The Villagers Voice

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War Emergency Pipeline Marker – by Ed Oliver

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WAR EMERGENCY PIPELINE MARKER

By Edward Oliver

 On February 19, 1943 a pipeline was completed from Longview, Texas to Norris City, Illinois.

            Ninety-five percent of the crude oil delivered to east coast refineries in the United States at the beginning of World War II originated in Texas and was delivered by oil tankers from the Gulf of Mexico. German submarines (U-boats) were sinking these tankers at the rate of three per day with few getting through to the east coast refineries. President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed a committee to resolve this problem.  They recommended an oil pipeline be built from Longview, Texas to Norris City, Illinois and the oil then be shipped by railroad oil tank cars to the east coast refineries as well as storing supplies of oil in tanks at Norris City.

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Norris City Newspaper History 1895-2019

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 On August 22, 1895, Anthony C. Clippinger and B. B. Miller established the Norris City Record.  Graham Black bought Miller’s interest and a short time later, A. C. Clippinger and Sons bought complete interest in the newspaper.  His three sons were Ralph, Roy, and Cecil.  Roy Clippinger was later active in various newspapers in Carmi.  Roy worked with his father in Norris City until 1909, when he moved to Carmi to begin his newspaper career there.  Following the death of A. C. Clippinger, Ralph continued to operate the business until the 1930s and the depression era, when it was discontinued.  The last issue in the possession of the Illinois State Historical Library in Springfield (the Abraham Lincoln Library) is dated January 3, 1935.

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Norris City Railroads by Ed Oliver

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B. & O. Depot at Main and Division Streets, picture taken between 1900 and 1910.  Note the current location of Rusty Bucket Laundromat to left of the depot.

The last Big Four Depot, picture taken probably between 1910 and 1925.  Note the B. & O. Railroad tracks crossing the Big Four Railroad tracks.

Construction crew at Big Four freight house, across from present Southern Illinois Lumber Co. yard on South Division Street at Third Street, when tracks were being moved.  Note part of depot at left of picture.  Picture taken about 1906 or 1907.

Original Big Four Depot at South Division and West Third Streets across from the present location of the Southern Illinois Lumber Co.  Picture taken between 1900 and 1907.

          

Norris City came into existence after two railroads crossed at a site where no village or town existed. The Springfield and Southeastern Illinois (later known as the Ohio and Mississippi Railroad, and then as the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad) was built through the site in 1870.  It ran from Beardstown in Cass County (north of Flora) to Old Shawneetown in Gallatin County. The Cairo and Vincennes Railroad (later became the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis or Big Four Division of the New York Central System) was completed through the same area in 1872  It ran from Chicago to Cairo.

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the pledge of allegiance

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In my last article about Flag Day, which was celebrated on June 14, I wrote about how the flag of the United States of America developed into our present flag consisting of 13 red and white stripes representing the original 13 colonies and one white star in a field of blue in the upper left hand [Read more...]

Flag Day

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Several versions of the Flag of the United States of America were used during the Revolutionary War. One version had 13 stars in a circle in a field of blue at the upper left corner. This is the version that my great, great, great Aunt Betsy Ross is supposed to have made. The Betsy Ross Flag is [Read more...]

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