of Police Chief Harold R. Davis. Interest in local politics has been keen since the recent formation of a “Peoples Party” and an announcement of that party’s slate of candidates for election April 19. 

Jan. 7, 1974: Traffic on Vernon Avenue in Normal will no longer stop at the Broadway Street intersection. Removal of signs that stopped traffic there is in keeping with the city’s designation of Vernon as a major street. Stop signs were removed in November from Vernon at Fell Avenue. Four-way stop signs at Vernon and Linden Street are to remain.

Jan. 7, 1999: Responding to nationwide concern about wrong-site surgeries, OSF St. Joseph Medical Center and Eastland Medical Plaza SurgiCenter this week began requiring many of their surgical patients to sign their surgical site before an operation.