Each week we’ll take a step back into the history of Great Bend through the eyes of reporters past. We’ll reacquaint you with what went into creating the Great Bend of today, and do our best to update you on what “the rest of the story” turned out to be.

Reading through the pages of this week’s Great Bend Tribune published in 1940, we found many parallels to today.  

In 1940, as August turned the page to September, the Great Bend Tribune reported on the ongoing presidential campaign, favoring Republican nominee Wendell L. Wilkie over incumbent President F.D. Roosevelt, who was then running for his third and final term as the nation faced the imminent possibility of entering the war that was currently raging in Europe. 

As reports about “A Huge Air Raid Made on England” and “Nazi Bombers Renew Attack On London After A 12-Hour Lull – Hundreds Are Killed” dominated the news this week, Wilkie was critical of Roosevelt’s trade that week with Britain of “50 overage United States destroyers for air and naval bases in British possessions,” which was done without the consent of Congress. His criticism was light. 

“Although I favor giving all the aid we properly can to England, the method chosen was bad.”

Meanwhile, Congress was finalizing an agreement on conscription legislation that would enact a “history-making peacetime selective service measure,” which would allow the military to order the enlistment of an estimated 180,000 to 430,000 Kansas men. “The number of potential registrants compares with an army announcement in Washington last week that Kansas’ quota in the first group of 400,000 conscripted military trainees would be 5,280. Plans were already underway to draft 128 draft boards throughout the state. The final age range split the difference between 21-44 and 21-30 at 21-35, and the Selective Service law was approved, and by mid-September, draft boards would be calling up the first batch of an estimated 270,000 Kansas inductees. 

Meanwhile, the Tribune reported of a “Strike at Aliens in New Citizens’ Code.” 

“Prompt house action was sought today on a new nationality code which sponsors claimed would so “drastically tighten” existing naturalization regulations that Communists, Nazis and Fascists could not acquire United States citizenship.” In essence, the legislation would repeal all existing nationality and citizenship laws and substitute a new code, the report stated. 

“One provision which Rees (a presidential advisor) said was aimed at strengthening national defense would make certain native and foreign born nationals prove they had not expatriated themselves if they stayed six months in the country of their own or their parents’ birth.” 

About a month later, Roosevelt signed the Nationality Act of 1940 into law.  It clarified who was and who was not eligible for citizenship and how citizenship could be lost or terminated. It was later repealed and  superseded by the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952. In later years, the law would be tried in the U.S. Supreme Court as violating parts of the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. 

Epidemic prompts talk of school closings

Since March, the Great Bend Tribune has been reporting throughout the week the number of positive cases of COVID-19, and more recently how schools have chosen to respond to recommendations to close or postpone opening in light of the pandemic. We found similar reports numbering positive cases of “infantile paralysis” which had reached epidemic proportions in the state in 1940. At the start of that week, 190 cases had been confirmed in the state since July 1.  But, the week before, 43 of them had been reported in what was the “biggest number since the epidemic broke out.” By the end of the week, the number jumped to 201. 

On Sept. 7, the Tribune reported “No Paralysis Here.” “Rumors of a case of infantile paralysis in Great Bend today are apparently unfounded. Dr. John Dillon, Jr., city health officer, said that he knew of no cases in Great Bend and as far as he knew there was none in the county.” 

That week, the secretary of the state board of health first recommended schools close or delay opening, a recommendation that was observed in all but two counties. “There was some sharp criticism of the recommendation, however.”  

The Larned Board of Education based their decision not to close on the fact that no cases had been reported in Pawnee County, so “the situation does not warrant the closing of schools at this time.” However, every precaution was being taken, and the school nurse was sending home any student that displayed any symptoms.  Also, “the school vacation ordered for one day during the week of the Hutchinson State Fair has been canceled.” Colleges, it was reported, were planning to open on schedule, “unless local officials decree a postponement because of the infantile paralysis outbreak.” 

By mid week, the state had reversed course. 

“The Kansas State Board of Health recognizes that the infantile paralysis problem is so vastly different in various countries of the state that no set rule can be formulated to fairly govern or rule the entire problem of the state. 

“Therefore, it is resolved that each county or city health officer of the state, in conjunction with the medical men and the school authorities, should decide the problem of  whether or not to close the schools in each individual community.

“Be it further recommended that in communities where a decision is made to keep schools closed, that a request be made that all children under 15 years of age not attend public gatherings,” this meaning children be kept away from fairs, picture shows and all other meeting places in counties where poliomyelitis is serious enough to warrant closing of schools. 

In Barton County, schools opened. But, it was reported “Children’s Excursion to State Fair Canceled.”

“Due to the infantile paralysis scare the proposed excursion for school children to the Kansas State Fair at Hutchinson, Monday, Sept. 16 has been canceled, Earl A. Spencer, county superintendent said. The excursion was arranged for by the Missouri Pacific railroad.  

“A few of the students, particularly in rural schools, had planned to take the excursion, Mr. Spencer said.” 

At the movies

So, with schools open, kids could still look forward to attending the Saturday Matinee at Great Bend’s Kansan movie theater where “Lucky Cisco Kid” starring Cesar Romero was the feature that week. Romero would enjoy a long career playing a range of screen roles from Latin lovers to the Joker on the Batman television series in the 1960s, a role which in 2013, “TV Guide” listed as one of “The 60 Nastiest Villains of All Time.”

The companion feature was “The Way of All Flesh,” with Akim Tandroff, an Armenian-American actor who some believe was the inspiration of the animated character Boris Badinoff in “The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show.”

Both movies were shown along with a serial episode of “The Green Hornet” and two other features. “Hornet” starred Gordon Jones as Britt Reid/The Green Hornet. He was a member of actor John Wayne’s stock acting company, and also an Army Reservist that served in World War II (Hollywood encouraged several actors to sign up and serve).

In 1940, for between 10 and 20 cents, a kid could spend the afternoon (or about three hours) at the movies. That’s less than $3 in today’s money. Later, after World War II, the popularity of movies surged, as did budgets and performers’ salaries, which would also play a part in driving up the cost of admission. 

Slices of life

In 1940, there were two mainstream sources of news. There was the local newspaper, and there was radio. The Great Bend Tribune ran a listing of the local radio programming for station KVGB throughout the week. Fifteen-minute news spots were played 10 times a day. At 4:30 p.m. every afternoon, there was a 15-minute spot called the “Tribune Reporter.” 

There was a building boom underway in Great Bend. By the beginning of September, 92 permits had been taken out for new homes and garages since the start of the year. Soon, however, construction would contract sharply from 1942 to 1945.

Finally, that week marked the rollout of a new invention. Lipton introduced the “filtering bag.” Today, we call it the tea bag. According to the advertisement, “This method makes tea easier to prepare, and it never varies.  Ask your grocer to show you how Lipton’s have made tea-making quicker and more convenient for busy and discriminating housewives.” 

By the way, in 1940, the term “discriminating” was used differently than we typically use it today. Then, it connoted “liking only things that are of good quality: able to recognize the difference between things that are of good quality and those that are not,” according to Merriam-Webster. We found a standalone photo with a caption indicating the woman steeping tea was a “Mrs. Great Bend.” It’s likely this was a typographical error, and the surname was cut out.