Pioneer Outlines History of Matanuska Valley
By M. D. Snodgrass
(Editors Note: The following
is the text, in part, of a speech
made by M. D. Snodgrass sev
eral years ago at the request
of his grandson. David Verrall,
to the students at Swanson
school. In his talk he outlined
the early history of the Matan
uska Valley, especially appro
priate on the anniversary of
the 1935 colonists’ arrival here.)
' About 72 years ago when I
was in Kansas school . . . geo
graphy was my favorite study
. . Alaska was my favorite
country. Later, when an oppor
tunity came to get a job in Al
aska I said yes. just that quick,
and so did David's grandmoth
er. That's how we came to be
here.
We landed at Kenai on the
morning of July 5. 1907, for in
spection of the U. S. Experi-'
ment Station, and after a short ;
stop there we reached Kodiak. j
our destination.
We learned of the Matanus
ka Valley at Kenai, from an
old trapper and trader named
Wiliam Dawson . . . later that
year, J. Lindley Green, district
attorney of the Alaska float
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MATANUSKA
ELECTRIC
ASSOCIATION
PI 5-3200
MOOSE
GAME NIGHT
EVERY WEDNESDAY NITE
PUBLIC WELCOME
MOOSE HALL - PALMER - 8 P.M.
DEDICATED TO YOUR COODHEAITH
Yon can always
count on us
for accuracy!
When illness strikes,
registered pharmacists
are ready here to fill
your doctor's prescrip
tions with professional
precision.
Years of training and experience
qualify us to be your doctor's
"helpers."
BERT'S
PI 5-4515-PI 5-4500 «
ing court, told me much in de
tail of this valley, its soils,
timber, Chiokaloon coal depos
its, and gold mines in the Wil
low Creek country, also the
plateau area where Anchorage
now stands. All of this I re
ported to Dr. Georgeson, head
of experiment stations in Al
aska, resulting in my assign
ment seven years later to come
and select a site for an Experi
ment station here in May, 1915.
The Alaska Railroad surveys
ran through the Valley, and
land surveys were nearly com
pleted before I arrived. The
branch line survey was at the
foot of Tex Cobb Hill, and the
forward camp at Sherrod’s hill
then known as Society Brown’s
Hill. “Gold Tooth” Brown's
homestead was just west at the
foot of Bailey Hill Street.
In all new countries where
settlement attracts a lot of peo
pie who have like names they
usually acquire a nickname to
distinguish them from others of
the same name. This valley had
five August Swansons with the
same initials. They were iden
tified as "Smiley Gus,” “Wrin
| kleface Gus,” "Finger Lake
Gus' (the only family many
"Powder Box Gus. and A. J.
Swanson, whose name is hon
ored by your school.
The early settlers of the Ma
tanuska Valley, of the vintage
of 1911-17, built the “Hall in
the Woods" at Four Corners.
Pack horse trails and the two
main roads crossed here. This
was about the center of the
Wasilla Creek Valley. Some
1 weniy families and 150 bache
lor homesteaders gathered at
the hall to dance, eat and make
merry on the few occasions to
■ warrant their taking time off
from their homesteading opera
Gels Appointment
KENNETH ROBERT BISSETT, son of Mr. and Mrs. George
McClure of Palmer, was informed recently of his ap
pointment to the United States Military Academy at West
Point, New York. The young man is a member of this
year's graduating class at Palmer high school, where he
is class president and an honor student. He will report
to the Military Academy on July 1.
Speak up—the world is al
ways too busy to listen to whis
pers.
SUNRISE BAKERY
OVER 35 VARIETIES
OF BREAD
DELIVERED FRESH DAILY TO YOUR FAVORITE GROCER
"IF ITS FRESHER THAN SUNRISE
IT HASN'T BEEN BAKED"
Benson's
DEPARTMENT
STORE
SPECIALS MAY 24 • 29
66% RAYON, 34% ACETATE, Hand washable
Assorted colors, 10-16
MISSES’ CAPRIS ... Special $2.98
MISSES’ & CHILDREN’S “FUN-SHUS”
Assorted styles & colors_25% off
Assorted styles and colors
f Rack of MISSES’ DRESSES 30% off
Cork soles — 7’/a - 12 — were $11.49
MEN’S WORK OXFORDS Now $5.98
JUST ARRIVED
100% ARNEL PERMANENTLY PLEATED
Wash in Minutes, Plain and Prints
JERSEY DRESSES $11.98 lo $13.98
Wide stripes and checks — 54 in. wide
Table Cloth INDIANHEAD $1.49 yd.
100% COTTON, red, blue, green, gold
HAWAIIAN PRINT.$1.10 yd.
STORE HOURS: Monday - Friday, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Saturday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Sunday Closed
] tiorss and seasonal jobs. . .
In May, 1915, all the valuable
! homestead land was located.
! Small clearings around their
log cabins dotted the Matanus
| uska Valley from Lazy Moun
| tain on the East, Knik Village
on the west, Matanuska village
i on the south, and the coal min- I
es on Moose Creek and the I
; gold mines in the Little Susit
I na Valley on the north. There i
were two school houses, one at
! Fairview on the John Edlund
farm, and the Matanuska sch- i
ol house on Wasilla Creek, one
mile southeast of Four Cor
ners.
The building of the Experi
ment Station in 1917. the Mat
j anuska River bridge east of
Palmer, and the roads connect
! ing with the Knik-Willow
Creek road at Wasilla brought
renewed life to the valley.
Knik village faded away and
Wasilla became the outfitting
center for the Willow Creek
mine area.
Chickaloon coal mines were
closed in 1921-23. and the Evan
Jones and Eska mines came in
to operation. The Moose Creek
mines were developed and the
center of population moved to
ward Palmer. 172 homesteads
were patented by 1923, with 72
liv ing on their homesteads and
100 gone to other parts of Al- i
aska.
Possibilities of the coming •
Flying Club
Buys Plane
The Matanuska Valley Fly
ing Club has recently purchas
ed a four-place Tri-Pacer
plane, it was announced this
week.
The club will meet tonight at
8 p.m. in the Flying Club quon
set hut next to Floyd Spicker
man’s at the Palmer airport.
Anyone interested in flying is
invited to attend the meeting.
Plans will be made for the
fly-in breakfast at the Palmer
airport on June 2. which will
be sponsored by the club. The
public is invited to the break
fast, at which ham and eggs
will be served.
Butte Firemen Plan
Auction Sale June 16
Planned for June 1 b by the
Butte Fire Association is an
auction sale, with proceeds to
go toward maintenance of the
equipment and facilities of the
association.
Items donated to the Fire As
sociation will be picked up by
firemen, and consignment
items will be handled under
the usual terms.
valley farming began :o attract
attention throughout the states,
netting 55 families through the
efforts of the Alaska Railroad’s
revitalized agricultural devel
opment program from 1929 to
1933.
Community halls were built
at Wasilla and Matanuska in
1930 and 1931, and -o a new
social life came to the valley.
Wasilla school was built about
1925, and a school was estate 1
lished at Kings Lake in 1931.
The schoolhouse on Wasilla
Creek was moved to Mulanuska
in 1927 and, the school was !
consolidated with the Fairview
district. Three teachers were |
required.
A small creamery was estab
lished by the Alaska Railroad
at the Curry Hotel, and purch
ased cream and whole milk
from the settlers. Rex Monag
han, G. E. West. Mads John
son, Adam Werner, John Liken,
Harry Saiden. A1 Walters, Win
ters. Bergstrom, and B. J. Los
sing were the first milk pro
ducers in the valley. Gotfried [
Kohler, now at Homer, was our
creamery man and cheese mak- !
er. The creamery was moved
from Curry to the Experiment
Station in 1934.
Land clearing was the great
problem of the new settlers of i
that period. The Alaska Rail- ;
road’s 30 Cat with Hoister at- j
tachment was the stumping
power and the 26-inch breaker j
was the plow. Every settler did
his own slashing and clearing
and burning of brush. Logs
were saved, and almost all of
the wood was shipped to An
chorage. Captain Axel Olsen,
south of Four Corners, had the
first sawmill and later J. J.
Bugge bought a mill. A few
carloads of birch lumber were
sawed on the Gust Haller
homestead and were purchased
by the Alaska Railroad in 1925,
later appearing in the dining
room furniture at the Curry
Hotel, also as the finish in the
rebuilt railroad coaches of that
time.
The roads of the valley were
receiving more attention from
year to year, and new roads ex
tending to Willow Creek and to
Fish Creek were built. Ford
cars, pickups and trucks were
becoming plentiful. The late
Alpine
Civic Club
GAME
NIGHT
MAY 24
8:00 P.M.
AMSPRO
Chemical - Hydro Air 1
ENGINE CLEANING
FAST, MODERN WAY TO KEEP j
A HEALTHY ENGINE! 1
NO STEAM DAMAGE [
To Wiring and Accessories l
PIONEER TEXACO I
PI 5-2848
PALMER
comers to the Valley were
settled and housed comfortably.
The need for some kind of
farm organization was felt by
all. In February. 1934. a tem
poral y If rm Grange organ i/n
tion was set up with Mrs Em
ma King as secretary.
It has been a great privilege
and inspiration to work w:th
many wonderful people in
making the history of the Ma
tanuska Valley
Sometimes we feel that it is
slow, that too many people are
failing to realize the full op
portunities to make our land
self-: upporting. Many fail
to realize that we are far from
the farm development neces
sary to support life even for
a few days if ocacsion should
arise for an all-out civil defense
mobilization—that the lack of
3600 acres of land under culti
vation at this time would ren
der us a casualty and a burden
on the military. We would have
to be supported by shipments
from the States to long survive
an all-out attack by a great
power:
Alaska needs people to help
build farms and factories. Ail
Alaska young people need vo
cational training to fit them
for taking their rightful places
in industry. Thousands of our
young people should be train
ed for these jobs right here in
Alaska. Let us look forward to
the day when we will have a
branch of the University of Al
aska, an agricultural college,
industrial training in engineer
ing, mechanical and electric
courses, and nursing and home
economics. You young people
will help us to get such an in
stitution.
r
PI 5-2200
PALMER
KIRK’S
SALES & SERVICE
Let Us Check
Your Brakes
For Safety
Prompt, positive braking action is basic So
safe driving. Let us check your brakes
tighten drums or re-line as necessary ro
put them at peak performance. Cost is
small
YOUR CAR IS IN GOOD HANDS HERE!
Rouse-Parkinson
Rifes Are June 14
Mr. and Mrs. Joseph W.nkl • -
pleck of Palmer this week ar.
nounced the engagement arm
forthcoming marriage of the;'
ward, Josephine Aiice Rou~«
to Stanley Kirt Parkinson, a
of Mr. and Mrs William Park
inson of Goat Creek.
The marriage ceremony wii.
be held on June 14 at sever
o'clock in the evening at thr
Wasilla Assembly of God A,
friends of the bride and groon.
are invited to the ceremony an
te the reception which will fol
low in the church parlors.
Miss Rouse is a student in th*
Palmer high school, and Mr.
Parkinson, a graduate of We '
Anchorage high school, is em
ployed in Anchorage.
HEALTH OFFICE
CLOSURE EXPECTED
IN EARLY JUNE
There may be periods dur
ing the first two weeks in Junt
that the Palmer Health Cen
ter will be closed. Mrs. Pris
cilla Bacon, public health nursi
for the Matanuska Valley, saic
this week.
Personnel at the office wii
be on leave during that time
she stated.
*
5
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BUTTE FIRE
ASSOCIATION
Auction
June 16, 1963
Noon Till ?
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