Yesterdays: Nixon visit was one of the biggest events ever in valley
Former President Richard M. Nixon gestures as he gets off the plane at the Glacier Park International airport in September, 1971. (Mel Ruder photo)
70 years ago
Sept. 28, 1951
Residents were fuming over a cloud seeding program by the Bonneville Power Administration after a soggy September meant that half the crops were rotting in the fields due to too much rain. Loggers also couldn’t get into the woods. The story said people were “ready to shoot rainmakers on sight.”
60 years ago
Sept. 29, 1961
Forester Wyman Schmidt was doing experimental plots in the Coram Experimental Forest to determine what was the best spacing for larch trees for optimal growth. They were looking at doghair stands and then planned on thinning other stands.
50 years ago
Oct. 1, 1971
About 18,000 people came out to see President Richard Nixon, who stopped by en route to Anchorage, Alaska to meet with Japan emperor Hirohito. It was considered at the time to be one of the largest gatherings ever in the Flathead Valley to one event. Nixon was going to fly in a helicopter over Glacier Park, too, but bad weather fouled the plans.
40 years ago
Sept. 24, 1981
The Park Theater was still showing films on Nucleus Avenue, though owners Margaret and Ernie Massman were turning the business over to the Dale and Shirley Reynolds. The building on Nucleus Avenue had been a theater since 1914. It would later burn down.
30 years ago
Sept. 26, 1991
It was estimated the population of wolves in the North Fork was about 40. In 1979, the first wolf was spotted in the region for the first time in decades. The packs had been growing since then.
20 years ago
Sept. 27, 2001
A Going-to-the-Sun Road advisory committee gave three alternatives for fixing the ailing highway, but didn’t endorse a preferred method. One of the alternatives, which was ultimately approved, was to fix the road with minimal delays over a course of years and do a lot of night work.
10 years ago
Sept. 28, 2011
The Flathead County Commissioners voted to “unencumber” about $500,000 in funds to fix the Red Bridge in Columbia Falls. In essence, the move killed the plan to rebuild the bridge, which the total cost was expected to be about $1.9 million for a pedestrian bridge. Commissioners claimed locals had a tough time raising matching funds, but they disagreed.