KFIIHAHH. ED't'ARD L.
ALASKA HIS.OHICAL LIBRARY
N S A U
FIRST
SECTION
The Frontiersman
PUBLISHED IN THE INTERESTS OF THE MATANUSKA VALLEY
WELCOME TO PALMER
AND TO THE
MATANUSKA
VALLEY FAIR
VOLUME 8, NUMBER 44
PALMER. ALASKA. THURSDAY. SEPT. 1. 1955
PRICE TEN CENTS
FAIR OPENS SATURDAY FOR 3-DAY EVENT
VALLEY FAR
Tf SEEK
STATE FAIR TITLE
The Matanuska Valley Fair
Association will seek the addi
tion of State Fair to their incor
porated name, it was announced
following a recent meeting of the
association’s board of directors.
‘ We believe that the Territory
of Alaska has grown in such pro- ;
portions that it is now large '
enough; and the time is right, |
to hold a State Fair once a year”, j
Timbers stated.
The Matanuska Valley Fair As- j
wtc.ation will sponsor its 15th j
annual Fair September 3, 4, and j
5. The Valley Fair is famous not
only throughout the Territory,
but a familiar title to thousands
at Stateside tourists and former
Alaskan residents, who have vis
ited Volley Fairs. It is the lar
gest industrial and agricultural
Fair held in Alaska each year.
“Our Fair dates coincide with
the harvest season, thereby offer
ing farmers an opportunity to
display their produce at its best;
we have permanent fairgrounds
•which are being enlarged and
bettered each year. We have per
manent exposition buildings, and
ample ground space for much
more expansion, they pointed out.
“We feel that with the central
location of the Matanuska Val
ley—wih every phase of trans
portation except boats able to
get in ond out of the region—
\me are in the best position to
offer apace and buildings for a
State Fair. We hope that plans
may be progressed, through the
cooperation of other organiza
tion* throughout Alaska, to spon
sor the first State Fair in con
junction with the 1956 Matan
uaita Valley Fair next Septem*
her."
Fair board members aer nego
tiating with national firms for
various national contests which
will be staged at next year’s
Fair in Palmer. Board members,
with but one or two exceptions,
have many years experience be
hind them, having served on the
board or in committees of past
Valley Fairs. They know how to
stage a Fair of such a large size
and are willing to give the
many, many hours of work that
will be required to put it over.
Definite plans will be worked
out and presented to the Associa
tion membership at the annual
meeting which will be held the
first part of November.
i FREE MOVIE SHOW
"Isiac and Rebbeca"
Wasilla Community
Hqll
FREE
Sunday, Sept. 4
7:30 p.m.
Change of subject each Sun.
Sponsored by the Reorganized
Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter Day Saints
YOUTH FOR CHRIST
Saturday, Sept. 3
FILM
“Joseph the Slave”
PLACE
CHURCH OF GOD
8:00 P.M.
ALL ARE WELCOME
Gov. B. Frank Heintzle.nan, pic
tured above as principal speaker
at the 1954 Matanuska Valley
Fair, has sent a message of re
gret that he will be unable to
attend the 1955 Fair. A schedule
of engagements, heavy at fair
time and throughout the month
of September will prevent him
from attending. “I want to com
mend and congratulate the Ma
tanuska Valley Fair Association
for it's fine work over the years
in promoting this annual Fair
and building it into such an out
standing Territorial institution.
It is both entertaining and in
structive", the governor wrote.
Alaska Agriculture
History Shows
Big Advancements
By Jim Wilson
Territorial Commissioner of
Agriculture
The history of agriculture in
the Matanuska Valley starting
from 1900 when only a few home
gardens were to be found, until
now, 55 years later when rail
road cars and huge semi-trailers
bulging with all manner of pro
duce roll to market, is a story
in which all the participants can
take pride. Many of those who
were prominent in the early de
velopment are still among us and
no doubt feel that the unending
days of back-breaking labor have
not been without reward.
Like most success stories this
one too has not been without its
bad moments. Ups and downs in
business activity, lack of organ
ized markets, shipping tie-ups,
plant pests, and a host of other
troubles have strewn the path
with obstacles over which some
stumbled, some turned back.
By 1914 about 500 acres were
under cultivation in the entire
area. This year crops will be tak
en from 10,000 acres. Instead of
a handful of farmers they num
ber in the hundreds. Production
from Alaska’s farms has a retail
value of approximately five mil
lion dollars and an additional two
million dollars worth of manu
factured products come from the
modern dairy plants throughout
Alaska.
I have often had visitors to
the Territory marvel at the mod
ern equipment and up to date
practices being used by our farm
ers. I suppose it would seem we
are so far removed from major
farming areas that it should take
years for improvements to trickle
through to the notice of our peo
ple.
Alaskan farmers, aided by a
staff of competent agricultural
technicians, are cognizant of the
need for efficiency and are quick
to adapt new techniques. We
must produce efficiently, we must
conserve labor, we must obtain
(Continued on page 5)
FAIRd program
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 3 — FAMILY DAY
12:00 Official opening
12:00 Bicycle relay race
12:30 Children activities on the Fairgrounds
12:45 Greese Pole
12:45 Greased pig
1:00 Hog calling contest
1:30 Davy and Daisy Crockett Parade
2:00 Civilian Defense jeep pumper drill
3:30 Junior Rodeo
3:30 Horse racing
10:00 Coronation Ball — Jack OTool's orchestra
12:00 Crowning of Queen and Grand March
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 4—ARMED SERVICES DA>
10:00 Official opening
• 1:30 Dog Obedience Club, Mrs. Braum, President
2:00 Parade of Transportation
3:30 Junior Rodeo
3:30 Horse racing
8:30 Fireworks*
10:00 Closing time
♦In case of rain at 8:30, Sunday night, the fireworks will be post
poned until 7:30 Monday night.
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 5 — LABOR DAY
10:00 Official opening
12:30 Central Labor Council
MC: Victor E. Paal
Speaker: Wm. S. Cruthers
Broadcasting: George Meany, President A.F.L.
2:00 Copper River Indians
3:30 Junior Rodeo
3:30 Horse racing
5:00 Alaska Frigid Flyer Club—model airplanes
7:30 Drawing for prizes
8:00 Close of Fair
VALLEY PRODUCE
TO BE EXHIBITED
IN SEATTLE STORE
Outstanding fruits, vegetab
les and other produce of the
Matanuska Valley will be ex
hibited in a prominent show
window at Fredericks and
Nelson, one of Seattle’s larg
est department stores. The
display is being arranged by
Carr’s Food Center in Anch
orage, under the management
of Jim Thibodeau. All Val
ley farmers are urged to send
their best sample produce to
Carr’s by early Tuesday morn
ing, September 6. They will be
flown out to Seattle by Carr’s.
EKLUTNA PROJECT
DEDICATED AUG. 29
A large number of city offi
cials from Anchorage and Pal
mer; dignitaries from Washing
ton, D. C. and many interested
individuals from Anchorage and
Palmer areas attended dedica
tion ceremonies at the Bureau of
Reclamation’s Eklutna hydro
electric site on August 29. Wil
bur A. Dexheimer, commission
er of reclamation made the dedi
cation address in which he specu
lated that the future population
of Alaska could reach 5,000,000
when the waters of Alaska are
harnessed to produce needed
power.
The Eklutna powerhouse is lo
cated near Mile 34 on the Glenn
Highway. Eklutna Creek water
is stored and used for the gen
eration of power. Water supply
for the power is obtained from
the Eklutna Creek Basin above
Eklutna Dam, covering an area
of 119 square miles with eleva
tions ranging from 867.5 to 8,000
feet 1
Early this year power went
(Continued on page 8)
EVERT DAT TO BE
A FEATURED DAY AT
MAT. VALLEY FAIR
With the hundreds and hun
dreds of exhibits and displays
planned for the 1955 Matanuska
Valley Fair—all the fun and good
food that will be found on the
midway—Fair-goers, by scanning
the program of entertainment
that is being presented through
out tht three-day Fair in Palmer
September 3, 4, and 5 will find
their day full to the top.
Saturday, September 3, (and
opening day of the Fair) has been
named FAMILY DAY AT THE
FAIR. Entire families will be ad
mitted to tht Fairgrounds for the
admission cost of two adults
Moppets of the Valley and sur
rounding areas will put on Davy
and Daisy Crockett parade, be
ginning at 1 p.m. Little Indian
maids, frontier families, Indians,
Indian guides, and most of all—
Davy and Daisy Crockett—will
be well represented in the par
ade. Refreshment prizes await
the winners.
A demonstration of Civil De
fense pumpers will be staged in
front of the grandstand at 2:00
p.m., with units paricipating frof
Palmer, Chugiak, Nunaka Val
ley, Wasilla and possibly Homer.
Saturday evening the Corona
tion Ball will be held in the gym
nasium at Central School. Formal
dress will be optional. Dancing
will begin at 10:00 p.m. to the
(Continued on page 5)
NOTICE
The Matanuska Valley Health
Council meeting formerly sched
uled for tonight, Sept. 1, has been
postponed to Sept. 8.
Dr. Foster R. Sims is attending
the American Legion annual con
vention in Sitka. During his ab
sence Dr. K. J. White will hand
le his dental business.
AL. V. HAGEN, Fair Manager
Alaska Tel. Assn.
Considers Purchase
Of ACS Toll Line
Robert Partridge, Matanuska
Telephone Association manager,
returned to Palmer this week
end, following attendance at the
Alaska Telephone Association
annual meeting held in Valdez
August 25, 26, ad 27.
One of the most important
points of the meeting. Partridge
reported, was the discussion of
the possibility of the associa
tion obtaining a REA loan to
purchase the backbone line of the
Alaska Communication System.
Th proposal would not involve
out-posts such as Barrow, None,
etc.. Partridge stated. Association
members pointed out that the
Bell Telephone System in the
States leases toll line service to
military, as a common practice.
The proposal stemmed from a
discussion of the ihter-connection
telephone and telegraph agree
ment between ACS and the re
presented telephone companies.
Those representatives attending
the meeting expressed belief that
pay-back from toll line opera
tions is not sufficient to cover
expenses involved.
To substantiate their state
ments, all operating costs and
figures of each telephone com
pany were presented to repre
sentatives of the Alaska Com
munication System, following
which they requested that ACS
reveal their operating costs and
figures at the most practical date.
To this request the ACS repre
sentatives answered that the re
quest will be considered follow
ing a study.
Telephone companies represen
ted were from Palmer, Anchor
age, Fairbanks, Juneau, Cordova,
Seward and representatives for
the Alaska Communication Sys
tem, Kellogg Telephone Equip
ment company and the Automa
tic Electric Telephone Equipment
Company.
PALMER SCHOOLS
OPEN SEPTEMBER 6
Office personnel were kept
busy August 30 and 31 of this
week, registering the many hun
dred school children who will be
entering Palmer Independent
Schools next Tuesday. School
convenes at 9 a.m. September 6,
with dismissal slated for noon.
Bus pick-ups will coincide with
the opening and closing hours.
VALLEY PREPARES
FOR I5TH ANNUAL
SHOW AND EXHIBIT
There’s more of everything this
year at the Matanuska Valley
Fair. More exhibits, more dis
plays, demonstrations, conces
sions, special events, and hours
of fun for the entire family.
The 15th annual Matanuska
Valley Fair is scheduled to get
under way at noon on Saturday
with a bicycle relay race from
Teeland’s Shopping Center to
Palmer. Judging of the hundreds
and hundreds of displays and ex
hibits will be nearing comple
tion and the exposition buildings
will be open. Food concessions
and games on the midway will be
ready, for business. Entertain
ment planned throughout each
day has been varied to please
each and every member of the
family.
At the 1955 Matanuska Valley
Fair the public will 9ee the re
sults of many man hours of do
nated time and labor. Credit for
•this, the territory’s largest agri
cultural and industrial fair,
goes to the board of directors of
the Matanuska Valley Fair As
sociation, and to Fair Manager,
A1 V. Hagen, under whose plan
ning and direction the fair
grounds have been highly im
proved — cyclone fencing has
been erected—a new permanent
cement-block gate entrance has
been constructed—buildings and
grandstand painted — a Valley
Museum created—flower display
section enlarged—and numerous
other improvements completed
for the coming Fair. Board mem
bers are: T. A. Moyer, president;
Rusty £)ow, vice-president; A1 V.
Hagen, secretary: Thomas Lepak,
treasurer; and Stewart Durrani
John Gore, and Ray Lancaster,
directors.
Coronation Ball
The music of Jack O’Toole’s
modern dance band will begin in
the Central School gymnasium at
10 p.m. Saturday night, opening
the 15th annual Coronation Ball.
Coinciding with the opening of
the ball will be the judgig of
the 1955 Matanuska Valley Fair
queen candidates. The five at
tractive valley girls, vieing for
the honor of reigning over this
year’s fair, will be guests at the
Alva B. Saxton home during the
judging. Three judges, from out
side the valley, will have the dif
ficult job of selecting one girl to
wear the velvet robe and crown.
Many Exhibits Planned
Valley Homemakers’ clubs will
have attractive booths at the
Fair, all planned around a sel
ected -theme. Four-H entries in
all departments are expected to
top any 4-H exhibit ever before
staged; individual farm displays
(Continued on page 5)
CONGRATULATIONS
To the 15th Annual
Matanuska Valley Fair
VALLEY BEAUTY SHOP
Phone 3301
MOOSE AND GOAT HUNTERS
Will Fly You in, and You and Your
Game Out.
-Reasonable Rates -
Inquire VALLEY AIRWAYS
Earl Brown-Phone 2301