Remembering Telephone Operators

     Anybody remember telephone operator days and............
     At a recent family reunion, the subject of telephone operators came up AND when/how a business transaction suddenly became much more personal.
     Example: Jo said that one time she attempted to call a girlfriend time after time but continued getting a "busy" signal. Finally, the operator chimed in, "Jo, your girlfriend lives just up the street, why don't you just walk up there."
     Then too, it was mentioned that one individual called a couple of different people seeking a certain relative but with no luck. Finally, again, an operator spoke up telling her the exact location she could find the person she was looking for........."no, no, she's not there or there, she's at so and so's house," the caller was told.
     How about it! Anybody out there got any other telephone operator stories?
K-----K
     Those of you who are historically minded, particularly regarding Boone County happenings, may find this interesting. The Kornerman was unaware and, perhaps, you are too.
     It comes courtesy of former residents Gene Keys and his wife Karen (Helm) who reside in Loveland, CO. The former owners of the Ogden roller rink, Warren and Ruth Christensen, who also now live in Loveland, asked that Gene and Karen do some investigative work while in Boone for Pufferbilly. Specifically, they were asked to find and get some pictures of a monument dedicated to the crash of an Air Force B-24 bomber that had gone down about 10 miles southeast of Boone. Warren had been interested in erecting a monument honoring the crew of that plane and, in fact, put up his own money to have such a project completed. He and some Ogden friends cared for it and the surrounding area but he never took a picture of it before moving west.
     Gene said the Boone County Historical Society was checked but had no knowledge of the monument so he and Karen started their own search. He wrote, "we started west bound on E57 south of Boone and across the river. We met several "dead ends" but finally found a farmer that told us exactly where it was located."
    "The monument is located on "K" Avenue, a mile south of E57 on the east side of the road. On E57, there is a green marker before you get to "K," indicating with an arrow pointing south, "Historical Marker 1 Mile." The site can also be reached from Highway 169 south of Ogden and turning east on E57.
     Editor's Note: It sounds as if the monument may be 10 miles southwest of Boone rather than southeast as Gene had written.
     A picture was taken, then at the Ericson Public Library, the couple found a BNR article describing the crash. On July 31, 1943, the plane was on a training mission from Topeka, KS to Duluth, MN when it encountered a severe storm and crashed. Witnesses said it went down in a "ball of flames" and there were no survivors.
     Due to the work of Gene and Karen, the Christensen's received a picture of the monument and a copy of the newspaper story and they were " very happy to receive them." Pam Schwartz, Executive Director of the Boone Historical Society, was also provided with the info and said she plans to do more research on the site so they can add it to their historical attractions map contained in the brochure they provide visitors.
K-----K
     Happy to hear from Tom Burke who has been missing from the Korner for a time. Tom wrote, " It's been my fault. I have been overly busy on several fronts and have, consequently, been a bit remiss in some of my communication. We had an issue in town here that split residents into two camps regarding some of the rebuilding after the hurricane Sandy. Not being shy, I got myself in the middle of the issue which led to a referendum and special election which the side I was supporting won. That was intertwined with some minor, yet significant, issues I have been having physically."
     Tom also explained he had to get a new computer and lost some email addresses during the transition, including that of the Korner.
K-----K
     One of Tom's buddies, John Kueck, informed us of a web link that proved interesting. It was a pictorial tour of all of major league baseball's parks. John said he and wife, Sue, live just a few blocks, walking distance, from Target Field, home of the Minnesota Twins and when he was a kid, the family went to Milwaukee and Wrigley Field for games.
K-----K
     A couple of people who were important to our community have passed recently. Rev. Thomas Geelan, 78, who served Boone Sacred Heart for several years, died in Ruthven, IA and his services were held there.
     James Henry Andrew of Jefferson, 93, passed away and services will be held Thursday in Jefferson. Andrew is the gentleman who had some 5,000 railroad items that he donated to the James H. Andrew Railroad Museum here at the Boone and Scenic Valley Railroad site in 2012. He was also a main financial contributor to the Museum.
K-----K
     Worldwide Korner headquarters are located at 710 Aldrich, Boone, Iowa 50036-4703. Phone number is 515-432-1530. To email your stories/memories/comments/support.........
kelleyskorner1@gmail.com