Local News
This photo shows the entrance to “Silhouette City,” where survivalists practiced shooting at cardboard enemies at the Covenant, Sword and Arm of the Lord compound, south of Pontiac in the late 1970s. This photo was published in the Los Angeles Times in 1981.
It has now been four decades since hundreds of lawmen stormed a 224-acre compound located on a peninsula just across the Arkansas line near Pontiac, home to the far right wing, anti-government and white supremacist religious group, the Zarephath-Horeb Church, otherwise known as the “Covenant, Sword...
Ozark County Times Editor Jessi Dreckman, left, and Graphic Designer Regina Mozingo are pictured here holding three of the six statewide awards the Times won at the 2025 Missouri Press Advertising and Marketing Executives meeting in St. Louis last week - including the “Best in Show” award for The Real Ozarks magazine. The award is given to the judges’ favorite entry from all submissions in the entire show from class 1 and class 2 newspapers across the state.
The 2025 Missouri Press Advertising and Marketing Executives meeting was held last week in St. Louis. Ozark County Times staff members were honored at the meeting with six advertising awards including best in show of all Missouri class 1 and class 2 newspaper submissions - and Times owner Norene...
Brynlee Johnson, daughter of Laramie and Brianna Johnson of Howard’s Ridge, loved visited with the Easter Bunny at Pontiac’s egg hunt last year.
Editor’s note: Share information about a local Easter egg hunt for next week’s Times by emailing jessi@ozarkcountytimes.com.
If you feel like Easter is later than usual this year, you’re right. The holiday will be celebrated next Sunday, April 20, almost as late as it can possibly fall.
Unlike...
Brandon Watkins shared this amazing shot of a lightning strike hitting a power pole near Watkins Auto Plus in South Fork during last week’s round of severe weather April 2. The National Weather Service confirmed an EF-1 tornado touched down northeast of South Fork that day.
It’s been a wild spring in Ozark County, with storm after storm rolling through, battering these old hills and leaving a brutal trail of destruction behind. Time and time again, it feels like the bullseye of the storm has been drawn right over southeastern Ozark County, zeroed in on the town of...
Nancy Wilson
Nancy Wilson, Kimberly Homer and Brian Ross won the three open seats on the Village of Theodosia board during the April 8 General Municipal Election. The unofficial results received from the Ozark County Clerk's office showed the following votes cast:
• Brian E. Ross, 19 votes, 21.59%
•...
Jennifer Garrison
Amanda Vandewalle and Jennifer Garrison tied, winning both of the two open seats on the Lutie School Board during the April 8 General Municipal Election. The unofficial results received from the Ozark County Clerk's office showed the following votes cast:
• Jennifer Garrison (incumbent), 81...
Sally Hambelton
Sally Hambelton, Dakota Nash and Jeffrey Lane won the three open seats in the Gainesville School District's school board election during the April 8 General Municipal Election.
Hambelton and Nash won the two open 3-year term seats on the board. The unofficial results from the Ozark County Clerk's...
Derik Collins
Derik Collins and Shelby Nold won the two open seats on the Dora School Board during the April 8 General Municipal Election. The unofficial results received from the Ozark County Clerk's office showed the following votes cast:
• Shelby Nold (incumbent), 51 votes, 29.82%
• Dylan Leroy (...
Joseph Vaughan
Joseph Vaughan, Austin Lamb and Stanton Cory Lamb won the three open seats in the Bakersfield School District's school board election during the April 8 General Municipal Election.
Vaughan and Austin Lamb won the two open 3-year term seats on the board. The unofficial results from the Ozark...
After further reviewing the damage of the March 14 tornado that tore through Bakersfield, the National Weather Service has revised its damage survey results to reflect a much bigger path - both in width and length, higher wind speeds and more related injuries caused by the twister.
Width is now...