Pomeroy Pioneer Portraits

Ten Years Ago

July 27, 2011

About 20 interested parties attended the pre-bid walk-through last week for the Pomeroy High School modernization project.

Garfield County’s 9th annual National Night Out Against Crime is set for Tuesday in the City Park.

Twenty-Five Years Ago

July 31, 1996

The Dick Baker residence on Arlington was heavily damaged by fire last week that occupied firefighters for four-and-a-half hours.

Three tractors and discs handled a fire that started on the rear of a combine last week on Dan McGreevy land on Wildhorse Road before four firetrucks and ten firefighters arrived.

X-rays taken in Pomeroy are now sent to Lewiston via tele-radiology, giving Pomeroy healthcare providers the capability of having x-rays read minutes after they’re processed rather than hours it previously took.

Fifty Years Ago

July 29, 1971

The Garfield County Fair Board voted not to make a recommendation to the county commissioners regarding the proposed music festival. Some local residents opposed the whole idea, but most expressed fear from outside groups, and were not actually opposed to the youth’s proposal except for the danger.

Fire erupted at three locations—actually eight—and destroyed over 50 acres of wheat, three acres of bluegrass and much pasture grass in the county last week. These ground fires were following by a barn fire and Dutch Flat where a barn full of old hay burned to the ground. Five fires along U.S. Highway 12 between the Dick McKeirnan and John Herres places were discovered Sunday afternoon and kept four fire units busy for nearly four hours. All the fires were started when the brake lining of a partially set emergency brake on a truck threw off pieces of hot metal into the dry grass that was stopped just west of Dodge.

Reported rain for June 1971 averaged a whopping 3.30 inches in the county.

July 25, 1946

Property valued at many thousands of dollars went up in flames on the Wayne Shelton farm northeast of Pomeroy on Casey Creek. Destroyed were six head of registered Hereford bulls, 12 head of horses, barn partially filled with chopped hay and a chicken house. Three other registered bulls are believed to be burnt so badly that they will have to be destroyed. The family had retired for the night and awakened by the cracking of the fire. When Mr. Shelton reached the barn the entire structure was a roaring furnace. With the assistance of his neighbors, he directed their attention to saving the house and other outbuildings. Three times the house caught on fire and three times was it extinguished.

City and rural fire departments were called out ten times the past week to fight fires in town and the country. Chief Leslie Krouse says this may be a record number of times for a single week of department activity.

Ol Sol really put on the heat in the county when the mercury climbed to 104 degrees. The weather is welcomed by grain farmers who are now rushing to their fields to harvest their crops. The high temperature has been detrimental to the green peas and will no doubt cut production to a degree as the peas ripen too quickly, faster than the cannery can process them.

The swimming pool has been the most popular spot in town, with the arrival of the hot weather season. Soft drink dispensers report excellent business, one firm making an all-time sales record for itself on the day the thermometer reached 104 degrees.

One Hundred Years Ago

July 30, 1921

Work on the final lap of the Evergreen Highway between Pomeroy and Lewiston is progressing rapidly, according to people who have made the trip to Lewiston recently. One road camp has been established where the Stember grade reaches the Alpowa Canyon and another smaller one on the old Andy Lee place. Construction of the strip between Pomeroy and Dodge awaits additional appropriations of federal aid money.

Two members of the maintenance-of-way crew on the Starbuck-Pomeroy branch of the railroad were injured when the handcar upon which they were riding jumped the track at the bridge in the west part of town, and landed in the creek bed. Several other members of the crew who were on the car escaped with minor injuries.

One Hundred Twenty-Five Years Ago

January 25, 1896

Sunday night the dwelling house occupied by R. Irvin and family, on 3rd street, was destroyed by fire. Nothing of any value was saved except a sewing machine. The fire was started by the explosion of a lamp and in a few moments the whole structure was ablaze. The building was a light frame and it went up like a flash. The fire company was soon on hand but all that remains is the grim and blackened frame to serve as another “old landmark.”

Ed. and Silas King went a-fishing the Tukanon the latter part of the week. They had pretty fat success and hooked 65 fine fellows, the largest one measuring 16 inches.

Mrs. Eva Trosper is suffering considerable pain from a sore arm, supposed to be blood poison, from the effect of a needle which was run in right hand while washing. It is thought about 3/8 of an inch of the needle was broken off in the hand.