Days Gone By: July 20, 2017

The Meeker Herald — 100 years ago
– The Herald was served with a
“Black Hand” notice this week. Our
detective reports that the sable-hander
is a big man who wears glasses
and number 13 shoes and that he
lives out in the Sheridan Park region.
– Never judge a man by his sonin-
law. His daughter and his wife
usually wish that relation on him
without his consent.
– Fearless burns its bridges
behind; fear burns the bridges before.
– “How did your garden turn
out?” “It helped. The work I did in it
gave me a great appetite for the vegetables
I had to buy.”
– A big auto party from
Oklahoma and Texas spent a few
days in town this week, and departed
for Steamboat and the Rabbit Ear
Pass.
– Tom Kilduff has his hay up and
is now joyriding—most of the time.
The Meeker Herald — 50 years ago
– Construction of a $130 million
oil shale plant in the Grand Valley
area of Western Colorado is scheduled
to start by the end of this year.
– Meeker’s Rural Fire Dept. was
called to the Tel Hotel place on
Strawberry Creek, 12 miles from
Meeker Sunday night to extinguish a
fire first believed caused by faulty
wiring.
– To add to the peculiarity of the
weather many Meekerites looked out
on Flag Creek area Sunday and saw
another unusual phenomenon in local
weather. Coming down Flag Creek
was a tornado which is common
mostly to plains country. Some people
who have lived where these
“twisters” occur easily recognized
the characteristics of this funnel
shaped menace with the destructive
tail. In the case of the one on the
Mesa the tail never did drop to the
ground.
The Meeker Herald — 25 years ago
– Four years ago Don Davis
posted a 110-vote victory over John
Neiberger for the Republican nomination
for county commissioner from
District 2. He won every precinct
except for Piceance Creek which
voted 4-2 for Neiberger. This year
they are racing again for the nomination.
– “Plenty of hard work and lots
of water.” That’s the key to Earl
Ilgen’s success in transforming the
courthouse lawn into the prettiest
park in Northwest Colorado.
– The school board continues to
debate increasing the mill levy. They
have until Sept. 1, or 60 days before
the election, to decide whether to
place the property tax increase on the
ballot. This is the last year the school
board will have the right to set a mill
levy without a vote.
– There’s plenty of dirt flying
down at the intersection of Highway
13 and 64 where Larry Steiner and
his family have begun work on a new
convenience store. The Stagestop
will again rest at the site where
Steiner’s restaurant, the Stagecoach,
serviced cross-traffic from
September 1989 until it burned down
February 1990.
Rangely Times — 50 years ago
– Newly constructed this season,
the diving towers at the Rangely
Swimming Pool are popular with
youngsters.
– The town council agreed on
final plans for the street resurfacing
program to start in August at the regular
meeting Monday.
– One person in every five in the
U.S. now has two television sets, in
case you’re interested. One household
of every 10 has a color set,
almost doubling in number within
one year from 1965 to 1966.
– The State of Colorado will
spend $10,000 on developing outdoor
recreation facilities at Rio
Blanco State Recreation Area in
1967-1968. The work program will
include shade shelters, water line
extended, parking for picnic area and
landscaping.
Rangely Times — 25 years ago
– It was a long meeting and there
were many requests for money or
action or inaction. Bud Garner was
present representing a group called
Rangely Citizens for Healthy Group
which started as an investigation for
the proper method for circulation
petitions by the Council. In the
process he ran into some state laws as
to what a petition should look like. It
was his contention that Resolution
89-7 that formed the Rangely
Development Authority was, by the
requirements of state law, not valid.
– There are two recurrent myths
about Rangely. The first is that, as an
oil field town, dirty streets and an
unkempt appearance are somehow
natural and a sign of prosperity. Dirt
on town streets is not a result of oil
field activity. Dirt on town streets is
mainly a result of unpaved business
parking lots, and parking on unimproved,
muddy lots. The second myth
is that the town has no future and
won’t be here in another generation.
The same things were being said ever
since the town was founded in 1947,
some 45 years ago. This myth is more
often than not an excuse for inaction.
~Mayor Don Peach
– Julie Tobiasson received an
interview winner trophy in the Miss
T.E.E.N. Pageant.
– Postmaster Nancy Metnik
recently presented two of Rangely’s
Post Office employees special
awards for their service. A perfect
attendance award was presented to
Cheryl Rasmussen. A postal volunteer
of the year award was presented
to Vicki McPhail.