Ridgeway News -- September 2, 2026

RCBA: The Ridgeway Community Betterment Association has changed their meeting night and will now meet on the second Thursday of each month. The September meeting will be Thursday, September 10 at 7 pm in the Ridgeway Community Room in City Hall. The group will continue making plans for the remaining events of the year including Halloween and Christmas activities. Area residents are invited to come to help plan and volunteer so that these events can be a great success!

BINGO: The next Bingo Night will be October 5 with a Halloween or fun Fall Outfit contest for both youth and adults. Bingo is sponsored by the Ridgeway Community Betterment Association (RCBA) usually on the first Monday of each month at 6:30 pm in the Community Room at City Hall except during months where the first Monday is a holiday. Fun for the whole family!

TRUNK-OR-TREAT: Save Saturday, October 24 for the annual Trunk-or-Treat and Halloween costume contest. More details will be provided later. This event is sponsored by the Ridgeway Community Betterment Association.

SCHOOL NEWS: The Ridgeway Owls started the 2026-27 school year with a busy week. The first day of school ended early; they had a potato bar for their lunch on the second day in memory of Dolly Parton as potatoes were her favorite food. Students were invited to Prayer at the Pole on Friday morning, some of the teachers and staff took part in CPR training and high school and junior high students ended the week with a Back to School dance in the school gym.

SOCIETY: Save the date for the Ridgeway UMC Lord’s Acre dinner and sale on Saturday, October 31 at the Methodist church. Lunch will be served from 11 am to 1 pm and the sale will be a tag sale and raffle.

CLOSING: If you know of any events or plans around town that you would like to see shared with others, please send me the details by Sunday evening! Thank you for reading!

Upcoming Events

Sep 7 – Labor Day

Sep 10 – RCBA Meeting, 7 pm, Ridgeway Community Room

Sep 21 – Board of Aldermen meeting, 6 pm, Ridgeway Community Room

Oct 3 – RCBA Scrapbooking, 10 am to noon, Paula’s Sewing Corner, 408 Main St.

Oct 5 – Bingo, 6:30 pm, Ridgeway Community Room

Oct 24 – Trunk or Treat, TBA, Ridgeway City Hall

Oct 31 – RUMC Lord’s Acre Sale & Dinner, 11am – 1 pm, Ridgeway United Methodist Church

Ridgeway News Updates

To send in an item for the Ridgeway News or subscribe to the email list, send an email to RidgewayCBA@gmail.com. Emailed copies are sent out Friday mornings at 6 am.

You can find every Bit of History item as well as flyers for upcoming events on the RCBA website: ridgewaycba.blogspot.com

For the most current updates, follow RCBA on Facebook! Find it by searching for @RidgewayCBA.

Bit of History -- September 2, 2026

From the front page of the Ridgeway Journal dated September 3, 1931:

The Lewis Cafe building, owned by L. Y. Spragg, caught fire during the early hours of the previous Wednesday morning. Ridgeway fire fighters were called out early enough that the fire was brought under control quickly, despite the fact that the fire bell didn’t “function as it should and a lot of people didn’t even hear it.” The fire originated in the kitchen and was first detected by Mrs. Lewis who lived over the Cafe. “Presumably it caught from a defective flue or was the result of electric wiring.” After the fire, the Lewis family moved to the Linch Graham property.

After the fire, the editor wished that “the next time Ridgeway has a fire, it would happen before bedtime or about time to get up in the morning.” He would rather sleep than have to roll out of bed to fight a fire which “is not a pleasant pastime.”

“Two aeroplanes” flew around Ridgeway but “did not stop long enough to get acquainted.” They were from Trenton and also stopped in Blythedale.

The editor, Fred M. Sanderson, wrote a long column describing a trip he and his family took to see friends and family back home “in the county of Ray.” They stopped in Knoxville, Morton, Orrick and Lawson, visiting and collecting gifts of produce and chickens along the way. They enjoyed their visit, especially getting to see their youngest grandson.

The First National Bank, which had closed permanently eight months earlier, announced a second dividend of 15% which was to be paid to depositors. This was in addition to the 40% which had been paid earlier. “This is considered to be very good management on the part of the receiver, W. J. Gebhard.”