Remember When?

105 YEARS AGO • MAY 17, 1917

RIVER GOES UP, THEN DOWN

Stream Swells to Flow of 107,000 Second Feet

The Clarks Fork River dropped in flow appreciably last night and officials at the plant look for a steady fall for several days. According to the report of the patrolman on the summit between here and Wallace, five inches of fresh snow fell on the summit Tuesday.

The high water has probably not reached here yet. Forest reports show that there remains within the Missoula, Flathead and Bitter Root National Forest boundaries from two to five times as much snow as there was at the same time last year. When all of this melts, the river will rise enormously.

The highest point yet reached by the stream was touched yesterday. The flowage on Wednesday was 107,000 cubic feet per second. Sunday night a huge tree was carried downstream with such force that when it struck the bridge across the dam and lodged, it bent the great girder that tops the steel supports across the dam. The building of the dam was finished in 1916.

The road access from Plains was flooded Sunday and it is necessary for traffic east of Plains to take the Dog Lake route to Perma.

30 YEARS AGO • MAY 28, 1992

CHANGEES PLANNED FOR 1992 FAIR

A number of major changes are being planned for the 1992 Sanders County Fair. Among the changes planned are a $1 daily charge per vehicle for parking; a $5 fee for RV vehicle overnight parking; moving of the carnival to the concession area for additional booths; open the fair to additional county nonprofit organizations desiring to serve new food items, drinks and other items and ordering an increase in the percentage of gross receipts to be taken by the fair board.

The proposed changes were greeted by some “heated discussion,” Mark Dixon stated.

He indicated not all of the proposals are set in “concrete” and that the concessions group has been invited to return with their proposals in the near future.

Dixon said the fair board representatives stated they had been ordered by the Sanders County commissioners to eliminate the fair’s deficit remaining from the 1991 fair, most of which resulted from insufficient attendance at the Dan Seals country music show.

The fair board is adamant that the deficit be eliminated this year and the fair’s budget returned into the black.

County concession organizations were told the fair board now will take 25 percent of the gross receipts off the top. In the past the fair had received about 13 percent.

The fair board said prices of food and other concession products should be increased about 15 percent so that concession organizations can realize the same net profit as in the past.

In addition, the fair board plans to require that concession workers adhere to higher standards of dress, cleanliness and neatness. Workers in booths will be required to wear plastic gloves when handling food and drink items, wear aprons and hair nets. The board also dictated that quality of food be improved.

The board said no exclusive rights will be authorized for any items sold at the fair. For instance, neither coca Cola or Pepsi Cola will be sold exclusively to the detriment of the other.

The fair beginning this fall is to be opened to all Sanders County non-profit organizations and any eligible group desiring to operate a new concession offering a new item not now offered will be permitted to do so. It was explained that a new organization, not presently a member of the exclusive concessions group, will not be allowed to set up a booth selling hamburgers or coffee since those items now are offered. However, a new group would be allowed to operate a Mexican food booth or offer some other item not currently sold.

The additional space provided for concessions in the former carnival area will provide additional space for music groups and other forms of entertainment for fairgoers.

The “drive through” formerly offered between the midway and the river parking lot will be eliminated.

Changes made this year will be for one year and then reviewed to determine which changes should be retained in the future.