Tag: Bluefield Daily Telegraph

Mooove! Cows Block Train Tracks In West Virginia

Trains had to be stopped along a stretch in southern West Virginia as authorities tried to coax three cows off of railroad tracks.

The cows appeared on the tracks in the city of Bluefield on Monday evening, the Bluefield Daily Telegraph reported.

Witness Angie Sharp said the cows came from a wooded area and made their way down a street into downtown Bluefield.

Bluefield police used a livestock trailer to try to corral the cows. The cows broke away at one point before being herded back toward the trailer. Onlookers snapped photos and videos of the cows from across the tracks near Bluefield State College.

Officers finally caught the cows after darkness fell, the newspaper reported.

Mercer County dispatchers said Norfolk Southern halted train traffic in the area while the chase was on.

October 12, 1953: Hugh Ike Shott Died at 87

Hugh Isaac Shott died on October 12, 1953, at age 87. “Hugh Ike,” as he was known, was born in Staunton, Virginia, where he learned the printing trade. He moved to Bluefield and served as a clerk on N&W Railway.

In 1896, he purchased the weekly Bluefield Telegraph newspaper and switched it to a daily publication. His timing was great because the Bluefield area was growing by leaps and bounds thanks to the rapid spread of coal mining in the area.

Shott built a communications empire in Bluefield, including the morning Daily Telegraph, the afternoon Sunset News, a printing company, and WHIS radio. This pioneering station used Shott’s initials as call letters and broadcast from a penthouse studio atop the luxurious West Virginian Hotel. It launched the careers of a number of country stars, including the Lonesome Pine Fiddlers and Lynn Davis and Molly O’Day.

“Hugh Ike” Shott also served two terms as a Republican congressman and a short stint in the U.S. Senate. After Shott’s death, his sons and grandsons—including three sets of male twins—expanded the family business operations, including the addition of WHIS-TV.

Minimal Damage from Fire in Tunnel Along W.Va.-Va. Border

Officials say a Christmas night fire caused minimal damage to an Interstate 77 tunnel along the Virginia-West Virginia border.

The Virginia Department of Transportation says all lanes of the East River Mountain Tunnel were opened at 12:38 a.m. Friday morning following a vehicle fire in the southbound lane of the tunnel.

The Bluefield Daily Telegraph reports that officials will have to do some small pavement and tile repairs in the coming days.

Emergency officials say Bluefield and Green Valley-Glenwood fire departments in West Virginia and Bland and Rocky Gap fire departments in Virginia responded to the blaze.

The West Virginia State Police, Virginia State Police, Mercer County Sheriff’s Department, Virginia Department of Transportation, West Virginia Department of Transportation and Mercer County Emergency Management also responded to the scene.

W.Va. Troopers Give Motorists $100 Bills Instead of Tickets

Several motorists in the Princeton area got a surprise when they were pulled over by West Virginia State Police troopers.

Instead of a ticket, the troopers gave each motorist a $100 bill.

First Sgt. M.R. Crowder tells the Bluefield Daily Telegraph that Monday’s giveaway was a Secret Santa project funded by an anonymous donor.

Spanishburg resident Marie Davis says she wondered what she had done wrong when she was pulled over. She says the trooper asked her if she felt lucky, and then handed her $100 and a candy cane.

Davis says the money will help pay for Christmas dinner.

Trooper D.C. Graham says people’s dealings with law enforcement are usually negative, and it’s a privilege to bring joy instead.

Exit mobile version