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*
THE MATANUSKA VALLEY" PIONEER
published every
/ -L■ V •;/ Thur s day by
hdu —/
ARRO
at palmer, Alaska.
/ 4.
•f Jack Allman, Editor.
Mark Twain once said that no
town ever takes on the stature of
a city until it has a newspaper
and the citizens enough trouble to
fill the columns.
Assuming that there is truth in
the old editor’s observations we
will proclaim palmer a city, for to
lay THE PIONEER makes its humble
bow, and everyone knows that fron
tiersmen all have their share of
troubles. Let’s not talk about
them, though. Let’s talk about our
brand new newspaper instead.
The position of the PIONEER is
unique in that it pre-dates not
only telephone service, but also
any established transportation fa
cilities which might fill the need
of a news distributing agency.
Through its columns you will be
kept informed of all that is going
on in our busy valley, progress of
che work, both at the Community con
ter and on the individual tracts of
the Colonists, will be reported.
Social activities will bo an
nounced early so that those living
on the outskirts of the project can
plan accordingly. Such services as
the trading post, hospital nows and
berrying and fishing information
will be regular features. As soon
as it can be conveniently arranged
there will be a local correspondent
at each camp to keep us informed of
orogress in their community.
The PIONEER hopes through its
hundred per cent distribution in
the valley to condense, figurative
ly, the hundred and twenty square
miles covered by "the project, and
> lo bring closer together the border
Colonists, some of whom are almost
fifteen miles apart.
NEW COLONIST ARRIVES
AT CAMP ONE HOSPITAL
A lusty 7-g- pound baby girl came
go join the colonist group at 6;15
Wednesday morning.
The little pioneer is the daugh
ter of Mr. and Mrs. Marion poore of;
tract 41 near Camp 8 and is tho 5th
-hiId l*orn in the Matanuska Valley
jince the arrival of the Colonists.j
Dr. c. Earl Albrecht who attend-;
* ed the mother reports both patients
in splendid condition,
♦< ■ I
Please let us know if you lose j
or find anything.
HUGE QUANTITIES FREIGHT
ARRIVE WEEKLY AT PALMER
Freight has boon rolling into
palmer in an unprecedented volume
for several weeks. The most no
table shipment comprised 1,250,00'
feet of lumber for homes and the
Community Center. Most of it had
to be hurled off along the rail
road right-of-way to release the
froight cars for further immediat
use, but it was quickly hauled ou
to homesites or restacked into
more damage proof piles.
in addition farm machinery has
arrived from time to time and sev
oral trains have brought in truck
for the colony’s transportation
fleet. Added'to the seventeen
trucks originally bought for the
project, they have been whipped
into an efficient transportation
unit.
Eugene Carr said that 43 loadi
of lumber were delivered in a day
despite some of thorn going to th<
far corners of the colony, over
roads not yet ready for heavy
hauling, and in some instances to
a distance of ten miles.
ANCHORAGE-MATANUSKA ROAD
IS ALLOTTED $100,000.00
The Alaska Road Commission has
boon allotted $100,000.00 by tho
public Works Administration. Tho
money is to be used to complete
the Anchorage-Matanuska highway.
Of the $225,000.00 set aside
for the Road Commission to use In
the vicinity of Anchorage the ad
ministration reserved $125,000.00
for the surfacing of ton miles of
road now under construction in av
around the colonization project.
Hawley W. Sterling, Assistant
Chief Engineer, visited palmer on
Wednesday and reported condition-,
nearly right for the driving of
piling for the Knik River bridge
It is expected that there wil.;
bo thirty men employed at the
bridge site within a month and
supplies are now arriving on the
scene.
Some of the material for the
1800 foot of trestle will be ship
pod out. from palmer. This will
include 800 tons of cement, she©'
piling and lumber, and later 70J
tons of steel.
Mr, M. C. Edmunds, district s\.
porintendont, reports that twent,
three miles of road in the Matan
uska area have been graveled and
that only four miles of clearing
remain between Eklutna and Matan
uska.
With the season getting on and
darkness making late work diffi
cult, the night crews are being
gradually done away with. The
one shift remaining will be able
to complete the scheduled work.