EDITOR’S NOTE: Superiorland Yesterdays is prepared by the reference staff at the Peter White Public Library in Marquette.

30 years ago

MARQUETTE — The first time Cpl. Larry Grimsby of the Marquette Police Department walked into a downtown business without being summoned there, people were a little surprised. Grimsby and about two dozen other uniformed Marquette officers are visiting businesses regularly as part of a new program dubbed “Park, Walk and Talk.” Developed by Capt. Orville Dishno of Marquette, the program calls for officers to leave their patrol cars and pound the pavement, much like the old beat cop of bygone days. The purpose, he said, is to increase police visibility and forge relationships with residents and business owners; thus heading off trouble before it starts. Beat cops, once common throughout the country, were replaced by a high-tech approach to law enforcement that depended more on machines and less on personal contact. So far, the city’s downtown area and Marquette Mall are being patrolled by officers on two different shifts. “The people I’ve talked to have a real positive reaction,” Grimsby said.

60 years ago

MARQUETTE — Prof. Alvin Fritz of the Northern Michigan College faculty will show slides on Japan as the feature of the regular meeting Monday night of the Sandy Knoll Parent Teacher Assn. The meeting is scheduled for 8, and classrooms will be open to parents for consultations with teachers at 7:30. While on a tour around the world in 1959, Prof. Fritz visited Japan and, with 21 other professors, studied the Japanese school system under the auspices of the Comparative Education Society. A record attendance is sought for Monday’s meeting, first of the New Year. Hostesses for the evening will be Mrs. John Carlson, Mrs. Charles Reichel Jr., Mrs. Walter Coolman and Mrs. Keith Hartman, assisted by mothers of sixth graders.