Looking Back for June 21
A look back at past Pilot articles by Julie Engler.
50 Years Ago
June 21, 1973
A call from the owner of the Viking Lodge alerted the Whitefish Police and ended in the arrest of three juvenile boys who were charged with grand theft of power boats and other items from the Whitefish river and lake areas. He informed the police about 2 a.m. there was a boat racing full throttle across the lake, showing no running lights. The officers stayed on the lookout and later apprehended two of the yachts, running toward the railroad from Fort Whitefish. Police Chief Joe Eason stated that persons having boats and other items stolen should report to his office.
40 Years Ago
June 23, 1983
For the second time, the land-use committee approved a development plan for a tract of land on the city’s east edge. The full council rejected the committee’s recommendation earlier of a plan by Wedgewood Development Corporation to cluster residences, including townhouses on the 14-acre tract near the high school. Mike Richards, developer of the project, said he offered revisions, forming more of a traditional subdivision. He said he thought this approach was what the neighbors and council wanted.
30 Years Ago
June 24, 1993
A new principal for Whitefish High School was named when the school board hired Dorothy Chatlain of Columbia Falls. Chatlain had served three years as assistant principal at Columbia Falls High School. The principal was due make between $45,000 and $50,000 a year. She replaced John Morrison, who retired that spring. Chatlain earned a master’s degree at Oregon State University and later a doctorate at the University of Montana in 1989.
20 Years Ago
June 19, 2003
Money earmarked for affordable housing in Whitefish was to be returned to state and federal coffers after grant programs failed in their quest to make homeowners out of low- to moderate-income residents. Though hundreds applied for consideration, few qualified under the federal income levels, and those who did were hampered by Whitefish's high land and home prices. The average price that year for a home in Whitefish was $243,488. Federal qualifying standards were $24,800 for a single person and $30,800 for a family of three.
10 Years Ago
June 19, 2013
It had been 32 years since the Whitefish Summer Games made its debut. In 2013, the fun-filled sporting weekend could make a return. The first Summer Games in 1981 featured an oddity of events - soccer, volleyball and tennis were held alongside beer chugging and mouse racing. As longtime Whitefish resident Colin Sellwood explained it, Jim Trout, Harry Brown and the late Gary Elliott met over drinks at the Viking Lodge to map out their idea for a wacky weekend of events to be held each year after Labor Day. It was touted as “one last hurrah” of summer and, in theory, one last shot to fill the town with visitors before the autumn shoulder season set in.