VOL 11 NO 15
KODIAK, ALASKA
JUNE 16, 1951
PRICE 10 CENTS
Karluk District Closed;
Other Areas Also Poor
The entire Karluk district
will close to all commercial
fishing at 6 pm today and will
remain closed until further
notice Roy Lindsley, P ish and
Wildlife Service agent, an
nounced yesterday.
Trap operators will use seals
designated for the period of
June 16 and 17 until fishing is
resumed, Lindsley said.
The count at the Karluk
weir is far behind that of last
year. Fishing in the Red River
District and others around the
island is said to be poor.
Reports arriving here from
Chignik indicate that the run
of salmon there is slow and
fishing boats are catching few
fish. A book wire to the Re
gional director of the FWS, to
the representative at Chignik
and all canneries on Kodiak
Island was sent by Lindsley
this week advising them of
the closure.
July 4th Plans
Made This Week
Kodiak’s annual Fourth of
July Celebration will be held
this year with the usual games,
races, marathon and awarding
of prizes to the children.
Plans for the gigantic cele
bration moved into gear this
week with arrangements be
ing completed by Chairman
Ray Martin. Martin sent post
ers and notices to all the can
neries around the island invit
ing them to attend the event.
The annual Navy Base to
town marathon will be held
with cash prizes going to the
winner and the runner placing
second. The usual junior mar
athon for youths under 16 will
also be run.
Efforts to arrange for motor
boat races in the channel near
the Donnelley and Acheson
dock are being made and
all contestants are request
ed to enter their names now
with Martin. Last year A. J.
Collins won the big race with
his speedy Burchcraft.
Children s races, games and
contests will be held on Mar
ine Drive between Kraft’s
store and the Kodiak Bottling
plant.
“Canes, hats, whips, noise
makers, balloons and every,
thing else needed to make a
good celebration will be on
hand,” Martin said yesterday.
The regular “surprise
event” will again take place
at midnight this year. Inter
ested persons are urged to be
in the school grounds at the
continued on page 4
Sonntag Heads
VFW Post
A completely new staff of
officers and trustees was
elected Tuesday night by the
membership of VFW Katmai
Post 7056.
George J. Sonntag was
elected commander. He was
named chairman of the in
vestigating board in May
when the post was closed for
an audit by order of Jack
Davis, department commander
of the VFW for the entire
territory.
The special election followed
several weeks of closure for
the club and was marked by
statements from two factions
within the club who disagreed
over the reason for the closing
order.
l he newly elected omcers
will be installed at an open
meeting Tuesday night.
Leroy Wensel was elected
senior vice commander; Alvin
T. Pickett, junior vice com
mander; Curtiss Kimes,
Quartermaster; John Mc
Laughlin, Post Advocate; El
vin Foster, Chaplain; Thomas
Rockney, Sergeant.
Trustees are as follows; A1
Woods, 3 years; Edward Best,
2 years; R. D. Russell, 1 year.
El wood Watson was elected
service officer and Theo Robe
son, officer of the day.
Four members are reported
to have walked out of the
meeting when their candidate
for commander was not
elected.
City officials and business
men may be invited to the in
stallation of officers at the
Tuesday meeting.
Wednesday Meeting
For Guild
The Catholic Ladies Guild
will hold a meeting Wednes
day evening at the home of
Mrs. Walter Kraft on Walker
Avenue. All interested per
sons are urged to attend.
The meeting will be called
to order at 8 pm. Refresh
ments will be served.
Plane Has Mishap
A Gruman widgeon piloted j
by Russ Swartz of Kodiak Air
ways, Inc., was beached on
Near Island Wednesday even
ing when a power failure oc
cured prior to take-off.
There was slight damage to
the plane and no passengers
were injured.
Russian Church
Head Here
Metropolitan (Bishop) Leon
ty of New York City, head of
the Russian Orthodox Church
in the United States and Can
ada, is paying a visit to
Kodiak this week to meet with
Russian priests in this area.
Bishop Leonty, -who was
elected to his post last Dec
ember, arrived here from
Juneau Wednesday evening,
and was due to leave for Sitka
Monday night.
He met here with the Rev.
Alexander Popoff, the Rev.
Paul Shadura, priest at Kenai,
and Father Gerasim Schmaltz,
of Monks Lagoon at Ouzinkie.
Thursday morning, Bishop
Leonty, Father Popoff and
Father Shadura went to Ou
zinkie aboard the Shuyak to
meet Father Gerasim, and to
visit the grave of Father Her
man, early Russian priest
here.
Thursday evening, a special
service was held at the Rus
sian Church by the Bishop and
the three priests.
I
Johnsons Begin
Long Voyage
The 38-foot ketch, Wind
bird, skippered by Dr. A.
Holmes Johnson, and manned
by Mrs. Johnson and their
son, Bob, left Seattle Tuesday
for the 1500 mile voyage to
Kodiak.
Dr. Johnson plans to sail
the wind driven vessel
directly across the North
Pacific to Kodiak. Unless he
encounters unfavorable winds
he will not lay his course
along the inside passage.
He expects to arrive in Ko
diak sometime around the
first of July.
The Windbird is equipped
with a jib, foresail, mainsail
and mizzen, Dr. Johnson said.
He has a 22 hp Grey engine
aboard for emergencies and
the ketch is provisioned for a
six weeks trip.
Dr. and Mrs. Johnson left
Kodiak early this month by
plane to join their son in Se
attle and make preparations
for the trip.
The ketch is equipped with
a ship to shore radio and has
a 12 volt light system.
In Seattle for a several
weeks’ stay are Mrs. Joe
Heitman, Mrs. John Hubley,
Mrs. Vivan Kilgore and Mrs.
Dunia Hartman.
Mrs. Hartman will meet
her son Bill there on his re
turn from Korea, where he
has been stationed in the
army.
Naval Station Ordered
To Join Fight On Rats
Bulletin
A Kodiak based U. S. Navy
P2V Neptune bomber crashed
on landing yesterday at 5:11
pm killing the pilot and ser
iously injuring three other
crew members.
The bomber was returing
from a routine patrol and car
ried a crew of nine besides the
pilot. The plane caught lire
following the crash and burned.
The names of the dead pilot
and injured crew members is
being withheld pending notifi
cation of next of kin.
C of C Re-elects
Coon Prexy
Merrill Coon, local Standard
Oil Company agent, was re
elected President of the
Chamber of Commerce Thurs
day by a large majority. The
group cast 90% of its votes
for him. There were 30 per
sons present for the annual
election.
Tenora Rockney, owner of
the Mission Road Shopper, was
elected vice president and V*
G. Ellis was re-elected secre
tary. John Gibbons and
Clarence Dizney were chosen
as board members for the
coming year.
President Coon called a
meeting of the new officers
and board members for Wed
nesday evening at 8 pm.
J. G. Martz and Larry Wod
linger prepared the ballots
and acted as nominating com
mittee for the election.
During the business session
following the regular lunch
eon, which is held at the
Montmartre Inn, the group
heard a letter from the Seattle
Chamber of Commerce re
questing the Kodiak C of C
to support its protest to the
findings of a congressional
committee.
The Seattle C of C alleges
that a report which charges
merchants and distributors in
Seattle with boosting the
price on items shipped to A
laska is incorrect. The matter
was referred to the executive
committee of the local group
for study.
President Coon said the re
port on the damage done to
small fishing boats and other
craft here because of the
lack of a small boat harbor
was completed and sent to the
Office of the U. 3. Corps of
Engineers.
Concern over the local rat
situation was expressed this
week by Lieut. General Wil
liam E. Kepner, commanding
general of the Alaska Com
mand in an official communi
que to Rear Admiral C. A. F.
Sprague, commander of the
Alaska Sea Frontier.
Gen. Kepner forwarded a
copy of the report on the local
rat situation, compiled by
James A. Westbrook of the
Territorial Department of
Health, to Adm. Sprague and
ordered that the Navy cooper
ate with local officials in solving
the problem.
Westbrook conducted a three
day survey in Kodiak early in
May after residents had ex
pressed coneern over the num
ber of cases of Weil’s disease
occuring here.
Gen. Kepner received a
copy of Westbrook’s report
from the Territorial Depart
ment of Health.
Following receipt of the re
port here the city council im
mediately ordered a supply of
Warfarin, a commercially
made rat poison. A represent
ative from the Fish and Wild
life Service will come to Kodi
ak to supervise the “baiting”
program whenever the poison
arrives.
Meanwhile, city officials are
urging residents and business
men to clean up piles of old
lumber and debris and to ob
tain lids for garbage cans.
Dne councilman announced
that the extermination cam
paign on the rats would begin
is soon as the poison arrives.
Two more cases of Weil’s
disease were reported this
week.
The causative agent for
Weil’s disease is contained in
the blood and urine of patients
md the feces and urine of
rats, Westbrook states in his
report.
Responsibility for the rat in
festation of the city is the
prevalence of wood structures,
improper storage of garbage,
unused lumber and debris and
rareless dumping of garbage.
Parents of children between
the ages of 8 and 12 years
have been requested to attend
a meeting Thursday at the
Legion Hall (community
center) for the purpose of
getting the Cub Scout pro
gram organized.
Den Mothers are needed to
help supervise the program.
For further information see
Chief Foster at Navy 396 or
Sgt. Boivin at the ACS.