Thought of the Week:
Feaeral aid to education
should begin with a course in
arithmetic in Washington,
D.C.
ALASKA
'.4
BOX 20
mhtjeau
Wr.. —
The Frontiersman
PUBLISHED IN THE INTEREST OF THE MATANUSKA VALLEY
HISTORICAL SOCIETY 9
VOLUME
. NUMBER 34
PALMER, ALASKA, THURSDAY, MAY 17. 1962
TEN PAGES
PRICE 15 CENTS
Estimate Sewer System Cost At $850,000
1 Reporters—
AloteJtoak
Mrs. Marie Wright and Mrs.
Kay Pippel have returned to
Palmer following a tour of
Europe. They visited many of
Europe’s leading cities, includ
ing Paris, Rome, and Madrid.
* * *
Richard (Dick) Hamilton of
Hamilton Flyteways, Palmer,
was the successful bidder and
has been awarded a contract for
flying service for the State of
Alaska in the Anchorage area
for the year 1962-63. The con
tract calls for the use of his
Super Cub PA18 airplane.
* * *
A steak dinner was enjoyed
recently by members of the
Airport Machinery bowling
team of the Housewives Lea
gue. Special guests were hus
bands of the women bowlers
and Bob and Ruth Peterson.
The party was held at Alpine
Inn in Sutton.
♦ * *
Mr. and Mrs. Art Wilton and
children have returned to Pal
mer to make their home. Mr.
Wilton is with the Experiment
Station.
* * ♦
Harold Stephan, who has
been employed by the Experi
ment Station the past few
years, has returned to the Co
Op produce department as
manager, a position held for
several years before he moved
to the Station.
* * *
William Wall is in Palmer
this week from San Francisco
and is performing the annual
audit work for the Agriculture
Conservation Program, which
includes reviewing conserva
tion payments, loan procedures
and other phases pertinent to
the program. From Palmer he
goes to Homer and then to
Fairbanks before returning to
■California.
* » *
Dr. Arthur Buswell and Ar
old Baird were in Palmer this
past week on business.
* * •
Mr. and Mrs. Jack Flint are
•vacationing in the Seattle area
and plan to take in the World’s
Fair. Flint is manager at the
Co-Op Creamery and while
Outside will be making busi
ness contacts. He plans to be
gone about three weeks.
* * *
Fritz and Barbara Kalmbach
of Wasilla and their children
Kathy. Kim, Barbara and Kar
en returned this week from the
Michigan area where they have
spent the past three months.
* * *
Visiting in Palmer is Mrs.
Bess Simpson of Oakesdale,
Washington. Mrs. Simpson,
mother of Low’ell Simpson of
Star Route, is visiting with her
son, daughter-in-law Doris, and
her four grandchildren, and re
newing several acquaintances
around the valley area.
CHURCH ORGANIZER
TO BE GUEST AT
ST. BARTHOLOMEW'S
The Rev. Malcolm Miner of
All Saints Episcopal Church,
Anchorage, will conduct a Holy
Communion service at 10 a.m.,
Sunday, May 20 at St. Bartho
lomew’s Episcopal Church in
Palmer.
Rev. Miner will be accom
panied to Palmer by his wife
and following the service they
will be honored guests at a
parish dinner to be held in the
church recreation room. Rev.
and Mrs. Miner will be leaving
Alaska the first of July and
the May 20 service will prob
ably be the last one he will
conduct here before leaving for
the Outside.
Rev. Miner took a leading
part in the organization and es
tablishment of St. Bartholo
mew’s Church. All members of
the parish are invited to attend.
Finalizing Plans
For Poppy Day
The Matanuska Valley Ame
rican Legion Auxiliary is final
izing plans for their annual
Poppy Day program which will
be held here on Saturday, May
26.
It was pointed out this week
by Auxiliary members that
the original conception of Pop
py Day has changed. When
the American Legion Auxiliary
started offering poppies, it was
solely to commemorate the
dead. Today, the annual poppy
campaign honors veterans of
all wars, living and dead.
Today, with so many vet
erans of such varied ages, the
annual poppy program is vital
in raising money to care for
all needy veterans and their
families. Fifty-six per cent of
the population in the United
States are veterans’ children,
which illustrates the magnitude
of the job the Auxiliary has to
do to obtain needed funds.
(Continued on page 7)
14 Mill Rale Set
In School District;
Plan Bond Election
The Palmer Board of Educa
tor at *heir May 14 meeting,
set the 1962 mill levy at 14 mills
—me same rate levied the past
two years. In spite of rising
costs of local education, the
carefully prepared school bud
get for the year makes it pos
sible to retain the same tax
rate again this year, it was an
nounced.
By September 15 the board
of education expects to ask vot
ers of the Palmer Independent
School District to approve a $2
million bond issue for school
construction. Lew Hanks, board
clerk, stated it is important
To Promote 80
Eighth Graders
Approximately 80 eighth
grade students at Central Sch
ool will be promoted in exer
cises to be held at 1:30 p.m.,
May 23 in Central gymnasium,
according to Norman Rousey,
principal.
Parents and other interested
persons are invited to attend
the exercise.
Several awards will be made
during the program, including
four awards from the Kiwanis
Club of Palmer. John Weisen
berger, club president, will
present awards to one boy and
one girl for outstanding schol
arship and one each to the boy
and girl selected as most im
proved students. The American
Legion annual citizenship
awards will be made to one boy
and one girl; Athletic awards
will be presented by Coach Ron
Carter and the Palmer P.T.A.
will present 10 certificates of
award to the 10 highest scholas
tic standings. The latter presen
tations will be made by Mrs.
William Kucera, eighth grade
teacher. Athletic awards for the
top three girl athletes will be
presented by Warren Harle, PE
teacher.
Principal Rousey will pre
sent the class to George Ed
Smith, president of the State
Board of Education and mem
ber of the Palmer Board of
Education, who will present di
plomas.
Michael Steiger, Class ol
1961 salutatorian. will address
the class.
During the program members
of the junior high school banc
and chorus will present a ser
ies of musical and vocal num
bers.
Following the exercise, the
Palmer P.T.A. will host a party
for the students which will be
held in the gymnasium.
Students being promoted in
clude:
Mark Adams, Frank Amans,
Ray Bacon, Peter Bagoy, Ter
esa Beal, Terry Beal. Gloria
Beylund, Violet Beylund, Kar
en Bracht, Jeanne Briggs, Ro
bert Burham, Barbara Buzby
Carolyn Collins, Kathleen Cot
ton, William Demming. Susan
DeVilbiss, John DeVries, Jr.
Paul Doherty, David Donn, Ne
ville Downes, Pamela Edwards
LaMont Erickson, Helen Evans
Kristy Falk, Pamela France,
Richard France, Sharon Frye.
Also, Sheryl Haire, Michae
Hamilton, Walter Harkness
Linda Harris. Patricia Hecker
Terry Hollemback, Ralph Hul
(Continued on page 7)
that the voters understand that
asking for $2 million does in
no way mean that such an
amount will be used.
‘‘It is necessary to ask for the
total anticipated requirement
to enable orderly construction
stages. We feel that construc
tion can be done in relatively
small stages, and that some of
the earlier-sold bonds would be
ammortized before additional
bonds would be sold,” he said.
Public meetings for general
discussion of the bond issue
will be held before voters are
asked to make their decision.
Other subjects discussed at
the meeting included boroughs
and a possible $8,000 deficit in
State funds available to this
area. Regarding the boroughs,
Hanks said no official stand
was taken by board members.
However, he added, there is a
general feeling questioning the
wisdom of rushing into a bor
ough setup right now, as far as
the schools are concerned, he
said.
Public Urged
To Attend Annual
Library Meeting
The annual meeting of the
Palmer Library Association
will be held at 7:30 p.m.. Tues
day, June 5 at the library.
No cards will be mailed this
year announcing the meeting.
Last year some 160 cards were
mailed but only four persons,
outside of the board of direc
ors, attended the meeting.
It is hoped that all adults
who use the public library fac
ilities will attend the associa
: tion meeting. Five members of
; the board of directors are to be
named at the meeting. Only the
offices held by Mrs. Winston
Laughlin and Mrs. Foster Sims,
trustees, will remain filled.
Current officers of the asso
ciation are Mrs. Don Ingalls,
president: John Marshall, sec
retary, Mrs. Dorothy Briggs,
treasurer. Mrs. Richard Mohan,
i trustee and Mrs. Laughlin and
Mrs. Sims. The late T. A. Moy
er was serving as vice-presi
dent at the time of his death.
Union Oil Company
Strikes Gas
At Pittman Weil
Unofficial reports have in
dicated that Union Oil Com
pany has struck gas on the
well being drilled near
Pittman. Casing has been ce
mented in and testing will be
continued for a short time, to
ascertain whether or not gas
in commercial quantities
exists.
The well, known as Pitt
man No. 1 was spudded in
March 15 by Union for itself
as operator. Ohio Oil Com
pany and Anchorage Gas and
Oil Development Co.
VANDALS DESTROY
INSULATORS ON
KNIK RIVER BRIDGE
On Monday morning of this
week it was discovered that
sometime during the weekend
a rifleman had virtually des
troyed one group of insulators
supporting a 115,000 volt con
ductor over the Knik Rivei
bridge. According to Willard
Johnson, Matanuska Electric
i Association chief engineer, it
was necessary to take the line
out of service in order to re
place the insulators. Outage:
were scheduled for 11 a.m. anc
3:35 p.m. during which timi
the U. S. Bureau of Reclama
tion crews made the necessar
repairs.
“We feel that the individual
responsible for this do not real
I ize the seriousness of thei
act.” Johnson said. “They can
j not know that hundreds of dol
i lars worth of damage in des
t oyed equipment and lost labo
time result when this is done,’
he added. The job of arrangin;
for the scheduled outages is :
time-consuming thing, result
ing in much loss of time, he
pointed out.
“Think of this!”, he added
“a doctor might be depending
on light as he operates on a pa
1 tient; a farmer may lose c
whole brooder of baby chicks
; and traffic accidents may occiu
due to failure of signal lights.’
The interruption of vital
communications, some related
to national defense is of deep
concern, the engineer stated
We also feel that these indivi
duals cannot realize how seri
ous the criminal offense is that
■ they are commuting, nor that
j it carries severe penalties as
! prescribed by courts of law.
Adult Conservation Camp
Progress Told by YAA Officer
Russell Lowell, correction of
ficer with State Youth and
Adult Authority, told Chamber
of Commerce members attheir
May 16 meeting that it is an
ticipated that in years to come
residents of the valley will be
pointing with pride at projects
that have been completed by
members of the Adult Conser
cation Camp being built about
one and one half miles this
side of Sutton.
Lowell said that the new
camp is not a prison camp. It
is an adult conservation camp
and will be operated with
minimum security. He said
that the camp will be located
on School Section 36, about
nine and one half miles from
Palmer. At the present time
YAA is housing eight men in
a building at the fairgrounds.
Although the men will even
tually be working with the
Division of Lands and Parks
j and Recreation, they are cur
j rently concentrating on con
slruclion at the new camp.
It is expected that when the
buildings are completed the
camp will be housing about 45
men. However, it is anticipated
that in time there will be about
100 housed at the new camp.
“The sentences these men re
ceive average about six
months,” Lowell said. While in
the camp if the men are found
to be doing a good job, they
are allowed three days per
month which permits their re
lease before the sentence is
completed. “This gives the men
an incentive to be on good be
havior,” he added.
The correction officer stat
ed that there may be some
escapes as many of the men
have personal problems.
"However, there is nothing to
fear from these men. None
are serious-type violators,"
he said. He told of future
plans that would, in the rec
reation program, include a
soft ball team that would
play against local teams.
It is anticipated that when
the men are available, they
will be working in state recrea
tion areas, improving trails,
building campsites, parks, etc.
Lowell said he feels that ihe
work these men will be doing
will more than pay the state
for the costs of the camp. “Per
haps not in dollars and cents,
but certainly in money saved,”
he added.
It is expected that when the
camp is full strength some 18
20 persons will be employed.
The speaker pointed out that
at present time appropriations
for the project are very slim.
“Whenever possible, we will
hire work done,” he said. The
Authority is studying the pos
sibility of manufacturing lic
ense plates for the state, a pro
ject which is conducted in jails
of several states. Winter
months will be spent in pre
paring equipment to be placed
in parks and campsites during
the summer.
The men will vary in age
from 18 years up, Lowell
said. We will even have men
who are on pention, for al
though they may be eligible
to go to the Pioneers Home
in Sitka, if the man has a
drinking problem, he would
not be admitted.
Lowell said that an Alcoholic
Anonymous organization is be
ing formed here. He stated the
AA is one of the best source:
of help for men who are con
fined because of alcohol. Tht
groups is a big asset in rehabil
itating men, he added.
When asked if the State i;
considering any similar camp:
or institutions for girls anc
women Lowell said that lit
does not see anything in tht
immediate future, but that ii
time it is anticipated that then
will be such a program. H<
pointed out that there are fev
women incarcerated in Alaska
Engineers Make
Renorl to Citv
The maximum cost of a city
wide sewer system has been
| estimated at S850.000, the city
; was notified last week by the
I engineering firm of Hazard,
j VanDoren and Wyller of Ju
j neau.
The firm has been making
a study of the proposed sys
tem to enable the City of
Palmer to secure advance
planning funds from the
Housing and Home Finance
Agency.
The sanitary sewer system
would include mains and lat
erals and a sewage treatment
facility.
i The engineering firm repre
! sentatives told Council mem
bers that they would propose
! financing as follows: $660,000
general obligation bonds: $133,
000 revenue bonds, and $37,000
from federal participation for
sewage treatment facilities. It
is proposed to use the present
j sewer systems and outfall.
A preliminary drawing of
| the existing and proposed sew
er system has been prepared
and will be included with the
city’s application for planning
money.
The engineers pointed out
that it would be possible for
the City of Palmer to con
[ struct the system on a phase
basis.
Fair Manager
Announces Office
Now Open Daily
j Beginning at 9 a.m. on Mon
' | day. May 21, the busines office
" of Alaska State Fair. Inc. will
| be open daily.
: Fair Manager Bill Miller an
nounced this week that the of
fice. located at the front of the
fairgrounds in Palmer, will be
open from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m.
and that information pertaining
to all phases of the fair may
be obtained from him or from
Mrs. Hazel Harris, secretary.
A telephone will he installed.
Persons planning to reserve
concession or display space are
! urged to do so as soon as pos
sible to avoid disappointment.
| It is anticipated that all avail
! able space will be reserved long
i before the Labor Day week-end
f n ir timp arrivps;
The maximum cost estima
ted for the entire project was
slightly increased to the $850,
000 figure to cover possible
changes in material and labor
costs, etc. before the project
would be completed. It is not
anticipated that the project
could get under way before
spring of 1963.
The proposal, when finalized
by the Council, will be put to
the voters. It is anticipated
that before the election there
will be a public meeting at
which time the proposal will
be explained in greater detail.
BACCALAUREATE
SERVICES HERE
SUNDAY EVENING
Baccalaureate services for
: the 1961 graduating class of
; Palmer High Schol will be held
at 8 p.m. on May 20 in Central
gymnasium. The sermon.
What’s Best for You," will be
offered by the Rev. William A.
i Miller of the Church of God,
| Palmer.
i The service will open with a
I processional of the graduates
; during which the Pioneer Band,
I under the direction of Lee
Plumbley wdll play Luther’s “A
Mighty Fortress.” The Rev.
Marvin J. Hurt will offer the
invocation, followed by the
singing of ‘‘Savior, Like A
Shepherd L£ad Me ’ in which
the congregation will partici
pate. The scripture reading,
Romans XXI, will be given by
Rev. Hurt.
The high school chorus, under
the direction of Mrs. Lois Wel
don, will sing Morgan’s "Be
Thou Near Me Lord." follow
ed by the sermon. “The God of
Abraham Praise," arranged by
Kirk, will preceed the benedic
tion which will be offered by
Rev. Hurt.
The band will play a Weber
arrangement of “God of Our
; Fathers” for the recessional
which will close the service
Families and friends of the
graduates are invited to at
i tend.
Commencement exercises for
the graduates will he held Fri
day, May 25 at 8 p.m. in the
pvmniisium
Firemen’s Auction
Set for Sunday
Free prizes will be a special
feature at the Butte Fire As
sociation auction which will be
held at the fire hall at Mile 41
in the Butte area on Sunday,
May 20. The big auction, which
! will feature two auctioneers,
will get under way at noon, ac
cording to Jim Frey, auction
| manager.
Nearly S200 in prizes have
been pledged by merchants
of the Butte and Palmer
areas. Prizes will be given
away during the sale and all
winners must be present at
the time of the drawing, Frey
said. The manager stated he
and h;s immediate family
will not be eligible for any
free prize. Eligibility for
prizes will be optional among
all other members of the fire
association.
Among items which will be
1 offered for sale at auction are
stoves, refrigerators, showers
and other bathroom fixtures,
all kinds of washing machines
! and other laundry equipment,
radios, television sets, kitchen
I appliances, farm equipment,
| electric motors, DC welder, gas
engines, all kinds of tools, auto
tires, wheels and accessories—■
even some real live horses, as
well as many other items, too
numerous to mention.
Two auctioneers, both
well-known for their ability
to keep an auction moving
fast and in a very entertain
ing way, will be on hand.
They are Ray Solettstoezer
and James A. Rutt.
In addition to the auction, the
public is invited to visit
the lunch stand which will be
I operated by members of the
: Fire Association Auxiliary.
I The women will be serving hot
j dogs, pop, coffee, ice cream
| bars, and other tasty items.
Proceeds from the auction
will go toward completion of
the new addition to the fire
hall, as well as general ex
penses of the fire department.
The fire hall is located at
'• Mile 41 and Plumley Road.
Those attending who are un
familiar with the location are
informed that Plumley Road is
located on the left side of the
Palmer highway, enrout to An
chorage.
PUBLIC AUCTION **
Fire Ass'n.
SUNDAY, MAY 20-NOON
AUCTIONEERS
JAMES A. RUTT
RAY SPLETTSTOEZER