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"News of ^America’s Last Frontier”
~ KODIAK, ALASKA JULY 28, 1945
PRICE 10 CENTS
Kodiak-Bound Plane Missing; 2 Aboard
Property
Re-sold
Purchase of the Ship’s Tavern
wilding, including furniture ana
ixtures and 3 apartments, was
nade this week by James Pierce,
>wner of the Ship’s Tavern bar,
rom Frank Irick.
Mt. Irick, one of the owners of
the Club Unique, recently pur
shased the property from W. A.
Schultz, who built the building in
1340.
Sale price of the property was
[15,000.
A leave of absence of 6 months
or John Gibbons, city superin
endent or public utilities, was
{ranted by the city council this
reek, to allow him to take a job
it Fairbanks for the Alaskan
Department.
Mr. Gibbons left Thursday for
?airbanks.
Council Approves
rax Roll; Bills Out
Total assessed valuation of
he city of Kodiak is $2,364,711
50, Lee Bettinger, chairman of
he tax committee, reported at
he council meeting Thursday,
ind the assessment roll was ap
iroved by the council.
The total tax levy is $47,294
23, which on the basis of last
rear's collection of taxes should
let a revenue to the city of ap
iroximately $42,000.
The assessment is divided as
>llows: land,$333,357; improve
rentja, $1,105,904; personal,
175,450.50.
Mr. Bettinger reported some
omplaints had been made al
sady on this year’s assessments,
nt he pointed out that the city
oust keep on a pay-as-you-go
»sis and the levy is based on re
luirernent for expenses, and
dded that all benefits from these
ixes remain in the community,
dhe board of equalization will
ieet star ing Monday at the city
ad, until August 4, from 7:30
0 9 each evening.
The city cannot use water sys
*m revenue for additions to the
j*stem ^cording to a letter from
^Durkee, regional director
e federal Works Agency,
"“ch Councilman James Martz
J^acnted at the council meeting
Thursday.
The letter also asked for the
J y s wishes on a flat rental ba
, and asked if the city would
interested in purchase of the
ilar)611013 a ^e^erred payment
The committee is to make its
^commendations at the next
Kodiak Visitor
Allen Jenkins, well-known
movie comedian, strikes a pose
“especially for the Mirror” on
the bar of the Beachcombers
which he visited during his visit
to Kodiak recently with a USO
troupe. (Turn to page 4 for an
other picture.)
The regular meeting of the
Chamber of Commeroe will be
held next Thursday, August 2,
at noon at the Victory cafe.
A speaker is being secured foi
the luncheon.
Mrs. Shirly Ross, who is now
in Texas, has resigned from her
position as clerk of the local
draft board, and Mrs. Mary
Root, former assistant clerk, has
been appointed to her position,
it was announced this week.
Standard Oil
Lowers Fuel Rates
Price reductions at most points
in Alaska on gasoline, kerosene
and heating oils, effective July
19. have been announced by the
Standard Oil company of Calif
ornia.
Reductions from one-half to 1
and one-half cents per gallon on
gasoline and kerosene were made
for southwestern Alaska (one-half
cent for Kodiak) and from one
fourth to one and one-half cents
per gallon on heating oils at all
points (one-fourth cent for Kod
iak).
These are the third voluntary
reductions made since Septem
te/, 1942, the company said,
when prices were raised to meet
increased war shipping costs.
The company explained the
decreases are made possible part
ly by cuts in War Shipping Ad
ministration tanker surcharge
rates and partly to operating
economies.
A private commercial land*
plane, with two passengers, mis
sing since Monday on a flight
from Chirikof island to Kodiak,
was still unreported late yester
day, according • o reports from
local naval officials.
Aboard the plane were Louis
“Bud” Thompson, mining man,
and Jack Gottcher, a sawmill
man from Seward. The latter is
said to have chartered the plane
and was making the trip to re
mote Chirikof to inspect the cat
tle there with a view to purchas
mg them. The cattle are owned
by Jack McCord, who is at pres
ent in the Fairbanks area,
The plane did not stop on its
way from Homer to Chirikof af
ter leaving Anchorage but was
scheduled to stop here on the re
turn flight. It, has been determin
ed that the plane IeTt the island
Monday, a day of heavy fog here
that almost prevented landing of
an Alaska Airlines plane, and fog
and heavy storms have been re
ported iD the area since. A break
in the weather yesterday is ex
pected to aid in searching opera
tions, which are continuing. Mil
itary planes are being used in the
search and the coast guard has
dispatched a boat to aid in the
hunt for the missing plane.
CAA at Anchorage said the
flight was unauthorized.
Chirikof island is locafed about
300 miles sou'hwest of Kodiak.
Major J. H. Wakefield, son ol I
Lee Wakefie’d, arrived in Kodiak '
via Alaska Airlines Monday and
left the same day for the cannery
at Port Wakefield where he will
spend a 7-day furlough visiting
members of his family, including
a sister from Honolulu whom he
has not seen for 14 years.
Major Wakefield said he will
return to Ga'ena at the end of
his furlough.
Local Fish Pack
Figures Given
The red salmon pack in the
Kodiak area is more than 20,000
cases more than last year and
the pack of pink salmon to July
21 was 68,777 cases, figures furn
ished by Marcus Meyers, of the
fisheries Division, U .S. Kish and
Wildlife Service, show.
The following table gives total
pack (by cases) for the Kodiak
area to July 21, and furnishes
compaiative figures for 1942-44
inclusive:
Judge Holds
Holland Will Valid
Judgment of Probate Judge C.
C. Naughton in refusing to ad
mit a will of James Holland, who
committed suicide March 1,
1943, to probate, has been re
versed by District Judge Anth
ony Dimond in a decision re
ceived here this wee's.
Just before his death Mr Hol
land scrawled a series of state
ments in a salesbook which in
dicated his property, consisting
of a house and lot and some
tools, was to go to John Spring
hill, local taxi driver and proper
ty owner.
Judge Dimond ruled the will
is admissible and that there was
no evidence the deceased was
not competent to make it at the
time.
Mr. Springhill was represent
ed in the appeal by Attorney
Talmage L. Smith, and the firm
of Taylor & Seltzer represented
Jack Allman, who as adminis
trator was appellee iD the case.
Judge Dimond also directed
that Mr. Springhill be named as
administrator of the Holland
estate.
Tomorrow morning at 11:15
o’clock Rev. G en Chandler will
be the guest preacher at the
Community Baptist church. He
and Mrs. Chandler, accompanied
by their son Lee, a'rived in Ko
diak in late June to join the staff
of the Baptist children’s homes.
They are former residents of
Washington state, and he is a
graduate of Crozier Theological
Seminary at Philadelphia.
At the evening Gospel Hour
at 7:30 o’clock Miss Olga Erick
son, missionary at Afognak for
the Russian Gospel Association,
will be guest speaker
Man Found
Unconscious
Merril Helwig was found Sun
day afternoon in an unconscious
condition near the street running
south from the Belmont Bar, it
was reported by deputy U. S.
Marshal Paul Herring, who took
him to the hospital. A check
showed no serious injuries and
he was released shortly after
wards.
Marshal Herring said Helwig,
while intoxicated, had been in a
fight with a serviceman.
YEAR
1945
1944
1943
1942
REDS
117,151
91,310
83,501
48,109
KINGS
397
151
213
330
PINKS
68,777
87,425
4>2,701
35 796
CHUMS COHOES
19,918 378
20,125 173
20,956 1,129
37,833 683
TOTAL
206,621
199,184
168,500
122 711
New P.O.
Plan Loses
Efforts to get a new post of
fice for Kodiak, which culminat
ed in an offer by Ben Kraft, loc
al merchant, to lease a down
town building for postal use,
have brought a rejection from
the Post Office department at
Washington, D. C.
Mr. Kraft’s offer included'
p'anned construction of a new
building for the post office nest
to the Bank of Kodiak. Terms of
the lease had been arranged with
a postal inspector sent here.
The rejection of the proposal
came from the 4th Assistant
Postmaster General, who said:
“Your offer has been given
careful consideration but is here
by rejected as it has been decid
ed to cominue the office on a
rental basis.”
Whether the terms of the lease
were unsatisfactory or wheiber
any other reason was involved
in non-acceptance of th* offer
was not revealed in the letter.
Mr. and Mib. Ray Johnson,
recently of Circle, Alaska, visit
ed Kodiak briefly between planes
Monday. They were on their way
from Anchorage to Naknek, but
fog prevented the Naknek stop
so the Johnson’s had to go back
to Anchorage. They are with the
Bureau of Native Affairs and will
be at Kanakanak this year.
Accompanied as they were
by their young son, their Scotty
dog and 2 love birds, they were
not relishing the extra travel.
$610 Raised
To Aid WVCQ
To raise additional funds for
Upe Army-Navy radio station,
WVCQ, under the plan whereby
the Rotary Club sponsors pay
ment of a $100 monthly record
transcription service, anotBcr
drive was conducted this week
by Ray Martin, club member.
| Local business men contribut
ed in various amounts to provide
$610, which was $20 over the
goal, and which will provide the
service until the end of the year.
This service is in addition to
the Armed Forces Service mater
ial provided for the station’s use,
and is provided to enable the
station to operate on a full-time
day and evening basis.
The popularity of the station
in Kodiak is attested by t he re
sponse to the appeals for funds.
In the first campaign to raise
$1200, in less than 2-weeks time
over $1600 was subscribed.