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Recovering Andy Schuster’s car from the Flathead River on May 28, 1964. It was believed Schuster, who was 81, blacked out before he went into the water. The keys in the vehicle were shut off. Schuster was a popular figure in Coram at the time.
70 years ago
March 26, 1948
The Hungry Horse News had its first air mail subscriber, J.H. Wilhour of Anchorage, Alaska paid $7 a year to have the newspaper sent to him. The 20-month-old newspaper reached 90 percent of the homes in the “Columbia Falls to Belton” district and printed 1,750 copies a week. The paper cost 10 cents, but was 5 cents by subscription a week. Ray Nelson, the “Beanpole Barber” advertised “painful shaves ... if you can’t take it, don’t come in.”
60 years ago
March 21, 1958
Hungry Horse News editor Mel ruder went on his first flight over the Swan Range and the wilderness to count game herds. He noted “albino” elk on Chair Mountain — their coats were bleached nearly white by the sun. School District 6 bought a new trampoline and student gymnasts — all girls — were getting ready to put on their annual show. Front page photo showed Gail Preston doing a swan dive onto the trampoline.
50 years ago
March 22, 1968
Glacier National Park wrote a new leaflet for visitors about bears. It noted that “while grizzlies are the most fearsome animal” black bears should also be avoided. In addition, it urged people to make noise while hiking and recommended carrying bells or a can with pebbles to hang from your belt. Perhaps most interesting, it urged women who were having their menstrual cycle to avoid the backcountry. The menstrual cycle theory has since been debunked. The Park today doesn’t urge people to carry bells, but it does still tell people to make noise while hiking.
40 years ago
March 23, 1978
There were reports of mountain sheep on Wild Horse Island dying of starvation due to deep snows. Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks had dropped two tons of hay by air on the island to help the sheep. The island was overgrazed. It used to be wholly owned by Dr. J.C. Burnett in the 1950s. The state took ownership of about one-seventh of the island in February, 1978 and was working on a wildlife management plan. The island used to have too many deer when Burnett owned it.
30 years ago
March 23, 1988
A dry and windy March was resulting in numerous grass fires int he valley as open burning season began. The Hungry Horse Reservoir continued to fall to record levels, dropping about two feet per day. There was talk about extending the boat launch at Abbot Bay, but it came with a $12,000 pricetag.
20 years ago
March 19, 1998
Canadian and U.S. officials were talking about closing the Trail Creek border crossing up the North Fork permanently. The crossing had been closed the summer before and wasn’t expected to open this year, either. The Canadians didn’t open the station because the river washed out the road. It remains washed out today and is still closed.
10 years ago
March 20, 2008
Former Glacier National Park superintendent Mick Holm announced he was running for the House District 3 seat in the state Legislature. Holm was running as a Democrat. Robert Dean Kowalski, 46, was charged with deliberate homicide for killing his girlfriend Lorraine Kay Morin in a house off Highway 206. Kowalski then had a standoff with police for 31 hours at his own house on Highway 35 outside Kalispell. Police used tear gas to subdue Kowalski and took him into custody. According to Montana Department of Corrections records, Kowalski today is in prison in Great Falls, serving a 50 year sentence.