Good Old Days Feb. 2

125 years ago

The Commoner

Jan. 29, 1892

For many weeks various and conflicting reports have been going the rounds concerning the Union Pacific shops at this place, says the Tekoa Globe.

The first report which threw the town into a furor of excitement was to the effect that the shops and roundhouse, together with all the other railroad interests were to be taken away at once, and located at Starbuck.

Two weeks later the report was confirmed and made a certainty in the minds of the people, when two car loads of machinery were taken out of the shops.

A few days later a report gained currency that other and better machinery was to replace that taken away, and that nothing more was to be followed by a fixed conviction settling down over the community that the shops were a thing of the past and that the glory of Tekoa, as the great and only had departed.

Again this week the report was circulated on the streets and talked of generally that three carloads of machinery had arrived for the shops and that the roundhouse was to be enlarged six stalls.

The old depot was to be torn down and a magnificent granite structure to cost $50,000 was to be raised in its stead.

Straight from headquarters this last report is said to have come.

The Globe has all along protested that the wild reports could not be relied upon, and that the shops would not be moved, and this week a reporter was sent out to sift the matter to the bottom and ascertain the true facts in the case.

First of all it was learned to a certainty that the shops are not to be moved, all reports, come from where they may to the contrary notwithstanding.

Next we learned that the last report to the effect that the shops are to be enlarged, that three car loads of machinery had just arrived, was false, and had no foundation whatever, except that one article of machinery, known as a shaper had been sent here from Starbuck.

However, larger housing capacity is needed here and it is possible that more will be done.

Tekoa will never have less railroad interests than she has at present.

It is the policy of the company at present to curtail expenses in every possible direction, and to expend money only where it is absolutely necessary, and this settles the question of any more improvements for the present.

The shop question is now settled and there is no more cause for alarm.

100 years ago

The Colfax Commoner

Feb. 2, 1917

The postmasters of the United States were notified Thursday morning that the price of government envelopes had been increased from 10 cents a thousand for the unprinted envelopes and fifty cents a thousand on the printed form of envelope that is supplied by the government.

75 years ago

Colfax Gazette Commoner

Jan. 30, 1942

The Whitman County school district reorganization committee Monday directed its secretary, R. R. Maxwell, to notify the school boards of the Farmington, Albion, Uniontown, Hay and Ewan districts that the reorganization plan adopted by the committee proposes the discontinuance of their high schools.

Fifteen high school districts would be maintained – Oakesdale, Tekoa, Garfield, Palouse, Pullman, Colton, Rosalia, Steptoe, Colfax, Endicott, Winona, St. John, Pine City, Lacrosse and Lamont.

There are 60 districts in the county and into the 15 high schools would be absorbed 40 rural and the five mentioned high school districts. This does not mean, said Secretary Maxwell, that there would be only 15 schools remaining in operation in the county, since it would probably be necessary for the larger districts to maintain grade schools at distant points, just as the Colfax district maintains a district at Penawawa.

Monday's meeting, attended by the committee's full membership, was called primarily to discuss the proposal of changing the boundaries of the Oakesdale district to include all of the Fairbanks and Thorn Creek districts and parts of the Pleasant Hill, Belshaw, Belmont, Sain and Goldsworthy districts.

Inasmuch as remaining parts of districts would be included in the Tekoa, Rosalia, Steptoe and Garfield districts, it was suggested that superintendents and board members of the various districts, including Oakesdale, get together to iron out differences in respect to overlapping of bus routes and to make recommendations as to locations of boundaries.

Before there could be an election by the people, in whom the final decision as to reorganization is vested, there would be adjustments between districts of liabilities and property dispositions to consider, and the submitting of maps and other descriptions to the state reorganization committee for approval. When brought to a vote, a simple majority would decide for or against a proposed change in organization

The committee Monday postponed action on the proposal of a joint district between parts of Lone Pine and Fairbanks and Whitman County and Latah in Spokane county, until definite assurance can be given that the Latah high school district will be permanently maintained.

Meetings are to be held in the high school districts, similar to the first one at Oakesdale January 20, to discuss proposed boundary changes by the inclusion of small, neighboring districts.

***

Asserting that the heroism of Marine Lieutenant John Franklin Kinney has brought honor not only to his birthplace (Endicott), but to the county, state and nation, Will D. Alton, Spokane, past state president of junior chamber of commerce, Saturday night presented the distinguished service award of Colfax junior chamber to Lt. Kinney's parents, Mr. and Mrs. E. A. Kinney, Colfax.

A parallel was drawn by Mr. Alton in the similarity of the service given the country by Captain Colin P. Kelly, destroyer of the Japanese battleship, “Haruna,” and the heroic resistance at Wake Island inspired by Lt. Kinney. The national junior chamber was posthumously given Capt. Kelly.

More than ninety couples crowded the Temple Saturday evening for the dinner, presentation, and dance given by the local Jaycees on Founder's day. Both Mr. and Mrs. Kinney replied to the presentation, Mr. Kinney with pardonable pride in their son's action, and Mrs. Kinney spoke of Lt. Kinney's early love of flying. Both speeches were greeted with enthusiastic rounds of applause.

50 years ago

Colfax Gazette

Feb. 2, 1967

Contracts totaling from $1 to $5 million will be awarded by the army engineers, Seattle district, this year for relocation of the Union Pacific railroad line, a new depot, relocation of the county road and other items in the Riparia vicinity.

Col. C. C. Holbrook, Seattle district engineer, estimated the highway and railroad relocation costs at from $1 to $5 million and said bid invitations would be out Feb. 7, bids would be opened March 16 and the successful contractor would be allowed 540 days.

The contract will include relocation of the Tekoa-Ayer branch of the UP, grading and bridges from the Snake river bridge to two miles up Alkali Flat creek, bridge at Riparia, Riparia station access road, county road No. 701, Alkali flat creek bridge on Whitman County road and Camas Prairie railroad relocation from Riparia to one mile upstream the Snake.

The estimated cost of station facilities at Riparia on the Union Pacific will be “under $100,000” according to Col. Holbrook. Bid invitations will be out in May with opening in June. Construction time allowed will be 300 days.

Reservoir clearing, including removal of other UP facilities and condemned Northern Pacific facilities, track and bridge removal for the UP and Camas Prairie is estimated to cost from $100,000 to $1 million and bid invitations will be out in December 1967 with bid opening in January 1968.

These projects will be handled by the Seattle office of the corps because they are in connection with Lower Monumental dam, which is under jurisdiction of the Seattle office.

***

Thanks for a Spokane investor and the productive facilities of J. E. Love Co. plant in Garfield, at least 1,000 motorbike owners across the northern part of the nation will be getting more enjoyment out of their 'cycles this year!

This boon to motorbike owners in Main, Vermont, Michigan, Wisconsin and other traditional snow-fun areas of the nation is the “Shrew” – an ingenious attachment that can be installed in place of the wheels on most standard motorbikes in about 30 minutes.

The lucky motorbike owner who can get a Shrew before this winter's snow leaves will be able to skim over the white stuff at speeds up to 40 miles per hour, with the bike's regular engine driving a rubberized nylon belt with cleats through a chain and rubber sprocket, that replace the rear wheel. The front wheel is replaced with a ski that carries part of the weight of the cycle but steering is accomplished mostly through the driver's leaning.

Manufacturing of 1,000 of the 137-lb. Machines will be completed at the Love plant in Garfield this month, and current demand indicates a bright future for the Shrew, which is proving to be the most successful of motorbike conversions on the market this year.

John Love of the Garfield manufacturing company said that his company has a contract with the Hanac Corporation of Spokane, national distributor, to manufacture 1,000 units this year, and that they can be bought only through regular motorbike dealers at a retail price of $369.50. He emphasized that the Shrews are “not available” through the J. E. Love Co., since his firm is manufacturing under contract and must deliver each completed machine to the distributor.

The Shrew is being widely-distributed in the northern tier of Atlantic and midwestern states that normally have lots of snow and some have been sold in the Pacific Northwest, Love said. The inventor, Darrell Hanson of Spokane, is a former TV announcer who is interested in motorbikes. Commercial production of the Shrew culminates several years of trial and test runs.

Manufacture of farming equipment is continuing on normal schedule at the Garfield plant, and some additional part-time help is being utilized to manufacture the Shrew.

Whence the name? Love says the inventor chose it because the Shrew is the “most vicious, meanest, toughest little animal in existence” and the motorbike conversion unit is proving to be as sturdy and “tough” as its name implies.

25 years ago

Colfax Gazette

Jan. 30, 1992

The Palouse Empire Fair next month will seek a state $19,217 grant to finish up projects which at one time were part of last summer's horse barn project.

The grant sum would be 50 percent of a $38,434 project to upgrade the fairground. Included in the plans are $6,650 for a new animal wash rack, $11,025 for electrical repairs and $18,076 for fencing.

Fair board members received a report on the fund application at Monday night's meeting. They also discussed other plans for the fair, including a proposal which would reverse traffic flow through the grounds.

The fair will submit a funding request to the State Fair Commission Feb. 15 and a delegation will make a presentation at a Feb. 28 session of the state commission in Moses Lake.

Fair Manager Debbie Wells said the grant application for this year generally amounts to an extension of last year's projects.

Facing a lower overall income last year, the state commission approved partial funding of requests. The Palouse Empire Fair received $15,000, about half of their original request for the horse barn project. By cutting plans to a minimum, the fair was able to move the four sections of horse barn to a new location in time for the fair's run last September.

***

Telephone companies should charge the county “actual costs” for collecting the 911 tax instead of a fixed percentage, representatives from two local phone companies told the county commissioners Monday.

Dennis Mackleit of Pioneer Telephone Co. of LaCrosse, and Greg Morasch and Larry Dickerson of St. John Telephone Co. met with the commissioners Monday to discuss collection of the 911 tax.

Part of the 911 initiative passed in November allows the telephone companies to charge overhead costs for collecting the tax, deputy prosecutor Ron Shirley told the phone companies representatives.

The county wants to know how much it will cost the companies to collect the tax so the county will know how much money is available, he explained.

The county is served by second phone companies: St. John Telephone Co., Pioneer Telephone Co. of LaCrosse, US West, MCI, GTE Telephone, AT&T, and Inland Telephone.

Dickerson said they will get some idea of the costs when they begin collecting the 20 cent state tax this month.

The costs could change down the road, he added.

“You might want more, we might want more,” he noted.

So the amount should be on an “actual cost” basis, Dickerson commented.

Dickerson said bigger companies might have a problem since they have to send money to several counties.

Shirley said the expense would not be collecting the tax but doing the bookkeeping and withholding.

No money from the state is available yet to cover the costs of collection, Dickerson said.

The state commission will be set up in July so it probably won't be on line until the end of the year, Shirley commented.

10 years ago

Whitman County Gazette

Feb. 1, 2007

When county commissioners announced late last year the 2007 budget would begin with a surplus of $162,144. They knew that number would change throughout the year. What they didn't know, however, was how soon that change would come.

Director of Administration Services Sharron Cunningham said an error was found while preparing the year's first budget amendment that put the county in the red.

The error, attributed to the county's accounting software, amounted to $259,777, enough to turned the projected surplus into a $97,633 deficit.

While the swing amounts to only 3.2 percent of the county's general fund budget, Cunningham said she felt it was important to let the county's taxpayers know about the error and what is being done to correct it.

“The public should know what happens with their money, good or bad,” Cunningham said.

Disparities were found in the County Commissioners, Health Department and county clerk's funds. The commissioners' budget, a miscellaneous fund, ate up most of the mistake, accounting for just over $216,000.

The mistakes were caused by data entry errors.

“Anytime you have computers and human beings, there's going to be things that go wrong,” said Cunningham.

Cunningham said the budget for next year was figured with conservative figures and, with revenues and interest payments expected to rise, the deficit should turn around throughout the year.

“We budget very conservatively,” she said. “Our budget amendments usually include extra revenues, so it should get worked out somewhere.”

Aside from increases in revenues, Cunninghman added she will ask each department to find areas to cut costs to balance the budget.

First-term commissioner Michael Largent, a certified public accountant, said the county's accounting software was outdated, and had been for a number of years.

“I'll give these two credit for getting new software when they did,” Largent said of the fellow commissioners. “If the program we're using now is antiquated, you're bound to make mistakes.”

The county purchased a new accounting system last year and is still in the process of getting it operating

Until such time as the new system is up and running, county staffers will check and double check figures in each department as well as in the administrator's office to minimize any future oversights.