t
Bela Sigma Phi pledge
ritual at U. P. Church
Monday at 8:00 p.m.
VOL. THREE—NO. 44
Knlley Mrontiergmnn
PUBLISHED IN THE INTERESTS OF THE MATANUSKA VALLEY
PALMER. ALASKA. FRIDAY. JULY 14. 1950
Malanuska Valley
Sportsmen's annual
fish fry will be held
on July 16.
PRICE 10c
Eklutna Project To Be Headquartered Here
Kadow Predicts
Hadite and Birch
Industries Here
Two possible industries may
develop in the Matanuska Valley
in the foreseeable future, Ken
neth Kadow, head of the interior
department’s field committee,
said this week. He listed the two
possibilities as a hadite plant and
a birch mill.
Hadite, he explained, is a light
weight aggregate which replaces
sand and gravel in cement. It
has certain qualities which ap
pear to make it superior to the
<sand and gravel. It is manufac
tured from shale, through a heat
process.
The industry, when it is es
tablished in Alaska, will be set
up in the Valley, "the committee
head predicted. Shale deposits
are located just a few miles north
of Palmer, and the plant will be
near the source of supply. The
plant will require a quarter-mil
lion dollar investment and will
utilize relatively few employes.
Hadite is still a thing of the
future, however, for Bureau of
Mines scientists have further
testing to do before the plant be
comes a reality.
The birch mill is only a “good
possibility,” Mr. Kadow said. In
terest has been expressed in the
establishment of a mill here, but
definite steps have not been tak
en to put the plan into action.
Lack of capital is the stumbling
block that hobbles industrial de
velopment in the territory, the
field committee head pointed out.
The new Alaskan Development
Bill can remove that barrier, he
said. The bill provides for the
establishment of a loaning agen
cy, headquartered in Alaska. “Its
help will be applied to industry
in the same way that the ARRC
loans help the farmers,” he ex
plained.
However, there is no possibility
of the bill’s being considered by
Congress at the present session.
Governor Finds
Contented Farmers
In the Valley
“What a wonderfully-contend
ed lot the Valley folks must be,”
marvelled Governor Ernest Gru
ening at the conclusion of
Wednesday’s public meeting.
Planned as an open forum, in
which he had agreed to answer
any questions Valley residents
wished to place before him, Gov
ernor Gruening got an early re
cess. Only three questions—one
dealing with the Pal:. poi
another with civilian defense and
a third with plans for the devel
opment of agriculture, were put
to him.
Dealing with the airport ques
tion first, the governor lashed
out at what he termed “Alaska’s
axis press” and its attempt to
make a political football of the
Palmer airfield. “The so-called
‘Palmer airport deal’ was a high
ly conservative and intelligent
piece of work,” he declared. “Not
only was it a transaction com
pletely correct and honorable, but
one that deserves to be praised
(Continued on Back Page)
A volunteer crew of carpenters hurry along in the early morning hours of June 30. as they begin the
work of building a library for Palmer. The top picture shows the job in its early stages at about 10
o'clock that morning. The photo below shows the way the library looked when carpenters were
through that evening. However the library looks a good deal different today, than it did when the
picture was taken, since work was progressing even as the engraving was being made. Windows
are installed now, and the front entryway is partially finished. Carpenters did the work without
cost.—(Photo by Palmer Studios.)
Beta Sigma Phi Plans Pledge Service
For New Palmer Chapter Tonight
First steps toward tne organi
ation of the Palmer chapter of
Beta Sigma Phi, international
sorority, were completed last
Tuesday evening at the Mata
nuska Hotel. Mrs. Elsie Guen
ther, executive staff member
from the international office of
the sorority at Kansas City, Mo.,
explained its purpose to an initial
group of 15 interested young
women.
She met with still more candi
dc i- r 'iiembership on Wednes
day and Thursday of this week.
Since only 10 members are re
quired to establish a chapter, and
nine candidates signed pledge
cards on Tuesday, a sizeable Pal
mer chapter appears assured.
Jean Mae Yohn was the first
Palmer woman pledged to the
new sorority, which will be the
thirteenth for Alaska. The first
chapter was organized at Juneau
seven years ago, also by Mrs.
Guenther.
It was explained that Beta
Sigma Phi is a cultural, educa
tional and service sorority for
young women who have complet
ea mgn scnooi. in point oi num
bers, it is the largest non-academ
ic sorority in the world with chap
ters located in each of the 48
states, in each province of Can
ada, in Alaska, Hawaii, England,
Scotland, Germany, Japan, Guam,
Cuba and the Panama Canal
Zone.
Regulations of Beta Sigma Phi
are simple. Membership is gained
by invitation at a twice-yearly
rushing Deriod. Pledges undergo :
a six months' probation before
they became regular members of
the order.
The Palmer chapter, when it is
established, will list on its mem
bership roll, two transfer mem
bers. Esther Brock was a char
ter member of Anchorage’s Gam
ma chapter and Hazel Litzen
berger transfers from a chapter at ;
Bozeman, Mont.
The pledge service for the Pal- i
mer chapter is planned for Mon
day night. It will be held at the <
United Protestant Church at eight ■
p.m. Members of the two An- ;
chorage chapters will be present <
for the service.
NATIONAL GUARD TO
ORGANIZE UNIT HERE
A National Guard platoon of
12 men is to be organized in Pal
mer, particularly for the purpose
if systematizing civilian defense
nere, it was announced today by
Lt. Arthur E. Ashley, who will be
company commander. Lieutenant
Ashley will be in Palmer on
rhursday, July 20, to interview
men who wish to enlist in the
iocal unit.
Lieutenant Ashley will discuss
he project at the meeting of the
American Legion at Legion Hall
aext Thursday. Since this meet
no is open to members only, he
will meet with all men who are
aot Legion members, at the Le
gion Hall at 7:30 that evening.
For men who have had no prior
military service, the age limit is
Tom 17 through 35 years. For
men with former service, the age
imit rises in ratio to years of
service.
A benefit ot especial importance
;o young men, the lieutenant said,
s the provision which gives draft
;xemption to all who enlist in
he National Guard before they
ire 1814 years of age. They must,
if course, report for duty when
(Conlinued on Back Page)
rKUJtuT TO BRINK
2 MILLION DOLLAR
ANNUAL PAYROLL
A two million dollar payroll
for the next five years awaits
Palmer with the passage of the
| Eklutna power bill in Congress.
| That’s what the power plant con
| struction work at Eklutna will
l bring to the town, which has been
j designed headquartei's for the
work, according to Joseph M.
i Morgan, chief of the Alaska In
vestigations Office of the Bureau
of Reclamation.
Mr. Morgan looks for Congres
sional approval of the power bill
within the next few days. Work
"will get under way immediately
| for survey crews, he said, and
| will continue next winter as late
j as weather will permit.
I The first job to be done under
I the Eklutna project will be the
survey for and construction of a
transmission line which will con
nect Palmer with Anchorage.
This 110.000-volt line will permit
the Matanuska Valley to draw its
power from the giant steam plant,
to be built by the Chugiak Elec
tric Association and The Alaska
Railroad in Anchorage. The steam
plant will provide interim power
during the five-year period that
Eklutna is under construction.
The transmission line between
the Valley and Anchorage gets
first priority, in order that power
can reach Palmer and its sur
roundings as soon as the steam
plant is in operation, about 18
months from now.
The Bureau of Reclamation’s
Eklutna project will cost $20,365,
000 to complete. When finished,
it will make it possible for An
chorage and Valley power users
to purchase electricity for about
three-quarters of a cent per kilo
watt hour.
While under construction, the
project is expected to employ
about 200 persons, most of them
construction workers. The tun
nel which must be dug through
Goat Mountain and under Eklut
na Lake will take an estimate-?
four years to drill. In additio n
the project will require construe -
tion of three 10.000 kw. generators
construction of temporary quar
(Continued on Back Page)
Civilian Defense Plan
For Palmer to Be
Outlined in Week or So
A master plan of civilian de
fense for Alaskan cities was pre
pared at a recent conference in
Anchorage, Governor Ernest Gru
ening told Valley residents at
last Wednesday’s public meeting.
From that plan will be evolved
individual plans for separate
CiLiC6, UL .. uiU.
Palmer’s place in that plan
ning will be revealed within the
“next few weeks,” the governor
said. When official information
is available, it is expected a town
meeting will be called, at which
committees will be appointed for
specific duties.
Col. Joseph D. Alexander, head
of the Alaskan National Guard,
has been appointed chief of ci
vilian defense, also. Governor
Gruening said Colonel Alexander
is expected to visit Palmer in the
near future. Until he arrives, he
advised the community to take
no action.