125 years ago

July 22, 1892

Adjourned regular meeting of the city council.

The following ordinances were read by the clerk:

“An ordinance adopting and declaring the estimated cost of a system of sewerage for the city of Montesano, and calling a special election for the ratification or rejection of said system and the adoption of said proposition to issue bonds.”

“An ordinance proposing to issue the negotiable bonds of the city of Montesano for the sum of $25,000 for strictly municipal purposes, and calling a special election for the adoption of said proposition to issue bonds.”

“An ordinance submitting to the qualified voters of the city of Montesano the question of whether or not the indebtedness of said city incurred in excess of one and one-half percent of the taxable property of said city, shall be ratified and validated.”

On motion the above ordinances were referred to the city attorney.

100 years ago

July 20, 1917

Alfred Franklin, a former resident of near Montesano, writes to Gordon Wilkie from the trenches in France and expresses his delight in having the U. S. A. at last in the fight for democracy. Franklin left here at the beginning of the war and enlisted with a Canadian company and has been in the big fight for two years. He was wounded and spent seven months in England and has now returned to the trenches, having recovered from his wounds. His letter, which may be of interest to his friends, is herewith reproduced:

“With the British Expeditionary Force, France, May 20, 1917.

“Dear Gordon: I am pleased to write these few lines to you, but I am more than pleased to have lived this long and to see the good old U. S. A. as one of our allies. Gee, Gordon, you cannot tell how glad I was when the papers announced that the States had come in with us; you see I am an old soldier now and you would not know me if you were to see me. I’ve grown much older in looks and also much wiser. It used to make me sore when I first came over here and heard the people say that the U. S. was too proud to fight, but I knew the situation of the states, but for you know that I am practically an American myself and I knew, old boy, that you would be fighting side by side with us sooner or later.

75 years ago

July 23, 1942

Young ladies who are casting contemplative eyes at possible army service may find a chance to work at good pay, in pert uniforms, and learn mechanical skills all at the same time right here in Montesano. V.I. Whitney announced today that plans are being made to interview a number of women to work in both shop and service departments where they will receive full training to replace men likely; to be called to war service.

Factory training will be given if the plan is carried out, and the work assigned will be that which has already been determined suitable for girls and women, Whitney explained.

Positions will be given on a merit basis after a careful aptitude test such as is being given by automobile manufacturers in war plants. Ability to meet and serve the public, to think and act quickly, and to grasp mechanical details will be the basic requirements for which applicants will be tested during the brief training period.

50 years ago

July 20, 1967

Members of the Montesano Chamber of Commerce are expected to act this week on a request that they petition General Telephone Company for a more liberal long-distance toll policy throughout the Grays Harbor area.

At the same luncheon meeting at noon Thursday in Ben Moore’s Broiler, guest speaker Paul B. Fournier will describe the “miracle” work being done at Brooke General Hospital, Fort Sam Houston, Texas, where physicians specialize in burn injuries.

Fournier returned recently from the Army hospital after visiting his son, Capt. Paul C. Fournier, 32, who is recovering from severe burns suffered in a May 22 plane crash in Vietnam. The pilot’s mother has remained in San Antonio to attend to his needs.

Regarding the phone policy, the Chamber has been asked—along with other area Chambers – to petition for more realistic rates. The request came in a letter from S. Fred Rapp of Lucke Insurance, Elma, to Jack Mempa, manager of General Telephone’s local branch office. It was read at last Thursday’s CofC meeting.

Rapp recommended that “extended telephone service” be provided for customers from Olympia westward to the beach resorts. He pointed out that it would cost less than $1 for each subscriber to obtain a combined circuit for the area, eliminating individual toll calls between communities in it.

25 years ago

July 23, 1992

A division of the county prosecutor’s office will soon be housed in the current offices of the Montesano School district on W. Marcy Street.

The district is moving out of its offices to take up residence in some rooms inside the 1971 gym next to the old high school. Montesano Community school also has offices there. The move should be getting under way in the next week or two.

Meanwhile, the Support Enforcement Division of the Prosecutor’s office will begin moving into the district’s offices. On Monday, Menefee recommended the county publish a notice of intent to enter into a lease for the space.

The lease will be with Olson and Fournier, who offered the space at $1,100 per month for five years and $900 per month in the second five year period. The price includes utilities. It has the “added advantage that they have agreed to remodel the space to met our requirements,” wrote Menefee.

10 years ago

July 19, 2007

Teri Franklin, a land-use activist who lives on Powers Creek Road near Elma, told the Grays Harbor County commissioners Monday that she is very concerned about two developments by the Weyerhaeuser Real Estate Development Co. in that area.

She said she’d already brought her worries about the first development, Powers Creek, to the commissioners privately last January and February but that she’d heard nothing back from them and was now bringing the issues to “the public forum.”

Franklin’s main concern centers on the size of the lots in the development at the west end of Powers Creek Road. She lives at the other end of the road, she said, two or three miles away.

Weyerhaeuser and the Grays Harbor County Planning Department “used the large lot subdivision process, which limits the public’s input because (the plans) don’t have to go before the Planning Commission and the County Commission,” Franklin said Tuesday, adding that the process is approved or not through the Planning Department’s director, Brian Shea. “And the commissioners are excluded from the process, which substantially limits the public’s right to comment.”

A large lot subdivision is “an administrative process” Shea concurred Wednesday.

Moreover, Franklin said, “if you don’t see that little notice in the paper saying that they’re doing that, you don’t get a chance to comment at all.”