Pomeroy Pioneer Portraits

Ten years ago

February 22, 2012

For the second straight year, Tory Knebel claimed the top spot at the WIAA Mat Classic XXIV. Knebel won the 170lb championship 8-3 over Hector Comacho of Warden. Tory was not alone in the finals, as teammates Wyatt Jenkins and Austin Reisdorph also wrestled for state titles.

Diane Jones presented a check for $1,132.42 to Garfield County Food Bank manager Chris Pawlik last week. Diane is president of Strain-Miller-Landkammer VFW Post 2351 Ladies’ Auxiliary and the donation was made to the food bank’s roof replacement fund, she said.

Twenty-five years ago

February 26, 1997

Garfield County anglers headed for the Tucannon River lakes this Saturday for the opening of trout fishing season can expect to find a bunch of fellow hobbyists competing for space along the banks. With only four of the lakes along the river open and stocked, Wildlife Agent Jim Nelson of Pomeroy said activity “should be pretty busy” this weekend.

Eight sets of navigation locks at U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dams on the Columbia and Snake rivers will be temporarily closed for approximately two weeks beginning Sunday, March 2, starting at 6 a.m., according to an official from the Corps’ Walla Walla District. The outage will permit workers to conduct annual inspections and perform maintenance on the locks’ mechanical systems and related facilities.

Fifty years ago

February 24, 1972

A dozen Garfield County residents were among the 60 attending the observance of placement of the millionth yard of concrete at Lower Granite Lock and Dam, Wednesday, Feb. 16. Representing Pomeroy was Mayor Gib Damron, Clerk J.C. McCabe and Councilman John Beckwith. Representing Garfield County were Commissioners George Ledgerwood, Lester Geiger and John Byers. From the Port of Garfield County were Don Johnson and Duane Burns. Also present were Bob Beale, Winnie Kucklick, Virginia Pierce and Earl Baker.

A proposal to establish a fire protection district in Garfield County is to be submitted to rural voters at a special election to be conducted Feb. 29. The Garfield County Fire Department has been operated by funds taken from the current expense budget established by the County Commissioners. In recent years the state has imposed additional expenses on the current expense funds, and there has been no means of increasing the revenue.

Seventy-five years ago

February 27, 1947

Sheriff Paul H. Temple, of Dillon, Montana, was in Pomeroy Friday, recovering one of 16 saddles stolen from a stock farm near Dillon by Gordon Boyce, now in custody of the Montana authorities. Of the saddles stolen two were recovered at Lewiston, Idaho, one at Council, Idaho, and one at Ontario, Oregon. More of the stolen property was to be recovered by Sheriff Temple in Walla Walla, Vale and Pendleton, Oregon.

William Castles, assistant principal of the Clarkston high school, a veteran of World War II, showed two reels of colored motion pictures at the Kiwanis club luncheon Monday noon at the Pomeroy hotel. The pictures were scenes taken in Tokyo, Japan, by Mr. Castles, showing the effects of the bombing raids of the Americans, that in a single night killed 75,000 Japanese and burned over an area of 65 square miles.

One hundred years ago

February 25, 1922

The story is told of a woman who freely used her tongue to the scandal of others and made confessions to the priest of what she had done. He gave her a ripe thistle-top, and told her to go out in various directions and scatter the seeds one by one. Wondering at the penance, she obeyed and turned and told her confessor. To her amazement he bade her go back and gather the scattered seeds. And when she objected that it would be impossible he relied that it would be still more difficult to gather up and destroy all the evil reports she had circulated about others.

The advisory board of the Peola livestock association met in the courthouse February 18. Plans were made for the hiring of herders and of range improvement. They will build 11/2 miles of drift fence adjoining the Foredyce sheep allotment. An assessment of $1706 was levied.