100 years ago
1925: Mrs. M.G. Fronske was hostess to Mrs. T.O. Bellwood鈥檚 Sunday school class of boys in the park Thursday afternoon at a most successfully carried-out Easter egg hunt. In fact, the rabbit played a real joke on everybody, for several of the eggs were so well hidden that they were never found at all. Strawberry ice-cream cones and several kinds of cake made a welcome appearance just before the end of the outing, which was voted a happy one.
That good influences are working in getting Flagstaff a new depot that will be a credit both to the Santa Fe railroad company and to the city, and that the company is making every effort to please us, is evidenced in a letter recently received by Mr. Koch of the city council, enclosing new plans which look mighty good to all the local people who have seen them. It will be remembered that a few weeks ago Mr. Koch received plans for the proposed depot from W.K. Etter, general manager of the railway company. There were many objections made locally to those plans, chiefly because it was felt that the building would not be much architecturally nor large enough. The new plans are entirely different. Not only is the building with its ornamental gables and windows highly pleasing in general outline, but it affords much more floor space and is higher.
75 years ago
1950: The Civil Aeronautics Board today gave Monarch Air Lines, Denver, a conditional permit to acquire Arizona Airways, Phoenix, and to operate the latter鈥檚 routes. The routes include Flagstaff, Winslow, Prescott and Kingman as well as southern Arizona ports. The two companies are feeder lines. Monarch serves cities in Montana, Colorado, Utah, Wyoming and New Mexico. Arizona Airways was given a three-year certificate in June of 1948 to fly feeder routes in Arizona, with one leg extending into El Paso. The board authorized Monarch to extend its present route from Gallup to Winslow in order to set up the connecting link between the two systems.
鈥淭here is every indication that 1950 may prove to be one of the worst forest fire years in history,鈥� Kenneth Wilson, fire chief for Coconino National Forest, said today. 鈥淧recipitation for the first three months of the year is about half of normal,鈥� Wilson said. 鈥淲e have also had a lot of high wind this spring, and this has dried out the forest, too.鈥� Wilson said last year was probably the best year in history as far as forest fires are concerned, as only 150 acres of Coconino National Forest were burned. The five-year average is 2,300 acres per year. (He said) 鈥淟ast year鈥檚 unusual winter and spring, with heavy snows and many rains, cut the fire danger to a very low level. But this year, watch out.鈥�
50 years ago
1975: Bert Loper has been found. Coconino County Sheriff Joe Richards said today skeletal remains found in the depths of the Grand Canyon eight days ago are 鈥渋n all probability鈥� the remains of the 79-year-old 鈥渞iver rat鈥� who disappeared into the rapids of the Colorado River July 8, 1949. 鈥淏ased on the evidence we have,鈥� Richards said, 鈥渋n all probability, this is Bert Loper.鈥� 鈥淎fter having seen other pictures,鈥� Museum of Northern Arizona curator Barton Wright said, 鈥淚 feel this is the man I was drawing.鈥� It was Wright鈥檚 drawings, based on the ancient skull found in the canyon depths, that led Richards to make his identification. The sheriff also credited Drs. Mark Taylor and John Wood on the case, particularly in determining the exposure age of the remains.
A small trace of Flagstaff鈥檚 history was found this week and is now in safe keeping. Demolition crews working on the old public library on West Aspen Avenue went into the building鈥檚 cornerstone with special care. They had been warned in advance that there would be documents in the stone -- which dated the building 1923. Inside the stone, in a metal box especially built by Paul C. Coffin, they found what they sought. The box contained a number of documents: the mortgage on the building; a copy of a history of the Woman鈥檚 Club of Flagstaff, which built the structure; a copy of the lyrics of 鈥淎merica the Beautiful;鈥� and a copy of the Coconino SUN, dated Sept. 28, 1923.
25 years ago
2000: When most of us think of an astronomer, we think of men peering into the night sky with telescopes. Well, think again. There are many female astronomers, and three of them work here in Flagstaff at the Lowell and Naval observatories. They have unique stories to tell about their work as astronomers. For Alice Monet, from the Naval Observatory, it began when she took an astronomy course where she learned that elements such as gold were formed from material ejected from massive star explosions. 鈥淚 looked at the gold ring I was wearing,鈥� she says, 鈥渁nd tried to imagine how long ago it had been formed and from what star it might have come from. I was hooked.鈥� Deidre A. Hunter, from Lowell Observatory, says, 鈥淚t was the Apollo space program. When I was entering junior high, the Apollo program was going strong. It really captured my imagination.鈥� One of the issues associated with women in science is breaking into a field that is male dominated. 鈥淭here are definitely prejudices against women in science,鈥� says Hunter. 鈥淚 remember interviewing for a job in a major astronomy department about 12 years ago. I sat in the office of one faculty person. Behind him on the wall was a poster that said something to the effect that women belonged at home. It was not one of those funny posters 鈥� it was quite serious. 鈥淛ust do it and ignore anyone who tries to discourage you,鈥� says Hunter. 鈥淒on鈥檛 give up. Science is a tough career but unbelievably rewarding.鈥�