ARRIVING IN STYLE
The staff of the Ellsworth County Independent-Reporter has collectively earned 31 awards in the 2024 Kansas Press Association Awards of Excellence contest. The staff was honored to receive 14 first place awards, 12 second place awards and five third place awards.
WILSON — A bit of fireworks at Monday night’s Wilson City Council meeting eventually led to an expulsion.
Residents young and old alike paused Monday afternoon to take in the partial solar eclipse.
The Kansas Bureau of Investigation initiated an ongoing investigation of personnel of the City of Ellsworth after allegations were made against them.
KANOPOLIS — In a short meeting April 9, the consensus ‘no news is good news’ was discussed relating to the city’s proposed water tower project.
After an absense of several years, the Ellsworth High School Alumni Banquet will take place Saturday, May 25, at the Ellsworth American Legion Hall. The Ellsworth Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 6485 and Ellsworth American Legion Post 174 worked together to revive it.
Lloyd William Kottman, 75, passed away Friday, April 12, 2024, in Ellsworth, Kan. He was born Nov. 20, 1948, in Ellsworth to John and Merne (Hunter) Kottman. Lloyd was a lifetime resident of the Ellsworth area where he was a farmer and rancher. He married Carol Lyne in Ellsworth on Dec. 30, 1972.
Reta Gaynell Brouillette passed away peacefully on March 25, 2024, surrounded by her loved ones. She was born on Aug. 5, 1948, to George and Mildred Egbert in Dodge City, Kan.
Burl E. Brooks, 79, of Girard, Kan., died at 7:50 a.m. Wednesday, March 27, 2024, in the Girard Medical Center, Girard.
Burl was born Dec. 4, 1944, in Pritchett, Colo., a son of George and Arthenia (Hardy) Brooks. While growing up, the family lived in various cities and Burl graduated from Quinter High School, Quinter, Kan.
Brian M. Pancake, 65, of Salina, Kan., passed away Tuesday, March 19, 2024, after a long battle with cancer. He was born on Oct. 8, 1958, in Salina, to Gerald and Albina (Zvolanek) Pancake.
Teams compete at historically difficult Smoky Valley meet
MINNEAPOLIS — At the Minneapolis meet April 9, the golf team found success, earning a third place finish and new individual medals.
Photojournalism was my path into the newspaper world.
When the end-of-trail cattle towns are recalled, the names of Abilene and Dodge City lead the conversation. Newton, Ellsworth and Wichita were all busy cattle centers, but there were other cattle towns that are rarely recognized. The onslaught of settlement and a westward moving state ban against the open movement of Texas cattle had closed the Ellsworth market. Seventy-seven miles to the west Ellis was selected by the Kansas Pacific Railway to inherit the cattle trade in 1876.
Apparently, science has spoken, and I am not impressed with the conclusion. I recently came across an article that had me shaking my head. Then I did a full investigative deep dive into the subject matter. A linguist and author by the name of Gretchen McCulloch has determined that punctuation, at least in text messaging, is not only unnecessary, but can be offensive. According to her research, Generation Z (born roughly in the late 90s and early 2000s) and younger have a tendency to view punctuation in digital communication as passiveaggressive or even flat out aggressive.
Dodge City came by its reputation honestly. “The Beautiful Bibulous Babylon of the Plains” was a magnet for adventurers and opportunists of all kinds.