The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

Ten Years Ago

April 20, 2006

The revitalization of Waitsburg’s business community was apparent as some 25 business people attended the first Commercial Club Business Forum at Waitsburg Video Monday, suggesting ideas such as better lighting, signage, a walking map and others. The event was the brainchild of the C-Club’s Commerce Committee, and some of those who attended want to keep the ball rolling, thinks committee member Jeff Broom…Of the 35 storefronts in Waitsburg, 17 have been vacant in the past four years, Broom noted. There are almost no vacancies now and all have something going on, he added.

There’s been a cloud of dust hovering around Main Street this week as the exterior of the J.W. Morgan Building has been receiving a cleaning by soda blasting. Owner Charles Smith is planning on a rough-sawn saloon with a wine cellar and winery in the basement.

Twenty-Five Years Ago

April 18, 1991

Commercial Club voted to fund another table and eight chairs for Ye Towne Hall after the Ye Towne Hall group held a brief board meeting to say they would fund a like set. Cost of the new equipment will be about $706.00, tax included. The new chairs will be $26.50 each, and the tables about $115. Morris Kurth said he had David McConnell in for a look-see at the P.A. system, and Dave said it was under-powered.

Waitsburg School Board on April 10, went into executive session, then voted in public to hire Dan Butler, who has been working in the district as a Principal intern, to serve as Secondary Principal and Athletic Director. Jerry Scott had earlier resigned as Secondary Principal and Mike White had submitted his resignation as Athletic Director and Basketball Coach.

Heather Ferguson and Dwight Penner were presented with a new award after the Waitsburg Junior Livestock Show last weekend. Heather was high point winner for the 4-H classes, and Dwight was top in points for the FFA.

Fifty Years Ago

April 21, 1966

Brig. Gen. Peter C. Hyzer, North Pacific Division engineer, Army Corps of Engineers, released the first bucket of concrete into the navigation lock of Little Goose Dam Thursday morning.

That sharp bump which you might have felt the other day was not a sonic boon – rather it was the population explosion finally reaching our fair city. Latest census figured (unofficial we might add, until checked out by the state) from the count taken by scout troop 336 lists the population of Waitsburg at 1150. That’s a sizeable increase – especially percentage-wise. 14 per cent to be exact. The count also revealed that we now have 42 mobile homes within the city limits. A fine addition, we say.

Dawn Jackson was named high handicap pistol shooter for the Waitsburg Gun Club for the season just concluded, while Joe Russel was named winner in the Senior Handicap rifle division. Joe Abbey turned in the high individual rifle score with Gene Valaer securing that spot in the pistol ranks. Approximately 50 people enjoyed a Saturday evening dinner on April 16 and stayed for Alaskan hunting movies shown by Waitsburg’s two “Great White Hunters” Vaughn Hubbard and Gerald Vollmer.

Seventy-Five Years Ago

April 25, 1941

Mr. and Mrs. T.P. Estes announce the betrothal of their daughter, Bertha Irene Estes, to Wesley Milton Lloyd, son of Mr. and Mrs. W. A. Lloyd.

Mrs. Bill Wardrip and Mrs. Milt Nifong honored the birthdays of Mrs. Floyd Smith and Mrs. Miles Quigg at the Quigg home, with a handkerchief shower Friday. Refreshments were served later in the afternoon.

Next Sunday, April 27, Rev. J. W. Croft, pastor of the Waitsburg Nazarene church will speak on “Dispensational Prophesies” at the regular Sunday services at Lost Springs School

One Hundred Years Ago

April 28, 1916

The annual class play of the Waitsburg High School, “Higbee of Harvard,” was presented Wednesday night. The cast included Marvin Lloyd, Alfred Hales, Guy McLaughlin, Floyd Arnold, Marion McAninch, Calla Summers, Helen Keiser, Maude Baim and Berna Gibson.

The Morgan Drug Store, in conjunction with 7,000 other Rexall Stores in the United States, observed Rexall Week, last week with a one-cent sale, the first of its kind ever held here.

One Hundred Twenty-Five Years Ago

April 24, 1891

Albert Hollowell, John Loundagin, Dave Love and Otto Smith have ordered Bicycles through George Brown & Co.

Adam and Eve had no wealth, no education and no ancestry, yet they are often spoken of as one of “our first families.” How absurd!

At 11 o’clock on Wednesday night there was a shooting match in a saloon in Walla Walla, in which E. Miller received a dangerous wound in the breast from the gun or A.J. Hunt. Hunt is in jail and Miller almost in his grave.

Frank A. Vining was around this week taking pledges for monthly payments towards a fund for running the street sprinkler, which will begin to make regular trips on or about May 1.