Hungry Horse news. [volume], December 24, 1954, Image 1

About Hungry Horse news. [volume] (Columbia Falls, Mont.) 1948-current

Image provided by: Montana Historical Society; Helena, MT

                
Supt«-J»W* Emmert
Park H^q.
West Glacier
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Santa Treats 637 Youngsters in Falls
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Pictures of children shown in
this Santa Claus series may be ob
tained free at the Hungry Horse
News office by their parents.
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' Christmas treat sacks in Colum
; bia Falls Tuesday evening.
The city Lion's club Christmas
party took place near the com
munity Christmas tree. Leonard
Whitney directed singing of Christ
mas carols around a big bonfire
of mill ends starting at 7 p.m.
Then Vern Brandes, Columbia
Falls police chief, picked up Santa
at the Great Northern depot, and
brought him to the crowd of par
ents with the more than 600
youngsters.
Each treat sack contained 6
ounces of candy, 3 to 4 ounces of
nuts, a yoyo and an apple.
The procession past Santa lasted
for nearly 1% hours.
Cecil Hudson, Lions club presi
dent, was chairman of the Santa
Claus committee. H. H. Davall and
E. J. Marantette were co-chair
men of the treats committee with
Bill Knapton, Bob Sanders and Ed
Wester, Santa helpers.
Lawrence Rude had charge of
the bonfire. A1 Carter was an
nouncer assisted by Bill Nadeau.
Columbia Falls fire truck was
on hand at the close and glowing
ashes of the community fire were
put out shortly after 9.
Wednesday afternoon saw final
"Buy It in Columbia Falls" draw
ings that started last June 12 be
ing held each Saturday until this
week.
Friday afternoon at 2 will see
the Park theatre annual free show
for area youngsters.
Our Christmases Are
Most Often White
Since 1899, the Flathead valley
itself has only had five Christ
mases without snow on the ground.
Observer Ray Hall at the air
port commented that the real
white Christmas of the Flathead
was back in 1951 with 26 inches
on the ground. Next whitest was
1902 with 12.5 inches, 1929 with
11.5 inches, 1916 with 10.7 inches,
and 1949 with 10 inches.
1899 had a 'black" Christmas and
so was 1908, 1933, 1940 and 1941.
Up until 1949 the weather bu
reau then in Kalispell listed all
snow depths by inches and tenths.
Then depths were changed to
show a trace for all readings under
% inch.
In addition to the five snowless
Christmases, there have been 18
years with under an inch on the
ground Dec. 25.
Last Christmas had less than a
half-inch on the ground, and un
less there is a new snowfall, this
Christmas is approaching with a
dwindling fraction of an inch not
concealing the grass.
However in the Flathead while
the valley floor may be bare the
mountains present a Christmas
card look at Chnstmâs.
Can Mail Orders
For 1955 Plates
KALISPELL—Mall orders for
1955 Montana license plates can
be sent the county treasurer's of
fice.
Plates will be shipped out start
ing Jan. 3, or purchased at the
window in the courthouse after
that date.
Persons desiring to avoid stand
ing in line for purchase of plates
should send their 1954 car (red)
registration cards along with infor
mation as to school district number
and a check made out to the coun
ty treasurer. The amount can be
left blank or an adequate approxi
mate figure used. Balance will b«
refunded. Bank money orders can
also be used, and postal money
orders.
Where the levy was higher: up
19 per cent in Columbia Falls and
23 per cent in district 6, the prop
erty tax on cars will be higher.
However, assessed worth of a year
older car is down and may about
equal tax increase.
New plates are white numbers
a red background. Paint job on
the first plates looks patchy. They
are made at the state prison. Plates
will be used for two years. Next
year it will be aluminum tags
on
again.
So far in 1954 there have been
11,398 car licenses and 4,544 truck
licenses sold in the Flathead.
Community Club
Names Officers
HUNGRY HORSE — Hungry
Horse Community club met Mon
day at the Van Aken building,
with President Erwin Riley pres
iding. Attending were 21 members,
two of whom, Mr. and Mrs. Tink
Armegost, formerly of Colorado,
have recently purchased a home
in Hungry Horse and Mrs. Arme
gost is the newly-elected vice pres
ident of the Columbia Falls PTA.
The group discussed buying one
of the finer buildings in town for
a community hall. The possibili
ties are being investigated. Street
lighting of the highway and main
street was also discussed.
Plans were made for a commun
ity pot luck dinner to be held Jan. 1
5 at the tentative community hall,
the Van Aken building. Jim Wil
lows was appointed general chair
of the dinner; Mrs. Bill Krall .
is program chairman; Mrs. Bud
Dusterhoff and Mrs. Mae Hartrqan
are in charge of food arrange-j
ments, while Len Boisén and
Shorty Payne are in charge of at -1
tendance. |
Main business of the evening was
election of officers, who are elec- j
ted annually each December. |
Jim Willows was elected presi
dent: with Rev. Leo Hinton, vice
president, and Mrs. Bill Krall, sec
retary-treasurer.
The group extended a unanimous
vote of thanks to the outgoing pre
ucnt. Erwin Riley, under whose
capable leadership much progress
trade during the oast year.
Another past president is Bill
Krall who was also^the first pres
ident to hold office after the club
was organized approximately two
man
•c®
years ago.
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Tftevuf (tyUafauu
10 cents a Copy
Hungry Horse News
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 24, 1954
COLUMBIA FALLS, MONTANA
VOL. 9 — NO. 22
Churches Grow With Columbia Falls
Plant Jobs at Winter Level
Rudolph's Cousins
At Glacier Windows
WEST GLACIER—Glacier Na
tional Park doesn't have reindeer,
but their cousins, antlered white
tail bucks can pinch hit especially
during Christmas time.
With start of winter, deer fre
quent ranger stations and park
headquarters. The animals are
curious.
M. E. Beatty, park naturalist,
commented that it's nothing un
usual to look up from the table and
see a curious antlered deer at the
window as an onlooker.
H. H. Level Doesn't
Affect Pot Lakes
HUNGRY HORSE — Continued
surveys show no correlation be
tween depth of water in Hungry
Horse reservoir and in pothole
lakes of Flathead valley on the
other side of Columbia mounfain
from the 34-mile long man-made
lake.
E. L. Gochnauer, Hungry Horse
Project superintendent, and Mar
cus O. Hilden, acting office en
gineer, found water level at Echo
lake Monday 3,003.6 feet above
sea level compared to 3,005 feet a
year ago. Hungry Horse elevation
meanwhile was higher, 3,526 fèet
above sea level a year ago, and
3,553 feet this week. The reser
voir had been full from July 9
to Dec. 8, and two-thirds full last
summer.
Bureau engineers have been
checking elevations of Echo lake,
Lake Blaine and the Sullivan pot
holes several times a year, and
have not found any indication of
Hungry Horse reservoir being full
or low affecting their levels.
Rock bedding in the Flathead
river's South Fork is like a giant
V with the river at the bottom.
Outcropping on Columbia moun-1
tain's west side slants downward
through
ervoir.
Railroad Changes
Still Just Rumor
WHITEFISH— H. M. Shapleigh,
Great Northern Division superin
tendent at Whitefish, Wednesday
morning said that he had no in
formation on contemplated changes
in the railroad organization that
would affect Whitefish as a divi
sion point. Furthermore such in
formation is not available in St.
Paul.
However basis of the rumor ap
pears to be the clerks' union pre
paring a new roster. Instead of
working on a division basis, rail
road clerks it is reported are pre
paring a Williston to Seattle ros
ter. Men with the most seniority
are found over the system instead
of in their division.
This anticipates the Great Nor
thern's installation of a more me
chanized accounting system using
more machines and less men.
The Northern Pacific several
years ago installed specialized
accounting machines.
When the Great Northern makes
this change, it is likely to result
in somewhat fewer clerks, and a
small reduction in the force at
Whitefish. There is nothing to in
dicate that Whitefish will not con
tinue as northwestern Montana's
railroad center.
15 Appear to Be
Successful Bidders
HUNGRY HORSE—Fifteen ap
parent successful bidders are list
ed in the purchase of surplus tools
at a Bureau of Reclamation open
ing Monday.
Items included axes, shovels,
hammers, surveyor tools, and
The ladies shovels (small) saw
Roll's Second Hand store, Kalis
pell, bid 43 at $1.16 each.
Other apparent successful bid
29 for sale of miscellaneous ma
c hine bolts; Jan. 5 opening for
safety equipment including fire ex
tinguishers, goggles, boots, first
aj^ kits and other items. This is a
^advertisement.
« -
WEATHER forecast; Mostly
cloudy Wednesday. Partly cloudy
Wednesday night and Thursday.
predicted high 35 both days, low
Wednesday night 20 to 25.
Highs and lows: Dec. 15, 40-28,
Thursday 35-17, Friday 34-15,
Saturday 24-10, Sunday 25-22,
Monday 27-22, Tuesday 35-24,
Wednesday 35-23.
Temperatures have been aver
aging about 2 degrees above nor
mal, according to Observer Ray
Hall. December lack of sunshine
is normal for this time of year.
Airport precip. for December so
far is .12 or an inch compared to
a normal of 1.54 inches. West Gla
cier December precipitation is .69
of an inch so far.
ders on various were
Noble Lumber Co., Davis Pipe and
Machinery Co., H. J. Poston, L. K.
Seney and L. O. Lindberg, all of
Kalispell Sam Gentry, Spokane;
Orville Ritzman, and John Ver
trees, Hungry Horse; Wood and
Dempsey, Whitefish; Frank Mull
er, Somers.
Coming bid openings are Dec.
anticipated in the employment to
tal at the Anaconda Aluminum Co.
plant In the next weeks.
Only threat to this picture would
be severe winter weather. The fall
and start of winter have been mild.
Most of the remaining construc
tion will be inside buildings.
Employment total at the plant
was 1,162 Wednesday down from
1,202 last week and 1,306 two
weeks ago.
The J. A. McNeil excavations
and foundations contract was com
pleted early this month. McNeil
force that numbered up to 860
with subcontractors Wednesday
was down to 1. He is C. S. Sch
meltzer, office engineer, winding
up final details.
Foley Constructors with Dona
van Construction Co. principal
subcontractor Wednesday had 887
men working. A week ago, it was
890.
Contract completed this week
was lining reactor tanks by M.
A. Knight Co., who had up to
eight men working.
Graver Tank and Manufacturing
Co. has started erection of four
84-foot high alumina storage tanks
They had six men working Wed
nesday; none a week ago.
A number of men at the plant
are to have three day holidays,
Friday, Saturday and Sunday this
week and the same long weekend
off next week.
Employment total at the plant
held near 1,600 for three months
this past fall. It is not expected
to reach this total again.
Moving day into the Anaconda
Aluminum Co. offices at the plant
are scheduled for early January.
Moving to the plant will be H. G.
Satterthwaite, plant manager, and
his staff from the Bank of Colum
bia Falls building in Columbia
Falls.
Elk Season Needs
Winter Weather
WEST GLACIER—Mild temper
elk and not hunters- in the extend
ed open season along the Flathead
river's Middle Fork from West
Glacier to Essex and the continen
tal divide.
The season is open each Satur
day and Sunday. First days, Dec.
4 and 5 saw an elk kill of 28. The
next week. Dec. 11 and 12 was a
blank and Dec. 18 and 19 resulted
in eight killed near Nyack.
Reason is that mild weather con
ditions are resulting in the ani
mals staying high on the Glacier
National Park side of the river.
Deep snow and cold would drive
them down to the river and out of
the park.
v Purpose of the open season is
to help reduce Middle Fork elk
herds which during most of the
year graze in Glacier. The park
range is considered adequate for
2,000 to 2,400 elk. There is an es
timated 3,200 in the whole park.
of
Sun Skips Flathead
Valley These Days
While the Flathead valley itself
seldom saw the sun during the
past days, Montana just east of
the mountains was having blue sky
autumn weather.
Ranger Paul Webb, at East
Glacier Park Tuesday said the
temperature reached 48. It had
been 42 at 7 a.m. There was two
inches of snow on the ground and
melting. At Two Medicine in the
mountains snow depth was a foot, j
The mild December saw 5 inches j
of snow on the ground at Pole-!
bridge Tuesday; three inches at o
West Glacier, and just patches in f
Columbia Falls though it was try- f
ing to snow Wednesday.
Barometer has been unusually
high the past days. Observer Ray
Hall at Flathead county airport
commented that the result was
cold air in the bottoms of the val
leys with warmer air aloft. The
cold air in valley bottoms reached
the dew point with fog resulting.
The warm air aloft flowed across
in
tures up into the 50s on the prairie.
Hungry Horse, Martin City and
Coram saw blue sky much more
frequently than did Columbia Falls
Kalispell and Whitefish. Hall said
the reason was that the three com
munities are slightly higher, off
the valley floor.
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Senior Bali Set For
Next Thursday
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Annual winter formal sponsored
by Columbia Falls high school sen
iors will be Thursday, Dec. 30 in
the auditorium.
Holiday theme of the formal is
silver bells.
For the first time in two years
escorts are to be permitted to pur
chase corsages for their dates. A
$2 limit has been set.
Parents and friends are invited
Music will be by the Billy Paul
trio through courtesy of the mu
sicians union. No regular admis
sion will be charged but a $1 tick
et will cover coat checks, punch
and cookies.
Members of the senior ball com
mittee are Dick 1 Knapton, Kay
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Sherry Nitz, Carol Thomas and
Loretta Newhouse.
George Aubert is advisor.
boat dock erected this summer by
New feature at the foot of Lake McDonald in Glacier Is a
Burch and Simpson, boat concessionaires. Early December found the lake *hore still a gravel beach^
lacking snow with the peaks showing white. On dock are Billie Price, Chuck Bengston and Paint.
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Last Sunday saw Our Savior's Lutheran
Falls take in a record number of members. Thirty-two adults joined
the church. Our Savior's Lutheran was established in Columbia Falls
in 1947, and erected Its house of w orship three years ago. There are
now 186 enrolled In Sunday School, and problems for local Luth
erans is that their new church is already too small. In the photo
Pastor C. M. Rasmussen and the 32 new adult members. See
Columbia Fails churches.
are
photo on page 4 and story at rig ht on
Falls Council Buys Ambulance
Falls city council
Bear Tracks Noted
Near Apgar Village
WEST GLACIER—Report of a
bear out observing the start of
winter at Apgar in Glacier Nation
al Park has been received. Snow
depth was over four inches and
temperatures mild.
Jerry and Larry Mackin saw the
fresh tracks.
At Park Headquarters, M. E.
Beatty, park naturalist, comment
ed that especially during mild
winter months bears come out to
stretch and drink water. However,
they don't try to eat.
H. H. Generators
Pass Overload Test
HUNGRY HORSE—Generators
Hungry Horse Dam passed a
115 per cent overload test without
showing any signs of stress or
strain, according to E. L. Goch
nauer, project superintendent.
Two of the four generators were
producing 86,250 kilowatts each
compared to their rated capacity
71,250 kilowatts. Tests lasted
for seven hours, and Charles Sim
mons, Hungry Horse powerplant
supervisor, said that no overheat
ing or similar signs developed.
The Hungry Horse powerplant is
now operating at capacity with its
four generators producing 285,000
kilowatts around the clock.
The full reservoir contained 3,
468,000 acre feet from July 9 until
ec g. Drop now is about a half
00 t a day from elevation 3,560
ee t above sea level. Wednesday
morning found elevation down to
3,552.11, and reservoir storage at
3,284,530 acre feet.
Hungry Horse power production
from Dec. 1, 1953 to Dec. 1, 1954,
819,500,000 kilowatt hours
was
valued at nearly $2,000,000. Water
stored at Hungry Horse and used
downstream generation was val
ued at another $2,000,000.
bought an ambulance for $1 at
their Monday evening meeting.
The automobile is being turned
over to Columbia Falls volunteer
fire department.
The $1 purchase price is being
paid Columbia Falls Lions club
who in turn are buying the 1938
Buick from Croxford Funeral
Home, Great Falls.
Lions are holding a drive for
funds to pay for the vehicle.
Cecil Hudson, Lions club pres
ident, said that Columbia Falls
without a hospital, finds itself
"waiting" for transportation of the
seriously injured or sick. The
"wait
drive over from
Kalispell, and then return to hos
pitals in those communities.
Other action taken by Colum
bia Falls council Monday was to
adopt an ordinance which makes
the $10 plumber's license payable
Jan. 1 of each year, the same date
the $10 annual electrician's li
cense. These permits are obtained
from Mrs. Ruby Guillaume-Berg,
city clerk.
The council also discussed the
bond issue purchased by O'Con
nor Construction that will pay for
the Rutherford addition 2,815 feet
of six-inch water mains. O'Con
nor bought the bonds at 6 per cent
interest. The O'Connor contract
was for $15,128, and there are en
gineering and legal fees, also to be
paid by the bond issuance.
Topic slated for the Jan. 3, 1955
meeting of the council is licens
ing businesses in the community
for the purpose of raising revenue.
is for an ambulance to
Whitefish or
....
Blue Sections Available
A few extra copies of the blue
picture section of the Hungry
Horse News Christmas edition are
available at 10 cents each. Supply
is limited. Copies of the full 20
page edition are sold out.
Mirror of a growing city is its
churches, and in Columbia Falls
church and Sunday School attend
ance during 1953 and 1954 has in
many instances doubled.
Example is Our Savior's Luth
eran church. In 1947 local Luth
erans organized a congregation
with Harry Baker as pastor.
Christmas, 1951 saw the new
church building used for the first
time. Last Sunday Pastor C. M.
Rasmussen brought 32 adults and
21 children into church member
ship.
The Lutheran Sunday school
now attracts 186, and there are
160 confirmed.
Local Lutherans find their
church building that was dedicated
Sept. 29 and 30, 1953 too small in
1954. The Christmas program was
held at Columbia Falls grade
school auditorium last Monday
and had more than 400 in attend
ance.
ST. RICHARD'S OLDEST
Oldest church in the community
is St. Richard's Catholic church. It
was built in 1891, and serves 165
families between Columbia Falls
and West Glacier or about 660 per
'sons. When Father William C.
Molloy came here from Butte two
years ago there were 120 families.
St. Richard's seats 120 persons.
Result is two masses each Sunday
morning.
Oldest Protestant church in Col
umbia Falls is the Methodist. Rev.
M. O. Smith is pastor. The church
was built in 1894-95.
Methodist Sunday school attend
ance reached 104 last Sunday. Rev
erend Smith says that active
church membership has doubled
during 1954.
Local Methodists hope to com
plete payments in 1956-57 on the
parsonage they purchased two
years ago.
PASTOR WERNER'S DECADE
The local minister who has best
observed the growth of Columbia
Falls from a religious standpoint is ^
Pastor Ralph Werner of the Bap
tist church.
He founded the church here in
1945. At that time he was the only
local resident minister.
The Baptists purchased a Col<
umbia Falls landmark, the former
Kennedy home on highway No. 40
that had been the residence of the
town's first postmaster. Downstairs
was remodelled into a chapel and
Sunday School rooms and upstairs
into a parsonage. The chapel be
came too small, so the porches
were enclosed and walls removed
to enlarge seating capacity.
Now under construction is a
new parsonage, and next fall local
Baptists plan to start building
their new church. Last Sunday
there were 126 at the Baptist
church..
NEW LDS CHURCH
One church building in Columbia
Falls that appears adequate for
its growing membership is the Lat
ter Day Saints chapel that will be
dedicated this winter. It is a $75,
000 brick 100 by 50-foot building.
First LDS services were held in
Columbia Falls in May, 1950. Sun
day school services had been held
in nearby Bad Rock previously.
In 1950 there was a total member
ship of 92 adults and children.
This rose to 182 last Jan. 1, and
now is 228,
Seven Mormon families who
were associated
Horse Dam construction left. The
LDS group lost 54 members, but
picked up 100 new ones. Harold
C. Tolley is branch president.
CHRISTIAN GROWTH
Feb. 4, 1951 saw first Christian
church services held in Columbia
Falls. The C. B. Cobb residence
was purchased and used for serv
ices starting June 24, 1951. Down
stairs became the chapel and Sun
day school classes overflowed
with one group using the pastor's
kitchen for their meeting.
Tom Shelton has been pastor for
two years and church membership
has increased from 22 to 57 last
Easter and now 71 for Christmas.
Construction of a new church
building is planned.
One of the community's oldest
churches is St. Matthew's Episco
pal presently without a minister.
Bishop Daniels of Helena is to be
present for services at the White
(Please turn to page 4)
with Hungry