Bonner County History - Jan. 21, 2021
From the archives of the
Bonner County History Museum
611 S. Ella Ave., Sandpoint, Idaho, 83864
208-263-2344
50 Years Ago
Sandpoint News-Bulletin
Jan. 21, 1971 – CRIPPLING STORM
Winter dealt Bonner County a second knockout late last week in the form of a soggy, crippling snowstorm followed by a drenching, chinook-borne rain. On Friday, the county attempted to dig out of an overnight snowfall estimated in various areas at 11 to 15 inches. This heavy snow came on the heels of a seven-inch snowfall Wednesday evening and Thursday. The heavy snow brought normal activities to a standstill Friday and hardly an intersection in Sandpoint was free of stalled cars. Steady weekend rain reduced the snow to slush and brought flooding to low-lying areas. Water stood in streets as slush-clogged storm sewers rejected the heavy runoff, and many basements flooded. Meteorologists say winter is nowhere near the bottom of its bag of weather tricks. Translated, that means keep those snow shovels, tire chains and earmuffs handy.
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COMPLETES TRAINING
Airman Lee E. Sheffield, son of Mr. and Mrs. William Sheffield, Sandpoint, has completed basic training at Lackland AFB, Tex. Sheffield, a 1970 SHS graduate, is assigned to Lowry AFB, Colo. to train in munitions and weapons maintenance.
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WHISTLING SWANS VISIT THE LAKE
About 75 whistling swans have moved into the Lake Pend Oreille area for winter feeding. Some of the graceful white birds, an endangered species, have been seen near the north end of the long bridge where they feed among the coots.
100 Years Ago
Pend d’Oreille Review
Jan. 21, 1921 – CITY BREVITIES
A 10-pound son (Henry Clair) was born last night to Mr. and Mrs. J.H. Rickman, 522 N. Florence avenue.
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MANY FEATURES AT CIVIC CLUB DINNER
Over 90 Sandpoint women, two-thirds of the entire Civic club membership, banqueted at the Wisconsin hotel Monday evening, supplementing a delightful dinner with an exceptionally good program. The dining room was taxed to handle the fair diners, three tables being completely surrounded. It was reported by Mrs. Dougherty of the cafe, however, that cigar sales after the dinner were not up to the normal average.
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DANCE, SKATING ORDINANCES HELD UP
The council chamber was crowded by interested citizens, but no changes were made to the status of the dance and skating ordinances at Monday’s city council meeting. There was a motion to accept the roller skating ordinance after it had its third reading, but there was no second and the order temporarily fell into the discard. Mayor Elliott announced that the council decided to widen the provisions of the dance ordinance by including not only public dances but all dances including fraternal parties and club dances. The mayor said the ordinance should and would be passed, but that it first would be “fixed up a little.”
For more information, visit the museum online at bonnercountyhistory.org.