frNem of oAmencas Last Frontier’
VOL 12 NO 44
KODIAK, ALASKA
JANUARY 10. 1953
PRICE lO’CENHS
Mrs. Fern Sargent Dies
At Home Tuesday
ivirs. rein oarsem, oi?, mt?
long resident of Kodiak and a
leader in the Russian Ortho
dox Church for many years,
died suddenly at her home on
Main St. Tuesday.
Mrs. Sargent was considered
an authority on local history
and was always sought out
by visiting writers and scien-:
tists to whom she could give
information about Kodiak’s
earlier history, both from her
own knowledge and from
stories she had heard from
her elders.
She had also been inter
viewed about local history by
faculty members of the
University of California,
while she visited outside.
Mrs. Sargent had just been
elected president of the Rus
sian Women’s Club, before
her death, and had previously
served as its head in the past.
She was a member of the
church choir for 61 years. She
was active in the Grey Ladies
here during the war.
Mrs. Sargent was born Fern
Chichenoff, on July 8, 1883, in
Kodiak. She lived here all her
Efe, but made frequent vi sits
to her children in the states.
Surviving Mrs. Sargent are
the following children: Mrs.
Howard Schmitt, Los Angeles;
Mrs. James Cleghorn, Red
wood City, Calif.; Mrs. Cor
mne Petrich, San Francisco;
Mrs. H.W. Case, Dayton,
Texas; Mrs. N.B. Case, Tyler,
Texas: Walter and Neil, both
of Kodiak; Ted, San Francisco.
Alvin, Seattle; and Edward,
currently in San Francisco.
Also surviving are 14 grand
children.
Mrs. H.W. Case, Ted Sar
gent and Fid Sargent will
arrive thia weekend for the
funeral, which is set for 2 pm
Monday in the Russian
Church. If Ted, who is in the
merchant marine and was due
to dock in San Erancisco
Thursday, does not arrive in
time, the funeral will be post
ponep until he comes. Funeral
arrangements are being made
by the Kodiak Mortuary.
Mr. and Mrs. Chris Nicolet
ti, former Kodiakians, were
heard from by local friends at
Christmas time. Nicoletti for
merly owned a machine shop
here and Mrs. Nicoletti, the
former Genevieve Eisner,
owned Genevieve’s, forerun
ner of the present Mar’Lou
shop.
The Nicolettis and two
children, Danny and Paul, ten
months old, are in Newcastle,
Pa.
Car Skids Near
Cliff Edge
A 1949 Ford skidded on the
slick surface of the Base
Town Road early Thursday
morning, crashed into the
guard cable and hung sus
pended over the cliff.
Two young Navy men were
uninjured in the mishap which
snapped the cable and up
rooted three guard posts.
Derrall D. Brewer and Don
ald R. Bell, both minors, were
taken into custody by Cliff
Mowry, city patrolman. The
accident occured near the
entrance to the city dock.
Bell was charged with
driving without a license and
while under the influence of
liquor and in a reckless and
careless manner. The vehicle
did not belong to the
servicemen and was borrowed
from a friend, police said.
School Tax Roll
Published
The delinquent tax roll for
the Kodiak Independent
School District appears for
the first time in today’s issue
The list contains over 100
names of property owners and
will be published for four
sonsecutive weeks.
The roll is published by or
der of the Board of the KISD.
On February 3, 1953 the tax
roll will be presented to the
United States District Court,
rhird Division, Anchorage,
Alaska, for adjustment and
irder of sale.
The tax roll covers the years'
1949 -1952, inclusive. Paul A.
Dunler, attorney, and member
if the school board, will pre
sent the tax roll to the court
for the ISD board.
Game Hearing Planned
For January 22
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service will hold a game hear
ing in Kodiak on January 22,
it was announced Thursday by
Russel Hoffman.
Persons may attend and
make suggestions for rules
and regulations or send letters
to the local FWS office. The
suggestions and letters will be
forwarded to Juneau at the
Game Commission meeting
which will be held in the last
two weeks of February.
The Kodiak meeting will be
held at the Union Hall at 7:30
pm.
Katharine Aiin Lutz
^ew Year’s Baby
Little Miss 1953 arrived at
Griffin Memorial Hospital Sat
urday, Januany 3, at 4:05 pm
Her parents, Mr. and Mrs.
John Lutz, were delighted
with the eight pound, one
ounce girl.
Miss Katharine Ann Lutz
received many gifts from local
businesses. The presents were
delivered to her at the hospital
early this week.
Merchants sending gifts to
the new baby were Donnelley
and Acheson, a baby bunting;
City Market, baby food; Berts
Wodlinger, a bottle sterilizer;
Kraft’s Dry Goods, a dozen
diapers.
Others sending gifts were
Mar Lou, five dollars credit to
the mother; Clark’s Garage,
10 gallons of gasoline to the
parents for their car: Knud
sen’s a gold locket: Rhoades
Furniture Store, ( a baby pic
ture); Bank of Kodiak, a
savings bank and one dollar
for the baby’s account.
The Annual New Years
Baby Contest is sponsored
each year by the MIRROR
Concrete Forms
Catch Fire
The wooden forms for a part
of the new school building
caught fire around 11 am yes
rerday and the Fire Depart
ment rushed to the scene.
It was reported that one
hand extinguisher from a
truck was empty and another
only half full. Difficulty was
experienced in getting the
pumpers to work but the fire
was finally extinguished.
It is believed to have started
from a heater used to keep the
concrete from freezing.
Republicans Hold j
Meeting At Union Hall
A meeting of Republicans
in the Kodiak precinct was
held last night at the Union
Hall for the purpose of endor
sing candidates for Federal
and Territorial office
Minutes of the meeting will
be forwarded to Republican
headquarters in Anchorage.
Ed Cushing of the Kodiak
Telephone Company was flown
to Seattle Thursday for special
medical attention. He will en
ter Virginia Mason Clinic.
Mr. and Mrs. William
Downhour have announced the
birth of a 6 lbs., 11 oz. son.
Mrs. Downhour is the former
Sonja Thorsheim.
The bany has been named
Russell Clifford. The Down
honrs are now in Warsaw,
Indiana.
Navy Distributes Funds
From Charity Drive
Two Men Die
At Old Harbor
Two Old Harbor men met
their death last Dec. 23 as they
sought shelter from a storm
after beaching their dory on
Sitkalidak Island, near Port
Hobron.
Services were held at Old
Harbor for John Nekeroff,
about 42, and Stephan Kaps
han, about 38, the end of
December.
Survivor of the accident
which took the lives of the
two is Paul Chya, 40, also of
Old Harbor, who brought de
tails of the event to Kodiak
early this month.
The three men were return
ing to Old Harbor from Mc
Donald Lagoon on Sitkalidak,
where they had gone to check
trap lines. As the weather
turned wet and cold, they
beached their 18 foot boat,
and started to hike along the
beach to the Port Hobron
home of Mr. and Mrs. Jack
Spearns.
onya, me most warmly
dreessed of the three and the
quickest hiker, went ahead,
and after four hours reached
Spearns’, about 7 pm. Jim
Spearns, about 20, started out
to help the others, and man-,
aged to reach Kapshan, whom
he took to Fuller’s home near
by. Kapshan died there shortly
after arrival, about 10:30 pm,
apparently from exposure. j
The next morning. Spearns, '
his son Jim and Chya went to
look for Nekeroff, whose body'
they found at the foot of a 70
foot cliff, over which he had
apparently fallen during the
night. He and Kapshan had |
separated, one to follow the
beach and the other the higher
ground.
Nekeroff is survived by an
aunt, Mrs. Marcia Nekeroff,
Old Harbor, and Kapshan by 1
a brother Willie and a sister ;
Nida Inga, both of Old Har-i
boK Neither was married, '
Fires Reduced
During Past Year
The Fire Department extin
guished 21 fires during 1952, 1
three less than in 1951, 1
George Magnusen, fire chief '
said yesterday.
A total of 24 fires were con
trolled by the fire department 1
in 1951. Magnusen said the
1952 number of fires was the
smallest since 1942.
He attributed 16 of the 21
fires the past year to faulty
i stoves and chimneys.
Several local organization*!
have been selected to receive
a portion of the $24,581.85 col
lected during the recent Uni
ted Charities drive at Kodiak.
Naval Station.
Captain W.K. Rhodes, USN,
commanding officer of KNS.
announced that in addition to
the originally listed charities
others would receive part of
the funds.
A big Turkey Carnival waf’
held in Hangar 1 on Nov. 14
and 15, 1952, to promote the
drive. The organizations and
the amount they will receive
from KNS United Charities
fund are Alaska Crippled
Children, $2,000; American
Cancer Society, $1,500; March
of Dimes, $1,500; Boy Scouts,
$500; Salvation Army, $1,000
The list also shows that the
TB Association will receive
$2,000; American Heart Foun -
dation, $l,50u; Cerebal Palsy
Foundation, $1,500; Muscular
Dystrophy, $500; Navy Relief,
$1,000; American Red Cross,
$2,000.
The following local organi
zations and institution are
IJ\j XCV.C1VC \;UIlUiUUtiUIlD.
U. S. 0., $2,000; Griffin Mem
orial Hospital, $2,000; Kodiak
Baptist Mission, $2,000; Am
bulance Fund sponsored by
VFW, $750.
Others are Seattle Ortho
pedic Hospital, $1,000; PTA
summer program, $250 and
Christmas presents for child
ren around Kodiak Island..
^581.85.
Baby Swallows
23 A splrin
A baby boy at Sand Point
swallowed 23 aspirin tablets
rhursday and got a free ride
n a Coast Guard PBY from
ris home to Griffin Memorial
hospital.
Bobby Pletnikoff, two and
me-half years, was accompa
nied to Kodiak by his mother
Hie CG PBY took off Thurs
lay around 3 pm and landed
it Sand Point after dark. The
jatient was taken aboard and
•eturned to KNS.
Dr. H. D. Gidding, USN
lledical Corps, and hospital
:orpsman W. R. Holmquist ae
:ompanied the pilots and
:rew. Pilots were Ensign
3onald Fraser and Lt. William
Murphy. Crewmen were Jamet
Carpenter, J. S. Steadman
William Goodwin, W F. Sheri
fan and C. Taylor.
The baby’s condition was
reported to be good yesterday.
Mrs. Vivian Weaver ia
working at Knudsen’s.