The Way We Were

Aug. 21, 1924

The Wrangell Red Cross chapter was organized in April 1917. Active work began at once. Benefits were arranged, a membership drive was inaugurated, goods and sewing materials were ordered, and the local people assumed their share of the war work cheerfully and enthusiastically. Since the war, many garments have been made for the convalescent soldiers in the hospitals and last year Wrangell followed the lead of other progressive communities and established a Red Cross Health Center with a public health nurse. This is in line with the peacetime program of the Red Cross. The value of the nursing service has been so amply demonstrated that it should have the backing of every man, woman and child in the town.

Aug. 19, 1949

Fish! Fish! Fish! Wrangell and Southeast Alaska were knee-deep in humpback salmon this week. Reports from most of the area indicated it might be one of the best seasons since 1941. In some spots such as Anan and Point Federeick in Icy Strait, the run was reported exceptional. A.R. Breuger’s Wrangell Farwest Cannery took in 90,000 salmon from Anan Creek the opening day. While no figures would be available until pack reports reach the Fish and Wildlife Service next Monday, the first week of the season might well show a 30,000-case pack for Farwest. The season, Mr. Brueger said, was just a little too short for a 100,000-case pack, due to the terrific strain on crews who are now working 18 to 20 hours a day. As one employee put it, “We meet ourselves coming to work every morning.”

Aug. 16, 1974

The state Department of Fish and Game announced last week the cancellation of the Stikine River antlerless moose season which had previously been scheduled for Sept. 15-30. The decision came after much opposition was expressed by some local residents, the department said. Petitions were circulated locally and, according to Maurice Buness, several hundred signatures were obtained from individuals who opposed the change. The department also announced last week a change in the bulls-only season. It was previously scheduled for Oct. 10-25 and has been changed to Sept. 15 to Oct 15. The antlerless season was first established by the Board of Fish and Game in 1972 to increase the harvest by removing a limited number of antlerless animals.

Aug. 19, 1999

The long awaited Wrangell House for youth has finally been purchased and the organization's board hopes to have it open by the next spring. The house, located at 824 Case Ave., will provide emergency housing and shelter for youth between the ages of 12 and 19 whose circumstances render them homeless or in need of leaving their own household. According to Lou Knapp, secretary of the newly formed nonprofit organization, the home will have the capacity for 15 teenages and will be staffed 24 hours a day by two adults. “The house will be open to all youth,” says Billy Voltz, the organization’s president. “It is a transitional-living center and will provide a home for kids out of treatment, so that instead of their having to go home into the same situation as before, they can come here. It will be a place for transition into society, also for emergency foster care. It will provide an unsecured room where kids can be placed instead of in jail.”