Pomeroy Pioneer Portraits

Ten Years Ago

January 9, 2013

Garfield County Sheriff's Office added two volunteer chaplains after a commissioning ceremony Nov. 28, 2012. The Rev. Dan Lewis of Pomeroy Nazarene Church and the Rev. Justin Townley of Pomeroy Methodist Church joined the Rev. Roger Pedersen in the Sheriff's Office Chaplaincy. Pastor Roger initiated the chaplaincy program January 2012 after a discussion with Sheriff Ben Keller.

Eastern Washington Agricultural Museum received a $3,500 grant from Puget Sound Energy Foundation for safety and operational enhancements at its second building on the Garfield County Fairgrounds. Jay Franks, EWAM board president, said the funding from PSEF will be utilized on projects including the sidewalk between the new building and the original facility. The sidewalk, which will run on the west side, will make the new building wheelchair-accessible.

Twenty-Five Years Ago

January 14, 1998

Rowena Bell's Telephone System-Over 75 family members and friends of Paul Feider spent Saturday afternoon visiting with him to help him celebrate his 90th birthday. His party was hosted by his sons Paul, David and Richard Feider and his daughter Barbara DeShirley and their families. Judy Breithaupt made a beautiful cake which was served by Kathy Feider. Coffee was served by Gretchen Feider and MayRene Feider poured the punch.

Pomeroy School District superintendent Terry Brandon and construction superintendent Dave Filer of Northwest Construction of Washington examined the new south wall of the elementary school's primary wing last week. The walls were pushed out to the eaves line to pick up five feet of additional space. Brandon said that the classrooms in that wing of the building will be about 100 square feet bigger than the old rooms, putting them just under 1,000 square feet.

Fifty Years Ago

January 11, 1973

Senator Hubert Donohue (D-9th Dist.) said today he has pre-filed legislation that will exempt farm equipment from the wide-load restrictions on highways. "This bill would permit the movement of farm equipment, during daylight hours and at distances of 100 miles or less, no matter what width, as long as it was properly flagged and patrolled," Senator Donohue said. "The problem on the wide equipment has arisen because farmers have no control on the new equipment, including combines and cultivators and other farm machinery, which are being manufactured at widths of 16 to 18 feet and more."

Improvements costing $1,600 were recently made on the Mayview grange hall at Mayview. The hall was raised four feet, and concrete clock foundation and pillars were placed under the structure. The old floor joists and sills were replaced with new lumber, and steps and a railing put in place. All of the labor was donated which if it had been paid for would have run the cost of the improvements well past the $3,000 mark. The executive committee wishes to thank all of its members, and others, who so willingly donated their labor and their trucks for hauling the materials.

Seventy-Five Years Ago

January 15, 1948

The Harlem Globetrotters played and clowned with the Jaycee All-Star basketball team before a capacity crowd of approximately 600 spectators in the high school gymnasium Monday evening. The electric scoreboard, presumed to have been correct, flashed the Trotters' score at 57 and the All-Stars' at 41. After getting away to a good start the Harlem boys began to spin the ball on their finger tips and pass it between the legs of bewildered opponents. The tricks were all done in a subtle and clever fashion that even the opposing players usually got a kick out of the goings-on, as well as the spectators. Ed Hamman, manager for the Trotters and known as the Bloomdale Clown, particularly delighted the youngsters with his antics. Highlighting his stunts was his "baseball" act.

Members of the Dale Carnegie school following a banquet served 250 guests and Carnegie students in the Maple Hall Wednesday evening by the Ladies Altar Society, conducted a burlesque state election with three tickets in the field, the City Slickers, the Country Hicks, and the Cowboys. The City Slickers won the election by a close margin. The candidates, whose names appeared on the ballots of the three parties were: City Slickers: Dewey Brown, governor; Andy Anderson, lieutenant governor; Wynne Stallcop, secretary; Pat Herron, treasurer; Burt Belknap, campaign manager. Country Hicks: Jack Dixon, governor; Jay Foster, lieutenant governor; Cecil Kinder, secretary; Bill Cardwell, treasurer; Lyle Beavers, campaign manager. Cowboys: Robert Jones, governor; George Stallcop, lieutenant governor; Ellis Cox, treasurer; Clementine (Eddie) Baker, secretary, Carl Dixon, campaign manager.

One Hundred Years Ago

January 13, 1923

Since the death of W.J. Schmidt, which occurred December 10, liberty bonds and other securities amounting to almost $60,000 have been collected, through the efforts of A.G. Farley, who was Mrs. Schmidt's attorney and later administrator of her estate. For the most part these valuables were concealed about the house. Bonds were taken out of a fire proof receptacle placed in the leg of a table, and from six different holes in the basement, where they had been secreted for safe keeping. Before Mrs. Schmidt was taken down with the fatal illness, she had collected about half of this treasure, using as a guide written instructions and a draft of the basement plan, which Mr. Schmidt left. The search was completed by Alex Schmidt, and Deputy Sheriff James Patterson, Monday, when additional bonds with a value of $7,500 were found.

The high wind which ceased suddenly Monday morning, after blowing almost continuously for two weeks, did considerable damage to fences, frail outbuildings and shade trees in different parts of the county. In Pomeroy several big trees were uprooted or broken. One large poplar at the front of Mrs. E. Halterman's place on Columbia Street fell across the railroad track, and had to be removed before the train could get out on Monday morning. A large poplar that had stood for many years at the south end of Mrs. C.E. Gawne's property on Pataha street was felled. This tree is accounted no loss, as the owner of the property had been trying to plan some way of getting rid of it without smashing something valuable when it should fall. The problem was solved by a clean fall from the wind, to the northeast, nothing being hit.

One Hundred Twenty-Five Years Ago

January 15, 1898

The proposition to send to Lapland for reindeer for carrying supplies to Klondike is a foolish and absurd thing. In the first place, there probably will be but little suffering in the mines for lack of food. Then reindeer would be a poor dependence for carrying supplies. The miners would all be dead, frozen, and their bones picked by northern wolves and buzzards, long before the reindeer could be got to the mines. The western mountaineers and miners with pack mules or cayuses can and will solve the problem. Senatorial and cabinet wind work might succeed in depleting the treasury, but won't go very far in practical work at getting food to starving miners.