VOL. 4, NUMBER 34.
Kalley Wrontiergman
PUBLISHED IN THE INTERESTS OF THE MATANUSKA VALLEY
PALMER, ALASKA. FRIDAY, MAY 4, 1951.
12
PAGES
TODAY
PRICE. 10c
Carl Meier Named First Palmer Mayor
OATES CHOSEN
FOR MATANUSKA
VALLEY FAIR
Dates for the Matanuska Val
ley fair have been set for Sept.
1-2-3.
Biggest and most constructive
showing of the year it should
draw hundreds of visitors from
all parts of the Territory, officers
estimated. Last year 11,000 saw
/|fche big show.
More exhibits are anticipated
than ever before and the grounds
and buildings are soon to be re
arranged to handle them. Dead
line for entries of exhibits is Aug.
31, and the earlier the date of en
try, the better the chance for
space, officers said. Vegetables,
poultry, cattle, flowers, handi
craft, homemakers exhibits, all
Fare invited.
New Officers
At the last meeting the board
of directors elected the following
officers: Clair Stock, president;
Merle Anderson, vice-president;
Mrs. Lila Neville, secretary; Tom
Lopac, treasurer. Other mem
bers of the board are Mads Jo
hanson, M. D. Snodgrass and A.
V. “Al” Hagen. Next meeting of
the board is Monday night at the
Rec clubroom. The board has
called for bids to paint the fence
enclosing the fairgrounds and
ottyfer important business will be
discussed.
Colony Day
Celebration
"Spectacular"
Spectacular Colony Day cele
bration events May 27, are in the
making.
Chairmen are lining up their
committies. Heading the activi
ties are Don Irwin, general chair
man, also in charge of promotion
and grounds; Carl Rasmussen,
barbeque; Eugene Kirsch, games;
Steve Ward, finances; Clair Stock,
horse races.
An invitation has been sent to,
the Governor.
1 Arrangements are being made
for a special train from Anchor
age.
The Grange will sponsor a
dance.
Invitations have gone to army,
/ .iavy and air corps for armed ser
vices parades and bands.
Jim Hurley, president of the
Chamber of Commerce, predicts
it will be the “biggest celebration
ever staged in the Matanuska
Valley”.
“Know Your Neighbor” was
the theme for the Homemakers
Council during National Home
Demonstration week. In Palmer,
a tea marked the event.
MEET
YOUR MAYOR
When Carl H. Meier—along
with other Colonists from the
middle states—drew lots for
land in the Matanuska Val
ley, he had no idea he would
be the first mayor of Palmer.
Palmer as he first saw it,
when with other Cheechakos
he climbed off the govern
ment train, was a strange
wild land caught between
towering mountains. There
were two or three log cabins
built by “original settlers”
and a sprawling array of
tents being pitched hastily to
shelter these outsiders.
So in his turn he drew lots
and the spot was about three
miles south of the tent city,
and there he started farming,
trying to dig out a home for
his wife and children.
He farmed “for quite a
stretch.” Then as Palmer
grew into a permanent town,
with young businesses sprout
ing up to handle the needs of
the community, he started his
own trucking business.
“And I’m still at it,” he
said.
Meier was born in Besse
mer, Michigan. He has five
children, all married and all
but one in the Territory.
“They’re like me—this is
our country,” he said.
“About this job of being
mayor—it’s kind of an acci
dent. But I’m proud to be the
first mayor. I’m proud to be
of service to the community.
I’ll serve to the best of my
ability. I’m not in this job
to harm anyone, but to help.”
-• ■ i
FIREMEN'S BALL TO
HELP BUY NEW FIRE
FIGHTING TRUCK
The sirens are on for the Fire
men’s ball—and the proceeds go
for Palmer’s new fire truck.
Place is the Palmer gym. Date,
tomorrow, Saturday night. Mu
sic is Schaefer’s orchestra. The
committee in charge promises
ioor prizes and entertainment of
flaming caliber.
Co-sponsoring the ball with the
Fire Association is the Kiwanis
Dlub.
Behind the dance is the serious
?ause of fire protection for the
Palmer area. In the past few
days at least two farm homes
would have burned had it not
been that fire equipment, manned
by volunteers, responded while
the siren—set off when the tele
phone call for help came—still
was wailing.
The new truck is essential to
keep fire insurance rates down.
It replaces an outmoded truck.
Major Problems
Hospital Fnnds,
Of Water Crisis,
Confront Council
FUNDS TO BUILD
NEW HOSPITAL
SERIOUS NEED
Palmer’s desperate need for a
new and adequate hospital and
the most practical way to finance
it, came sharply before the new
city council last night.
Appearing at the first council
meeting was the Rev. Victor Alf
sen, proposing that the council
recognize the Valley Hospital as
a “community agency,” to be op
erated under the present man
agement
If that were done, he proposed,
the city could obtain funds to
match the money promised by
the Board of Missions of the Pres
byterian Church and the deficit
which might be obtainable under
the Hill Barton Act.
“We definitely have in sight
$157,000,” he said, adding that
with the city, matching dollar
for-dollar with government funds,
$314,000 would be available for a
new hospital building and equip
ment.
Need Recognized
Among the new council mem
bers there was no question about
the extreme need for modern hos
pital building and equipment.
But they cited the information
presented before the hospital
(Continued on Page 4)
May Queen Contest
Brings Out Beauties
In the Northland Pioneer
Grange contests for queen of the
May to be crowned at a May Day
dance in the school gym, May 26,
Jane Stephan is leading.
Other contestants are Grace
McGibboney, Norma Nelson, Dor
othy Hoffman, June Peitila and
Lillian Peitila.
The May Queen will be offered
her choice of luggage, now on dis
play at the Trading Post. Other
merchants have made contribu
tions of prizes such as nylons,
underwear and perfume. Addi
tional gifts have been promised
and Grange members hope to be
able to present a full case to the
May Queen at the dance.
Tickets for queen candidates
still may be purchased and any
one desiring to enter the contest
may still do so.
During intermission a fishing
rod and a delux electric corn pop
per with electric plate will be
awarded.
Schaefer’s orchestra will play
the dance music.
The newborn city of Palmer, through its first city council, last
night elected its first mayor—Carl H. Meier—who came here in
1935 as a Colonist when Palmer was a tent city.
Meier won the high vote when Palmer voted to incorporate
April 10, and also voted for seven counoilmen—to take their jobs
without pay if and when the election was declared legal.
Last night those seven sat around a council table in a borrowed
room and rocked the bundle of troubles which, as city fathers, they
had dumped in their laps.
Their first job was to choose one of their number mavor. Meier
Their first job was to choose
one of their number mayor. Meier
was elected. The other six on the
council are A. V. Hagen, Lloyd
W. Sevems, Dr. Allan Mick, C.
A. Sandvik, Frank Brown and
Steve Ward.
With Harold Butcher, the An
chorage attorney who has worked
with Palmer representatives
through the difficult days of pre
paring for incorporation, the new
council first sorted out the rou
tine procedures which must be
followed.
Bill Head unanimously was
voted to serve as temporary city
clerk—like the other members of
the nev.-' city administration, with
out pay.
Water Falls on Council
Then came major problem No.
1—water, or rather lack of it.
Facing the council was the
; crisis of having half the city, on
! one side of the tracks, reduced
to a mere trickle with an unpre
dictable future, while the other
part of the city on land owned by
the Matanuska Valley Farmers
Co-operative Association, seemed
to have ample supply.
After election of the city coun
cil, and before the incorporation
was declared legal, Carl R. Ras
mussen, acting general manager
of the Co-op, had notified each of
the councilmen-elect that it was
the “desire” of the Co-op “to
place the matter of securing wa
ter for the various users in the
incorporated area in your hands.”
His communication contained
in part: “The agreement under
which the Cooperative has furn
ished water for the past several
years, states that the Association
will furnish any surplus water
available. At present there is no
surplus. . . Our association has
made surveys that indicate that
an adequate supply can be se
cured by a short extension to our
line. We were prepared to install
this line and would have had it
but for weather conditions and
the delay in securing pipe.
“However, it appears that most
water users do not want our ser
vice and prefer that you, as the
city’s representatives, take over.”
Rasmussen invited the council
men elect to meet with him, and
one of their first actions today
was to make an appointment with
him.
“Previously we had no authori
ty to act,” they said.
“Let’s see whether the water
threat is a bluff or not,” one of
the persons sitting in on the coun
cil meeting—but not a council
man—challenged. “Strange wat
er should be shut off today, first
time the Council meets.”
Water Survey Authorized
Butcher, voted in as city at
torney, counselled a .study of
agreements or contracts which
might exist with Co-op, pointing
out that it would take some time
to install a city water system.
Hastily summoned to the meet
ing was R. C. Caldwell, repre
senting Thomas B. Bourne Asso
ciates of Alaska, engineers and
architects. Caldwell said he be
lieved a water survey could be
completed in 30 days, that an
other 30 days would be required
to plan the system and that it is
doubtful if the project could be
completed this year but that
probably “emergency relief”
could be provided.
The review of the water pro
ject will be submitted to GSA for
financial aid, and application
forms were turned over to the
I council to fill out. Hagen and
Mick were appointed to get ne
cessary data for the application.
Council members stressed the
fact that the water project must
include sewers, and that installa
tion of meters was one of the
first requirements.
City Hall
With each member of the new
council loaded with assignments
to carry out within the next sev
eral days, next meeting date was
set for Tuesday.
“We’ll probably be meeting
every night, and days, too,” they
agreed. “But where will we
meet?”
The meeting place tentatively
was set for Severns cabinet shop
—rent free. “Our city hall, for
now,” the city fathers dubbed it.
New Son for Ganschows
Mr. and Mrs. Emil Ganschow
are parents of a baby boy, born
at 5:10 a.m. April 26, weighing
5 pounds 6 ounces. Mr. Ganschow
is with the Agriculture Research
Administration in Palmer.