Yesterdays: Canada coal mine draws opposition
Fred Larson, West Glacier Depot agent, March 31, 1952. (Mel Ruder photo)
70 years ago
March 28, 1952
Mel Ruder wrote an editorial saying the age to buy liquor should be 18 and stay there. “We favor setting the age for buying a glass of beer at 18 and then enforcing it,” he said. Ladies silk blouses were $1.69 at Davall’s Mercantile.
60 years ago
March 30, 1962
Columbia Falls High School was proposing an industrial arts program, but it hinged on a levy being passed by voters to fund it. Glacier Park was being promoted at the World’s Fair in Seattle. The Park said it had about 500 inquiries from the public in March on what to do in the park.
50 years ago
March 31, 1972
The Columbia Falls United Methodist Church was featured on the front page. It was the oldest protestant church in Columbia Falls, established in 1896. The oldest church was the Catholic church, built in 1891. It still stands today, but is no longer a church.
40 years ago
April 1, 1982
A hearing on a proposed coal mine near Cabin Creek in Canada was coming up soon and locals were gathering to oppose it. There was plenty of concern that it would pollute the North Fork of the Flathead River and in turn, harm Glacier National Park. It would mark a long battle over coal mines in the Flathead. Highway 2 would be re-routed through Columbia Falls. The road used to go down what is now Highway 206. The plan at the time was to make 206 a county road.
30 years ago
April 2, 1992
Locals were bringing strong opposition to an Oregon man’s proposal to run jet boat tours on the Flathead River. The tour boat would hold 12 people. The plan was to run tours from Spruce Park to the Bad Rock Canyon daily in the summer, but noise and the wake from the boat were big concerns.
20 years ago
March 28, 2002
Flathead Electric Co-op members put six new people on the board of trustees after frustration over high power rates and poor management came to a head. More than 2,000 people attended the Co-ops annual meeting — the most ever.
10 years ago
April 4, 2012
A zipline project was proposed for West Glacier. Glacier Guides and Montana Raft were proposing a zipline on land owned by the Green Valley Ranch. It never came to fruition.