Looking Back for August 31
A local boy scout troop in 1972 starts a campfire while learning other scouting principles. (Pilot file)
A look back at past Pilot articles by Julie Engler
50 Years Ago
August 31, 1972
A new gymnasium for Central School was a step closer to reality with the calling for bids on the structure by the District 44 School Board. Plans call for the inclusion of three separate gym facilities under one roof with one for girls’ P.E., one for boys’ P.E. and one for gymnastics and wrestling. The building also includes locker rooms along with the necessary shower facilities, although it may not be financially feasible for the lockers to be installed at this time.
40 Years Ago
September 2, 1982
The streams of Haskill Basin which provide Whitefish with most of its drinking water may also reap an economic benefit. If plans for a small hydro-electric generating plant were approved, the city coffers could have been sweetened by about $6,000 annually, the city’s share of the power which could have been sold to Pacific Power and Light Company. Don Morrison, city manager, said the city would also benefit because the company would have to rebuild some of the city pipeline at no cost to the city.
30 Years Ago
September 3, 1992
Five bears were lingering on the outskirts of Whitefish looking for food. “If people would just leave them alone, 90 percent of our problems would be over,” said Dave Wedum, the Whitefish game warden who came out of retirement to handle the summer’s high number of bears wandering into populated areas. He added that although you may sympathize with a hungry bear, don’t feed it, don’t approach it to take pictures, don’t even hang around to watch it. All these activities accustom the bruins to human contact and almost certainly will get the bears killed eventually.
20 Years Ago
August 29, 2002
The ALERT helicopter was used to search for a group of Kalispell Regional Medical Center staff members and their families lost during a day in the backcountry. No one in the KRMC group was injured. KRMC spokesman Jim Oliverson said a group of more than 50 people was enjoying a day in Schafer Meadows when one part of the group became lost.
10 Years Ago
August 29, 2012
Whitefish City Hall would likely stay put in its current location. The committee charged with recommending a site decided that it would like City Hall to stay in its current spot on Baker Avenue and Second Street. A few committee members said they favored the current location because the city already owns the property.