Friday, April 21, 1961

• June 1 was announced as the official opening date for the new $50,000 Elks Club Pool. The pool is the largest in the region, measuring 100 feet long and 50 feet wide, with an additional diving area that is 35 feet square. The facility is only open to Elks members, but the club has more than 500 families signed up to use the pool this summer. Swimming hours will be 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, with three lifeguards on duty at all times.
• Salisbury’s firemen have named a new chief, Wilson S. Taylor. A 30 year department veteran, Taylor has long been affiliated with Station 2, and was for 26 years the leader of the “Fight Fire For Free” effort, which sought to keep Salisbury’s ranks a volunteer effort. Four years ago he closed his service station and became a paid fireman, rising to assistant chief and shift leader.
• Mrs. Wilson R. Shores of Hebron received a medal and citation from Henry Baldwin Jr., Maryland secretary of the National Police Officers Association of America, which posthumously honored her late husband, Patrolman Henry T. Stephens. The Salisbury police officer was shot and killed Sept. 6, 1958, in the line of duty. Attending the ceremony was the slain officer’s 2-year-old daughter, Cheryl, who was born after her father’s death, as well as Mayor Boyd E. McLernon, Police Chief William J. Chatman and Patrolman Levin R. Kenney.
• Maxwell Reed of Salisbury man was fined $250 for possession of alcohol with intent to sell and Robert Roy White forfeited $503 by failing to appear in People’s Court to answer bookmaking charges. Reed operates a gas station on Lake Street. White, 55, operator of the Boulevard Tavern at 434 South Salisbury Boulevard, was charged with taking bets within his establishment on April 4. Both charges arose out of raids conducted by the Salisbury Police.
• Despite additional revenues from state sales and tobacco taxes that were expected to add about $300,000 to the Wicomico County’s coffers, County Council members were mum on the possibility their upcoming budget might reduce the county tax rate of $1.96 per $100 of assessed property value.
• J.W. Ferry, president of Salisbury National Bank, said the bank’s move to increase capitalization was a success with the complete sell-out of 12,000 additional shares. The shares were offered to current holders at $25 per share, but many of those purchase rights were sold through the local firm of Laird, Bissell and Meads. The sale was expected to boost the bank’s corporate structure to between $1.2 million and $1.5 million.