Have you ever wondered what life was like in Jacksonville half a century ago? It was a different era of history, culture and politics but there are often parallels between the kind of stories that made headlines then and today. As interesting as the differences may be, so are the similarities. These are some of the top stories from this week in 1963. The items were compiled from the Jacksonville Public Library’s periodical archives by Staff Writer Max Marbut.
• The City Commission unanimously voted, subject to a City bond election, to build a new airport, based on the recommendation of the Citizen’s Airport Advisory Committee.
Had the commission decided to rebuild the existing Imeson Airport, a bond election also would have been required.
The commission’s action came after receiving a report from the 22-member committee chaired by Luke Sadler. The committee was appointed by City Airport Commissioner Louis H. Ritter to study the merits of revamping Imeson compared to building a new airport on a different site.
According to a preliminary cost estimate submitted by the committee and prepared by the City’s consulting engineers, Reynolds, Smith and Hills, the total cost of a new airport would be more than $17 million. Redesigning and rebuilding Imeson would cost $24 million, according to the report.
The proposed new airport would be located about 6 miles northwest of the Imeson site, and “if all went well with the City,” construction of the new facility could begin early in 1964, said Ritter.
• Owners of the Airport Inn Restaurant adjoining Imeson Airport asked the Circuit Court to enjoin the City from permitting jet aircraft from taking off “around, over and adjacent to” the restaurant until air rights had been acquired.
Alleging that their business had been harmed by noise and debris thrown up by the jets taking off and landing at the airport, the restaurant owners also wanted the City to pay for the damages and pay for the cost of moving the restaurant to a new location.
Both suits were filed by attorney Carlton Welch for Edward Corbett and his wife, Myrtice, and Willie Green and his wife, Iris. The Corbetts and Greens were listed as owners of Airport Inn Inc., the corporation operating the restaurant.
In a separate action, the owners asked for damages totaling $75,000 from four airlines: Delta, Eastern, Northeast and United.
The injunction suit against the City was assigned to Circuit Judge William L. Durden and the suit against the airlines to Circuit Judge Tyrie A. Boyer.
• The Duval County Board of Public Instruction went on the record in favor of a priority listing for a state-supported junior college in Jacksonville with the reservation that no state funds be immediately designated for the school.
The reason behind the contradictory statement was that Duval County could not raise enough local funds to meet its 5 percent share of the tax effort required by the state.
The cost to the county for the proposed junior college to serve Duval and Nassau counties would be about $250,000. The school board said it was having enough trouble under the existing tax structure to raise money to operate the elementary and high schools.
• Betty Winstead, 17, a junior at Terry Parker High School, won one of 10 special Atomic Energy Commission awards for outstanding nuclear-related exhibits at the 14th National Science fair-International at Albuquerque, N.M.
She received a certificate of achievement and a trip to “Atomic Energy Research Orientation Week” at the Argonne National Laboratory near Chicago.
Winstead’s exhibit was a study of X-rays causing gene mutations in the fruit fly.
• The National Science Foundation awarded to Jacksonville University a $6,500 matching fund grant for use in its biology department. The grant stipulated the money be matched by local contributions to the school.
Donald Ames, JU development director, said the school’s University Council, which was engaged in a $100,000 fundraising drive, was committed to securing the matching funds from the community.
The grant would make possible several advanced courses in the fall term and would be the first step in establishing a biology laboratory, said Harold Barrett, director of JU’s Millar-Wilson Laboratory.
Barrett said the grant was of particular importance to students majoring in medical technology and to those entering the recently established school of nursing.
• The Meninak Recreation Park at Baptist Home for Children on Bartram Road was dedicated with a softball game on the new diamond and a barbecue steak dinner under the park’s pavilion.
Meninak Club members took on the home’s boys’ team and won, 9-2.
During the dedication ceremony, home Superintendent George Norton, commenting on the outcome of the game, told the Meninaks: “We know which side our bread is buttered on.”
• U.S. District Judge Bryan Simpson heard a request to hold Fred Ghioto, owner and operator of Hyde Park Golf and Country Club, in contempt of court for failure to process membership applications submitted by African-Americans and for denying them the use of the club’s facilities.
The golfers launched litigation in 1958 to integrate then-municipal golf courses, including Hyde Park and Brentwood. The City, in April 1959, closed the courses to all play and later sold both to private owners. Ghioto bought the Hyde Park course and Roland Hurley bought Brentwood.
After the new owners began the private operation of the facilities on a segregated basis, the African-American golfers returned to court to seek access to them. They claimed that because of a reverter clause in the sales contract, which provided the course would be returned to the City if they were ever used for any purpose other than golf, the City maintained a proprietary interest in them.
Simpson heard that case and denied the petition. His ruling was reversed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, and enjoined the golf course owners from discriminating against African-Americans.
Simpson scheduled a May 15 hearing on the latest motion.
• The pastor of Blanding Boulevard Baptist Church lost his bid to prevent construction of a drive-in theater near the church’s property near Blanding and Wesconnett boulevards.
Rev. Charles Crummey, appearing before the Board of County Commissioners, was told the theater, which was already under construction, had complied with all state and local regulations including the business zoning classification.
Crummey told the board he had appeared at its March 4 meeting with 432 names on a petition to bar construction of the drive-in and had been promised an investigation would be made.
County Engineer John Crosby said a probe was conducted and determined the theater was operating within the law in choosing the location.
“I have no reason to deny the issuance of a building permit. They have met all the requirements of the law,” Crosby said.
Crummey said it was his understanding there was a law to prohibit disturbing the worship services of a church, which he said the theater would do when it opened for business.
County Attorney Henry Blount advised Crummey he knew of no law specifically controlling the disturbance of church services. However, Blount said, an injured party could go into Circuit Court and seek an injunction against a nuisance if a nuisance were to exist.
“But you have to wait until the nuisance exists,” said Blount.
Blount said it might seem odd to the pastor, but the board had received numerous complaints that services conducted by certain church groups constituted a nuisance for residents in particular neighborhoods.
He suggested that Crummey attempt to establish an agreement with the owners of the drive-in to eliminate any trouble when the theater opened.
“It’s a matter of adopting a give-and-take attitude,” Blount said.
Crummey said he was opposed to the majority of films shown on public screens. “They’ll be in trouble with us the first night they open the theater,” he
said.