Yesteryear

100 YEARS AGO

For the week ending

Dec. 28, 1924

Fire Warning Issued Here

”Candles look beautiful on the Christmas tree, but their use might result in a serious fire,” was the warning issued by members of the Bend fire department today as local residents prepared for their Christmas celebrations.

If the candles are properly fastened and care is taken that they touch no inflammable matter, they night be all right, the firemen stated. But on the whole, electric lights are much safer and just as pretty, and they can be used more than once, the fire fighters pointed out.

”Putting cotton on the Christmas tree to represent snow and then decorating the tree with lighted candles is just like lighting a match to look into the gasoline tank,” one of the firemen remarked.

Candy Distributed To Many Children

Approximately 1,200 boxes of candy were distributed free to the children of Bend today by J.A. Eastes and the Bend Kiwanis club, carrying out a custom first started in 1921, when 400 boxes of candy were given away. In 1922 this number was increased to 550 boxes. In 1923 to 700 boxes and this year to the mark which went above 1,000.

Children were in line this morning for a considerable time before the candy was distributed, the line forming on Oregon avenue in front of Eastes’ office. The boxes were labeled on one side with “A Merry Christmas- Bend Kiwanis Club” and on the opposite, “Holiday Greetings — J.A. Eastes.

Following a method of preventing “repeats” first used last year, the children were stamped on their hands.

Pictures Of Flume Shown In Magazine

Interesting views of the flumes of the Deschutes County Municipal Improvement district on its new canal from the Deschutes river at Bend, appear in the latest issue of the Highway magazine. The flume just below Bend is “one of the largest of its kind in the United States,” the captions state. The magazine is issued by the manufacturers of the type of galvanized iron flume material used in this construction.

Bend Office Using Sleds

Two sleds were being used today by the Bend postoffice in delivering the large number of Christmas packages that came in on this morning’s train.

Deliveries will be continued Wednesday and Christmas morning up to 11 o’clock. No deliveries of any kind will be made by the postmen after 11 o’clock.

Employes of the local postoffice worked through most of the night last night preparing the mass of late mail for the morning train. Although a large number of patrons visited the postoffice today, the mailing rush has apparently passed its peak.

The two sleds were supplemented with two trucks in delivering the Christmas packages to all parts of Bend during the day.

75 YEARS AGO

For the week ending

Dec. 28, 1949

New Lights Due In Drake Park

Under an arrangement between the city of Bend and the Pacific Power & Light Co., new lights are to be installed in Drake park, to replace those in use for several decades. The plan approved by the city commission calls for the installation of nine new lights, on poles about 35 feet high. These will reach from the McKay corner, at the northeast end of the park, through the grounds to the Drake park footbridge.

The row of lights will follow the sidewalk. Slenderized wooden poles will be used. The power company will install and maintain the lights, with the city paying a flat rate for 2,000 or 4,000 lumen lights.

Lights now in use are strung between trees. Through the years they were targets for rocks and snowballs, but about a year ago protective guards were placed over the lights.

Brooks-Scanlon Mill Has Recess

Sawmill and woods operations of Brooks-Scanlon, Inc., have been suspended for the holiday season, but the box factory and shipping department will continue to operate. Work in the sawmill and woods ended yesterday. Some repair work will be underway at the mill during the recess. Present plans call for the resumption of work on Jan. 3, if the plant is ready.

At The Shevlin-Hixon Company plant there will be no suspension of work over the holidays. However, the plant will observe Monday, Dec. 26, and Monday, Jan. 2, as holidays, inasmuch as Christmas and New Years fall on Sundays this year.

Breathing Well Down 220 Feet

Bend’s “breathing well,” now down 220 feet, gulped deeply of chilled air last night and today was reported exhaling, apparently in preparation for a deep pre-Christmas breath tonight.

The well, being drilled in connection with an effort to locate a new supply of water for city use in the summer months, started “breathing” recently when the drill dropped into a subterranean cavity. Drilling operations have been suspended for the past several days, and observers have had a chance to check on the inhalation and exhalation of the cavity.

It has been discovered that on chilly nights the well inhales. As the atmosphere warms, air flows from the well.

Amateur geologists say that “breathing caves’” are known in the Bend area, and they believe that the drill has struck one of these caverns. Expansion and contraction for the surface air, due to temperature changes, account for the breathing, the earth students say.

At the local wells, located west of town, the drill has passed through the cavity and the fissure will be blocked off with casing.

More Than 1,200 Christmas Trees Sold

More than 1200 Christmas trees were sold during the past two weeks to Bend residents at lots operated by the local Veterans of Foreign Wars post and Boy Scout troops 21 and 27. The majority of the trees, about 900, was sold at the VFW lot on Bond street. The remainder of about 300 trees were disposed of by members of the two scout troops from their lot on Franklin avenue.

Still on hands of VFW members today were approximately 100 “cull” trees, ranging in heights of from three to seven feet, which are to be disposed of at the city dump. The trees were obtained from Brooks-Scanlon Inc., timber tracts near the Three Creeks butte area west of Bend.

The scout troops, which cut their own trees, had only about 15 trees left over when sales closed this past week end. Troop leaders reported that these few remaining trees would be trimmed and the poles used for scout projects. Their cut was made on Swede ridge near Skyliners playground.

50 YEARS AGO

For the week ending

Dec. 28, 1974

More homes in ‘74 than ‘73

Business in 1974 wasn’t as good as he’d have liked, but it wasn’t too bad, either, Bend developer Jan Ward reported this week.

Ward and his wife, Jodie, are the developers of Tillicum Village and Nottingham Square south and southwest of Bend.

“It’s contrary to the trend, but we sold more home in 1974 than we did in 1973,” Ward said.

Ward noted there were about 45 “starts” in the two developments this year, compared with 32 or so last year. Tillicum Village presently has about 120 homes and Nottingham Square, the newer of the two, has another 25.

As a result of the growth of the developments, Ward announced this week that he has retained the firm of Morris Real Estate, as sales representative.

“We’ve been handling our own sales, but we’re getting big enough now that we need to expertise of a real estate firm. It will also free us to do a better job of home construction and land development,” Ward explained.

The Wards envision an ultimate development of some 2,000 homes and a population of about 6,000. The area involved in the planning totals between 800 and 900 acres. “When we talk about the total project, we’re looking ahead 10 or 12 years,” Ward said. In addition to his own developments, Ward noted that his brother, Kim, is developing Crown Villa, a mobile home park, in the same general area.

The Wards began the development of Tillicum Village in the mid-1960s and erected the first homes in 1969.

Two milestones were reached this year with the completion of the new J.E. Jewell School on property sold to the Bend School District by the Wards and the completion of a sewage treatment plant.

The latter has a capacity of 1,200 families. Ward said he anticipates a second plant will be required by about 1980. Homes in Tillicum Village range in price between $36,000 and $45,000. Those in Nottingham Square fall in a range of $30,000 to $34,000.

In discussing the current slump in home construction, Ward blamed the situation on a combination of inflation and tight money.

“The demand’s there, but prospective home buyers have become cautious because of the uncertain economic situation.”

However, Ward said he felt there were indications that the slump has reached bottom. “We may continue at the bottom through part of 1975,” he added, “but I’m confident the indicators are moving in the right direction. Things should begin picking up in the latter half of 1975.”

25 YEARS AGO

For the week ending

Dec. 28, 1999

State officials offer Y2K assurances

With the calendar just days form the flip to 2000, the “don’t worry” brigade has launched its final blitz at the state Capitol.

In a series of news conferences this week, bureaucrats and industry leaders are trying to soothe any lingering anxiety about what will and won’t happen when clocks and computers strike midnight Friday. A state command center will open in Salem on Thursday.

“We are protecting the services people depend on,” said Barbara Jensen of the Statewide Year 2000 Project Office.

At Monday’s news briefing, bank and agency officials said state finances, private accounts and automated teller machines aren’t in jeopardy — and urged the public to not withdraw all its money.

“Prepare as you would for any long winter weekend,” said John Radford, state controller with the Department of Administrative Services.

“Everything seems to be working just fine,” he said. “We can’t guarantee that there will be no system failures at all as a result of the date change, but we’re confident that if problems do occur for whatever reason, they’ll be temporary and manageable.”

Fred Meyer stores have temporarily reduced the amount of cash customers may get back when making purchases with debit cards at the cash register from the usual $200 to $50, said Peter Jameson, manager of the Fred Meyer store at 61535 Highway 97.

“This is a precaution so that if there is a shortage of cash, we’ll have enough to take care of our customers,” Jameson said.

Also this week, officials including the governor will discuss readiness plans for roads and airports, telephone networks, medical systems and public safety.

Local law enforcement will be beefed up this weekend, according to Capt. Bob Wittwer of the Bend Police Department, and Bend will have nearly a double shift of police officers on duty New Year’s Eve.

State and local plans and precautions have entered the home stretch of multiyear effort to head off any technology-related glitches related to the ballyhooed “Y2K” rollover. That campaign has involved every state agency and is estimated to cost taxpayers $100 million by the time it concludes in early January, Jensen said.

Just in case any unexpected problems occur, more than 500 additional state employees will be on duty this weekend, she said.

Precautions include printing paychecks for state employees who are scheduled to receive direct deposits and making some bond payments from the treasury on Friday instead of in January.

But agency officials say they’re confident no such problems will arise. All of the state’s critical computer systems were certified as ready for the date change as of early this month. The efforts will be coordinated from the command center, which will receive regular reports from 78 agencies responsible for everything from fish and food stamps to law enforcement and roads. All 50 states have created such nerve centers and will submit status reports to the federal government.