Fire and rain hit Cedar County in July 1944

“The Fourth of July was mighty quiet in Laurel,“ said the Advocate. Due to wartime restrictions there was no fireworks of any kind. “All the sweet young things who could find a sucker headed for some celebration. The rest of us stayed home.“ Celebrations were few and far between in 1944. Hartington was the only town in Cedar County that had anything going on. Despite the shortage of gasoline and tires, a crowd estimated at up to 6000 jammed the streets and fairgrounds to see a rodeo. According to the Cedar County News, the crowd included many car loads of people from adjoining counties as well as South Dakota.