VALLEY FRONTIERSMAN
PRINTED AT PALMER. ALASKA. EACH FRIDAY
By the Matanuska Press, Inc.
Entered as second class matter on Oct. 21, 1947, at the post office at
Palmer, Alaska, under the Act of March 3. 1879.
Publisher, Business Manager .A1 J. DeJulio
Editor . Lucille Kennedy Mick
Associate Editor ..Virginia Gallant
Barbara Carter Wasilla Correspondent
Subscription Rates . 50c a month, $5 a year
Mailed to all points in Alaska and the United States
Letters to the Editor
Editors Comment: The follow
ing letter was received last Fri
day afternoon, too late for pub
licition in the August 3 Frontiers
man.
Dear Editor:
We wish to thank you for the
publicity given Lake George on
the front page of the Valley Fron
tiersman.
Due to Lake George’s erratic
nature combined with Alaska’s
M tropical summer, the McKinley
Foundation officers were fooled
together with many guessers. For
the first time on record, Lake
George flooded the Knik Valley
before July 27.
Five Alaskan communities had
failed to report in to the Found
ation prior to the actual break-up,
therefore the McKinley Founda
tion was forced to with-hold the
exact time from the public until
all monies, tickets, and reports
"had been completed. An attempt
of sabotage forced this decision.
The mystery of the barrel at
Knik bridge wasn’t intended to
be a mystery. The barrel, act
ing as a float, rose with the flood
waters counterbalanced by an
equal weight inside the watch
men’s building. When the water
had reached the first flood stage,
the counter-balanced weight stop
ed the specially constructed clock
at 4:59:02 A.M. on July 24. The
holes punched in the bottom of
the barrel were to allow the ac
cumulation of rain water to drain
away while the barrel remained
suspended above the water.
After the counter-balanced
weight performed it’s task, the
control cable was fastened secure
ly to the building. Because there
was no give or slack in this ar
rangement, the first tree to come
floating down the river and strike
the barrel broke the cable and
the barrel sank from sight.
Th e McKinley Foundation
wanted to retain the red oil bar
rel float suspended beneath the
Knik bridge as a marker for pub
licity, but a dislodged tree beat
us to it, so a new one will be con
structed for next year’s program.
The McKinley Foundation
wanted to retain the red oil bar
rel float suspended beneath the
Knik bridge as a marker for pub
licity, but a dislodged three beat
us to it, so a new one will be
constructed for next year’s pro
gram.
The McKinley Foundation
would appreciate comments and
suggestions as to a better timing
device to judge the first flood
waters of the break-up of Lake
George from the readers of the
Valley Frontiersman. We realize
the importance of this event to
the winner and to the ACCA. We
realize how important it is that
the barrel and clock give an im
partial decision as to whom the
winner will be.
Very truly yours,
Mc.Kinley Foundation, Inc.
DON C. KNUDSEN
President
Surprised on 26th
Wedding Anniversary
A surprise 26th wedding an
niversary party honored Rev. and
Mrs. J. H. Davis at their home
last week on July 30.
As the guests of honor arrived
at their home after a convenient
summons elsewhere, they were
greeted by the strains of “I Love
You Truly”, sung by Bill Smith
and greeted by the many friends
gathered to congratulate them.
These included Rev. and Mrs.
« Kenneth Hughes, Rev. and Mrs.
Dale Bryant, Rev. and Mrs. Sid
ney Lindeke, Rev. and Mrs. Rob
ert ^Badten, Rev. and Mrs. Paul
Schoming, Rev. Paul Riley, Mrs.
Adam Werner, Mrs. Emmy Ha
venmeister and her daughter
Helen and the Davis children,
Ramona and Paul.
The party was planned by Miss
Ramona Davis and Mrs. Badten
who came from Craig, Alaska,
for the occasion. Mrs. Eston Hub
bard presided at the table where
a three-tier wedding cake, ice
cream and coffee were served.
Rev. Davis is the pastor at the
^Highway Church of God. The
honored couple have four child
ren. Two of them are Outside and
were unable to attend the sur
prise party.
#
GRANGE FLOWER SHOW
AUGUST 12
Chirikof Cattle Co.
Acquires, Plans for
Building on Island
The Chirikof Cattle Company
plans construction of a new re
frigeration building in connec
tion with the island slaughter
house, it was announced this
week by Harry Ryan.
The cooler will be large enough
to hold 15 to 20 head of beef—
enough for a load on the '“Flying
Bull,” in which Sig Staveland
brings the beef from the island
to the Palmer Airport. The build
ing will be built here in Palmer
and assembled on the island. It
will have fiberglass insulation
and walls of celotex and alumi
num sheeting.
Company members Ryan, Wal
ter Cooper and Charles Waller
recently acquired possession of
a number of buildings and mis
cellaneous equipment abandoned
by the government and offered
for sale by the Department of In
terior, Bureau of Land Manage
ment. When the sealed bids on
the property were opened in An
chorage July 24, Jack McCord of
Sitkinac, chairman of the board
of the Kodiak Cattle Assn., re
ceived the award. The buildings
were located on 90 acres of the
Chirikof Island which he had
leased from the government. Ac
cording to Ryan, McCord has
IRRIGATION IS TOPIC
OF MEETING TONIGHT
IN SCS OFFICE
All persons interested in irri
gation in the Matanuska Valley
are invited to attend the Palmer
Soil Conservation District meet- j
ing tonight at 8 p. m. in the Soil
Conservation Service quarters
above Bert’s Drug Store.
Discussion o f experimental
work carried on by SCS in co
operation with the Soil Conser
vation District will be the main
point of the program. Experi
mental work in irrigation has
been done this year at the Frank
Linn and Max Sherrod farms
where an immediate supply of
water was available,
iscuss
Irrigation on 12 acres at
Frank Linn’s place this year re- j
quired as much water every day'
for a week as was used in the en
tire city of Palmer. It cost $1.50
.per acre for gasoline and oil costs
to apply two inches of water. This
supplied moisture to a depth of 16
inches,
two t
Max Sherrod claims that irri
gation has value for him because
he can get ideal moisture condi
tions any time he wants to plant.
In this way the market season for
lettuce, for instance, can be ex
tended over several weeks in
stead of just a few.
Charles W. Wilson, who heads
the SCS activities in Alaska says
“It will take considerable re
search and estimation of costs
and effect on water levels before
it can be determined whether lr
turned over his lease on the 90
acres and the buildings to the
Chirikof Cattle Company.
Passenger Service
FROM SEWARD
SS ALASKA SS BARANOF
Mon., Aug. 13 Thurs., Aug. 16
Seattle
From Seattle
..Freighter Service..
SS CHENA
August 15 for Seward and
V aldez
A FREIGHTER
August 22 for Seward and
Valdez
FOR INFORMATION
Phone 22001
T. J. MALONEY. Agent
Office: Westward Hotel
Anchorage, Alaska
Valdez
Cordova
Sitka
Ketchikan
Valdez
Juneau
Ketchikan
Seattle
A
GIANT PANSIES MAKE
"OUTSIDE" NEWSPAPER
The Pine Knot Weekly .publish
ed in Cloquet. Minnesota, recen
tly printed the following item:
"They can grow them big in Alas
ka, too.” Mr. and Mrs. Ingwald
Iverson, 319 Sixth Street, receiv
ed two pansies, pressed.from Mr.
and Mrs. L. McKechnie of Pal
mer, Alaska. The pansies, which
were of the same coloring as we
grow in Minnesota, were three
and a half inches in diameter.
rigation on a general basis in the
Valley is feasible”.
Next year he hopes to extend
his irrigation experiments to in
clude different soil types. A suf
ficient supply of water is a
“must” before any such opera
tions can be contemplated, he
said.
BUY NOW—PAY LATER
, FURNITURE DEPARTMENT
KOSLOSKY'S
Valley Frontiersman
3
BETA SIGMA PHI
MEETS MONDAY
Beta Sigma Phi will meet at
the home of Bonnie Bettine, Mon
day night, April 13, for the regu
lar meeting. Plans will be made
for the Ritual of Jewels to take
place the Monday following.
In spite of the rain last Monday
night, the group held a family
picnic at Cornelius Lake.
ARRIVES ON SS ALEUTIAN
Mrs. Arline Day went to Anch
orage today to meet her mother.
Mrs. L. O. Harris, as the boat
train arrives from Seward. Mrs.
Harris comes from Marshalltown.
Iowa. She arived in Alaska today
aboard the SS Aleutian.
Dr, George Whetstone went to
Valdez Monday on Geological
Survey business.
wast/t/s loss
l
Eliminate major cause of
Mastitis, increase pro
duction with . . .
M I L K E R
^TMANKATO MINN..
J/S 0>ifferentl
ORVILLE R. HANSEN, Dealer
Box 1826, Anchorage Phone 30135
HUNTING
Pi
NEEDS
RIFLES
• Remington Model 721-300 Magnum
30-06-270
• Remington Model 722-300 Savage
257 Roberts
• Winchester Model 70-375 Magnum
304)6 - 270 - 257
We have everything for that hunting trip
Complete Stock of Ammunition— Pack Boards
—Hatchets—Hunting Knives, Compasses, etc.
Outfit Now, while stocks are complete
KOSLOSKY'S
mmmm