World gone by
Published 1:30 am Saturday, May 16, 2026
82 YEARS AGO
May 16, 1944
Private First Class Joe Lupo, veteran of seven major battles in Tunisia, and now engaged in fighting the nazis at Anzio beachhead, is grateful to the Aberdeen World for taking his mind off the constant artillery fire. His brother, Tony, subscribed for him in March.
In a letter received today he wrote: “I received four copies thus far of the Aberdeen World and I want to thank you very much. It’s quite a change to see a guy’s old home town paper. It kind of gets your mind off of the artillery fire which we get here every day and night.
“I have been in England, Ireland, Scotland and through the North Africa campaign. But, this Anzio is twice as tough, although it was no picnic in Tunisia.
“Thank you for sending me the paper and keep them coming. I’ll write again in Berlin.”
May 17, 1944
The largest liquor robbery in the area in recent years occurred at the South Bend state liquor store Sunday night when some 39 cases, valued at about $1,800, were stolen.
The liquor consisted primarily of whisky, and apparently was hauled away by truck from the rear entrance to the store.
May 18, 1944
Two new timber shows owned by Schafer Brothers Logging company and Rayonier Inc., south of Aberdeen, both of about two years duration, will be opened June 1, it was learned today.
The Rayonier timber, located on Charley creek south of the city limits, contains about 20 million feet of pulp and other types. The stand is mostly hemlock and spruce but contains some fir and cedar.
Schafer Brothers expect to be hauling logs June 1 from their new Indian creek show where they have a two-year supply of hemlock and fine stands of cedar and spruce. Fallers and buckers are at work now.
May 19, 1944
Suntanned and travel-wise, Earl Hulbert Jr. of the merchant marine, is here on leave after a 15,000-mile trip on a Liberty ship.
Graduated from Weatherwax high school last June, young Hulbert enrolled in the maritime service and attended the merchant marine training school at Catalina for three months. He was assigned to his ship and began his long trip last November.
The islands of the South Pacific are scenic but he is inclined to believe they have been overrated for their beauty.
Chile has a barren, hilly coastline and parts of it are comparable to some sections of Montana. Lima, Peru was the most beautiful city he visited and is about the size of New Orleans.
The only encounter his ship had with the enemy occurred on the anniversary of the death of Tojo’s son. “(Enemy) planes attacked us during the night, but were so unsuccessful that they didn’t even wake me up,” he said. “I slept right through the only time our ship was under fire, and didn’t know what had happened until the next morning.”
May 22, 1944
Showing the way to upperclassmen, Charles Brignone, third grade student at the Alexander grade school, won the Aberdeen grade school marble championship Saturday afternoon at Franklin field. In defeating his five opponents in the finals, Brignone won the $25 war bond given by the Aberdeen Lions club, sponsor of the tournament.
Walkouts of Northwest lumber workers in protest of the national war labor board’s denial of wage increases spread to Grays Harbor today as nearly 400 sawmill workers left their jobs.
Two hundred fifty men walked out at the Grays Harbor Lumber company plant at Hoquiam at noon today, and earlier some 120 employees of Schafer Brothers Lumber and Shingle company left that mill. It brought to about 10,000 the number of sawmill and timber workers engaging in walkout protests throughout the Northwest.
57 YEARS AGO
May 16, 1969
James M. Duree, Ocosta High School senior, has received a $4,000 scholarship from Royal Neighbors of America.
Duree, also winner of a National Merit Scholarship was one of the winners in the R.N.A. eighth annual fraternal scholarship competition. Duree plans to attend Stanford University in California and major in biological oceanography.
Top scholars of the Moclips High School senior class were announced yesterday by Principal Robert Gardner. They are Keita House, valedictorian and Bob Atwell, salutatorian.
May 18, 1969
A Wishkah Valley soldier who volunteered to leave a non-combat post in Vietnam for battle duty had a stack of ribbons for bravery to show his parents when he came home on leave recently.
As a crew chief gunner, Spec. 4 Jeff Williams won the Distinguished Flying Cross, the highest medal that can be worn by an Army man during aerial combat.
He won the Bronze Star with a “V” for valor when his craft was shot down south of Vinh Long and landed 50 meters from an enemy position. Williams also has received a Purple Heart for a shrapnel wound to his knee, and an Air Medal with “V” device.
He graduated from Weatherwax high school in 1967 and joined the Army three months later.
May 19, 1969
A coffee hour after the Valley High music concert was converted into a heart-warming testimonial affair for Louis Poppe, who is retiring this year after 22 years as vocational-agricultural instructor with the Willapa Valley School District.
After the concert, Mr. and Mrs. Poppe were lured to the stage of the multi-purpose room and when the curtain was drawn they were greeted by more than 200 well-wishers including their six children and 18 grandchildren.
May 21, 1969
Six hundred-twenty-five elementary school musicians from the Aberdeen district will show their skills in the eighth annual elementary school music program set for 8 p.m. Friday at Sam Benn Gym, free to the public.
All musicians are fifth and sixth-graders and have been playing at most for a year and a half.
Rick Lundstrom, elementary band instructor for the district, said there will be 100 students in the orchestra, 300 in the chorus and 225 in the band.
The orchestra is under the direction of J. Gordon Edlund and Mrs. Nancy Neisinger is the director of the elementary chorus.
May 22, 1969
The Aberdeen City Council last night indicated that it will go along with the directive calling a halt to gambling activities as of Monday, but some of its members made it clear they didn’t like the idea.
“We’re not going to stop gambling,” said Roger Pierce, chairman of the police committee. “We’re simply going to drive it into seclusion.”
Pierce said enforcement of the order, which came on the heels of an opinion by Atty. Gen. Slade Gorton, will put a strain on the Aberdeen Police force, which, he argued, is already undermanned.
“Our policemen won’t be able to check on a lot of these new drug cases — they’ll be checking all the restaurants to make sure businessmen aren’t shaking dice for their morning coffee.”
32 YEARS AGO
May 16, 1994
Now that WPPSS has terminated its agreement with the Bonneville Power Administration, the question is: What happens to the Satsop nuclear plant site?
Good question. For one thing, the huge cooling towers for Project 5, which has been abandoned and Project 3, before it was finished, won’t be coming down any time soon, if they ever do.
The state probably would have the final say over that and other restoration questions. but the Washington Public Power Supply System still wants to sell the mothballed project to a party that would finish it as a nuclear plant, said Mike Louisell, a supply system spokesman at Satsop.
If the supply system completely scraps the two plants at the site, it could take as many as 10 years, or even more, Louisell said, to sell off the assets and restore the site to whatever condition was negotiated with the state.
May 17, 1994
All Wal-Mart has to do to keep Vern Kelley’s business is keep the promise employees — sorry, “associates” — made this morning at the official grand opening of the Aberdeen store.
“No problem!” the assembled employees yelled in unison when a high-ranking corporate official asked how they have been trained to respond to customer requests.
“I sure do like that slogan,” said Kelley. “I hope they mean it.”
Hundreds of Harborites, including mayors and elected officials from several cities, the county commissioners and business people, were on hand for the ribbon cutting ceremony as the estimated $3 million, 118,097 square-foot store celebrated its grand opening.
May 18, 1994
Donny Bell of Hoquiam’s Timber Gym won the 198-pound open class and was the best overall lifter at the Inland Northwest Powerlifing Championships Saturday at Spokane.
Bell squatted 710 pounds, benched 400 and deadlifted 605 for a total of 1,715 pounds. The victory qualified him for the Senior Nationals in Houston July 22.
May 19, 1994
Suzy Marlow’s three-run home run triggered a 10-run seventh in the opening game as Ocosta registered a landmark softball sweep of Steilacoom, 15-7 and 21-6, in a Nisqually League doubleheader Wednesday at Steilacoom.
It was the first victories in the three-year history of the Ocosta softball program. The Wildcats finished the season at 2-18.
“Once we got the momentum going, we figured out we could probably do this,” said Wildcat coach Barbara Rasmus.
Marlow, Melissa Bowen and Renee Frye slammed out three hits apiece to lead the Wildcat attack in the nightcap.
May 21, 1994
Mike Murphy, a pharmacist and the owner of City Drug Co., in Aberdeen, has been making Grays Harborites feel better for some 35 years.
Quickly and courteously, he has filled prescriptions for ailments ranging from allergies to the stomach flu.
The number of customers he’s served is nothing to sneeze at. On Friday, Murphy was recognized for filling more than one million prescriptions during his long career.
A 1951 graduate of Montesano High School, Murphy attended Grays Harbor College for two years and then spent the next two in the Navy. Upon his discharge, he returned to school, this time the University of Washington, where he received his degree in pharmacy in 1959.
May 22, 1994
Two individuals who share career goals in the medical field also shared perfect 4.0 grade point averages at Hoquiam High School.
Stephanie Fordis one of the 4.0 students, plans to attend Northwest Nazarene College in Idaho to study biology with the intent of becoming a medical doctor.
Kiersten Rowley shares top honors with a 4.0 GPA and plans to attend Pacific Lutheran University to study science and medicine with the intent to pursue “something in the field of medicine, possible nursing.”
Other top students include Patrick Sypher, Christina Castorini, Brock Maxfield, Heidi Wallace, Tyler Drake, Joel Webb, Jeff Nelson, Marisol Galeana, Jennifer McHugh, Lisa Mortensen, Corey Corbett, Regan Maloney, Brian Jensen, Rachel Patton, Jay Harp and Joe Manley.
Compiled from the archives of The Daily World by Karen Barkstrom, Editorial Assistant at The Daily World. You can contact her at karen.barkstrom@thedailyworld.com or call her at 360-537-3925.
