April 21, 1966

It’s horse show time again

As sure a harbinger that the fair season is here and a promise that balmy weather will replace the chills of early spring are the crop of horse shows announcing themselves on telegraph poles and other prominent display posts. First among the local shows in time if not size is the Ravenhill Academy Show to be held this Sunday at 3480 W. Schoolhouse Lane. The Ravenhill Show is not all beautifully groomed horseflesh being put through paces by able young riders. The popular event also includes a country fair, with boutique items for sale, flowers, plants, lemon sticks, baked goods, handcrafted items, even an art exhibit which includes a pottery display. There will be penny candy, yard goods, clothes for children and so on. The day will be highlighted by an Italian-style dinner. The Princess Caroline Trophy, named after Princess Grace’s daughter, will be awarded to some talented rider.

April 22, 1976

Long, varied ballot will face voters

Area residents will go to the polls on Tuesday to nominate a U.S. senator, a U.S. representative, the state auditor general, the state treasurer and state representatives. Voters will also choose convention delegates and consider a ballot question. The winners will compete for those offices in November’s general election. Although voter turnout at primaries is traditionally low, several candidates have been campaigning vigorously to attract voters.

Crime program’s staff proposes youth worker

The Chestnut Hill Crime Prevention Program’s present staff has submitted a proposal for a full-time youth worker. The youth worker recommendation developed because “vandalism continues to plague most neighborhoods, particularly the schools. There is evidence of increased underage drinking and some continued activity in the drug market,” the proposal states. Inadequate community recreational and counseling facilities for teenagers and “lack of good parental supervision, including the failure on the part of some parents, to recognize the problem or take appropriate action when they do” were given as additional reasons for hiring a youth worker.

April 24, 1986

Speeding buses

The speed of L buses on East Evergreen Avenue was the topic of complaint at the April 7 meeting of the Traffic and Transportation Committee. Complaints about buses exceeding the speed limit of 25 mph were voiced by several residents of the street. The residents were urged to write to SEPTA.

Hiller wins Pulitzer Prize for IRS series

Arthur W. Howe, a Chestnut Hill resident, last week was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for national reporting for a year-long investigation of the Internal Revenue Service. Howe, a business reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer, wrote 58 stories in 1985, resulting in the overhaul of the IRS and the resignation of its commissioner. After one of those stories was written, the IRS called Howe and other reporters for a three and a half hour meeting which the Hiller said was “less than polite.”

April 25, 1996

Fund gifts running $1,000 plus per week

Contributions to the 1996-97 Chestnut Hill Community Fund drive continue to come in at the rate of more than $1,000 per week. Goal for this year’s fundraising effort is $70,000, up from an original target of $50,000. This year’s drive marks the first time that people were solicited a second time through a personally addressed letter. Another letter will go out to persons who may have contributed in the past but did not give last year.

GFS students plant 150 trees

Armed with shovels and seedlings, approximately 40 members of the Germantown Friends School community gathered at a site along the Wissahickon in Chestnut Hill on Saturday and planted 150 trees for the school’s second annual Wissahickon Day. Students, alumni, parents, faculty and staff joined in the finale to GFS’s first annual Week of Service. It inspired more than 500 members of the school community to spend some time during the week volunteering their service.

April 20, 2006

FOW wary of proposal to dump park commission

Leaders of the Friends of the Wissahickon appreciate the recent interest in park reformation in City Council, but are worried that the proposed merger of the Fairmount Park Commission with the city’s Department of Recreation is being pushed too aggressively and too soon. The FOW has joined numerous organizations at Council hearings on the merger. The proposed legislation would abolish the park commission, which since 1867 has comprised 16 members, each with a five-year term. With the new legislation, a 12-member Commission on Parks and Recreation would be created, with the mayor appointing members to four-year terms.

April 21, 2016

City planning project targets Maplewood Mall for renovation

Germantown is the second most historic area in the city. While William Penn first developed Philadelphia in the 17th century, Germantown -- which until the middle of the 19th century included Chestnut Hill and Mt. Airy in its 12 square miles -- was a thriving community that existed at the same time. Now help is coming to Germantown in small doses -- a sensible solution after a series of more dramatic renovation attempts in the past few decades from urban renewal through neighborhood organizations that showed few tangible results. Maplewood Mall, one of the first City Planning Commission projects in Germantown, will see a $3.3 million Commerce Department capital fund grant to finance construction of improvements.