Yesterday's Memories

Yesterday’s Memories

COMPILED BY

GWENDOLYNE HONRUD

10 Years Ago

Wednesday, Dec. 1, 2010

Nick Kolstad loves the outdoors, and fills his drawings and paintings with wildlife images. The 18-year-old’s work was featured at ArtSpot last June. But because he had Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a progressive degeneration of the muscles, he uses a wheelchair and he can’t hunt in the woods any more. Last week, a lot of volunteers came together and granted Nick the wish he applied for two years ago through the United Special Sportsman Alliance. On Friday he was sitting in a pickup in a field in Hinsdale with his mother, Lori, and Jared Albus of Milk River Outfitters, looking through the scope at a four-point whitetail buck. (Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks issues a permit for a non-ambulatory person to hunt from a vehicle.) It was a nice day, Albus said, sunny, and about 35 degrees. The deer was about 100 yards away, in the trees. USSA had loaned Nick a rifle with a special mechanism so the hunter can bit a wire and it pulls the trigger. But the rifle had a cable broken and wouldn’t work. He used a regular rifle, which was pretty hard to get lined up, but with his mother and Albus helping, he could see through the scope. Nick pulled the trigger himself and had the satisfaction of a successful hunt.

Peck’s Rex is back in the courts again. For old guys, dinosaurs can certainly cause a lot of trouble. Ownership of this tyrannosaurus rex was in dispute from the day his toe bone was discovered on Farm Service Agency land south of the Fort Peck Dam in 1997. Part of him was dug up, sold on the fossil black market and recovered by the FBI. After negotiations among the Farm Service Agency, the Corps of Engineers, the Museum of the Rockies -MSU-Bozeman and fiercely dedicated local people, the local non-profit Fort Peck Paleontology Field Station was organized to prepare the 65-million-year-old fossil for display where he was found, here in northeastern Montana. This dinosaur was the nucleus of the Fort Peck Interpretive Center, where a cast of his skeleton and a full-size fleshed-out replica stand ready to amaze visitors. At the request of the Corps of Engineers, the actual fossil bones of Peck’s Rex were moved this fall to the Museum of the Rockies, the legal repository of all fossils found on public land in Montana. Fort Peck Paleontology has gone dormant as most of its board of directors have resigned, and the field station is closed. Now a lawsuit for $8.2 million in damages has been filed in U.S. District Court in Great Falls alleging copyright infringement by Fort Peck Paleontology. Caset copies of bones from the Black Hills Institute of Geological Research in Hill City, S.D., were loaned to FPP to copy, to fill in for missing parts of Peck’s Rex.

25 Years Ago

Thursday, Nov. 30, 1995

Testimony in a complicated case about cattle was given in a fourth and final hearing in 17th District Court, Glasgow, on Monday and Tuesday. Judge John C. McKeon heard claims and counterclaims from members of the Walton family, ranchers in McCone and Valley counties, and members of the Porcupine Grazing Association of eastern Valley County, including ranchers Pete Nyquist and Wesley Pankratz, and others. At issue is a Walton claim of about $500,000 in damages, including cattle theft and deaths due to negligence, against the Porcupine Grazing Association, Pankratz and Nyquist, often referred to collectively in testimony as PPN. This is denied and countered by a claim of over $100,000 in unpaid bills from PPN. The Walton family, Edmund, Loretta and their five children, took cattle at various times between 1993 and 1995 to be wintered by Nyquist and Pankratz. The exact head count is in dispute. An undetermined number of cows died during this time. The Waltons have charged neglect and starvation of the cattle. They claim some were stolen. They also contest the prices they were billed for the care and feeding.

Sharon LaBonty of Glasgow has been selected to receive a Governor’s Recognition Award in conjunction with World AIDS Day, commemorated annually on Dec. 1. LaBonty was selected because of her outstanding efforts in helping Montana respond to the HIV/AIDS crisis. She is a Red Cross AIDS trainer, and chair of the Valley County AIDS Task Force. She organizes and presents AIDS workshops, provides education and prevention, and organizes the annual World AIDS Day Vigil in Glasgow. Awards will be presented during a ceremony at the State Capitol on Nov. 30. Also selected for recognition were Karma Alfredson of Helena; Dale Blevins of Browning, and his mother, Mary Edmo Salois; Jim Christensen of Missoula; Wendy Doely of Kalispell; Joyce Galster of Butte; Mark Miller, Kurt Nelson, Mark O’Bryan of Havre, Donna Snodgrass of Poplar, and Kathy Wehrly of Hamilton. Each year, the Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) and the Office of Public Instruction solicit nominations for the annual recognition awards. DPHHS nominees were reviewed by a panel represented by a public health worker, a member of a community-based organization, and staff members of DPHHS.

Expect the 1995-96 Glasgow wrestling squad to make a run at the State Class B championship next February when it is held at the Metra in Billings. “The kids are really working hard. If everybody makes weight and stays healthy we should be able to be right there for the title,” stated veteran coach Mark Johnston. Conrad, Corvallis and Eureka should be tough this year, according to Johnston. The Scotties finished fourth last year at the state meet, but return most of last year’s team. Ryan McMahan moved away and Jeremie Markle opted not to wrestle this year. Those are the only two that are missing from the 1994-95 team. Returning wrestlers are Eric Challinor, Brad Olson, Paul Feezell, Rocky Thompson, Brady Flaten, Myles Sundby, Justin Stellflug, Jason Mares and Dusty Kittleson. Coach Johnston has 24 kids out for wrestling. “We have a nice mix of upper classmen and lower classmen. Our varsity early on will probably have four seniors, three juniors, four sophomores and three freshmen. It’s a nice mix.” But to start the opening weekend off the Scotties will be short-handed.. “We have two kids that are banged up. Rocky Thompson broke his finger at the knuckle and will be out for a week. Justin has a partial should separation which happened the first day of practice.”

The only Western Montana College and MSU-Northern wrestler to defeat an Iowa Hawkeye wrestler on Sunday was Glasgow’s Jason Flaten. Flaten, a sophomore at WMC, pinned 177-pounder Curt Heideman in two minutes and 22 seconds. The former Scottie caught Heideman in a headlock late in the first period and put him on his back to win the match. “Jason was one of the few WMC kids that offensively went after his Iowa kid. He put himself in a position to get the kid,” said Mark Johnston, Flaten’s former high school coach. “Jason has always been a scrambler and that is just what it was, a scramble situation.” The Hawkeyes are the top-ranked team in the NCAA wrestling program. They captured the national title last year and easily won the duals against WMC and MSU-Northern, 49-6 and 50-1. The only point scored against them in the dual with Northern was a penalty point for unsportsmanlike conduct by Mike Mena after he defeated Chester’s Mitch Overlie, 5-3.

50 Years Ago

Thursday, Dec. 3, 1970

Montana’s livestock industry is facing a “put up or shut up” confrontation with the State Board of Health over water and air pollution, and which way the stockmen jump will be determined at a showdown meeting on Dec. 12 in Glasgow What was originally intended to be a one-day feed lot symposium slated for the Elks club in Glasgow with the idea of interesting Northeastern Montana feed lot operators and rancher-feeders into organizing as the Montana Feedlot association, has almost overnight become a war council to protect the industry from impending water and air pollution regulations that would be detrimental to the stockmen. The symposium is now expected to draw approximately 300 feedlot operators, rancher-feeders, dairymen, grain growers, stockgrowers and representatives from markets and packing houses from all over Montana The main speakers at the symposium will be Dr. D. R. Mackey, one of the most knowledgeable veterinarians in feed lot problems in the Rocky Mountain area and Charles F. Moses, Billings attorney and representative of Montana feedlot owners on pollution controls.

The old man with the white whiskers and the jolly “ho-ho-ho” came to Glasgow last Friday to launch the Christmas shopping season in the Bonnie City and to check up on his faithful followers. Santa Claus, with twinkling eyes and bulging beltline, abandoned his reindeer in favor of a charter plane donated by Wokal Flying Service for his trip to Glasgow and arrived shortly after 1 p.m. Friday at the Glasgow airport. Chilling winds and sub-freezing temperatures cut down to a mere two dozen the number of his faithful flock who coaxed Mom and Dad to take them to the airport to see Santa’s arrival. But the harbinger of Christmas was visibly impressed by their presence as he waved and shouted greetings while squeezing out of the plane and boarding the Fire Department pickup for the trip downtown. From the airport, Santa made brief stops at Gallagher’s Foodliner, Buttreys and the Big G shopping center, before sitting down to talk with his believers at the old Beede’s Men’s Store on 5th Street South. Santa listened to fibs about how all the children had been good all year, listened to who wanted what for Christmas and passed out sacks of candy made available by the Chamber of Commerce. Pleased with the Christmas lights and decorations lighting downtown Glasgow, Santa made a quiet departure back to the North Pole to complete last minute plans for his round-the-world dash three weeks from tonight.

Coach Ted Kato’s Glasgow High wrestling Scotties have served notice on their Class A opponents: If you want a state title, you’ve got to beat Glasgow first. The Red and White Scotties launched their season on Nov. 20 with a resounding upset of Class A defending champion Havre, 27-19, and then whipped Wolf Point’s Wolves, 33-18, and Sidney’s Eagles, 28-16, in succession last weekend. The Scottie matmen have a chance to make it four-in-a-row on their home mats this Friday night when they take on Miles City’s Cowboys, before taking their first “road” trip to Malta on Saturday night. Four Scotties have unblemished scores against individual opponents in their own weight. Defending 95-pound state champ Craig Hallock --wrestling in the heavier 105-pound class this year -- overwhelmed his Havre opponent, Geldard, 15-0, but couldn’t pin him. He had better luck with Fast of Wolf Point, flattening his shoulders in 1:33 of the first period, Friday night, and then needed only 33 seconds to lay waste to Rossal of Sidney the following night. Glasgow’s 112-pound star, John Swanson, has taken all three of his opponents via the decision route, but nobody has scored a point on him yet.

Tony T. Dechant, the national president of the Farmers Union, called the recent 48-35 vote in the U.S. Senate favoring the Agriculture Act of 1970, a sharp setback from farmers, he said the Nixon Administration farm program will cost the nation’s farmers at least $1.2 billion over its three-year period. Dechant called the farm bill a “reckless exercise in power politics” in which the Administration showed “its political muscle in a body blow at rural America.” “This bill gives unprecedented power to the Secretary of Agriculture,” Dechant said. “Any price protection or stability of supply will be provided wholly at his discretion. It is the most political farm program in the history of the nation. This exercise in power politics was successful because the Administration combined the use of the carrot and stick. The carrot was dangled in front of the commodity organizations representing producers of milk, cotton, and wheat. Only the barest minimums were offered. The stick the Administration used was the fear of a Presidential veto and the fear that there might be no farm program at all. The heavy cost of the program will be borne by the feed grains and livestock producers of the nation. The producers of other commodities will find themselves skidding down to join them.” “The farm revolt that began in the November election will continue,” Dechant said. “It will grow.”

The Glasgow Kiwanis club heard from an “out-of-town” speaker at their regular Wednesday noon meeting. Ted McIntyre, who heads the Badlands Grazing Association, the Valley County Soil and Conservation District, Montana Grass Conservation Commission and the Valley County Historical Society -- and who lives just a few hundred feet outside the city limits of Glasgow -- spoke to the Kiwanians on the present and future use of public lands. “There are 93 million acres in Montana,” McIntyre said in opening his talk, “and I could talk about each and every acre.” The state of Montana, through 18 agencies, has control of 2 million -- plus acres of public lands -- an area approximately the size of the State of Louisiana,” McIntyre said. “Approximately 44 to 45 percent of Valley County is made up of public lands, which breaks down into about 1,450,000 acres of public land as compared to 1,228,000 of privately-owned land. Thus what is done with, and too, this public land is of great importance to all of us.” There is a proposed federal ruling that would make people using public lands for hunting, fishing and recreation to pay a fee for this use, McIntyre commented.

75 Years Ago

Thursday, Dec. 6, 1945

Citizens of Eastern Montana cities and communities represented at the six public hearings held by the army engineers were unanimous in their desire for the recreational development of the Fort Peck reservoir area, according to an announcement by Lieut. Col. H. H. Roberts, district engineer at Fort Peck. He presided at the hearings, which were conducted at Glasgow, Malta, Havre, Lewistown, Miles City and Circle. Colonel Roberts stated that the army engineers held the hearings to obtain an expression of the views of local people with regard to the recreational development program desired for the reservoir area, particularly as to sites at which development was desired and the type of facilities that the people thought should be installed. He said that the information obtained from the hearings would be coordinated with the studies and investigations to be conducted by the army engineers, into a practical over-all development program, so that the various interested communities and the general public might obtain maximum benefits from the recreational possibilities of the reservoir area.

HINSDALE -- Stock shipments from the Hinsdale area on the Great Northern railway totaled 121 carloads up to December 1, H. E. Boissens, local agent, reported this week. In all 115 carloads of cattle, 4 carloads of sheep and 2 carloads of horses have been shipped since August 1. In addition, 117 carloads of sugar beets went from here to the Chinook factory. Stock shipments by months were August 1; September, 10; October, 86, and November 24. Weighing approximately 90,000 pounds per car, the 117 carloads of beets represent approximately 5,265 tons. The average yield in the Hinsdale area this year ran between 10 and 12 tons per acre, it was reported by W. C. Dougan, manager of the loader here, which was closed last week. Some growers had 15-ton and 17-ton beets, but in general the year was not favorable for the crop. Despite the early freezeup, almost all acreage in this area was finally harvested, Mr. Dougan said.

Posthumous award of the army silver star medal for gallantry in action has been made to Pfc. Francis W. Schuster, according to word received by his aunt, Miss Anna Schuster of Glentana. The medal was given to Miss Schuster at the request of Pfc. Schuster’s father, Andrew L. Schuster of Portland. The citation accompanying the medal stated: “For gallantry in action against the enemy in Germany. On 24 April, 1945, enemy fire from well-concealed positions caught Pfc. Schuster’s platoon in an open field and frustrated all efforts by the platoon to seek cover. Realizing the desperate plight of the men, Pfc. Schuster boldly mounted his machine gun in plain view of the enemy and opened fire to cover the withdrawal of his platoon. Although wounded in this action, he continued to deliver fire effectively until he was hit a second time, this time fatally. Pfc. Schuster alone was responsible for the safe withdrawal of his platoon. His courage and unselfish devotion to duty reflect great credit upon himself and the military service.”

Nine branches of the Valley County library are now in operation in the county, it was reported this week by Mrs. Georgia Dignan, librarian. Librarians in charge and their communities are Theordor Aaberg, city clerk’s office, Nashua; Mrs. Earl Marshall, Thoeny store, Thoeny; Harry Thompson, Thompson Drug store, Opheim; Mrs. Otto Kliewer, Kliewer residence, Lustre; Donald H. Welsh, high school, Frazer; Mrs. Anna Chester, Chester Hotel, Hinsdale; Mrs. Pat Menge, Menge residence, Beavorton; Mrs. Peter Isakson, Isakson residence, Baylor; and Mrs. E. W. Clark, Clark residence, Richland. “These librarians have taken the responsibility of checking out books for a time to determine the number and type needed for each community,” Mrs. Dignan said. “This is an uncompensated service. Each branch will be sent additional books as new volumes come in. Relatively few books have been received the last two months, but many more are on order and are expected this month.” She pointed out that any resident of the county is welcome to have a borrower’s card at both his branch and in Glasgow.

Glasgow High’s Scotties will open season basketball activities this weekend in a road trip. They meet Culbertson Friday night and Poplar Saturday night, before the first home game with Malta on the Civic Center floor here at 8 next Wednesday. Coach Ray Baker intends to use two fives in opening games, carrying a utility man with each to make a squad of 12. Handicapped by lack of tall players, Baker will rely on fast-breaking play, with stronger emphasis on shooting. One quintet will include Joe Luckman at center, Mickey Luckman and Walt Russell, forwards, and Ole Hammerness and Bill Sternhagen, guards, with Don Phay as alternate. With the other five will be Cap Czyzeski, center; Duge Koon and Alvin Combs, forwards; and Gail Stensland and Garth Maag, guards. Clayton Goheen will be alternate. The Malta game Wednesday night will be preceded by a preliminary scheduled to start at 6:45 between junior high and freshman players.