Aug. 17, 1972
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will clear logs and debris that has jammed Wiley Creek for several years.
Wiley Creek has been partially clogged with debris washed down from higher reaches during high waters since the flood of December 1964, which completely filled the creek channel and piled logs and bits of woods debris onto the banks.
A channel was eventually cleared for the stream, which has gradually narrowed with each succeeding high water season bringing down more logs.
After neighborhood residents complained the accumulation was providing a breeding place for rats and the log jam is hampering the fish run up the creek, the area Chamber of Commerce wrote a letter to the Fish Commission asking for help.
The Corps said they could help because they have 200 working hours of time left from a contract for debris-clearing from Green Peter reservoir.
Two architectural firms will meet with the Sweet Home School District to discuss additions and alterations needed to bring the high school up to state standards.
A third firm was not invited back after it estimated the cost at more than $2.6 million.
Several bond issues that would have remedied the current state of affairs were defeated between 1968 and 1971. An opinion survey of school district patrons is planned.
Rev. Ray L. Nichols will be installed as the new pastor of Fir Lawn Lutheran Church following the resignation of Rev. Rodney Ellertson, who is returning to his former assignment in the missionary field in Africa.
Nichols and his wife, Marylee, graduated from Lebanon High School and married in 1939. He was ordained into the ministry in 1964 after graduating from Augsburg College and Luther Seminary.
He served in Wisconsin and Idaho before returning to Sweet Home.
Three new coaches will be on staff when Sweet Home High School football practice gets under way.
Ed Nieman, Darryl Smith and Charley Dominiak all graduated from college this year.
Nieman has a degree in English and literature, Smith has a degree in social science, and Dominiak has a degree in physical education and special education.
Washingtonians claimed nine of the 12 first-place trophies at the Sportsman’s Holiday Limited Inboard Racing (hydroplane) Regatta at Foster Lake.
Two trophies went to Portland drivers and one to a British Columbian.
Fifty-seven boats competed, and the races attracted thousands of people who lined the banks of Foster Lake, the largest crowd for any Holiday event.
The boat Sunkist SK78, driven by Brian Stowe of Washington, flipped and sank early in the race. Stowe was not injured. The boat threw a rod and it seized the engine, eventually causing the boat to flip.
The impact when it struck the water caused the bow to almost completely come off.
Aug. 13, 1997
Frank and Leona VanEpps were the honored guests at the eighth annual Crawfordsville Covered Bridge Day hosted by the Crawfordsville Community Association.
Last year’s event had to be held at the elementary school due to bridge damage caused by spring flooding, but the damage has since been repaired and the weather made for a pleasant event.
Curtis Irish of Marcola shared his extensive collection of old photos, and Kari Bennett barbecued corn on the cob, a treat appreciated by State Rep. Liz VanLeeuwen, who tries to attend every year.
The community and rescue personnel spent three days scouring Green Peter Reservoir for 80-year-old Harvey Reeser, who is believed to have drowned during a fishing trip.
The former logger and White’s Electronics employee went fishing alone in his small aluminum boat but never came home.
He suffered a stroke several years ago and a re-occurrence of ill health more than a year ago, but since then had hunted an elk and made weekly fishing trips.
A church, Boy Scout troop and residents participated in the search along with marine patrol boats, Civil Air Patrol planes and dive teams.
Only a canteen, oar and other personal items were found on the shore.
Eleven Sweet Home businesses were burglarized in one evening, with the thieves making off with about $1,000 in cash.
Authorities believe the thieves are not local because evidence is similar to other burglaries in 25-plus cities across the state in the past four years.
Roy Neighbors returned to work as Sweet Home’s parks crew chief after a one-year hiatus when his position was cut due to financial constraints.
During that time, part-time caretakers maintained only two parks, Sankey and Northside. With his position back on payroll, the Sweet Home Municipal Court can again start assigning community service.
A retired sergeant from California’s Folsom Prison and a journeyman carpenter, Neighbors spent the past year in Sisters and traveling through the southern United States in a motor home.
Remodeling is under way at Skyline Inn. Rumors circulated the restaurant was sold, but truth is the long-time owners are installing a new lighted sign, electrical work, expansion, and a new awning to go with the remodel of the building’s face.