In this installment of A Look Back in Time, the Saturday, Oct. 9, 1926, edition of The Chronicle featured a story about ongoing mercury mining operations in the Morton area.
John Albert Proll, who was serving a life sentence after pleading guilty to shooting a man in a robbery-gone-wrong three years prior, was trying to claim the shooting was an act of self defense, according to the Saturday, Oct. 9, 1976, edition of The Chronicle.
And in the Thursday, Oct. 10, 1996, edition of The Chronicle, it was reported that the Centralia City Council was trying to bill the president’s administration for costs associated from a campaign visit by U.S. President Bill Clinton the previous month.
Some Sunday and holiday editions were not in the archives, so stories from the previous days’ editions have been featured instead. When The Chronicle was still a daily newspaper, Sunday editions were often reprints of Saturday editions, unless major breaking news needed to be reported.
A Look Back in Time is compiled using microfilm archives at The Chronicle, physical copies stored at the Lewis County Historical Museum — located at 599 NW Front St. in Chehalis — and digital archives on newspapers.com.
Saturday, Oct. 9, 1926
• Several mining companies were further developing mercury mines around Morton, The Chronicle reported. “The Barnum & McDonnell Mercury Company is continuing its development on the third level. Chute raises have been driven connecting first and second levels. Production of quicksilver for the month of August in this mine is said to have exceeded 60 flasks of 75 pounds each, or a total of two-and-a-quarter tons of quicksilver. The Morton Mining Company is continuing its crosscut, which is now in a distance of more than 160 feet. It is well timbered and a 12-pound rail mine track is laid. A car, blacksmith forge, anvil and tools have been added to the equipment … The Fisher Company is making progress. Its 30-ton Gould furnace is nearly ready for operation.”
• Though not in Saturday’s edition, the Tuesday, Oct. 12, 1926, edition of The Chronicle provided an update on the allegations against Lewis County Sheriff Frank Roberts and other local law enforcement officers, who entered a demurrer to their indictment the previous week, after being accused of running an illegal liquor ring during Prohibition. “Arguments on a demurrer filed by attorneys for Sheriff Frank Roberts of Lewis County, and others indicted with him, charging conspiracy to violate the National Prohibition Act, will be heard in the federal court on Oct. 25. The arguments on the demurrer were to have been heard before Judge E.E. Cushman Monday, but on the motion of the defense attorneys, the arguments were put over. The indictment fails to state facts sufficient to constitute an offense and is ‘so vague, indefinite and uncertain,’ that it does not sufficiently inform the defendants of the charge upon which they are to be tried, the demurrer charges. Roberts, with Lou Hawkins and Robert Fallon of Chehalis, W.B. Costeon of Morton and D.H. Renaud and Frank Cook of Kelso are charged jointly in the indictment with conspiracy.” Details of the charges against the men can be seen in the previous week’s Look Back in Time online at https://tinyurl.com/yesjy8x2.
• A six-room home with a garage on a property “worth $3,000” in Centralia was listed for “quick sale” in The Chronicle’s classifieds for $2,350. A six-room home with “some furniture” in Centralia was listed for rent for $10 a month.
Saturday, Oct. 10, 1936
• Still in the midst of the Great Depression, The Chronicle featured an Associated Press story about Kansas Gov. Alf Landon, the Republican presidential candidate that year challenging incumbent President Franklin D. Roosevelt, after Landon accused Roosevelt of trying to “coerce” voters with fear-mongering that they would lose their New Deal benefits if Landon won, while both candidates were campaigning in the Midwest. “Gov. Landon accused the New Deal of trying to coerce relief recipients, and President Roosevelt cited figures to show the administration trade policies benefited the nation. In a speech prepared for delivery at Cincinnati, Landon said administration men were ‘endeavoring to coerce thousands of voters by threatening those on relief with destitution unless they vote right.’ He declared in another speech at Chicago last night that if elected he would balance the budget, not by depriving the needy of relief or ‘refusing necessary aid to our farmers,’ but by eliminating ‘waste.’” Before heading for Omaha, where he speaks tonight, President Roosevelt said at St. Paul that figures in ‘growing consumption and better farm prices’ proved that the reciprocal farm program was benefitting American industry and agriculture.” Roosevelt would go on to win another term in a landslide election, winning 523 electoral votes to Landon’s 8, along with almost 61% of the popular vote.
• A Chevrolet pickup truck was listed for sale in The Chronicle’s classifieds for $30 at the South Side Garage at 1105 S. Gold St. in Centralia. A “service station fully equipped, $10,000 investment, reasonable lease to live,” was also listed for rent.
Thursday, Oct. 10, 1946
• Chehalis School District Superintendent J. Wesley Crum stated his district had less crowded classrooms compared to similarly sized districts elsewhere in the state, The Chronicle reported. “The final count on enrollment in Chehalis schools (is) at 1,277. ‘We have 30 to a room in Westside, which is ideal,’ the school superintendent said and noted that changes have been made to equalize the distribution of students. Eighteen students from the Westside school were transferred to other schools in alleviating crowded classrooms. Averages of students was reported as follows: Forest, 18; Westside, 30; Cascade, 30 or less in primary grades and 35 in intermediate grades. The junior high school was reported to have 302 students while the senior high school has 303 registered.”
• An eight-room home with a basement, barn, garage and wood shed with a “good orchard” on “40 acres near Vader” was listed for sale in The Chronicle’s classifieds for $10,600. A furnished three-room home in Ocean Beach was listed for $1,200.
Wednesday, Oct. 10, 1956
• Chehalis Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post Commander Ed Stemkoski donated a $167 check to the Chehalis Swimming Pool Boosters, The Chronicle reported. “Chehalis Swimming Pool Boosters got a big lift Tuesday when a fund collected over four years and totalling $167 was presented by the Chehalis post of Veterans of Foreign Wars. Money is to aid pool group in boosting interest and support in the project, due on Nov. 6 election ballots. Above, Ed Stemkoski, VFW commander, gives check to Woody Holland, pool committee treasurer. At right, General Chairman George Bickel looks on.”
• Construction of a new bridge project over the Newaukum River was nearly complete, The Chronicle reported. “This new all-concrete bridge spanning the south fork of the Newaukum River on Newaukum Prairie Road near Forest will be open to traffic before the end of the month if the good weather continues, County Engineer Charlies Neville said Wednesday. Actual bridge construction is finished, but approaches and a modern 26-foot, 1.7 miles highway east to connect with a regular road near Alpha remain to be built. Construction of the $40,000 bridge was started last June with federal aid money. Another $74,000 is being spent on the roadway.”
• A three-room home on 10 acres of land “with spring water in house” near Tenino was listed for sale in The Chronicle’s classifieds for $2,000. A “choice of upper or lower” section of a furnished two-bedroom duplex was listed for rent for $45 a month.
Monday, Oct. 10, 1966
• Over 500 local 4-H members gathered for the presentation of state-level 4-H awards in Chehalis, The Chronicle reported. “Mary Trodahl, member of the Gingham Gals 4-H Club and winner of the State Soil and Water Conservation speaking contest was mistress of ceremonies … Two sisters in their first year of 4-H work won stallion service awards for their horse projects. They are Kay, 16, and Kelly McLaughlin, 15, daughters of Mrs. C.P. Williams, Chehalis. The girls are members of Los Alegritos (The Happy Ones) 4-H Club. The Lewis County Extension Service and Chehalis Chamber of Commerce sponsored the event held at the R.E. Bennett School.”
• A three-bedroom home on a 2.5 acre plot “only three miles from downtown Centralia, six blocks from new high school site” was listed for sale in The Chronicle’s classifieds for $13,750. A two-bedroom home “with acreage near Yard Birds” was listed for rent for $60 a month.
Saturday, Oct. 9, 1976
• John Albert Proll — 26 at the time and serving a life sentence at the state penitentiary in Walla Walla after pleading guilty to shooting Centralia car salesman John L. Cooley Jr. in a 1973 robbery-gone-wrong — was now trying to claim he killed Cooley in self defense, The Chronicle reported. Chronicle Special Assignment Editor Eric Hoxit travelled to the prison to interview Proll while he was locked up. “During the 90-minute, tape-recorded interview, punctured several times by Proll’s nervous laughter, the sandy-haired convict attempted to justify the slaying as self-defense. ‘I was going to rob him for the check of $300. So I clunked him on the head and he hit the ground. So I stepped back toward the door of the room, and looked outside to see if anybody heard it,’ Proll said. ‘Then when I turned back around, he was getting up, going for his gun, and saying, ‘Oh no, you don’t,’ so I shot him. Proll told this reporter he saw the butt of Cooley’s gun underneath the victim’s shirt … The incident took place in room 228 of the Hallmark Inn on July 30, 1973. Cooley, a salesman for Al’s City Motors, was delivering a new Datsun 240Z to Proll, who never intended to purchase the car but to rob Cooley of a $300 check. The check was the difference between the price of the car and the amount of bank draft Proll told Cooley he had. Asked to reflect on the shooting three years later, Proll said: ‘If I had to do it over again, I’d probably just shut the door and run like hell. But I was totally unaware that he was armed himself. If I would have frozen, he could have just pulled out the gun and shot me away at the same time.’”
• A four-bedroom “farm home” with a swimming pool, barn and other outbuildings on 52 acres of land near Toledo was listed for sale in The Chronicle’s classifieds for $90,000. A four-bedroom home in Grand Mount was listed for rent for $250 a month with a $150 deposit.
Friday, Oct. 10, 1986
• After 27 applicants put their names in the hat for the job, Elaine Ollom was named the new Vader city clerk, The Chronicle reported. “Elaine Ollom of Enchanted Valley was picked from 27 applicants to be the new Vader city clerk. Ollom replaces former City Clerk Pat Mangiantini, who resigned last month to work for the state Department of Labor & Industries in Olympia. The new city clerk began her duties Oct. 2. She said the Vader police and public utility departments have been a big help with her new position. Ollom previously worked as a secretary and bookkeeper for Spiffy’s Bakery in Napavine and for a certified public accountant. Ollom has two children and has lived in Enchanted Valley for the past five years. In addition to her clerk duties, she has a morning mail route between Vader and Ryderwood. At Wednesday night’s regular council meeting, Ron Yates was picked to fill city council position No. 1 vacated by Charles Beardsley at the council meeting Sept. 10. Beardsley is now working in Alaska. Yates is the husband of Council Member Linda Yates.”
• A four-bedroom home with a barn, well and septic system on “over 12 acres” in the Napavine School District was listed for sale in The Chronicle’s classifieds for $85,000. A two-bedroom home in Chehalis was listed for rent for $285 a month with a $100 deposit.
Thursday, Oct. 10, 1996
• The Centralia City Council voted to bill U.S. President Bill Clinton’s administration for costs stemming from Clinton’s visit to the Hub City the previous month, The Chronicle reported. “Local officials gushed with pride and citizens cheered President Clinton’s visit to downtown Centralia three weeks ago. Now, the city council plans to bill Clinton for the costs of hosting him and his entourage. ‘This was a marketing program for them and definitely political activity,’ said Mayor Pete Corwin during the council’s regular meeting Tuesday. ‘We didn’t require funds in advance and perhaps we should have.’ On a split vote, the Centralia City Council agreed to bill ‘the appropriate party’ for the city’s costs. The bill totalled $26,829.42. Three councilors voted with Mayor Corwin in forwarding the bill. They were Bill Moeller, Carol Lee Neely and Vondean Thompson. Councilor Joyce Barnes voted against the action, and Mayor Pro Tem Jessie Brunswig abstained. Councilor Dale Anderson was absent.” The issue was raised after rumors surfaced that the City of Seattle received “about $800,000 in federal assistance for security costs and other preparations” ahead of Clinton’s visit there, a claim Seattle officials denied.
• A three-bedroom home with a barn and pasture on one acre of fenced land in Grand Mound was listed for sale in The Chronicle’s classifieds for $109,500. A three-bedroom home at 863 Bishop Road in Chehalis was listed for rent for $650 a month with a $300 deposit.
