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In this installment of A Look Back in Time, the Friday, July 26, 1935, edition of The Chronicle featured a story about the organizers of the upcoming Farmers and Merchant Picnic in Chehalis who — along with attempting to break their own 1931 record for the world’s largest cheese omelet — were hoping a Lewis County resident would break the record for world’s fastest diaper change in a “diaper changers’ sprint.”
The Centralia Police Department was asking for tips from any witnesses who saw “childish pranksters” rolling empty gas barrels and leaving them on Cherry Street, according to the Tuesday, July 26, 1955, edition of The Chronicle.
And in the Saturday, July 26, 1975, edition of The Chronicle, it was reported that the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office and Centralia Police Department collaborated in a drug raid at Centralia’s Pizza Pub Tavern, which resulted in 12 arrests, including the business’ co-owner, on charges of trafficking and selling multiple types of drugs.
A Look Back in Time is compiled using Chronicle archives at the Lewis County Historical Museum along with digital archives on newspapers.com.
Friday, July 26, 1935
• In the midst of the community attempting to break its own 1931 record for cooking the world’s largest cheese omelet at the upcoming Farmers and Merchant Picnic in Chehalis, event organizers were also planning a contest to see if anyone in Lewis County could beat the world record for fastest diaper change, The Chronicle reported. “Belief that Chehalis and Lewis County has somewhere a diaper changer that can beat Seattle’s 17-second man will either be proved or disproved at the 20th annual Farmers and Merchants Picnic to be held at Alexander Park Thursday, Aug. 8, Norman Brunswig announced yesterday. He said devotees of this favorite of indoor sports, the diaper changers’ sprint, will have an opportunity to show their stuff at (the) picnic. The contest will be open to both men and women.” Another contest was also planned for the picnic. “There will also be an egg-breaking contest at the picnic and the trick in this game is to keep the egg shells out of the broken eggs. The eggs will be used in the frying of the world’s largest omelet.”
• Ford’s Prairie resident Henry Loomis suffered a fractured ankle, sprained back and bruises after falling from a barn he was helping build in Grand Mound earlier in the week, The Chronicle reported. “Caught by a strong gust of wind, a barn under construction on the Veysey Farm southwest of Grand Mound collapsed Wednesday, tumbling four workmen to earth.” Despite all four men falling around 20 feet to the ground, Loomis’ coworkers luckily came out of the tumble uninjured. The barn was being built by Earl Curtis. “His son, Charles, was inside the barn when it fell. He escaped unhurt.”
• The Chronicle featured Associated Press stories about ongoing lumber mill labor strikes in both Tacoma and Everett. “J.C. Whaley, employee of the Clear Fir Lumber Company at Day Island, faces an assault charge as the result of a fight late yesterday. He said he struck Clarence Lord when he saw Lord and two other men taking numbers of parked cars at the Clear Fir Plant. Lord was unconscious for half an hour, but later appeared at the courthouse as (a) complainant.” In Everett, between 30 and 40 men attempted to prevent construction at a logging camp. “Termed agitators by the state highway police, this morning (they) halted construction crew workers entering the Miller Logging Camp near Sultan. The throng was dispersed quickly and without incident.”
• A four-bedroom “modern” home with a garage and woodshed on two lots of property was listed for sale in The Chronicle’s classifieds for $800.
Thursday, July 26, 1945
• Chehalis Mayor Louis Vimont announced an end to the city’s restrictions on the use of sprinklers, The Chronicle reported. “The city had been on restricted sprinkling hours for two weeks because of an unusual demand for water. All water users in Chehalis are on meters, and during normal periods of water supply there are no sprinkling regulations.”
• Preparations were being made for a “colorful centennial pageant” for the upcoming 1945 Lewis County Fair, The Chronicle reported. “The pageant, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Lewis County, will have a cast of 350, and its 10 episodes will be sponsored by various organizations. Some of the episodes have already been assigned, and the others will be completed within a short time. Three groups already working on pageant presentations focusing on different historical events throughout the county’s 100-year history included the Twin Cities’ unit of the Washington State Guard, the Chehalis Kiwanis Club and the Chehalis Rotary Club.”
• With World War II drawing to a close and U.S. armed forces downsizing after wartime drafts, The Chronicle featured an Associated Press story about three local men who were among a number of enlisted who received honorable discharges from the U.S. Army at Fort Lewis on Wednesday. “They included Corporal Chester H. Keenan, Onalaska, Private First Class George W. Davis, Winlock, and Master Sergeant Leo W. McCann, Tenino.”
• The Chronicle featured an Associated Press story about three Seattle residents who admitted to hoaxing a kidnapping and robbery story to get gas. The three suspects, who “told police Monday that they had been forced to drive two men from Seattle to Kelso, where they were robbed of money and gasoline ration coupons, admitted yesterday they had made up the story as an excuse to get gasoline from the Kelso ration board, Detective Captain George Lohrer said. The trio, identified as Phyllis Johnson, 18, Ruby Johnson, 15, and William Frost, 20, were released pending action by the Office of Price Administration.”
• A four-bedroom home on 40 acres of land with a new large barn, hen house, orchard, tractor, other farm equipment, 10 dairy cows, 30 tons of hay and creek access 10 miles outside of Centralia was listed for sale in The Chronicle’s classifieds for $6,500.
Tuesday, July 26, 1955
• Centralia police were asking for any witnesses who may have seen “childish pranksters” rolling gasoline storage barrels into the street, The Chronicle reported. “The pranksters, who (Centralia) Police Chief Otto Rucker said he believed were kids, rolled large, empty gasoline storage tanks from a lot at South Tower Avenue and Cherry Street onto Cherry Street. Rucker added an accident could easily have been caused if anyone had been driving along Cherry.”
• Lewis County officials were denouncing a City of Tacoma response to a letter county commissioners sent to Tacoma requesting detailed plans for Tacoma’s $35 million Mayfield hydro-electric power project, The Chronicle reported. “County Commission Chairman Martin Jacobsen was critical of the reply. He said, ‘It tells us little more than we already know.’ He added that as far as he is concerned, ‘the same old promises of interest and cooperation are there, but they do not help Lewis County in trying to plan for next year, when the project will really be underway.’ … The lengthy letter, which Lewis County authorities said would be closely studied, listed three county road relocation projects and one bridge change scheduled in 1956-57, costs for which Tacoma expects to pay. The city repeatedly pointed out that pending developments, primarily decisions of the state highway department, prevents it from definitely closing operational programs.” In 1963, the Mayfield Dam would be completed creating Mayfield Lake at a total cost of $44.5 million according to Tacoma Public Utilities’ website.
• The Chronicle featured an Associated Press story about brothels in Galveston, Texas, being forced to padlock their doors after threats of police raids. “Bawdy houses padlocked their doors last night in this island resort city which traditionally gives the visitor what he wants in the way of gambling, liquor and women. Protests by the Galveston Ministerial Association and the American Social Hygiene Association brought the latest crackdown. (Galveston) Police Chief W.J. Burns announced yesterday any house which didn’t lock its own doors would be raided. At 10:30 p.m. last night, said Burns, all had padlocked their doors. Burns said they will, ‘stay closed.’” Previous attempts to close Galveston’s brothels had all been unsuccessful as the establishments eventually reopened. “(Galveston) Mayor George Roy Clough, who advocates an, ‘open but clean city,’ applauded the latest crackdown but said: ‘I will say this. It’s going to be a hell of a job keeping them closed.’” He added with the city being on an island on Texas’ coast with the Gulf of Mexico, he doubted the brothels would remain closed for long. Clough also said, “I think Galveston should have its prostitutes in a red light district where they are known for what they are and we can exercise some degree of regulation over them.”
• A “new” three-bedroom home with a kitchen with an electric oven and range along with an attached garage on Rock Street in Centralia was listed for sale in The Chronicle’s classifieds for $13,500. An unfurnished three-bedroom home in Centralia was listed for rent for $58 a month.
Monday, July 26, 1965
• After holding a “bread-and-water picket line” protesting the ongoing construction of the Mossyrock Dam earlier in May, John Looney of Glenoma and J.R. Goin of Mossyrock were traveling to Tacoma to meet with City of Tacoma officials to talk about their gripes, The Chronicle reported. Both had already spent years in legal battles trying to get more compensation for their land. “Goin said that he appreciated the support which had been offered (to) them by Lewis County people.” Looney was given $4,034 for 80 acres of land, and Goin $2,060 for 70 acres, while a neighbor was given $35,000 for 80 acres, after all of their land was condemned for the dam in 1959. The duo claimed the disparity was caused by their own gravel rights not being considered in their property evaluations, despite the City of Tacoma purchasing the land mainly to access the gravel for the dam’s construction. The Mossyrock Dam would be completed by 1968, creating Riffe Lake, at a cost of $117.8 million according to Tacoma Public Utilities’ website.
• A trio of power line extension projects were approved by the Lewis County Public Utilities District (PUD) on Friday, The Chronicle reported. “Merle Johnston, PUD manager, said a three-phase line will be extended from Mineral to the St. Regis Logging Camp and Shop at a cost of $5,380. The line will extend 6,208 feet.” A 30-pole line stretching two miles to serve two customers on Bunker Creek Road was also in the works at a total cost of $4,592. “Another distribution line extension was cleared on the North Fork Road of the Newaukum River. An 800-foot line will be constructed to serve one customer. It will cost $430.”
• The Chronicle featured an Associated Press story about Canadian Jim Sincock, who had finally set a new distance world record for water skiing. “Sincock, a lanky 37-year-old Canadian truck driver, skied over 228 miles of water Sunday — bobbing over 10-foot waves for almost half the distance — and claimed a new world’s water skiing distance record. The 165-pound, six-footer from New Westminster, British Columbia, made the nonstop ride across the cold waters of the Strait of Georgia and Puget Sound in 12 hours, almost to the minute.” His previous attempt at the beginning of July ended 115 miles in, when both his tow boat and a spare got their propellers snagged in a kelp bed near Anacortes. In his second attempt, Sincock had departed from Port Moody, British Columbia, at 6:12 a.m., and arrived at a pier in Olympia at 6:10 p.m. “He was sunburned and exhausted and had to be carried from the pier. But he laughed and joked with the two dozen wellwishers who greeted him … ‘I wouldn’t do it again,’ he said.” While he hadn’t actually started water skiing until he was 27, Sincock stated he made the record-setting ride to help draw more attention to the sport. He had broken the previous unofficial world record for long distance water skiing, which was set by an unnamed water skier who travelled 207 miles on skis from Miami, Florida, to Nassau, The Bahamas.
• A “truly beautiful brick three-bedroom home of exceptional quality” with a two-car garage and sprinkler system on Rock Street in Centralia was listed for sale in The Chronicle’s classifieds for $24,500. A two-bedroom home “three blocks from city center” in Centralia was listed for rent for $65 a month.
Saturday, July 26, 1975
• Centralia’s Pizza Pub Tavern was the focus of a Friday night drug raid by law enforcement resulting in 12 arrests on federal drug charges and more charges pending against other suspects, The Chronicle reported. According to Lewis County Prosecuting Attorney Jeremy Randolph, “the raids were a culmination of, ‘Almost three months of dedicated undercover work by detectives of the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office,’ … He praised (Lewis County) Sheriff William Wiester, Chief Criminal Deputy Dale Bailey and Centralia Police Chief Kenneth Payne for the well-organized execution of the arrests.” Among those arrested included Pizza Pub Tavern co-owner Mike Byrnes, who was facing charges for allegedly selling heroin and amphetamines. The other 11 arrested, from Centralia, Oakville and Bucoda, were charged with either trafficking with the intent to deliver or possession for sale of marijuana, LSD, methamphetamine, dextroamphetamine and diethylpropion.
• Randle resident Melvin Libby crashed his car into the gate at Ike Kinswa State Park causing around $300 in damage, The Chronicle reported. “A state trooper said the car missed a curve in the road and ran into the gate.” Also in East Lewis County, Randle resident Donald Lamping’s pickup truck was damaged when it went off the White Pass Highway three miles west of Packwood and hit a tree at around 2:30 a.m. “Lamping, who apparently fell asleep at the wheel, sustained cuts and bruises and was treated by a doctor.”
• The Chronicle featured an Associated Press story about a reported Sasquatch sighting by four people including a pastor near The Dalles, Oregon. “The legendary Sasquatch is hanging out in the Tigh Valley area south of here, according to four persons who say they watched the ape-like creature for several minutes. Bob Bellemy, minister of the Bible Way Church here, and three other people, report seeing the creature about two weeks ago. Peter Byrn, director of the Bigfoot Information Center in The Dalles, went to the area with one of the party Friday and reported finding one footprint, 15 inches long, with toe marks. Bellemy told Bryne his group watched the Sasquatch from a distance of about 450 yards … With Bellemy and his wife were James Stevens and his wife, Jean, of Richland.”
• A remodelled four-bedroom home with a pond and large garage on five acres of land on Logan Hill was listed for sale in The Chronicle’s classifieds for $35,500. An unfurnished two-bedroom home in Chehalis was listed for rent for $125 a month.
