125 years ago

Sept. 21, 1894

B.C. Gregory, Montesano’s well-known milkman, has opened a meat market in one of the French buildings, north of the post office, on Main Street. J.L. Valder, an experienced butcher, will have charge of the shop. Mr. Gregory solicits a share of the public patronage.

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Harry Hollingsworth, recently in S.A. Richardson’s blacksmith shop, has gone into business for himself, in the building south of Swinson’s livery stable.

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Jas. Arland is building a large addition, including a conservatory, to his residence to the west part of town. When completed, Mr. Arland will have one of the finest homes in the county.

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Dr. French visited his ranch near Elma, the first of the week, looking after the picking of his hop crop. The crop this year has been very badly damaged by lice, and it is likely that a good many who set out hops during the past couple of years, will plow them up this fall and plant with other crops.

100 years ago

Sept. 5, 1919

Miss Josephine Arland, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Arland, who attended the University of Washington last year, will go to Pomona College at Claremont, California, this year. Miss Arland expects to leave for her school in a week or ten days.

***

Mrs. William Malooney and a party of young people spent a week’s vacation on Mount Tacoma, coming home the first of the week.

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Miss Laura Koehn, who has been working in Washington, D.C., for some time past, is visiting in Montesano with her sister, Miss Adina Koehn.

75 years ago

Sept. 21, 1944

Presidential-nominee and Governor of New York State Thomas E. Dewey had the honor of meeting and talking to Montesano’s own Dan T. Simmons, treasurer of the Montesano Chamber of Commerce, prominent lodge official and formerly deputy county assessor, last Monday while Gov. Dewey was in Seattle and just before he got hit over the head with a suitcase in a train wreck that threatens to become a major incident of 1944.

While Governor Dewey met many people, he certainly could not have impressed any of them more favorably than he did Dan Simmons, according to an interview this Wednesday.

“While we are not permitted to quote Governor Dewey directly, I do not believe that harm can come from saying that Governor Dewey subjected himself to unrestricted questioning by a large number of people in two separate receptions at which I was present,” Simmons said. “He takes his time answering questions but when he does answer them, he does not evade issues and he certainly seems to know the facts regarding an enormous amount of subjects. Dewey talked to farmer groups, labor groups, business groups and many politicians on a strictly informal basis at the Olympic Hotel.”

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Montesano’s William Rosier post, Veterans of Foreign Wars received national recognition this month when the post was awarded a $25 war bond in a national V.F.W. membership drive. Only two posts in the state of Washington placed in the membership drive, Montesano and Ballard.

The local post was further honored by the state for an increase of members, with the award of a trophy cup which will be presented to the post at a special meeting to be held here in Montesano soon.

The local post started the year with a membership of 40 members and have increased this to a membership of 133 active members.

Iden Rasmusson, commander of the local post, expects the membership to reach over 250 members this coming year, as many requests for membership are being received by the post from local boys now serving overseas.

50 years ago

Sept. 18, 1969

Superior Court Judge Warner Poyhonen will hear the controversial Montesano hemline case tomorrow (Friday) at 2 p.m.

A petition filed last week by Rolf Espedal, Aberdeen attorney, in behalf of two Montesano parents, Charles Craig and Marchel Schoch, states that enforcement of the “five inches above the knees” mandate by school officials has been arbitrarily enforced, with only a small percentage of school girls being sent home. …

The problem was brought to a head last week as several students were sent home from school when their hemlines measured more than the required “five inches above the knee.”

In conclusion, the petition contends that clothes available in the Harbor area do not meet the skirt requirements laid down by school officials.

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While a crowd of nearly 100 onlookers attended, the Prime Broiler restaurant on South Main Street was sold to Floyd Svinth last Tuesday for a $400 bid.

Svinth, representing the Benjamin House Corporation, presently holds a mortgage on the establishment, and does not plan to reopen the restaurant until such time that all legalities are worked out, if then.

The sale, ordered by the Internal Revenue Service, and conducted by Andy Sienko, was brought about due to nonpayment of federal taxes.

The only other bidder in Tuesday’s sale was Mike Hook, who placed a token bid of $100 for the real estate and fixtures.