100 years ago

July 31, 1914

FORT SMITH -- It was announced today that there is no hope for the prohibitionists and those representing the liquor interests agreeing on a proposition to extend the time of closing saloons and it is expected that every saloon will close Saturday when Judge Daniel Hon enters his formal order in the Circuit Court, declaring that the licenses were granted on petitions that did not contain a sufficient number of signatures. According to leading prohibitionists, the proposition advanced by representatives of the liquor interests to extend the closing time until October, has never been considered. Fifty-four saloons and liquor houses will be affected by the order, and for the first time in more than 100 years, Fort Smith will be dry.

50 years ago

July 31, 1964

• Management of the Capitol Club, the basement cafeteria at the State Capitol, moved quickly today to forestall any more integration attempts such as occurred Thursday. After a Negro woman sought service yesterday and was refused, the Capitol Club blossomed out with a painted door, a sign "Capitol Club" and a uniformed guard on duty. Employees of the capitol are eligible for membership upon payment of dues of $1. Until yesterday the door had remained wide open with business as usual and white persons with or without cards were being admitted.

25 years ago

July 31, 1989

• One former and three current Westchester subdivision residents braved Saturday's torrid temperatures to continue their protests of a proposal to allow construction of a grocery store at Arkansas 10 and East Taylor Loop Road. "A land use plan is in effect and we need to stick by it," said Valerie Brown outside the Safeway store in the Tanglewood Shopping Center at Cantrell Road and Mississippi Avenue. "We don't want the highway to get stripped out like Rodney Parham Road," Brown said. On Tuesday night the Little Rock Board of Directors will consider a Planned Commercial Development application for the supermarket.

10 years ago

July 31, 2004

BATESVILLE -- A private company that operated a juvenile detention center says a shortage of inmates made the facility too expensive to continue operating, and has shut it down. The White River Regional Juvenile Detention Center at Batesville closed Friday. Independence County Judge David Wyatt said problems with the state and those contracted to operate the center, among other things, led to its closure.

Metro on 07/31/2014