A blast from the past, and softball stars

Barbara Donnelly is at it again.

Barbara Donnelly is at it again.

A few weeks ago, she entered the Bothell-Kenmore Reporter office with a bagful of treats from the past. If readers can recall, she did the same thing about a year ago at the Northshore Senior Center, when she donated some ancient local newspapers from her friend Elmer Carlberg (a former local newspaper reporter) to the Bothell Historical Society.

About a month from now, Donnelly will once again hand off her new batch of items to the society’s secretary, Edith Berg. Donnelly left the memorabilia in my able hands for about a week, and, yes, I returned everything to her in one piece.

The highlight for me was perusing an original copy of the Bothell Independent, circa April 4, 1904. The four-page, 8-by-11-inch paper featured a description of the town; notice of the formation of the Bothell Cornet Band; profiles of local folks, school, cemetery and more; and real-estate values (“20 acres, 40 fruit trees — $750, one mile from village”).

One notice read:

“The Bothell Independent is now in its second year, is growing steadily and enjoys the confidence of the citizens.”

We’re still on track with that one, right?

And another (note: Don’t expect me to pen something like this. I hope not!):

“If you are a deadbeat, an all-around kicker or looking for something for nothing, stay away, you’ll find no company here. Bothell wants, and holds ample reward for steady industrious men who will be a credit to our town.”

Pretty harsh, huh?

• On a positive note — and some new news — the North Bothell Little League senior softball team won the state title last weekend at Inglemoor High and will be playing in the regional tournament this week in Missoula, Mont.

No deadbeats there. A winning team effort all the way.