Colony Day in Palmer
on May 27 and 28.
Malley Wrontiergman «
PUBLISHED IN THE INTERESTS OF THE MATANUSKA VALLEY
Fair board meets in
Wasilla at Community
Hall Monday.
VOL. THREE—NO. 36
PALMER. ALASKA. FRIDAY. MAY 19. 1950
FrtXUt. 1UC
Law May Halt Juneau Capitol Plans
Jackie Smith Swaps |
Chances for Crown
For Diamond Ring
It shouldn’t have been done. It
was a plain error to invite folks
to drop in and see “Jackie” Smith,
last week’s announced queen can
didate of the Matanuska Valley
Sportsmen. Benjamin Cabo ac
cepted the invitation, liked what
he saw and slipped a diamond on
Miss Smith’s finger. Since he in
tends to follow that diamond with
a bedding ring on June 4, she’s
automatically out of the queen
race. (Contestants must be sin
gle.)
So, this week the Sportsmen
pondered the matter again, and
then decided to stand by their
Smith, decision, at least. They
selected Jean Smith, Jackie’s 17
year-old baby sister, as their
choice for queen honors a't the
coming Sept. 1, 2, 3, 4 fair.
Jean is a junior at Palmer High
School. She’s been a Valley resi
dent since the age of two, when
she arrived here with her colonist
parents, Mr. and Mrs. William
Smith.
Jean, too, is interested in shoot
ing. She is a member of the Pal
mer High School rifle team, and
was a member of the Valley
Frontiersman rifle squad entered
in last winter’s Merchants Handi
cap Shoot.
However her athletic inclina
tion extends to other sports, too.
She enjoys basketball and played
on the Rocket squad last winter.
Jean has bright brov. n eyes and
brown hair, and fairly brims with
energy and the joy of life. She
works at the popcorn stand at the
Valley Theatre several evenings
a week. The Matanuska Valley
Sportsmen ask that everyone
look the other way when buying
their popcorn—they don’t want to
have to choose another candidate
before fair time.
COLONY DAY EVENTS
TO OPEN WITH
BALLOON SHOWER
A shower of prize balloons,
scattered from an airplane by
Dilot Bob Totten, will open Col
ony Day events here at one
Vclock on Sunday, May 28, com
nitjee chairman A1 Hagen said
oday. Pilot Totten will drop the
>alloons over the fair grounds,
chere Colony Day outdoor events
re scheduled.
Inside a number of the balloons
/ill be a prize slip, redeemable
i merchandise, at one of the fol
>wing Valley businesses:
Koslosky’s Department Store,
?lmer Drug Store, Palmer Foun
lin and Cafe, Bert’s Drug Store
Valley Theatre.
HAS HANDS TREATED
Leslie McDonald is a patient at
sii^y Hospital, where he is un
■rgoing treatment for hand in
ries.
Little Men (but Not from Flying Saucers) Soon
Will Be Seen on Distant Peaks of Valley Horizon
The solitude of the mountain
peaks that rim the Matanuska
Valley and march north along
The Alaska Railroad will be dis
turbed by a strange visitor this
summer. Within the next few
weeks a helicopter will drop a
booted man with a pack of
mystery instruments atop a peak
each day, and will depart to re
turn for him late that evening.
Russian skulduggery, you think?
Far from it—it’ll just be Uncle
Sam’s men, from the Topograph
ical Division of the Geological
Survey, making up Alaska’s map
anew. They’re still engaged on
the job of bringing that map up
to date, as they will be for sev
eral years yet.
Work on the Valley area began
two years ago, and probably will
be finished this summer. A crew
of 10 men, the helicopter’s pas
sengers, are expected to arrive
here this weekend under George
Forney, party chief. They’ll be
camping on the Alaska Rural Re
habilitation Corporation plot, just
south from the Fairbanks end of
least swc or eight weeks, before
they polish off the mountains in
this immediate area and begin
to work north along the Alaska
Railroad.
A second crew will be working
south fro mthe Fairbanks end of
the Railroad. Still other crews
are already at work along the
Richardson Highv/ay. One is
based at Gakona and another is
based at Fairbanks.
Following the summer’s field
work—triangulation, it’s called—
USGS men will take the field
crews’ mathematics and aerial
photographs and put them to
gether into the new map of Alas
ka. Alaskans can expect to see
that map in about two years.
The survey will include roads
as well as the peak-to-peak ob
servation.
J. H. Langhofer, project engi
neer for the USGS, will be sta
tioned in Palmer and will be in
charge of the two Railroad crews.
Mr. Langhofer has been in Pal
mer for the past two weeks, mak
ing preliminary arrangements for
the field crews.
SECOND SHEET METAL
SHOP OPENS HERE
Sheetmetal-less Palmer, until a
few weeks ago without a sheet
metal and heating industry of its
own, today will have its choice of
two Palmer establishments. John
L. Weisenberger this week an
nounced his plans for the immedi
ate opening of the Palmer Sheet
Metal and Heating Company.
Mr. Weisenberger is at present
in the states, where he went to
take delivery on a new pickup,
to be used in his business, and to
visit west coast dealers to inspect
a line of furnaces and materials
for his shop.
While Outside, Mr. Wisenberg
er combined business with pleas
ure, for he visited with relatives
in Fargo, North Dakota, before
returning to the coast. He is ex
pected to be back in Palmer by
next weekend.
Palmer Sheet Metal has estab
lished its shop in temporary quar
ters near the new construction of
the Agricultural Research Admin
istration, under contract to eas
ier & Loyer. Palmer Sheet Metal
has secured the heating sub-con
tract on these buildings.
Following the completion of the
ARA buildings, Mr. Weisenberg
er expects to move his quarters
to a more permanent location.
Mr. Weisenberger has been a
resident of the Valley since last
September, but is only now set
ting up his own business. Mrs.
Weisenberger, the former Patricia
Hemmer, is the daughter of Mr.
and Mrs. Pat Hemmer, a colonist
family.
CRITES NAMED
’50 FAIR MANAGER
Robert L. Crites, physical edu
cation instructor at Palmer High
School, has been accepted as man
ager of the 1950 Matanuska Val
ley Fair, it was announced this
weeek. A contract is now being
drawn up, which outlines the
terms of employment as follows:
(a) The manager will receive
a salary of $450 a month, be
ginning May 22, for a three and
a half month period.
(d) He will gel a 10 per cent
commission on all advertising
collected for the fair's premium
book, outside of Palmer and Se
attle. That percentage is to be
considered his car expense
while acting in the official ca
pacity of fair manager. No com
mission will be paid on adver
tising which is uncollectible.
(c) The manager shall not be
allowed to bind the fair in any
financial agreement, except
with the prior consent of the
board.
(d) A 15-day notice of termi
nation of contract is required,
in the event that either party
wishes to conclude the agree
ment of employment prior to
the fair.
Following the outline of the
manager’s contract, fair board
members spent the remainder of
Monday’s session in clarifying
rules for the queen contest.
A point schedule, under which
99 is the highest total a contestant
can receive, was okayed by board
members. It again was agreed
(Continued on Back Page)
Fair Board Will Meet
In Wasilla Next Monday
WASILLA—The board of di
rectors of the Matanuska Val
ley Fair Association will meet
in Wasilla next Monday night
at eight o'clock, board president
Clair Slock announced this
week. The meeting is scheduled
tentatively for Community Hall.
Mr. Stock invites representa
tives of all Wasilla organiza
tions to be present at the meet
ing. as well as all other interest
ed residents. Board members
will attempt to outline plans, at
this stage, for the coming fair
and to answer all questions con
cerning those plans.
Suggestions and constructive
criticisms from Wasilla resi
dents will be welcomed. "We
want you folks of Wasilla to re
. member this is your fair, as
well as ours." Mr. Stock stated.
"We'd like to hear some of your
ideas on what we can do to
make it a better fair. It takes
Wasilla. Palmer and the whole
Valley, all working together, to
put over a really good fair."
IS HOSPITALIZED BRIEFLY
Jimmy Lee, small son of Mr.
and Mrs. F. S. Lee of Eklutna
was hospitalized for medical at
tention early last week. He has
since been released from Valley
Hospital.
Club Studies Textile Painting
Members of the new Palmsilla
Homemakers Club met at the Ex
tension Office on Tuesday of this
week to study textile painting.
The next Palmasilla Club meeting
will be held at the home of Mrs.
F. A. Blom on June 6. This will
be a luncheon meeting.
WALLET unAHIDEn
TRIES TO STOP
S. E. CONSTRUCTION
“Today we are faced with a
crisis in Alaska—the problem of
where the new capitol of Alaska
is going to be.”
With these words, Stanley Mc
Cutcheon of Anchorage, candidate
for the territorial house of repre
sentatives, called on the Valley
Chamber of Commerce to act to
halt the territorial board of ad
ministration’s announced inten
tion of locating the new territorial
office building in Juneau. This is
in direct opposition to a house di
rective passed at the last session
of the legislature, Mr. McCutch
eon pointed out.
The house candidate recom
mended immediate and direct ac
tion. He proposed that a wire be
addressed to Governor Ernest
Gruening protesting the action.
He suggested that if the objection
went unheeded, Palmer should
seek the support of other cities of
Alaska, particularly in the Third
Division, and should take steps
to instigate legal action to stop
the plan for constructing the
building in Juneau.
Mr. McCutcheon said that he
felt the people of the soon-to-be
state of Alaska should have a
voice in determining where the
capitol of that state should be lo
cated.
At the close of McCutcheon’s
address, the Chamber voted to
take immediate action. Upon the
motion of James Hurley, the fol
lowing telegram was drafted and
dispatched to the Governor (other
copies are being airmailed to the
(Continued on Back Page)
Colony Day’s Wagon Race to Be Quite an Eve; ‘
if Drivers, Wagons, Horses, Etc. Can Be Found
t
No Post Office Building
Here for Several Years,
There is no prospect of a post
office building for Palmer for the
next several years, it was report
ed last week by Delegate Bob
Bartlett. Walter Huntley, terri
torial senator, had queried the
delegate concerning the possibil
ity of construction of a building
here, estimated to cost about
$540,000.
The reply in answer to that
query stated, in part, “There are
no plans whatsoever in the mak
ing to ask Congress to appropri
ate construction funds. . . . That
goes for this year and no doubt
for the next several years.”
ENTERS VALLEY HOSPITAL
William Elerding, a McLaughlin
Construction Co. employe, is re
ceiving medical treatment at \ al
ley Hospital this week.
> From all advance interest ex
pressed, the covered wagon race
of the Colony Day celebration is
going to be the featured event of
^he two-dav festival, program
chairman A1 Hagen said today.
Of course, there are one or two
minor details still to be ironed
out—among them, the ferreting
out of two teams of horses, four
sets of harness, two wagons, and
a lady driver for one of the com
peting wagons. To date, “Granny”
Burnett is the lone contender en
tered in the race.
However there’s a rumor afoot
that Wasilla would like to make
this event a sectional battle.
There’re those who say that
“Granny” would find a worthy
opponent at the reins in Wasilla’s
Ilah Senske. But Mr. Hagen says
only time will tell the name of the
other contender in the race.
In the meantime, anybody got
a horse—or a suit of harness—or
a wagon? Hagen could use some
of each.
*