Valdez News
VOL. 1. NO. 39
VALDEZ, ALASKA, DECEMBER 8, 1950
PRICE 10c
School Board Brings Proposals To City Council
Power Shortage Halts
Work on Installation
Of New Dial ’Phones
Work on the new automatic
dial telephone system now being
installed at Valdez has been at a
standstill recently. The work on
the new telephone system has
been temporarily postponed due
to work and time involved in
raising the electric power supply
for the city, according to Owen
Meals, owner and manager of the
system.
An influx of new residents here
with the resulting increased de
mands on the power plant has
caused an overloading on the
lines and created an emergency
due to shortage of power, Mr.
Means explained. He is also own
er of the light plant at Valdez.
The situation has already been
greatly improved in sections of
the town, due to conversion to
heavier duty wires, Mr. Means
explained.
, The new dial phones for Valdez
will, for the first time since 1915,
bring a complete telephone sys
tem to the city. Since the de
cline and removal of the original
phone system of the gold boom
and transportation days and be
fore the modern trucking boom,
there was a “kind of a system”,
as old-timers will say. There were
phones of a private system con
necting the docks with the Alaska
Steamship office, the hospital and
places of business were plugged
in. The new system will be com
pletely modern.
$250 Collected in
Annual T.B. Sale
The annual Tuberculosis Seal
Sale has met with a very gener
ous response at Valdez with a
total of $250 collected, it was re
ported this week. Approximately
90 replies enclosing money for
the seals have been returned
from 194 letters sent out by the
committee. The committee met
^recently to type, fold and seal the
letters, which were sent to mer
chants and townspeople of Val
dez. Placards were placed in win
dows and a film was also shown
at the theatre to help promote
the sale.
Chairman of the committee is
Mrs. E. R. Alexander. She is as
sisted by the Mesdames Lyle
Johnson, Mary Jo Brown, Jack
Antritter, Miss Ruth Foy, Mrs.
Bill Mclllroy, Mrs. Jim McGary,
and Mrs. Jess O’Dell.
Civic Club Meeting
Set for January 2
When the next meeting of the
Civic Club is held, the New Year
will have arrived as January 2
is the date for the next regular
session of the club. At the No
vember meeting, held at the home
of Mrs. Kathryn Fawcett, a pro
gram of music was enjoyed.
Songs were offered by the three
Baker sisters, Marlene, Darlene
and Charlene. The young ladies
were accompanied by their moth
> er, Mrs. John Baker, at the piano.
Community
Calendar
December 12
ROLLER Skating, school gym,
7:30 p.m.
WELL CHILD conference.
December 13
SHOW at Eagles hall, 8 p.m.
December 14
BASKETBALL, school gym, 7:30
p.m.
THURSDAY CLUB, 8 p.m.
December 15
R’OLLER SKAiING, school'gym,
7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Recreation Schedule
Offers Full Week of
Entertainment Here
In contrast to this summer
when there was not much enter
tainment offered for children and
teen-agers of Valdez, there is
now a full schedule of planned
recreation for the young folk that
takes in every day of the week.
On Mondays, the teen-agers of
the community from 14 to 19
years of age, and their invited
guests have a dance at the Eagle’s
hall. The dance is from 8 p.m. to
11 p.m. with refreshments of
sandwiches and cokes served.
Roller skating from 7:30 p.m. to
9:30 p.m. is on the program for
Tuesday and on Wednesday there
is a two-hour show which starts
at 8 p.m. Basketball is the at
traction for Thursday starting at
7:30 p.m. with games between
the high and grade school stu
dents as to date no town teams
have been formed. On Friday
there is roller skating again at
the usual time and shows are also
scheduled for Saturday and Sun
day. Church services for adults
and young folk are also held both
morning and evening on Sunday.
Zv2 Foot Snowfall is
Welcomed as Relief
From High Winds Here
A snowfall of two and one-half
feet was recorded at Valdez on
Monday of this week. The heavi
est fall was during the night and
early morning. Valdezans wel
comed the snow as it not only
wrapped the city in its beautiful
winter mantle but it also brought
relief from the cold winds.
Winds have been buffeting the
city for weeks, harassing citizens
in their tightly-buttoned over
coats and also causing consider
able damage. A large cottonwood
tree and a garage were blown
down. On one occasion a high
wind picked up a 100-pound bale
of insulation and hurled it off the
dock into the water.
On December 5, longshoremen
made their way through the deep
snow to the docks as two boats
pulled into the port of Valdez,
carrying 340 tons of freight. The
“Nadina” was loaded with 120
tons and the “North Beacon” with
220 tons to be unloaded at the
port.
VISITS FROM ANCHORAGE
Paul Jurest, a cook from An
chorage, has been a visitor here.
Mr. Jurest planned to return to
Anchorage as soon as the weather
cleared enough for the trip there.
WINTER BASKETBALL
SEASON GOES INTO
FULL SWING HERE
Basketball season at Valdez is
now going into full stride for the
winter with the High School
team practicing for big games
ahead, the organization of town
teams who hope to be challenged
by other towns this year, and the
grade school teams, hard at work
too.
Lettermen on the High School
team this year are Rodger Beals,
Dean Thatcher, Jimmy Seger
quist, and John Streigel. New
members on the team are John
Schultz, Larry Anderson, Lloyd
Weeks. Buck Stout is coach for
the team, which to date has not
chosen a captain.
Two grade school teams, the
Cubs and the Tigers, met for the
first game of the season on No
vember 30. The lineup for the
Tigers was Delbert Ferrier, Jerry
Phillips, Pat Conn, Edward and
Larry Seavers. Cubs lineup was
Mark Weiler, Russell Shaw, David
Hancock, Jerry Zook and John
Faudskar. The Tigers took the
game with a score of 5 to 2. Larry
Severs was high man for the
Tigers with 3 points. Jerry Phil
lips of the Tigers, and John Faud
skar of the Cubs, tied with scores
of two points each. There were
no fouls during the game.
The second game and featured
on the card was between the
High School boys and girls, the
Reds and Whites with the Whites
fighting for a win of 38 to 37.
Dean Thatcher scored high
points for the Whites with 16.
He was closely followed by
Roger Beals with a score of 14.
For the Reds John Schultz had
a high score of 18 with Jimmy
Segerquist coming in second with
lO puilllb.
Attendance at the game was
disappointing as few spectators
turned out. The teams need sup
port; there is nothing more effi
cient as a morale builder than a
good attendance at any perform
ance. The school teams are hop
ing that the townspeople will give
them that support, according to
the announcement.
MARINERS' CHARTS
MAY BE OBTAINED
FROM MRS. WHEELER
Mariners’ charts of Alaska, de
scribed as South coast No. 8517,
Prince William Sound, western
part, September, 1950, scale
1:80,000, size 30 inches by 45
inches, are now available, with
Mrs. Clara Wheeler announcing
this week that she can supply the
charts. They are priced at 75
cents each, according to the an
nouncement.
Extensive hydrographic data
has been added in the previously
unsurveyed areas of Blackstone,
Cochrane and Kings Bay, Port
Wells and Port Nellie Juan from
recent surveys executed by the
Coast and Geodetic Survey. The
topographic detail has been ex
tensively revised from Corps of
Engineers quadrangles.
Valdezons Also
Thought Meteor Was
'Russian Missile*
Residents of Valdez who wit
nessed the strange phenomenon
Thursday night that illumined
Alaskan skies for a radius of hun
dreds of miles had the same reac
tion here that has been reported
from most everywhere else. They
thought it was a guided missel
from Russia, or perhaps an atom
bomb.
Several residents attending the
basektball game when the flash
occurred shortly before 8 p.m.
said they thought it was lightning
in the sky. Miss Ruth Foy, super
intendent of the school, said that
she saw it and that “it lit up the
sky with a greenish overglow in
several places, lasting for several
seconds.”
Valdez people also rushed to
their radios to be reassured that
“it was believed to be a meteor
and that there was no danger.”
Mrs. Elmer White
Is Hostess for
Thursday Club Meet
Mrs. Elmer White was hostess
at the regular weekly meeting of
the Thursday Club last week.
Following the tallying of scores
for the evening of canasta and
pinochle games, delicious refresh
ments were served by the hostess.
Attending the club meeting
were Mesdames Larry Parker,
Raymond Huddleston, B. D.
Stewart Jr., Lyle Johnston, Lou
Taylor, Sid Moore Harold, Jor
genson, William Mclllroy, George
and James McGarry.
Hostess for this week’s meeting
will be Mrs. E. R. Alexander.
NEW YOUNG PEOPLE'S
GROUP FORMED HERE
A young people’s group to in
clude everyone between the ages
of 13 and 38 was recently formed
here. Following the Thursday
night basketball game last week
teen-agers gathered at the home
of the Rev. and Mrs. R. J. Teeter
for a chili feast. Plans for the
formation of the new group were
discussed and an advisory board
was elected. Social gatherings in
cluding snow picnics and other
recreation and regular church ac
tivities will be on the new group’s
program.
Yuletide Plans for Valdez Include
Special Christmas Music Programs
Yuletide plans for Valdez call
for several Christmas programs,
including special music, when
songs which everyone enjoys dur
ing the Happy Holiday season
will be offered. A Christmas can
tata, “A Child Is Bom,” by Noel
Benson, will be presented Sunday,
December 17, at 8 p.m., at the
school auditorium. The chorus,
which has been practicing for
weeks under the direction of Mrs.
Jeanette Huddleston on the beau
tiful music, is composed of folk
Native Schoolrooms
Considered as Means
To Relieve Crowding
Over-crowded conditions at the
school and emergency measures
to supply additional facilities
were discussed at a special meet
ing called by the Valdez school
board December 1 at the home of
Miss Helen Long. The immediate
purpose of the meeting was to
discuss ways and means of ac
commodating new pupils who are
being enrolled at the Valdez
school daily.
“There is not one extra seat in
grades three and four,” school
board members said at the meet
ing, explaining that other grades
are in the same condition. A re
port on the inspection of the Na
tive school building was given
with estimates made that at a
cost of $2000 for both rooms, two
schoolrooms could be provided
for the use of Valdez school.
Other suggestions to alleviate the
crowded conditions were also
made which will be submitted to
the City Council to study along
with the proposed use of the na
tive school building.
“We must do something now to
take care of our boys and girls
and we must also arrange for
proper living quarters for new
teachers who will be coming here
within the netx few months,”
Mrs. Mabel Johns, School board
president, said in addressing the
meeting.
MOTHERS MEET TO
DISCUSS PROJECTS
Mothers of first and second
grade children met this week to
get acquainted and to discuss
plans for future projects for the
children. The meetings were held
November 29 and December 1 in
the Home Economics room at
Valdez school. Miss Ruth Foy,
superintendent of the school, gave
an interesting talk and led in the
discussion of problems presented
by the mothers. Plans were made
for a similar meeting to be held
in January.
In attendance at the meeting of
first grade mothers were Mrs.
Esther Peterson, Mrs. Louise
Segerquist, Mrs. Mary Jo Clark,
Mrs. Angeline Brown, Mrs. Ralph
Smart. Mothers attending the sec
ond grade meeting were Mrs.
Wanda Sontag, Mrs. Jan McElroy,
Mrs. Jean Matthews, Mrs. Bill
Zook, Mrs. Betty Derringer, Mrs.
Ruth Erdman, Mrs. Jeannette
Huddleston, Mrs. Mary Archer,
Mrs. Douglas Stewart, Mrs.
Phoebe Johnson.
of Valdez who love music and
love to sing. The public is cor
dially invited to attend and there
is no admission fee.
On Sunday evening, December
24, a Christmas program will be
presented at the Valdez Chapel.
Included on the program as a spe
cial feature will be a 32-voice
junior choir as well as the 18
voice adult choir. Instrumental
and vocal numbers as well as
recitations will also compose the
program.