75 years ago
July 25, 1942
Sam Bagron is helping to fight the axis from the tops of swaying Grays Harbor forest giants.
Bagron, a veteran highclimber, “thought he had retired” from the dangerous tree-topping game two years ago. He’d been at it for 14 years and felt it was a “job for the younger fellows.” So he doffed his spurs, put away his belt and ax and went to work for the West Coast Plywood company.
But the war has upset his retirement program. Uncle Sam needed men and one by one the Harbor highclimbers have entered the service. With their tree-toppers gone, Harbor logging operators “put in a draft call for Bagron.”
He answered — willingly.
Recently, at one of the shows on Big Creek, Bagron showed his skill by limbing and topping a big spruce in three and one half hours. The knots of the spruce were so tough that the ax often bounced off and Bagron had to keep sharpening the blades with a file to finish the job.
July 26, 1942
Sunday, no newspaper published
50 years ago
July 25, 1967
Mr. and Mrs. Bogdanovich are back in Montesano with a handsome clock trophy on their mantel won by chugging the round trip from Seattle to Vancouver, B.C. in their shiny 1913 Ford touring car, resplendent with brass.
The trophy is a national award from the Horseless Carriage Club of America won by the Montesano couple for second place in the classification of 1913-15 Model T Fords. The Bogdanoviches have polished the brass on their prized Model T for four years, but this was the first time they entered national competition.
July 26, 1967
The persistent shifting of the hub of business activity in downtown Aberdeen has taken its toll of another business, the Commercial Tavern, which boasts of the oldest bar in the city.
Mr.and Mrs. Paul Randich, owners since 1942, have simply locked the place up. Mrs. Randich, who for the past 12 years has operated the tavern while her husband has been occupied in another job, explained.
“This part of town has been going downhill steadily, and business has just kept falling off. A tavern like this doesn’t interest the young people, and the old-timers are dropping off.”
And so the building at 323 E. Heron, stands empty and forlorn. The only reminder of more affluent times is the 24-foot-long mahogany bar with ornate carvings that came around Cape Horn in 1908 or 1909.
25 years ago
July 25, 1992
Gary Loman can’t fight fires any more. Now, the former fire marshal is fighting a debilitating disease that sent him into early retirement — Crohn’s Disease.
Today, instead of fighting fires, he’s building replicas of the big red rigs he knew so well and his work, along with that of retired firefighter Harry Denny, will be on display all weekend at the Montesano Post Office as the Monte Fire Department celebrates its 100th anniversary at the Festival of People.
Loman is currently working on a replica of a 1917 American LaFrance. When it’s done, it’ll be realistic down to the last detail — complete with the Washington State “horseless carriage” license plate.
July 26, 1992
The Port of Willapa Harbor has received $750,000 in state loans and grants for an industrial expansion of the Pacific Hardwoods Mill in Raymond.
The expansion will double the mill’s production capacity and create 46 permanent, full-time jobs, according to Port Manager Jim Neva. Another eight jobs that might otherwise be lost will also be salvaged with the expansion, Neva said.
Compiled from the archives of The Daily World by Karen Barkstrom
