100 years ago, 1915
A final decision in the famous Warner fire cases has been received in the form of a rescript overruling the motions of the defendant, the Maine Central Railroad Co. and upholding the verdicts for the plaintiffs, aggregating $1,523.53. The suit grew out of the burning of a store at Leeds Junction in 1912. The plaintiffs alleged that the fire was caused by sparks from a Maine Central Railroad locomotive and when the case was first tried in September 1913, won verdicts totaling $2,900.

50 years ago, 1965
Auburn firemen made simple work of an early morning call to a Main Street address. For firemen it was a simple matter of throwing a switch. Firemen were summoned at 4:21 a.m. to the apartment property when the apartments became too hot and occupants were unable to operate a thermostat. According to firemen, the trouble was with a stuck thermostat. There was no fire other than in the furnace. Firemen threw the master switch to cut off the furnace. Repairs to the thermostat were made later.

25 years ago, 1990
The white tree lights that adorned the downtown area until this week are not Christmas decorations but “brighteners,” according to Robert Berube of the Downtown Development and Management Corp. “We decided to leave the white lights on hardwood trees up after the Christmas season,” Berube said. “They keep the downtown area bright” during the winter which is marked by short period of daylight and long workdays for the professionals and retailers who work downtown. The lights, part of the holiday season’s decorations, are coming down this week, Berube said.

The material in Looking Back is reproduced exactly as it originally appeared, although misspellings and errors made at that time may be edited.