Gillette histories

From the March 6, 1941 News Record:
William M. Underwood, 74, of Long Beach, Calif., pioneer merchant of Gillette and one of its best known early day citizens, died yesterday morning at his California home after an illness of three years which had made him an invalid for the past 12 months. His family had believed his condition somewhat improved during the past two weeks after a severe attack three weeks ago. A number of ailments were contributing causes. Mr. Underwood was born in Cashton, Wis. on June 5, 1866. He came to South Dakota and Wyoming territory in the 1880s, spending 1886, termed “the hard winter” in Sundance. He worked as a roundup cook and cowboy for a number of the cattle outfits then operating through this section. He settled in the little town of Gillette in 1892, operating a combined blacksmith and barber shop for some time previous to the establishment in 1897 of the Underwood Lumber Co., the first business of its kind in Gillette. Mr. Underwood, in addition to operating his lumber yard, did contracting. Buildings erected by him in Gillette include the first Goings House, the old grade school building, the Edelman building, and the building occupied by the J.N. McCracken store, which the Underwood family still owns.
From the March 11, 1954 News Record:
A fine, large mounted antelope head, given by the Gillette Rotary Club to a Reno, Nev., TV program, was picked as the grand prize of an hour-long Wyoming program last Sunday evening, it was announced by W.T. Fulkerson, chairman of the Club’s publicity committee. Through the Wyoming commerce and industry commission, the local club and its members recently learned of the Reno TV program that was going to feature Wyoming. Part of the time was to be given to a film on Wyoming’s tourist attractions and the remainder would be a quiz show in which prizes of Wyoming products would be given away. Communities in Wyoming furnished the prizes and the beautifully mounted antelope head sent by the Gillette Rotarians was selected as the grand prize by the station’s management. Fulkerson said that prior to the program, the Wyoming gifts were displayed in the windows of many stores in the main part of Reno, which gave the state additional attention.
From the March 1, 1962 News Record:
Five Moorcroft men were involved in an accident when an automobile smashed head-on into a tractor and semi-tank trailer of crude oil about 13 miles east and south of Gillette on the Tholson county road at 3 p.m. Feb. 20. The automobile, driven by Lyon A. Moore, 29, was apparently unable to stop in time to avoid hitting the tractor, which was said to have been stopped in the center of the road. Sheriff McGee said that the graveled road was deep-rutted and icy. Moore was charged with failure to control his car’s speed in order to avoid the accident.