Memories for Wednesday, August 18, 2021

10 years ago-

Wednesday,

August 17, 2011

Gas prices up

August 15 – Average retail gasoline prices in Montana have risen 0.5 cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $3.71/g yesterday.

This compares with the national average that has fallen 4.7 cents per gallon in the last week to $3.60/g, according to gasoline price website MontanaGasPrices.com

Including the change in gas prices in Montana during the past week, prices yesterday were 83.1 cents per gallon higher than the same day one year ago.

Arnold Top Female Finish in Triathlon

Malta athlete Nicole Arnold, 17, posted the top overall finishing time for a female, won her age group, and finished sixth overall in the Harvest Thunder Triathlon held last Sunday in Great Falls.

Arnold, a senior at Malta High, improved her time from last year while competing in a 500-meter swim, 12.4-mile bike ride, and a three-mile run. Her overall time was 1:07.46, beating her time from last year by 5:92.

Showing at the Villa

Zookeeper starring Kevin James

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25 years ago-

Wednesday,

August 14, 1996

Tara Slover was Top Reader

The summer reading program at the Phillips County Library has come to an end. We hope that all those that participated enjoyed the books they read in this program.

Our top reader was Tara Slover, who read 110 books. Next in the number of books read was Cherisha Hines, who read 50 books.

Other readers who met the 30 book goal were Christina Armstrong, Aaron DeVries, Carmen DeVries, Jake Jones, Whitney Jones, and Shannon McCoy.

LeRoy Rummel finishes first in team roping

LeRoy Rummel of Zortman and his partner, Norville Luman of Arizona, recently won the championship for the United States Team Roping event for the State of Montana.

Lorraine Schwenke, also of Zortman, and her partner, Duane Schellheimer of Billings, won the State Century Championship in team roping.

Showing at the Villa Theatre

Phenomenon starring John Travolta and Kyra Sedgwick

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50 years ago-

Thursday,

August 26, 1971

Total School Enrollment Declines

Enrollment in Malta schools this week totaled 884 students, with 785 pupils enrolled in the public school and 99 at St. Mary’s parochial school. Total enrollment continues to decline as it was 925 last year and 939 in 1969-70.

The 785 students in the public school compared to 826 last year. St. Mary’s enrollment at 99 is exactly the same as last year, with the addition of the eighth-grade class.

Malta High School has registered 309 students, an increase of one over last year. There are 75 seniors, 75 juniors, 76 sophomores, and 83 freshmen.

Junior high enrollment totals 132, a decrease of 18 students from last year’s 150. There are 55 eighth graders and 77 seventh graders.

The elementary school shows a slight decrease with 344 pupils registered, down from 368 last year.

There are 61 sixth graders, 59 fifth graders, 57 fourth graders, 61 third-graders, 54 second graders, and 43 in the first grade. There are nine students in a special non-graded class.

Ford Garage Will Reopen

The Ford agency in Malta will be opening soon, with Bob Darrah as co-owner and manager.

Darrah comes to Malta from Bozeman where he was lease manager for Bozeman Ford. He has had 14 years of experience in the automotive business.

He states that it is hoped to open the agency in the building formerly occupied by Clausen-Long Ford, but negotiations for the building are not complete at this time.

Darrah is married to the former Clarice Ereaux of Malta and they have six children, Robbie, 11, Monica, 9, Jeff, 8, twins Clyde and Clark, 5, and Ilene, 2. Also in the Darrah family are Mrs. Darrah’s sisters, Stella Ereaux, 17, and Darla Ereaux, 15, former Malta residents.

The family is living in the home on Central Avenue formerly occupied by Mrs. Hazel Jacobson and her family.

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75 years ago-

Thursday,

August 15, 1946

Fair Plays to Best Crowd in History

Paid Admissions Total Over 8,700 For Two Days

Preliminary estimates that the 1946 Phillips County Fair was the biggest in its history from the standpoint of attendance have been born out by an actual check, according to Edgar Lee, president of the fair’s board of directors.

Announced over the speaker system as an official’s guess, a final check of paid admission tickets shows that hundreds more people were at Dodson this year than ever before. More than 7,000 tickets were sold to adults during the two days and over 1,700 children’s tickets passed through the cashier’s window.

Cash receipts amounted to $5,810 for the two days, as compared with $4,400 for the 1945 event. Those receipts, however, are not a reliable index of admissions because these receipts include commissions on concessions and other miscellaneous revenue. Attendance figures are based upon actual tickets sold plus complimentary tickets, and must be accurate because Uncle Sam’s revenue men demand a tax on every pasteboard unaccounted for, whether paid for or a “comp”.

John L. Lewis Spends Night In Cabin Here

Downtown Malta was buzzing loudly a few nights ago as word spread around that John L. Lewis was in town. This newspaper received several phone calls announcing the presence of the noted labor leader, but he proved hard to find. He was eventually located at the Riverside Cabin camp operated by Elmer Hendrickson.

The leader of all U.S. coal miners, who is doubtless labor’s most powerful single individual, was traveling alone in a Cadilac automobile and was on his way back east after a trip to Calgary, Alberta, where he addressed a gathering of Canadian workers.

Lewis was accosted by one or two local folks who recognized him. Asked if he were John L. Lewis, his reply was a grumpy: “Yes, what of it?” Thus did the labor leader add to his reputation as an even-tempered man—mad all the time.

Mustang Plane Purchased for Local Schools

School District 14 is currently awaiting the arrival of a P-51 Mustang fighter plane, it is announced by J.H. Lesselyong, superintendent. The ship will be used for demonstration and shop purposes for the time being and possibly later on in connection with a proposed basic school course in aviation.

Sold cheaply as army surplus, unusable in any other way, the planes have been made available to public schools over the country. Malta’s ship will be delivered to Glasgow in a few days and then flown to the Malta Airpark. On arrival here, the plane will be grounded as far as further flying is concerned. Later on, as school shop time becomes available, the plane will be dismantled and various assemblies used for instruction purposes.

Showing at the Palace Theatre

House of Dracula starring Lon Chaney

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100 Years Ago - 1921

- Newell and Greenfield discussed problems of irrigation and immigration in the Milk River Valley.

- A movie machine was installed in the high school for the purpose of showing educational films.

- Edgar Lee was in Malta completing arrangements for the county fair.

- Three men were arrested for cattle rustling.

- Malta was defeated by Dodson in a close game of baseball. The score was 2-3.

- Frank Fanning received serious injuries when a horse he was riding threw him over backward.

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118 Years Ago – 1903

- Sportsmen reported game very scarce, due to the severe weather in May which killed most of the young sage hens.

- Dr. Clay, acting in his capacity as city health officer, inspected all premises looking for typhoid malaria.

- Dr. Clay was appointed meat and milk inspector for the county.

- If a man loves a girl, that’s his business. If she loves him, that’s her business. If they want their house furnished, that’s our business. Advertisement for the Backues Merc. Co.

- Plans had been completed for the erection of a sugar beet plant near Great Falls.