Five years ago, 2020

• Michelle Cook (Sheriff) and David Broskie (Superintendent) won their primaries on Tuesday, Aug. 18. They will join fellow winners County Commissioners Betsy Condon and Kristen Burke and School Board member Mary Bolla, while Carol Studdard and Beth Clark will move to the November election since neither garnered 50% of the vote.

• The Florida Department of Law Enforcement appointed Matt Walsh as the interim sheriff after Darryl Daniels, who lost to Michelle Cook in the primary election, was suspended by Gov. Ron DeSantis after being charged with felony tampering with evidence and three misdemeanor charges of making false statements related to an affair.

• Heather Boucher was selected to replace retiring Mike Price as the Clay County Commission Auditor.

10 years ago, 2015

• The county commissioners voted to add a penny sales tax on the 2016 general election ballot.

• A new code enforcement officer in Green Cove Springs, Marcy James, is tasked with targeting $6,000 worth of violations in blighted properties.

• Lisa Wilkinson is awarded as the 4-H Outstanding Alumni of the Year.

20 years ago, 2005

• Less than two weeks after Baptist Health System announced it filed a letter of intent with the Agency for Health Care Administration to build a 92-bed hospital on Fleming Island, St. Vincent’s Medical Center and Orange Park Medical Center filed similar letters.

• About 125 Moody Avenue-area residents joined attorneys to oppose the construction of a new Walmart on Blanding Boulevard.

• Durwood Smith, co-chairman of The Citizens for Term Limits and Accountability, said he was not surprised that a Grand Jury declined to investigate corruption allegations within Clay County government of the Sleepy Hollow Borrow Pit illegal dumping scandal.

30 years ago, 1995

• Circuit Court Judge Robert Foster sentenced Bruce Neil Brock, 17, to life in prison for the shooting death of his girlfriend, Anita Sue Russell, 15.

• Clay County teachers returned to the classroom without a new contract after five collective bargaining meetings. At issue was classroom size, with some having as many as 38 students in fifth and sixth grades.

• Green Cove Springs residents urged the city council to draft, and approve, a noise ordinance about loud children playing in backyards and automobile dealerships' speaker systems.

40 years ago, 1985

• Hugh Gregan of Hardcourt Development outlined steps to build a golf course and housing on Reynolds Park.

• The Clay County District Schools officials prepped for school opening day on Aug. 26, where they expect 18,000 students.

• The Clay County Supervisor of Elections notified residents of a plan to purge 2,990 voters from its rolls due to not voting in recent elections. Voters had 30 days to respond.