State & Union: Turning back the clock on Olean

From cracking down on lawlessness at Rock City and finding Olean’s original East State Street to a new job for Eddie Donovan, from a big star at the county fair to a fireball in the sky, here’s a look back on the week that was 125, 100, 75, 50 and 25 years ago in this edition of Turning Back the Clock. 1901 July 23 -- The rioting and lawlessness at Rock City which has contributed to injure that poular resort will probably come to an end. Sheriff Williams swore in several new deputies to help keep order in the community during special occasions. Two men are also facing charges after an assault on Deputy Keim at Riverhurst recently. The men say someone had stolen a keg of beer from them, and when they found several men and the keg they threw hands -- not knowing that one of the men was Keim there to arrest the thief who had tapped the keg and was selling the Dotterweich brew. July 24 -- Dr. Balcom, president of the International Medical and Surgical Institute in Buffalo, will be at the Olean House in a few days to provide free care for the sick. He is making the visit “to become acquainted with the greatest number of those suffering from difficult and dangerous diseases” and promote the institute’s ability to cure diseases most doctors consider incurable. 1926 July 23 -- Charles Randall of Olean was driving home from Maryland with his family when he witnessed the worst storm he’d ever seen. The family was near Wellsboro, Pa., when it was caught in a terrific wind storm and then a rain storm. There was more evidence of a major storm along the way from Wellsboro to Galeton on the Grand Army of the Republic Highway. July 24 -- Workmen digging to prepare the stadium tunnel across East State Street to War Vets Park discovered a plank road used in the city’s infancy. The plank road was about 10 feet below the street level and was a well-preserved road. Plank roads involved laying perpendicular planks along the route, and served as the earliest form of pavement used in the region. Later, brick streets and then asphalt became the dominant road types. 1951 July 23 -- Former St. Bonaventure basketball player Eddie Donovan might land his first coaching job. Recently appointed as an English teacher at School No. 10 in Olean, the district is looking for a new basketball coach. Donovan graduated from Bonas in 1950, and would return in 1953 to coach the team he used to play for. He later went on to coach and manage the New York Knicks. July 26 -- An Alfred University survey has answered various questions about farming, such as the average farmer life expectancy, the impact of modern inventions on the farm, and how farmers are affected by housing and living innovations. The average Western New York farmer has owned his farmhouse for about 18 years. The average farm home is 69.53 years old. Across the region, 97 of 104 farm homes are owned by the present farmer, indicating a thriving small business sector, as opposed to tenant farming popular in other parts of the country. 1976 July 22 -- The Little Singers of the Cross of Lorraine will be visiting Olean on its bicentennial trip to America in August. The 100 students will sing everything from “Home on the Range” to Handel in French, Latin and English during the tour. July 23 -- This year’s Cattaraugus County Fair will feature Tammy Wynette, the First Lady of Country with 22 albums under her belt. She will perform two shows on Aug. 8. Among her accomplishments is a greatest hits album that stayed on the charts for over 60 weeks. She received two Grammies, three CMAs, and was one of the first female performers to have a country album certified as gold and platinum. She passed away in 1998 at the age of 55. 2001 July 21 -- So much to do this weekend, so little time. Allegany has turned into a tent city thanks to the Western New York Volunteer Firemen's Association Convention coming to town for four days. The Wellsville Balloon Rally is taking flight for the next three days as the Allegany County Fair kicks off in Angelica. St. John's Church in Olena's North End will run its Festa Italiana, while the Seneca Nation of Indians will host its Iroquois Veterans Pow Wow in Salamanca. South of the border, Bradford will celebrate Summerfest, and Driftwood will host its annual Tom Mix Roundup, named after the early movie star born nearby. July 24 -- A large burning ball was seen in the evening sky over the region on Monday, with reports from Virginia to Canada. The National Weather Service reported it was a meteor, however there are no reports of any debris making it to the ground. A few callers said they felt their homes shake, which could have been the blast wave from the meteor breaking up in the atmosphere.