valley Frontiersman
VOL. II, No. 1
PALMER, ALASKA. SEPTEMBER 15, 1948
TEN CENTS
DAIRYMEN DENY ASKING FOR MILK HIKE
ACS PLANS
A STATION
IN PALMER
An ACS station is planned for
Palmer, if office space for the
plant and quarters for the two
man office force can be found, it
was reported here this week. Maj.
Philip Wingfield, head of ACS in
Anchorage, recently conferred
with local businessmen concern
ing the plan.
Major Wingfield explained that
ACS is now in the process of ab
sorbing the communication lines
of the Alaska Railroad. When this
move is completed, it is hoped
that a branch office can be es
tablished in Palmer. However, it
is not expected that the office
could be opened before December.
The establishment of the of
fice here will mean much better
communication facilities for the
Valley. It will link Palmer with
Valdez, Juneau. Wrangell. Peters
burg and Cordova and will make
for greatly improved reception
with Fairbanks.
(Continued on Page 8>
Barge Brings
Valley Goods
Household goods, heating
equipment, groceries and 47 tons
of cement, all destined for the
Matanuska Valley, were loaded
aboard the Steel Barge 613 when
she left Seattle docks recently.
The 613’s trip probably will be
the last one for the barge line
until the strike is settled. At first
reported unaffected by the mari
time tie-up. more recent ac
counts say that the barge line
also will be bottled up by the
strike.
Fair Figures
Aren't Ready
Facts and figures on the 1943
Matanuska Valley Fair still were
mostly a matter of conjecture at
press-time. The fair board was
expected to receive a complete
financial report on Tuesday eve
ning. but that report still was in
complete at the Frontiersman
deadline.
Preliminary estimates indicate
that the Fair Association sus
tained quite a heavy loss on the
car. Attendance figures were not
yet final, but it appears that
heavy expenses for this fair will
make net returns much smaller
than usual.
A larger prize list was offered
this year than ever before. In
addition, building improvements
in the amount of $3,500 were
completed before the opening of
the three-day event.
M. D. Snodgrass, fair board
member, said the fair's managers
considered this year’s show a
success, even though the finan
cial return may be small. He ex
pressed a special word of appre
ciation to the residents of Sew
ard. Wasilla. Cordova and An
chorage, all of whom had a part
in the displays or concessions.
A report from the office of L.
A. Moore Of the Alaska Railroad
states that more than 900 visitors
from Anchorage came to the Val
ley by train over the Labor Day
week-end.
A complete financial report of
the fair’s operation is expected to
be ready for publication next
week.
GO OUTSIDE FOR WINTER
Mrs. Alfred Hagen and daugh
ter Sheila left for the states last
week. Sheila will go to school in
Tacoma, Wash., this winter.
Zeiles To Leave
Late This Month
Rev. and Mrs. W. L. Zeile and
daughter Mary soon will leave
Palmer to make their home at
Davison, Michigan, where Rev
erend Zeile has been called to the
pastorate of Trinity Lutheran
Church. The minister expects to
preach his farewell sermon here
on Sept. 26, and will leave the
Valley on Sept. 30.
Davison is a city of about 2,000
population on the outskirts of
Flint. Mich. For Reverend Zeile
it will truly be a return home,
for his brother is pastor of a
church in Flint, and his father is
minister in another city only 50
miles distant.
Reverend Zeile has been in
Palmer for more than three
years. He first arrived here on
June 21, 1945. Palmer was his
first ministerial assignment, for
he came direct from the Concor
dia seminary at St. Louis, Mo.
It was in Palmer that he met
and married the former Miss
Ruth Clemson, who was then
public health nurse for the Val
ley. The couple's first child was
born here just seven months ago.
It is not known when another
minister will come to Palmer to
fill the pulpit at St. John’s Luth
eran church.
GO TO KEXA1
Parker Lester and Marilyn
Johnson of the Extension Serv
ice made a hurried trip to the
Kcnai area last week. They left
immediately after the fair and
returned to Palmer this last
weekend.
BUTCHER IS ILL
Harry Ryan has been confined
to his home by illness for the
past week.
Producers Say
They Weren't
Consulted
An Anchorage newspaper re
port that the 5 cents a quart in
crease in milk prices, effective to
day, comes at the request of Mat
anuska Valley dairymen, brought
a surprised denial from local
dairymen. "We knew nothing
about it until we read it in the
paper,” they assert.
The Anchorage article states
that the increase came as the re
sult of a request made at a meet
ing of Matanuska Valley dairy
men. This was emphatically de
nied by Rex Monoghan. presi
dent of the Matanuska Valley
Dairymen’s Association, and Jack
Cope, head of Palmer Dairy
Products Association. The first
group is a breeder’s association
and the second a marketing or
ganization.
Both Mr. Monoghan and Mr.,
Cope agree in part writh facts in
the news article which dealt with
the rising costs of milk produc
tion. The article pointed out
that the dairymen had last re
ceived an increase in 1946. Since
that time hay has jumped $15 a
ton, wages have gone up and feed
is up $1.50 a hundred.
‘‘I agree with the statements
concerning the price of feed and
rising costs of production,” Mr.
Monoghan declared. "However,
v/e were not consulted in any way
on the milk price increase, and
this announcement comes as a
surprise to us. We did hear at one
dairymen’s meeting, a report
which was just a rumor concern
ing the board’s (the Matanuska
Valley Farmer’s Co-operating As
sociation board of directors! plan
to raise the price of milk.
(Continued on Page 8'
A VALLEY YEAR RESUME AT A GLANCE
. . IV/Tiocr Tlolo ctill SPrVP!
It was a year ago today that
Volume One. Number One of the
Valley Frontiersman reached its
readers.
A quick glance through the
columns of that first paper re
veals that the topics which made
news then still are with us. Time
has moved ahead another year,
but top news then is still pretty
important today.
The biggest story in that paper
was the account of - the dairy
men’s suit against the Co-op,
which was nearing a decision.
The dairymen again are front
page news today—this time they
are protesting an Anchorage re
port that fresh milk will raise
five cents a quart in price at
their request. The dairymen de
clare they’ve not asked for that
increase.
A year ago. M. D. Snodgrass
and J. W. Grasser were engaged
in the certification of seed pota
toes. At that time. Mr. Snod
grass reported the seed potato
crop was off fifty per cent. The
same certification is in progress
today, although no report of crop
conditions has yet Been maue
public.
Children of Palmer school were
enjoying a week's “potato vaca
tion’’ in order to harvest the
spud crop at this time last year.
This year there has been no an
nounced plan for a vacation.
Harvest is somewhat later this
year, for it was delayed by late
spring rains and unseasonably
cold weather.
A year ago today, the Fron
tiersman carried the announce
ment of the arrival of Miss Ethel
Dale, manager of the Valley Hos
pi Lai. iviioo uaxc
Valley in that capacity. And it
was a year ago that the Valley
Chamber of Commerce, upon the
recommendation of Don Irwin,
took its first steps toward ob
taining governmental approval of
the Valley as site for the pro
posed Alaska Native Service hos
pital.
This time last year Mrs. Fanny
Werner was being congratulated
as winner of the homemaker's
canning and baked goods display
at the fair. Petitions were being
(Continued on Page 8)