Out of the Past September 23 2026

100 Years Ago—

At a meeting of the city council on Tuesday evening, building permits were issued to Jordon & Blair for the installation of gasoline pumps on the curb at Main and Aster, and to J.L. Diehl for erection of a $2,000 bungalow on the corner of Maple and Columbia. The council also signed a new contract with the Stevens County Power and Light Company for the furnishing of power to the city, the contract to run for 10 years with a 10-year franchise.

During the last year, a number of Stevens County people have been receiving boxes of neckties on approval. Considering the fact that they are delivered by mail to the recipients, requiring no buying effort or expense, they are probably worth 25 cents each as priced, although on almost any bargain counter in the cities they are usually 19 cents each. Most men want better ties.

75 Years Ago—

When will television come to Colville? This question was answered on the pessimistic side for those awaiting its arrival at the meeting of the Colville Chamber of Commerce Tuesday at noon. The program speaker was Adrian DeVries, announcer and commentator for station KXLY, Spokane. DeVries stated that in the opinion of radio and communication men in the northwest, it is estimated television stations will not be installed in Spokane for at least two-and-a-half to three years. When they do come, he said, the stations will have a radius of about 40 miles.

Porter Carter of Colville was elected lieutenant governor of the sixth district Kiwanis at the recent district convention held in Vancouver, B.C.

Important to Stevens County was the announcement over the weekend that the government is imposing ceiling prices on imported lead and zinc and boosting domestic ceilings by 2 cents a pound.

50 Years Ago—

The announcement of a new $2 million southtown shopping center was released this week by five Colville businessmen. The new center, yet to be named, will be located on the west side of Highway 395 and lying between Colville Ford to the north and Mobile Ranch Sales to the south, and west of Benny’s Panorama Motel.

British Columbia has awarded contracts for construction of the Seven Mile Dam and powerhouse on the Pend Oreille River about 10 miles from Trail, B.C., and just downstream from Seattle City Light’s Boundary Dam. The dam is located on the northern Stevens County border. Much traffic on the United States side is anticipated during dam construction.

25 Years Ago—

The Stevens County Historical Society Museum and Keller Heritage Center closed for the year last month. Over 2,000 people visited the museum during the year and over 200 school students visited, according to Marian Garvey, spokesperson for the facility.

Workers earning minimum wage in Washington state will be paid $6.90 per hour starting Jan. 1, 2002, 18 cents an hour more than the current rate.

Colville Kiwanis Club members, Colville School District personnel, and project donors got together last Thursday afternoon to help dedicate the new softball/Little Leaguer field on school district property adjacent to Colville Junior High.

10 Years Ago—

The Colville Confederated Tribes plan to reopen a shuttered sawmill in Omak next year that can process ponderosa pine. The mill closed in 2009 when the housing market crashed.

All programming for the accessible voting unit and vote tally system, which will be used for the Nov. 8 general election, will be tested by the Stevens County Auditor’s Office on Oct. 4, according to Tim Gray, Stevens County Auditor.