The big news in the November 9th issue that year was the re-election of Franklin D. Roosevelt to an unprecedented fourth term. Little did anyone know that he would not live to finish his term, dying only five months later. At that time, Hernando County was predominantly Democrat.
On a lighter note, the classified ads showed how inexpensive, relatively speaking, real estate was. Someone was advertising a three-room cottage with a kitchenette in Crystal River that included a screened-in porch and a garage on three fenced-in lots with a large poultry yard and garden within 400 feet of the bay for just $2,250! I wonder how much that property would go for today?
In Brooksville, you could purchase a six-room home with one bath on a paved street on a large lot complete with forty fruit trees for $3,000 on terms. A six-room house four blocks from the courthouse was “priced to sell at $1,000 cash.”
On the war front, there was good news for a local family. Their son, Second Lieutenant Sam Hatton of the Army Air Force, was awarded an air medal for “exceptionally meritorious achievements.”
While here in Brooksville, the wife of Lieutenant Irving Boyette, who was stationed in England, gave birth to a 7½ pound baby girl – Lynne Sharon Boyette. I hope Lieutenant Boyette was able to get cigars to pass around to all his buddies.
Note: If you lived in Hernando County during the 1940s and 1950s or had close relatives that lived here during that time and would like to share news of what was going on back then, email me at [email protected]. We may print some of your observations, as space permits.
