Highlights of History from The Whitehorse Star

Explorer's Guides to Yukon Communities

1950

January

• January 6, 1950: With this issue, the Whitehorse Star commences on its fiftieth year of service to this community (read the article here).
• January 6, 1950: One of the most dastardly armed robberies to occur here in years took place New Year's Day at 3 a.m., when Patrick Michael Miller, William Douglas Anderson and David Winton, each 17 years of age, broke into John Sewell's store. They went directly upstairs to the sleeping quarters, awakened John Sewell with a rifle pointed to his face and ordered him to hand over his money. He was hit on the head with the butt of the rifle and they escaped with $800 and some firearms but but 11:00 they had all been arrested.
• January 6, 1950: Mr. J. F Maclennan. noted druggist of Dawson, passed away at Dawson on Tuesday. He was over 80 years of age but continued practicising his profession up to quite recently. Born in Glengarry, Ont., he was a member of the old Northwest Mounted Police for some years before qualifying as a first-rate pharmaceutical chemist and was highly respected by the medical profession.

• January 13, 1950: One of the worst disasters to occur in Dawson took place Tuesday (January 10th) at about 1.30 p. m., when St. Marys Hospital, one of the most vital institutions in the city, was destroyed by fire which orginated in the chapel.
• January 13, 1950: The Yukon Ski Runners are really swinging into action now that skiing weather has arrived. The Ski Chalet on Fourth and Strickland was packed to capacily with enthusiastic skiers at the general meeting Monday night.
• January 13, 1950: The local Royal Canadian Legion held its annual meeting on January 11th and elected the following officers: President, James Porter; First Vice-President, R. Watson; Second Vice-president, Mrs. Ada Watson. Executive Members are Mrs. Warren, Al. Dawes and W. Morris.

• January 20, 1950: Chief Jim Boss of the Le Barge Indians passed away in the Whitehorse General Hospital at noon Tuesday (January 17th). The late Chief, who had been head of his tribe for the past 40 years or so, was 79 years of age at the time of his passing and was one of the most colourful characters in the Yukon, where he was held in the highest regard by both the native and white population alike.
• January 20, 1950: In spite of the weatherman's cool prediction, last week-end was warm enough for skiing and at least fifty enthusiasts turned out to take instructions. Good stuff gang! Our grateful thanks to Major Walker Keyes and Paul Morisset for a great job of instructing. Both instructors were a little overwhelmed by the eagerness and attentiveness displayed by the skiers.
• January 20, 1950: The current finals of the Whitehorse Senior Hockey League, which winds up tonight, is demonstrating that the Town Merchants and the RCAF Flyers are as close as two teams can be and that playing hockey every night of the week is tiring more than somewhat. Capacity crowds have sandwiched into the Arena for every game and have roared their approval at the fierce, fightin' hockey displayed by both squads.

• January 27, 1950: Fire Chief R. J. Dunlop reports that during the past ten years the toll of lives lost and property damaged by fire has steadily mounted, and 74 per cent of all fires reported have been in the home. Heating appliances are the major cause of those fires.
• January 27, 1950: On December 29, 1949, Hougen's Limited was incorporated under the "Companies Ordinance" with a capital of Seventy Five Thousand Dollars. The Company was incorporated for the purpose of carrying on the business of manufacturers, merchants, importers, exporters, wholesale and retail dealers in clothing and other merchandise of every description and to enter into any other type of business in the interests of the Company.
• January 27, 1950: Fire, believed to have been caused by a coal oil lamp, completely destroyed the frame cabin of Thos. Moran in South Dawson last Saturday morning. All his personal belongings and his grocery supply, etc., were consumed in the flame. Moran was away at the time assisting the caretaker at the public school.

February

• February 3, 1950: Notwithstanding the most intensive search ever made on the North American continent no trace has yet been discovered of the missing U. S. A. F. C-54 aircraft which was last heard from at Snag on January 26, with 44 passengers and crew aboard. No sign of the aircraft has ever been found (2021).
• February 3, 1950: The 1950 Whitehorse Winter Carnival got away to a big start on Thursday with Kiddies events featuring the opening days program. The Days of '98, being held in the Roller Rink, drew a big crowd last night and will be operating through until Saturday night. Dance Hall girls, games of chance and other sourdough novelties are among the highlights.
• February 3, 1950: W. I. (Barney) Murray died at the Military Hospital in Whitehorse on Tuesday, January 4, at 2 a. m. following a heart attack. Born at Pictou, N. S., 64 years ago, he came to Atlin in 1936 then to Whitehorse in 1942. He was a faithful employee of the B. Y. N. Co. in the Commissary Dept. He was buried at the Whitehorse Cemetery.

• February 10, 1950: At the Board of Trade meeting on February 7th, the chairman of the tourist committee suggested that an arch be placed at the top of Two Mile Hill welcoming visitors to Whitehorse and adorned with the names of the various organizations in town, similar to those erected throughout the United States on the Pacific coast.
• February 10, 1950: The biggest and most successful ski meet ever to be held in Whitehorse was the feature of last weekend. Unfortunately, cold weather forced the Junior ski events and the cross country races to be cancelled. Jumping was also scheduled to be cancelled, but the Juneau skiers wished to jump and so the event was run off. Juneau Ski Club went off with most of the trophies as usual but there has been great improvement in local skiing.
• February 10, 1950: Pan American World Airways (P.A.A.) is advertising flights on their big four-engine Clippers from Whitehorse to Vancouver for $74.95 one way, $135.80 round trip.

• February 17, 1950: Operation Sweetbriar, the largest and most realistic exercise ever staged in the sub-Arctic by combined Canadian and American forces got under way Monday when went into action on February 13. Sub-zero weather accompanied by a strong north wind and heavy snow were a challenge.
• February 17, 1950: The net profit derived from this year's Winter Carnival, $11,677.55, is approximately six times greater than that derived from the 1947 and 1948 Carnivals combined.
• February 17, 1950: As a result of the re-organization of the Department of Mines and Resources, administration of the Yukon Territory and N. W. T., is now under the jurisdictiion of the Resources and Development branch, a new portfolio of which Hon. Robert H. Winters is in charge.

• February 24, 1950: Gene Jacquot of Burwash Landing died in the Whitehorse General Hospital on Sunday, February 19th, at the age of 72. On February 23rd, services were held at Kluane Lake and he was buried beside his brother Louis.
• February 24, 1950: Maurice "Moe" Grant and his Tiger Moth airplane have disappeared between Taku and Carcross. He was last seen on February 21.
• February 24, 1950: Ed. and Kay Carson, late of Mayo, opened the Cafe Carmacks in the old "Tom Bee Store" at Carmacks on January 30 last.

March

• March 3, 1950: Yukon MP J. Aubrey Simmons wires his office that included in the estimates tabled in the Commons is $2,350.000 for completion of the Mayo-Carmacks-Whitehorse highway and a sum of $100,000 toward the construction of a public school in Whitehorse.
• March 3, 1950: Moe Grant is rescued from his crashed Tiger Moth with badly frozen feet.
• March 3, 1950: Martin Berrigan died at Whitehorse General Hospital on February 26, at the age of 78. He built several cabins in Whitehorse, including a famous 3-storey one on Lambert street.

• March 10, 1950: The New Hampshire trial of Dr. Herman N. Sander, charged with murder in the "mercy killing" of a cancer-ridden patient, was concluded Wednesday with the jury bringing in a verdict of "Not Guilty".
• March 10, 1950: With only 423 residents turning out to vote, incorporation of Whitehorse was rejected by a margin of 23 votes.
• March 10, 1950: On Tuesday afternoon, a fatal accident occurred in the new RCAF area. Six-year-old Millard Jean Ozon, daughter of Cpl. Izon, RCAF, who was on her sleigh at the time, collided on the highway with a truck owned by the Poole Construction Co.

• March 17, 1950: Late last Friday night fire broke out in the High School in the Dowell area caused, it is reported through a faulty stove-pipe. The auditorium was completely gutted. The motion picture projector, valued at $700, and in the auditorium at the time, was also a total loss. Half the upper story was likewise destroyed whilst two lower rooms were badly damaged by water.
• March 17, 1950: The Yukon Outfitters Association is formed. Alec Davis is elected President, and M.V. Nolan is Secretary-Treasurer.
• March 17, 1950: We much regret having to report that after the suffering he has sustained as the result of his recent plane crash, Maurice Grant has had to have both feet amputated in University Hospital, Edmonton. Realizing the heavy financial burden which has been incurred as a result of the unfortunate mishap, friends of the family have instituted a subscription list.

• March 24, 1950: The British Yukon Navigation Co. Highway Division of the White Pass & Yukon Route, in a campaign of accident-free driving inaugurated May 1st, 1949, set a record of one million miles before last Christmas. This campaign covered busses, trucks, refrigerator trucks and freight trucks on the Alaska Highway and Haines Road.
• March 24, 1950: The annual meeting of the North Star Civic Center Club elects the following officers: President, George Alywin; Vice-President, Ron Greenslade; Secretary, Jim Patterson; Treasurer, Harold Damon. The executive will include one representative each from the Board of Trade, B.P.O. Elks, I.O.D.E., the Royal Canadian Legion, the Kiwanis Club, the Northwest Highway System and the R.C.A.F.
• March 24, 1950: The Yukon Fish and Game Association elects new officers. President, W. D. MacBride; Vice-President, C. F. Rosenberg; Secretary, Harry Gordon-Cooper; Treasurer, Tom Portlock.

• March 31, 1950: In order to keep the Atlin Road open to heavy truck traffic as long as possible it is requested that all heavy trucks travel over this road between the hours of midnight and 9 a.m. This applies also to wood trucks. If this is not done then the road will require closing due to thawing conditions.
• March 31, 1950: The official Ice Pool electric clock is now installed in the W. P. & Y. R. Depot and will be set and sealed next Wednesday, April 5, for the big event. Ice openings on record at Whitehorse from 1928 to 1949 are listed - the earliest was April 8 in 1938 and 1941, the latest was May 6 in 1948.
• March 31, 1950: Anyone who happens to have a photograph of the first train reaching Whitehorse on June 8, 1900, and anyone who happened to be a passenger on that train will confer a favour by notifyig the Whitehorse Star accordingly.

April

• April 7, 1950: Representatives from the Department of Mines and Technical Surveys will be at Whitehorse from April 12-19th and at Dawson from April 21st to May 13th. The purpose of this visit is to verify and audit applications for assistance payments for 1949 under the provisions of the Emergency Gold Mining Assistance Act.
• April 7, 1950: The RCMP raid an ace-away game 75 yards southwest of Strickland Street and 8th Avenue. Sixteen people were arrested and appeared before the newly appointed Justice of the Peace, John Kerr. All were fined and gambling paraphernalia was confiscated.
• April 7, 1950: Herman M. Peterson, as Peterson's Air Service, has applied on March 28 to the Air Transport Board for a licence to operate a charter commercial air service from a base at Atlin, B. C.

• April 14, 1950: Truckers, particularly wood truckers, have not been complying with instructions not to use the Atlin Road during the daytime. As a result the road has been closed to all traffic between the hours of 9 a.m. and 8 p.m. daily until further notice.
• April 14, 1950: Dr.Kay MacDonald, Chiropractor (A Palmer Graduate 1947), has opened an office at Redpath's Market Basket, 4th Ave. and Steele Street.
• April 14, 1950: Frank Morishige, long-time Japanese resident in Dawson, has returned from his recent trip Outside in the course of which he visited California where he visited many friends whom he had not seen since his discharge from the Canadian Army in 1919.

• April 21, 1950: The technicolor film "No Man is an Island," which portrays the world's largest lead-zinc mine at Trail, B.C. in all its operations, including the smelting and refining of its marketable products, will be shown in the Capitol Theatre Sunday afternoon. Through the co-operation and generosity of Mr. Sam McClimon there will be no admission charge.
• April 21, 1950: At the time of the fire at St. Mary's Hospital in Dawson, Bishop Coudert notified the Vatican of the disaster. This week he received a letter from the Vatican Secretary of State in which the Sovereign Pontiff bestowed his apostolic blessings upon the Sisters of St. Ann, accompanied by a gift of $1,000.
• April 21, 1950: Congratulations are extended to the leaders of the Forest Girl Guards and Junior Forest Wardens for the fine work they are doing for the Girls and Boys of Whitehorse. The Club now has a membership of 115. Their ages range from 10 to 18 years of age.

• April 28, 1950: A 70-mile stretch of the Alaska Highway north of Tok, paved last year, has been closed to all traffic because of weather conditions. Paved sections are the only portions which give road engineer much worry during the breakup season.
• April 28, 1950: Johnnie Ned, Old-Time Indian of the Yukon, passed away in the Whitehorse General Hospital on April 24 after a lengthy illness, at the age of 59 years. He was a Big Game Guide in the past and spent his entire life in the Yukon.
• April 28, 1950: St. Mary's Hospital at Dawson must rise again, say the Sisters of St. Ann who have managed it since they took it over in 1898 from Rev. Father Judge, S.J., its founder. The objective for the new home for the sick, aged and infirm, is a 50 bed hospital which will cost around $500,000.

May

• May 5, 1950: Pilot Pat Callison has added a third plane to his fleet, now making three. It is a Fairchild 71, a 7-place ship, powered by a 450 h.p. Wasp motor. He purchased it from Northern Airways Ltd.
• May 5, 1950: To provide for the necessary increased hospital accommodation at Dawson, a tent ward has been erected at the temporary site formerly the residence of Mr. McLeod White, corner of Princess and Fifth.
• May 5, 1950: The Board of Trade elects officers at their annual meeting: President, Alan McGregor; Vice-President, Keith Johnson; Secretary, R. J. Rowan; Treasurer, Doug Cavaye.

• May 12, 1950: Mr. F. W. Ackles informs us that on May 1st he purchased the business formerly carried on by Johnnie Johns at Mile 872 on the Alaska Highway. In future it will be operated under the style of "The Pines."
• May 12, 1950: Fresh grayling is now on sale in the local markets, brought into town by local natives from down-river points. Believed to be the first catch this spring in the Yukon river.
• May 12, 1950: Extensive alterations have been made to the Elks Hall. The old stage has been removed entirely and the men's room moved to the front of the building at the rear of the bar. The ramp has also been relocated in a much more convenient position whilst a new floor has been installed in the gallery. The seating accommodation in the main hall has thus been extended a further fifteen feet which additional space is sorely needed to accommodate the increased membership. The premises have also been repainted inside.

• May 19, 1950: George and Pat Van Bibber are in Vancouver to apply for a licence to operate ferries across the Stewart and Yukon rivers. This is the first trip Outside ever for George, 25, and Pat, 28. Born at Pelly Crossing, they are sons of Ira Van Bibber.
• May 19, 1950: Burns & Co. is advertising "Delmar COLORED Margarine Made With Whole Milk."
• May 19, 1950: The Whitehorse Rifle and Pistol Club will hold its first Match of the season on Sunday, May 21st.

• May 26, 1950: Horace Moore, owner/editor of the Whitehorse Star, sells the newspaper to Tom Bain. A local business group signed a promissory note at the Canadian Bank of Commerce to make this transaction possible. Yearly subscription remains at $3.00.
• May 26, 1950: At the instigation of the Board of Trade, the merchants of Whitehorse have agreed to close their stores on Saturday, June 10, to give their fullest support to the RCAF on Air Force Day.
• May 26, 1950: The Department of Mines and Technical Surveys is undertaking its largest survey program ver this year. In the Yukon, Dr. H. S. Bostock will again supervise the geological program and Dr. K. C. McTaggart will continue detailed mapping in the Mayo silver-lead-zinc area. Four-mile mapping will be conducted by J. O. Wheeler in the mineralized area partly under development in the Whitehorse region; by Dr. E. D, Kindle in Dezdeash area west of Whitehorse, favourable for gold and base metals; by R. P. Campbell in the Genlyon area, containing gold and other minerals; by J. E. Muller in the Kluane Lake area, containing metalliferous deposits and coal; and by R. Mulligan in the metalliferous Teslin Lake area.

June

• June 2, 1950: Pan America World Airways' constant effort to reduce the cost of transportation in Alaska and the Yukon can be seen in the record of the past ten years, said Keith Johnson, PAA district traffic manager here. He pointed out that in 1940 it cost $120 to fly from Whitehorse to Seattle. After 1945, the fare was cut to $95 and in 1946 it went down to the present $90. Now it will drop to $80, $144 round trip.
• June 2, 1950: J. A. Jeckell, former Controller of the Yukon Territory, died while visiting former Yukoners in Seattle on May 31st, at the age of 69.
• June 2, 1950: The Dawson I. O. D. E. have very generously donated $125 toward fixing up the wardrobe of 15-year-old Don Gillespie who leaves shortly on a tour of the Old Country at the invitation of the British Industrialist, W. Garfield Weston. All expenses paid!

• June 9, 1950: A modern brewery is proposed for Whitehorse. Plans are underway to choose a site with a suitable water supply. Funds will be raised in Whitehorse, Dawson, and Mayo through the sale of Units, at $50 each, which can be expected to triple in value in a mater of three years.
• June 9, 1950: It was reported at a Board of Trade meeting that the Lake Arkel and Fish Lake roads would be put in shape and a new road is proposed to the Hot Springs, via the new Carmacks Highway. The costs to be borne by the owner of the Hot Springs and the Government jointly.
• June 9, 1950: A large attendance of over four hundred people viewed the Round-Up rodeo at Champagne last Saturday. Arriving in over one hundred cars and two Army busses from points along the highway and Whitehorse, the crowd enthusiastically enjoyed every item on the program.

• June 16, 1950: The Whitehorse Inn Tavern will open for business this Saturday. Completely rebuilt, this tavern is one of the finest on the Pacific Coast. Mr. T. C. Richards, the owner, has spared no expense in fixtures, furniture and equipment to give the patrons comfort and pleasant environment.
• June 16, 1950: Outstanding flying and exhibitions thrilled a record crowd of 2500 people at Whitehorse Airbase Saturday. It was estimated that over 1800 ice cream cones were given away to the children. The dance in the evening was enjoyed by 1000 jitter bug and beebop patter skidders, along with mom and dad until the wee hours of the morning.
• June 16, 1950: An Ordinance to Provide for Annual Holidays with Pay for Employees did not pass third reading, and was deferred till the Fall Session. Every employee to whom this ordinance applies shall be entitled after each year of his employment with any employer to an annual holiday of at least fourteen days.

• June 23, 1950: This edition, Mr. Horace E. Moore and Mrs. Goddard will write (30) to many years of devoted service to Whitehorse. Horace, better known as "Scoop "to his many friends, has built the Star from a gasoline power driven plant to a modern one. Through the years many advancements have been accomplished in the Star office.
• June 23, 1950: The erection of a new hotel in Whitehorse, the '98, is announced. It will have accommodation of 15 to 25 rooms. Construction will start immediately and should be completed in three months.
• June 23, 1950: The drive for funds in which to construct the civic centre is now in full swing. It is hoped that this will be the final drive before construction starts. The fund raising committee are asking one days pay per person to put the drive over the top.

• June 30, 1950: An estimated 500 people attended the funeral services of Constable Lenard E. Nordstrom on Tuesday afternoon in the Old Log Church. Constable Nordstrom was accidently drowned in Ear Lake, three miles south of Whitehorse last Saturday evening. Read the entire article here.
• June 30, 1950: Parliament approved a $500,000 power development project in Mayo to supply electricity to mines and other potential customers in the district.
• June 30, 1950: Ad: "Johnnie Johns Says... Come to my New Fishing Spot for Real Fishing - Trout and Pike. 8 Miles from Jake's Corner on the Atlin Road. Also Horses for Riding."

July

• July 7, 1950: Mr. Grant McConachie, President of Canadian Pacific Airlines, told a Board of Trade meeting last Sunday that they can expect jet airliners on the Vancouver-Whitehorse run in two and a half years.
• July 7, 1950: Monday afternoon, military personnel at Ladd Base and Eielson Field at Fairbanks reported a guided missile travelling at a speed of 600 miles per hour towards the Yukon. A check at the Whitehorse Airbase brought no information about the plane. Tuesday afternoon, Danny McKinnon reported to us that he and a friend, Ab Lang had spotted a fish-shaped object flying at great speed at an altitude of 1000 feet between Marsh Lake and McRae. The object was silver color and spurted fire sparks from its tail.
• July 7, 1950: Yukon Brewing Company is offering a $50 prize for the best name for a beer.

• July 14, 1950: Dan Grant was found dead from a bullet wound last Monday morning in the attic of Billy Biggs' blacksmith shop in Dawson, which he had just purchased. Dan is a brother to Chris Grant, an Income Collector for the Yukon.
• July 14, 1950: The three Canadian destroyers which left Esquimalt last week have been ordered to the Korean front. Although they are not taking part in the war the destroyers will be used for U.N. police action in that area. This is the first admission that Canada was assisting in any way on the Korean front.
• July 14, 1950: An editorial about racial discrimination begins: "The controversy over whether Indians should be allowed to use the new Civic Centre or not is one of great importance, and could be one of great danger to the success of the drive for funds."

• July 21, 1950: Due to the shortage of help this week our paper arrived in the Post Office too late for Friday distribution. Owing to the large demand for papers many residents find they are unable to purchase papers after Friday. We are running the plant at capacity but hope soon to have better equipment to facilitate the demand.
• July 21, 1950: Three helicopters recently were flown from Oshawa, Ont. to Whitehorse in a Curtiss Commando staffed by the famous Flying Tiger organization. Serviced by Weston Aircraft and owned by Kenting Aviation, the helicopters were transported to the Yukon for summer flying assignments. This is the first time three helicopters have been loaded into a C-46, an operation that requires some juggling. There are four helicopters around Yukon. One in Atlin, one on the Highway west of Whitehorse, two at Mayo.
• July 21, 1950: An editorial laments the lack of local publicity items for tourists, most of whom are professional and business people. "A cleverly designed insignia of Whitehorse would do much good in publicizing this city to the rest of the world, something that would be given free as a welcome to visitors upon their arrival in the city. The most important business man will ignore commercialized publicity but will allow his luggage to be plastered with stickers from various steamship and rail companies and resort hotels."

• July 28, 1950: A serious accident at mile 999 on the Alaska Highway last Sunday sent 7 people to the hospital. A head-on collision between an automobile and a tanker truck very nearly brought death to the drivers. Dust was blamed for the obstructed vision of both drivers.
• July 28, 1950: Coming Soon - Comics in the Star. Yes, we have contracted for a comic strip to be run in the Star. Starting soon we will bring the happenings of Myrtle and her dog Bingo to the readers of the Star.
• July 28, 1950: Thousands attended the funeral of Mackenzie King in Ottawa.

August

• August 4, 1950: Whitehorse elects its first mayor and council on July 31. Gordon Armstrong is the first Mayor and William G. Hamilton, Sam McClimon, George Ryder and James Norrington are the first city councillors. See Whitehorse Mayors and Aldermen / Councillors, past & present.
• August 4, 1950: Bud Holbook of Dawson and Superintendant for Yukon Gold Placer Mines at Thistle Creek was instantly killed last Friday when his plane, purchased about a year ago, crashed between Thistle Creek and Dawson. He was accompanied by another Dawson man, who had both legs broken in the crash.
• August 4, 1950: Hartley Clyde Myrick, 65, one-time sourdough who went north at 13, played the piano in Gold Rush saloons, was identified up and down the Yukon with "the kid that handles the music-box" in Robert W. Service's "The Shooting of Dan McGrew", died of cancer in Seattle.

• August 11, 1950: Royal Canadian Mounted Police will replace British Columbia's Provincial Police in the province starting August 25th. This will mark the end of service for the oldest territorial police force in Canada.
• August 11, 1950: Major Walker Kayes was critically injured in a shooting affray in Army Headquarters on August 8th. Cpl. W. B. Armstrong purchased a 30-30 rifle from a downtown store and upon entering Major Kayes' office, fired from close range. The bullet passed through the Major's hand and entered his chest below the heart. The Corporal had been court-martialed recently and severely reprimanded by Major Kayes.
• August 11, 1950: The licenses of Northern Airways to operate a Class 2 service from Carcross, serving Whitehorse, Atlin and Telegraph Creek, and a charter service from Carcross, have been cancelled.

• August 18, 1950: The first car to make the round trip from Vancouver to Mayo and return left on Aug 14 on its return journey. Mr. Mel Webber, genial representative of the Mutual Life Insurance Co., made his visit to this territory this year by car, driving direct from Vancouver.
• August 18, 1950: The MacRae Rifle Range will be in use Saturday August 19. Anyone picnicing or berry picking in that vicinity are warned that they must keep clear of the range. The opening of the Rifle Range now makes it possible for the White Horse Rifle and Pistol Club and the Rangers to meet.
• August 18, 1950: Robson's Inn, formerly the Carcross Inn, is now under new management. Homely and clean, with moderate rates.

• August 25, 1950: A. H. Gibson is appointed as Yukon's Commissioner. His office is in Dawson City.
• August 25, 1950: Mr. A. O. Minsos, whose firm was appointed to draw up plans for the construction of the new $600,000 High School, stated this morning that an agreement had been reached on the final design of the new school. Excavation work is expected to start within six weeks time, with construction commencing next spring.
• August 25, 1950: It is with great regret that the City of Whitehorse loses one of its most respected and beloved citizens. Brigadier-General Connelly and family sailed from Whitehorse on Thursday morning to take over his new command in Regina. The Army water and sewerage, roads and professional services, have all been put at the disposal of our citizens. If one stopped to wonder what conditions would be in Whitehorse without them you must realize what an important part the army has played in our development.

September

• September 1, 1950: Word has recently been received from the B.C. Indian Arts and Welfare Society that at the Art Exhibit recently held at Victoria, the Whitehorse Indian School took several top prizes. Although thirteen schools entered the competition with several hundred entries, the local school delighted all who saw their handicraft and art work.
• September 1, 1950: Sixty persons from Whitehorse joined with fifty from Skagway and three from Carcross for a very enjoyable two day excursion trip to Ben-My-Chree on the steamer Tutshi last weekend.
• September 1, 1950: For Sale, 5 room house with bath. Completely furnished, including piano, radio, washing machine, vacuum cleaner, oil kitchen range, etc. Hot and cold running water with all conveniences. Cement basement, hot air furance, garage, garden and greenhouse. Including one rented suite at $40.00 a month. Price $7250.00, terms available. Armand St. Jean. Location Strickland between 6th and 7th.

• September 22, 1950: The first meeting of the Parent Teachers' Association elects the following officers: Honorary President, Laurie Todd; President, Fred Locke; 1st Vice-President, Mrs. Jean Phelps; 2nd Vice-President, Mrs. Florence MacDonald; Secretary-Treasurer, Mrs. A. J. Barnett; Membership Convener, Mrs. Audrey Morse; Publicity Convener, Mrs. E. I. Hannington.

October

• October 6, 1950: Yukon Citizens are evidently in favour of Cocktail Lounges. The plebiscite held two weeks ago as a landslide for the parlors.
• October 6, 1950: At a meeting of the Board of Trade last Tuesday, the executive were urged to contact the police requesting a check-up on motorists living in the Yukon, but driving around with outside plates.
• October 6, 1950: Territorial Supply Company is advertising Domestic Coal for $27.00 a ton delivered in Whitehorse.

• October 13, 1950: Owing to shipping instructions being mixed, we failed to receive a shipment of newsprint from Edmonton that was scheduled to arrive last week. The C.P.R. have continually ignored our stock on the Vancouver Wharfes forcing us to order via Edmonton. Our last shipment from Vancouver arrived in mid August but our tremendous increase in subscriptions and sales rapidly depleted our stocks.
• October 13, 1950: Brian Morris Smith, manager of the Whitehorse Inn, died suddenly on Thanksgiving Day, October 9th, at the age of 45.
• October 13, 1950: Senator Warren G. Magnuson of Washington State has renewed his proposal of a railway connecting Seattle with Fairbanks.

• October 20, 1950: Financial negotiations are now being completed between Victor Sittler and John Bartle, discoverers of the Asbestos Mine on McDame Creek in the Cassiar Mountains and the ConWest Exploration Co., Ltd., at Toronto. Work will start immediately on the construction of a tote road to facilitate early development. A permanent road will be built next summer. This road will come out on the Alaska Highway, approximately 200 miles south of Whitehorse.
• October 20, 1950: A Whitehorse man, Clarence Dickson, was fatally wounded in a shooting affray early Saturday evening, October 14th. The shooting took place at the residence of Charles Caddy in "Whisky Flats". Read the entire article here.
• October 20, 1950: Horace Raymond was fined $10.00 and costs of $4.00 when he pleaded guilty to operating a motor vehicle without adequate brakes. When he was asked why he did not stop after his truck was in collision with an RCAF Bus he stated he had no brakes.

• October 27, 1950: Whitehorse welcomes a branch of the Bank of Montreal with offices in the Whitehorse Inn.

November

• November 3, 1950: The Yukon Fish and Game Association captures 6 Buffalos in Alaska and brings them into the Yukon to provide ample food for Indians in future years.
• November 3, 1950: The last link of the highway connecting Whitehorse with Mayo is completed.

• November 19, 1950: The Yukon Brewery Holding Co. Ltd. purchases the Lake of the Woods Brewery of Kenora, Ontario.
• November 19, 1950: Fred Arnot outlines to the Board of Trade plans for a museum for Whitehorse.

December

• December 1, 1950: The City Council considers a plan to have all houses in the city limits numbered for better identification.

• December 8, 1950: A six man jury found Charles "Chuck" Caddy not guilty of murder but guilty of Manslaughter in the October 14th shooting death of Clarence Dickson at Whiskey Flats.
• December 8, 1950: Rifle Club members have been working like beavers recently and can now state that their indoor range is just about ready for use. In fact some shooting has already been done there.
• December 8, 1950: A popular athlete, Hughie Dean, left Whitehorse this week to take up his new posting at Goose Bay, Labrador. Hughie has been in Whitehorse with the R.C.A.F. since May of 1946, and was manager and trainer of the RCAF Hockey Team.

• December 15, 1950: The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks installs new officers: Exalted Ruler, W. Williamson; I.P. Exalted Ruler, W. Hancock; Leading Lnight, L. Scown; Loyal Knight, Vic Chapman; Lecturing Knight, Leo Lortie; Secretary, M. Lawrence; R. Gordon Lee; Second Vice-President, Henry Besner; Secretary-Treasurer, Albert Coy.

• December 22, 1950: Alderman George Ryder died on December 15th. He had been in poor health for some months after a sudden heart seizure last fall. He was 56 years old and had lived in Whitehorse for 47 years.
• December 22, 1950: A Yukon Historical Society was formed at a meeting of interested citizens last Wednesday evening, and Fred Arnot was elected president. The aims and objects of this society are the collection and preservation of all items of history, historic, educational and cultural value pertaining to the Yukon Territory and to display the same for the information of the general public. Plans for the establishment of a museum in Whitehorse next year were discussed.
• December 22, 1950: In a large "Happy Christmas" display ad, the Whitehorse College of Commerce also thanked the people of Whitehorse for the many kindnees shown them during their first four months here.

1951

January

• January 5, 1951: The Federal government awards contracts for the construction of 50 army duplex homes in Whitehorse.
• January 5, 1951: The University of Alaska announces that all students from the Yukon Territory are exempt from payment of non-resident tuition fees.
• January 5, 1951: The White Pass train on Wednesday marked a new era in the Yukon when the first oil burning locomotive arrived. The company plans on changing all their engines to oil.

• January 12, 1951: A taxi load of gifts was conveyed to the home of Mr. and Mrs. Leslie, parents of Robert Lloyd George Leslie, Whitehorse's first baby of 1951, on Wednesday afternoon. The gifts were presented by Mayor Gordon Armstrong, on behalf of the merchants of Whitehorse.
• January 12, 1951: Citizens irritated at being confronted with a one dollar dumping charge at the city's disposal grounds, coupled with complaints from the Army and Air Force, prompted our city fathers to re-consider their actions, and dumping garbage is once again free.
• January 12, 1951: The thought that the city council may ban outside toilets (outhouses) unless they are changed to chemical, septic or on the sewer is a step in the right direction toward better health standards for our city.

• January 19, 1951: A report from Mr. Tingle, manager of the local National Unemployment Insurance Office, shows we have 259 men seeking employment through the Whitehorse office. Out of the total of 259 men seeking, 80 are from Dawson City and outside districts. Many of these are seasonal workers coming into the city for the winter months.
• January 19, 1951: This weeks paper contains a notice of a call for tenders for construction of the new school for Whitehorse. Plans call for 18 class-rooms, 10 special rooms and auditorium, to be constructed of reinforced concrete.
• January 19, 1951: The temperature in Whitehorse took a decided drop this past week, with the mercury falling to 36 below zero on Wednesday. Bitter cold winds from the north added to the discomforts of citizens.

• January 26, 1951: The City Council decided to purchase the equipment of Cyr's Scavenger System for the sum of $8,882, and to operate it as part of the city works department, commencing Feb. 1st. With the purchase of Cyr equipment, Mr. Lomar Cyr was appointed Works Superintendent with a salary of $350.00 per month. H
• January 26, 1951: Nine members of the Whitehorse Teaching Staff visited the office of Mr. Bidlake last Wednesday to discuss the possibilities of the government providing living quarters for teachers. Since the beginning of the school term several of these teachers have been searching hopelessly for adequate living accommodation.
• January 26, 1951: The Northern Commercial Company is advertising that they have resumed shipments of fresh greens twice weekly from Seattle via Pan American Clippers.

February

• February 2, 1951: Passing a complete traffic by-law, the city council have now laid before the police complete rules for governing traffic in Whitehorse. One traffic rule that will draw ire from motorists is the abolishment of U turns at all intersections on Main Street and First Avenue. The speed limit in the city is now 25 miles per hour.
• February 2, 1951: Wing Commander J. Sutherland bid farewell to Whitehorse to-day as he boarded a plane enroute to take over his new duties as Director of Intelligence for the RCAF at Ottawa.
• February 2, 1951: The Whitehorse Bowladrome has open alleys Thursday and Fridays nights, and Saturday afternoons and nights. Phone 2793 for reservations.

• February 9, 1951: A vast radar screen is now being constructed in Alaska, the Yukon and Northern British Columbia to protect against air raids and surprise attacks by Russian planes, according to an announcement by Defense Minister Brooke Claxton this week. Unofficial estimates believe the installations would run into hundreds of millions of dollars.
• February 9, 1951: Pte. Arthur Shields, Canadian Army, was sentenced to 6 months hard labour in RCMP Guardhouse for stealing $90.75 worth of fuel oil from the Dept. of National Defense.
• February 9, 1951: The Federal Government's decision to pass over the maintenance of the Mayo Road to our Territorial Government will be an extra burden on Yukon residents. This road will have to be rebuilt this spring when the frost leaves the ground, and the tremendous cost of rebuilding may be financed by instituting tolls.

• February 16, 1951: E. M. Lawrence of Iowa won the Yukon Brewery Name Contest for suggesting the name "Arctic" for Yukon Beer to be brewed in Whitehorse.
• February 16, 1951: A number of buildings situated on the east side of First Avenue are jutting out as much as 18 ft. on the roadway. The City Council have decided to change the street from a 100 ft. to an 80 ft. street rather than move the buildings.
• February 16, 1951: Public and Private Schools were closed this week owing to a severe Flu epidemic sweeping the Yukon. Mayo was hit when over 70 employees of one mining firm were confined to bed.

• February 23, 1951: Formed only a few weeks ago, Yukeno Mines, Ltd., yesterday became the owner of the second largest acreage under one company in the Keno Hill silver-lead-zinc camp.
• February 23, 1951: A completely new layout appears in this week's edition of the Whitehorse Star. An extra column has been added to each page, making a five column page instead of the old style four. This changeover now allows us greater scope for news photos and larger ads.
• February 23, 1951: The increasing number of automobile accidents occurring in and around Whitehorse is causing Insurance Companies great concern, and they may be forced to discontinue the collision portion of auto insurance in the Yukon. Reports show collision repairs in the Yukon cost near to double the price of Vancouver shops. In many cases it pays the insurance company to send the car out to Vancouver to be repaired.

March

• March 2, 1951: Ernest Lortie is elected Alderman to fill the vacancy caused by Alderman George Ryder's death. (see also December 22, 1951)
• March 2, 1951: At present anyone with a dollar can apply and receive a Yukon drivers licence. You are not asked whether you can drive a car, or whether you have driven one before or ever had a drivers licence suspended or refused. All you need is one dollar.
• March 2, 1951: The Yukon Ski Runners will hold the Southern Yukon Ski Championships on March 10th and 11th. The club was organized in 1946 and during the short time since then it has grown to a sizeable organization with a membership of 86. The club has cut ski runs on three hills and built two jumps. Progress was slowed down considerably this winter when the ski chalet was mysteriously destroyed by fire.

• March 9, 1951: Deep snow has delayed arrival of trains from Skagway this past week. Passengers leaving for Skagway to catch the boat last Monday were brought back when trains could not get through. Most of the passengers departed by plane.
• March 9, 1951: The Whitehorse Disaster Committee is reported to be fully organized, though there is still considerable work to be done.
• March 9, 1951: A number of residents were before the magistrate after being apprehended for driving motor vehicles now registered in other provinces and without being registered in the Yukon.

  

• March 12, 1951: In this special edition, The Whitehorse Star reported that the federal government has officially announced that the Territorial Government will move from Dawson City to Whitehorse.
• March 12, 1951: The City of Whitehorse Scavenging Department advises that the chemical toilet or toilets used in your building will be emptied at least once a week and more often if requested. A charge of $1.00 per toilet Will be made for each time the toilet is cleared.
• March 12, 1951: Allish's Fur & Gift Shop is "The Store That's Different," with Famous Yukon Parkas, men's suits, local etchings, Royal Doulton, and much more.

• March 22, 1951: The U.S. is now in favour of the construction of a highway between Skagway and Whitehorse.
• March 22, 1951: A. S. Barker, owner of Mayo Utilities, the telephone company, installs an automatic exchange in Whitehorse.

• March 30, 1951: W. L. Phelps, K.C., died on March 27 at the age of 83. Mr. Phelps had been a resident of Whitehorse since 1900. He was a founder of the Yukon Electrical Company and a member of the first wholly elected Territorial Council.

April

• April 13, 1951: An amendment to the Yukon Act passed in the House of Commons put five members, instead of 3, on the Yukon Council.
• April 13, 1951: Klondike Mike (Michael Mahoney) dies at the age of 74 in Santa Monica, California. Mahoney was one of the great Klondike characters, having carried a piano on his back over the Chilkoot Pass. In 1904, he mushed four hundred miles from Fairbanks to Valdez with the frozen body of Alaskan Judge Hume on his sled. The Hume family had asked Klondike Mike to deliver the body to Seattle for burial.
• April 13, 1951: An editorial states that The Whitehorse Star "is throwing its full support behind the Council of Skagway" to get the road to Whitehorse built.
• April 13, 1951: The City Council will pass a licence by-law this month setting the licence fees for every business in Whitehorse. Money must be raised to carry out the improvements needed in our city and taxation is the only available means.

May

• May 4, 1951: It is announced that a new Federal Building will be erected on Main Street and 4th Avenue.
• May 4, 1951: The B.Y.N. expect to launch one or two of their river boats this weekend. Only the Whitehorse, Casca and Aksala will be used this year. The company has taken the smaller boats off the Stewart River owing to the opening of the Mayo Road and the use of trucks to transport the ore.
• May 4, 1951: This week the RCMP started writing their traffic offenses out on printed traffic tickets. The passing of the many traffic by-laws of the city have added a lot of extra work for the police so they are using a new system of numbered traffic tickets.

• May 11, 1951: Henry Meirs was arraigned on a murder charge at the preliminary hearing held in Whitehorse Tuesday. His wife Anne was found dead at the side of the road on Black St. Mr. Meirs is being held without bail.
• May 11, 1951: Kai Gertsen and Jennie Monk, both of Whitehorse, won the Dawson Ice Guessing Contest on Tuesday. The two held tickets marked for the ice break-up to occur at 11:03 a.m. Official time was recorded at 11:06 a.m. They will split the $3,500 prize money.
• May 11, 1951: Parents are warned that the Short Hill to the airport is in a very dangerous condition due to water seepage and children should be kept away. Authorities are afraid that a slide may occur burying or injuring children playing in that vicinity.

  

• May 25, 1951: The Yukon's first Cocktail Lounge opened at the Regina Hotel on May 24th. Unexpectedly opened, the Lounge attracted a steady trade all day. Many citizens were more curious than thirsty and admitted the novelty of attending the first lounge opened had prompted their attendance.
• May 25, 1951: Among changes to Whitehorse health regulations recommended by the Yukon Council is the outlawing of outhouses: "All pit privies now in use are hereby declared nuisances and the same shall be thoroughly emptied, cleansed and disinfected and filled with clean earth."
• May 25, 1951: The City Council were notified at last Tuesday's meeting that 11 new street lights would be installed on Main Street. The lights are of special design and will make a big difference to the down town section.

June

• June 1, 1951: The '98 Hotel opens its new modern cocktail lounge with an open house for Whitehorse business people.

• June 8, 1951: The Alaska Road Commission has ordered a preliminary survey of the proposed road between Skagway and Whitehorse, starting with an aerial survey.

• June 15, 1951: The annual meeting of the Whitehorse Teachers Association elects new officers: President, Mr. F. Locke; Vice-President, Mrs. Y. Wilson: Secretary, Mrs. Barnett; Treasurer, George Aylwin. Conveners of standing committees are: Social, Mrs. Charlie Taylor, Programme, Mrs. McLean; Membership, Mrs. Laurie Todd; Ways and Means, Jim Norrington, Publicity, Miss. R. Erickson.
• June 15, 1951: Bob Harrison is elected president of the recently formed Junior Chamber of Commerce.

July

• July 6, 1951: Believed to be the first soldier to return to the Yukon from Korea, Corporal G. N. Kjar, son of Mr. and Mrs. Them Kjar of Whitehorse, is home on leave. Corporal Kjar was one of the first to land in Korea last June with the 24th Division U.S. Army. He trained at Houston, Texas, before going to Japan where he spent 1 year.
• July 6, 1951: A branch of the Canadian National Institute for the Blind is formed in Whitehorse. Elected of office of the Whitehorse Branch are: Honorary Chairman, Mr. Justice Gibben: Chairman, William Hamilton: Vice Chairman, Stuart MacPherson: Treasurer, Art Jones: Secretary, Mrs. Gordon Dickson.
• July 6, 1951: Garskie Gold Mines has optioned the Laforma Mine, with plans to bring this high-grade gold property into production. The mine is located 154 miles by truck road from Whitehorse, on Mount Freegold in the Carmacks area.

• July 13, 1951: City Clerk Percy Hewitt has prepared a brief for the consideration of the City Council to approach the Federal Government to install a sewer and water system in Whitehorse. The idea originated when Mr. Hewitt heard that Yellowknife had such a system installed by the Federal Government.
• July 13, 1951: A head-on collision between 2 cars from Whitehorse injured 8 people at McCrae last Tuesday. Heavy dust is believed to have obscured the vision of the drivers, Ralph James and Edward Stevens.
• July 13, 1951: Congratulations to the Whitehorse Board of Trade for their appropriate welcome sign at the intersection of the two mile hill and the Alaska Highway. A countless number of tourists have already noticed this sign and taken photos of it with them to show friends where ever they go. A noted increase in the number of tourists in Whitehorse these past three weeks could also have been attracted into Whitehorse through this sign.

• July 20, 1951: Keeping in stride with the growth of Whitehorse, the "Star”"comes to you in a new form this week. The rapid growth of our circulation and demands for advertising space have made it necessary for us to secure a newspaper press. This new press along with the rest of our plant, has been installed in another building.
• July 20, 1951: A flash fire in the building housing the Northwest Highway System radio station and Rec Hall, gutted the Rec Hall and extensively damaged the radio station.
• July 20, 1951: Many tourists approaching the Two Mile Hill on the highway look with delight at the recently oiled roads leading to the Army housing area and think they are entering Whitehorse. Reports from the area are that there have been an increased number of tourist cars driving around the new homes looking for the Whitehorse Inn and the beverage rooms. Just shows what a little bit of oil or hardtop will do to attract tourists into town.
• July 20, 1951: Indian Girl Saved From Drowning. Jean Henry of Whitehorse very nearly lost her life whle swimming in a slough in the Standard Oil Area last Tuesday. Prompt action of Jerry Fromme saved the girl's life when he dragged her from the water.

• July 27, 1951: Hope of finding any of the passengers or crew alive in mysterious disappearance of a Canadian Pacific Airliner, with 38 persons aboard and missing since Saturday, is fading as the search enters its sixth day. The airliner disappeared last Saturday on the North Pacific Coast after making a routine radio check at Cape Spencer near Skagway at 1:20 a.m.
• July 27, 1951: The well supplying water service to homes and business houses south of Main Street near Front Street, and to the General Hospital, has been condemned. Contamination from the river prompted Federal Health officials to declare the water polluted. A chlorination attachment is said to be unsuitable for the amount of water pumped through to the reservoir tank.
• July 27, 1951: Conwest Explorations has created a new company to develop asbestos property they acquired last October. The Cassiar Asbestos Corporation has 25 claims, located 95 miles south of the Alaska Highway in the McDame Lake area of B.C.
• July 27, 1951: The Whitehorse College of Commerce, located in the Brunley Building on Main Street, is offering day and night classes all summer.

August

• August 3, 1951: The initial aerial survey of a road from Skagway suggests that two routes are possible - via the White Pass, or Warm Pass. An editorial blasts the Territorial Government for doing nothing to support the road.
• August 3, 1951: FBI agents and RCMP officials are reported to be standing by at Yakutat, Alaska, today, ready to search the wreckage of the missing CPA airliner for sign of possible sabotage, if the plane is ever found. This is the 13th day since the giant four-engined DC4 with 38 aboard, including nine Canadians, vanished off Cape Spencer while flying on a radio range.
• August 3, 1951: Contrary to reports from points along the Alaska Highway, the ferry is operating between Haines and Juneau. It was recently taken over by the Territory of Alaska and is now being operated as a government transportation service.

• August 10, 1951: The Whitehorse Star is closing for holidays - rushing away on August 10th, limping back on August 27th.
• August 10, 1951: New legislation to help Canada's 136,000 Indians on the road to self-government goes into force September 4, Citizenship Minister Harris announced today. The new Indian Act, first major overhaul of Indian legislation in 71 years, was passed at the last session of Parliament. Among the changes, the right to vote in band council elections is extended to Indian women.
• August 10, 1951: George Black is sworn in as a member of the King's Privy Council. Black was named to the Privy Council in December 1949, but Black's absence from Ottawa did not allow an earlier swearing in ceremony.

• August 31, 1951: On the front page is a photo of one of the old landmarks of Whitehorse, the elementary schoolhouse. The completion of the new $800,000 school next year will see the closure of the old building as a school.
• August 31, 1951: The decision of the Canadian Pacific Steamships to discontinue passenger service between Vancouver and Skagway is a severe blow to the residents of the Yukon Territory. The CPS would like to pass the buck that the service is only for tourists, where it really is the only convenient route to Vancouver for workmen and their families to travel to the Yukon.
• August 31, 1951: Following the discontinuance of the Dial due to the vast amount of work entailed, weekly programs over radio station CFWH will now appear each week in the Whitehorse Star.

September

• September 7, 1951: The Capital Hotel opens for business with the completion of the interior of their building at 103 Main Street.
• September 7, 1951: Commissioner Gibson is reported to have ordered the reduction in tolls on cordwood hauled over the Mayo Road to 75 cents per ton, truck not to be included.
• September 7, 1951: The new addition to the Whitehorse General hospital, scheduled to be finished this fall, is rapidly nearing completion. Estimated to cost close to $25,000 the new addition will add a private women's ward, enlarged X-ray department and a larger maternity word complete with case rooms.
• September 7, 1951: A severe wood shortage is feared in Whitehorse this winter unless more woodcutters return to their jobs to bring the precious fuel in. Heavy tolls on the Mayo road stopped several woodcutters early this month, then the construction companies are taking a number of men. Wood cut to date is around 1200 cords compared to 5000 cords last year.

• September 14, 1951: Amos Burg, a National Geographic writer and photographer, shoots Miles Canyon and Whitehorse Rapids with Yukoner Bill MacBride. A year earlier, Captain Guild of the US Army ran the rapids in a rubber raft.
• September 14, 1951: United Keno Hill has followed up its ore disclosures on the 525 ft. level of the Hector Mine by encountering the important No 3 vein in its crosscut on the bottom 650 ft. level. This is the deepest underground work in the camp. The mill is currently treating about 240 tons per day.
• September 14, 1951: A charter was presented to the newly formed Lions Club. Officers of the Lions Club are: President: Robert Campbell: First Vice-President, Leo Lortie, Second Vice-President, Dr. W. E. Doupe: Third Vice-President, Lawrence Seely: Secretary, David Porter: Treasurer, H. E. Boyd: Lion Tamer, Owen Williams: Tail Twister, Harry Johannes. Directors are: Odin Hougen, Matthew Nelson, and Gordon Tubman.

• September 21, 1951: Construction of the Taku River highway between Juneau and Atlin is approved unanimously by the Associated Boards of Trade of British Columbia and Southeast Alaska.
• September 21, 1951: Them Kjar, Director of Publicity and Game Department for the Yukon, stated this week that they were successful in bringing in 5 Buffalo from Big Delta, Alaska and releasing them to roam the Yukon country, on the old Dawson Trail near Braeburn. Also see September 28.
• September 21, 1951: What could be the wreckage of the missing Canadian Pacific Airlines Korean airlift plane which vanished July 21 with 38 aboard, has been spotted on a mountainside in the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska.
• September 21, 1951: A head on collision between an Army truck and a Watson Lake taxi killed the taxi driver and sent the other 2 occupants to the hospital in Whitehorse in poor condition. Killed was Ivan McDevitt, 27, operator of the Watson Lake Hotel and Taxi. McDevitt was blinded by dust and did not see the 10-ton Army vehicle approaching.

• September 28, 1951: Whitehorse City Council granted Mayo Utilities a 20-year franchise at the last Council meeting on Tuesday evening. There is provision in the franchise for the purchase of the company by the city.
• September 28, 1951: Among the crime reports, a gang of young boys ranging in age from 10 to 14 and dressed in robes wearing hoods with eye slits cut in them are reported to have attacked three citizens in downtown Whitehorse within the past two weeks. The headline reads "Hooded Gang Frightening Residents; Young Fry Organize Klu Klux Klan".

October

• October 5, 1951: Described by the Red Cross Donor Clinic as the largest contribution to the mobile clinic on record, Whitehorse citizens donated over 704 pints of blood. A steady stream of Army, Airforce personnel and their wives joined with citizens to swell the blood bank above the expected 300 pints.
• October 5, 1951: The former T. C. Richards home on Steele and 3rd Ave. took on a new lease on life this week when 8 Whitehorse school teachers moved in. The house has been furnished by the Territorial Government and provides accomodation for ten teachers.
• October 5, 1951: Citizens of Whitehorse are going to be radio conscious after next week, with many activities to support CFWK being planned for Radio Week.

November

• November 16, 1951: The Whitehorse Merchants Hockey Club elect their new executive. President, T.C. Richards; Vice-President, Pete Petiot; Secretary-Treasurer, Rolf Hougen. Other executive members are Ernie Lortie, Al Wise, William Hamilton, and George Aylwin.
• November 16, 1951: Mr. Fred Fraser, newly appointed Commissioner for the Yukon, arrived in Whitehorse. He was appointed Commissioner early in October, succeeding A. H. Gibson who was appointed Police Magistrate at Dawson City.

• November 23, 1951: A fire in the electric light plant house of the Yukon Coal Co. in Carmacks on November 15th totally destroyed the plant and shed. Cause of the fire has not been ascertained but is believed to have been a short circuit. As this plant was used to charge the batteries in the miner's lamps the mine is closed down until a new plant can be obtained.
• November 23, 1951: Mr. J. W. Israel, Coffee Bar of Minto moved into new quarters at McCabe Creek, 5 miles south of the former location, November 12th, and is now open for business right on the Whitehorse-Mayo Highway, 41 miles north of Carmacks. Minto, with a population of about 200 whites two short years ago when the Fred Manix Co. had a base there, is now completely deserted, the nearest habitation being that of the R.C.M.P. on the highway half a mile north of Minto.
• November 23, 1951: A joint meeting was held last Monday evening with the new Territorial Commissioner, Mr. Fred Fraser, members of the City Council and the executive of the Board of Trade. Commissioner Fraser discussed pertinent items such as Territorial help towards completing the Civic Centre. A possible extra liquor tax was discussed giving the Centre a 50% cut, with 25% to the hospital and 25% toward relief. They also discussed passing some school costs to the City, lowering coal costs (the new schol and Federal building will use over 1,000 tons per year), and replacing ferries on the Mayo road with bridges.

December

• December 3, 1951: The Yukon Ski Club elects the following officers: President, Mr. A. Yeulet, Vice President, James Mutch, Secretary, Miss. D. Fleming, Treasurer, Miss. G. Fick, Publicity Manager, C. Skeleton.

• December 21, 1951: A mother and her 6-year-old daughter from Whitehorse are among the 11 people missing in a fire which swept the 650-foot Danish motorship "Erria" in the mouth of the Columbia River today. Missing is Mrs. Kathleen Brunlees and her daughter, Elizabeth. The vessel was anchored when the fire broke out at about 2 a.m., and more than 100 people took to lifeboats. In the December 28th edition, a lengthy article reported that their bodies were found in the burned ship's lounge.

1952

January

• January 18, 1952: Gordon Armstrong was re-elected Mayor of Whitehorse by acclamation. He takes office April 1st. Aldermen elected on January 25 are William Drury, William Hamilton, James Norrington and Thomas Bain.

• January 25, 1952: The King approved the appointment of Vincent Massey as the first Canadian Governor General of Canada. He succeeded Field Marshall Viscount Alexander of Tunis.
• January 25, 1952: A real life drama that reads like a story plot and nearly ended in tragedy was lived on the Atlin Highway last weekend. Among those who barely survived was Dr. Murray G. Williams of Whitehorse. See Challenging the Atlin Road in a blizzard.

February

• February 1, 1952: Gilbert Skelly died this week at the Whitehorse General Hospital at the age of 78. He came into the Yukon in 1898, settling in Dawson City, where he prospected, then lived in Whitehorse for some time before moving to Carcross. Road building occupied a number of years of his life and it is said that in company With the late Sam McGee he pioneered the road between Whitehorse and Kluane Lake.
• February 1, 1952: A fire of undetermined origin destroyed the McRae home of Roy Kilburn and damaged the cafe next door last Sunday morning. The Army fire department responded to the call and sent a truck and 5 men to fight the blaze. Their prompt action is believed responsible for saving the cafe building. Over 500 gallons of water were poured on the flames in 20 below zero weather.
• February 1, 1952: Evidence is accumulating of an iron range or possibly a series of ranges, extending for about 500 miles in a great arc from the Mackenzie Mountains northwestward to a locality near the Alaska border north of Dawson. While no ore-bodies have been found up to the present, there is now an incentive to search for them, in spite of the long distance to the port of Skagway.

  

• February 8, 1952: King George VI died in his sleep on February 6th at Sandringham, the Royal Estate in Norfolk where he was born fifty-six years ago. Princess Elizabeth has been proclaimed Queen.
• February 8, 1952: Florence Mary Goldsmith of Keno City landed in jail last Saturday after she was involved in a knife slashing incident there. Two men, victims of knife wounds, were hospitalized at Mayo after the scuffle.
• February 8, 1952: The Whitehorse Chapter, Imperial Order of the Daughters of the Empire, support the National Chapter upon its stand to protest the government's action regarding the deletion of the word "Dominion" from the name of our beloved country, the Dominion of Canada.

• February 15, 1952: Aldermen report that city residents still have not to any great extent put in chemical toilets and are still using pit-pives. If the residents do not comply with the city by-law, it may be necessary to enforce this more fully.
• February 15, 1952: A bold move by independent Yukon Truckers in disregarding the necessity of a "J" license to haul freight on the Alaska Highway has thrown the trucking business open to competition. The prized "J" license was required to pick up freight for more than a single consignee.
• February 15, 1952: In Anchorage, tomatoes cost 89 cents per pound and a glass of milk bites the wallet for 25 cents, but most critical shortage in this booming defense city is girls. One airline hostess said she receives an average of three dead-serious proposals of marriage per week.

• February 22, 1952: Thomas Dickson died at the Whitehorse General Hospital last Saturday at the age of 96. Arriving in the Yukon in 1898 with a force of 200 Northwest Mounted Police, the first to patrol the Yukon, Thomas Dickson was stationed at Tagish. He went on to become a big game guide, a career he continued until ill health forced him into retirement in January of 1949 when he entered the hospital.
• February 22, 1952: A branch of the Royal Canadian Air Cadets will be organized in Whitehorse, sponsored by the Lions Club.
• February 22, 1952: RCMP officers flew from Prince George to the Dease River area, where the body of trapper Phillip Hankin, 73, was found in a trapline cabin last Friday. He and all of his dogs had been shot about a month ago, they believe.

• February 29, 1952: At an event attended by 200 members and guests, the Whitehorse Jaycees received their Charter from National Vice-President Roger Flumerfelt on Saturday night.
• February 29, 1952: A charge of stealing three bottles of liquor, laid by Gordon L. Silcox against William Grant, 24 years of age brought forth a bootlegging charge on Silcox, who was sentenced to three months in jail.
• February 29, 1952: Black Diamond Tungsten, Ltd., reports steady progress in the consruction of two miles of road to connect its Atlin District mine with the government road at Boulder Creek. About 1,000 ft. of road remains to be built to the powerhouse site and a further 500 ft. will reach the adit portal. The mine is within 10 miles of Atlin.

March

• March 7, 1952: Rev. Harold Lee became the victim of a tragic highway accident, which occurred at mile 785.9 about five o'clock Saturday evening, when the car which he was driving collided with an oncoming Canadian Army ration truck. He was taken back to Morley River Lodge at 777.7 to await medical aid, then was driven to Teslin at flown to Whitehorse, arriving at two o'clock a.m. He died at the Army hospital about 3:45 the same morning. Read the entire article and several others here.
• March 7, 1952: Contrary to outside cities' threats of meat shortages, butchers in Whitehorse report that supplies are good here and should last for a month. Butcher shops in Whitehorse normally carry from two weeks to a month supply of meat each.
• March 7, 1952: Moose Johnson, registered Yukon trapper caught the first female Wolverine that has been taken alive for the Calgary zoo. Indian trapprs have received approximately $800 to-date for capturing live animals for outside zoos, 5 wolverine and four Lynx have now been shipped out, through Mr. Them Kjar and his dept. of Game and Publicity.

• March 14, 1952: Members of the Yukon Fish & Game Association are up in arms over a proposed move by Army Headquarters io establish a summer haven on Little Kathleen Lake for Army Officers and families. It is the only lake near Whitehorse where Rainbow Trout can be caught and if the Army move in the trout would be extinct in a very short time.
• March 14, 1952: The City Council received a written complaint from Mr. F. Constable stating that his competitors, Mr. McClimon and Mr. Jamieson, were not licensing their automatic phonographs which they were putting in use throughout the city.
• March 14, 1952: In a drive to wipe out the epidemic of foot and mouth disease in cattle Outside, large numbers of infected animals are being driven into large pits and shot. The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has branded the slaughter "brutal" and "cruel."

• March 21, 1952: Henning Madsen of Yellowknife bought the '98 Hotel from Harold Dennison, Bob Swanson and Bill Lunde last week. When the new owner dismissed without notice one of the waiters and placed a woman waiter in his place, head barman Cal Miller and the rest of the waiters left their jobs. The Cocktail Ordinance is going to be be changed to prohibit women working.
• March 21, 1952: A new water pump has been purchased which will be mounted on a truck for spraying the roads to keep dust down this summer.
• March 21, 1952: The City's new "Wood Packer" garbage truck arrived in the city last weekend. Works Superintendent Tuffy Cyr drove the vehicle from Windsor, Ontario to Whitehorse, a total of 3700 miles.

• March 28, 1952: The Civic Centre Association elected the following: President, Arthur E. Yeulet; Vice President, James Hanna; Treasurer, Dave Porter. It is hoped thta the new arena can be completed this year.
• March 28, 1952: Canada Packers intends to move two buildings now located at Johnsons Crossing into Whitehorse. Refrigerator and storage space will be contained in the completed building which will sell wholesale to Yukon merchants.
• March 28, 1952: Dogs are a problem in Whitehorse. Large packs, often led by a female, go charging through the streets creating a great disturbance, and council is worried that a child will be bitten.

April

• April 18, 1952: Brigadier H.W. Love, Canadian Army Commander of the Northwest Highway System, said that as the Alaska Highway reached its 10th anniversary this month it has become, "one of the best gravel roads in the world."
• April 18, 1952: The almost extinct Trumpeter Swan of a few years ago has made a come back after careful supervision by the Wild Life & Game officers of B.C. and some of their birds are expected to migrate as far north as the Yukon this year.
• April 18, 1952: A warning by Commissioner Fraser that the City will have to contribute approximately $100 per pupil or $23,200 towards school operational costs has the City Council pulling their hair.

May

• May 9, 1952: The Whitehorse Board of Trade elects the following officers for 1952: President - James Smith; Vice President - Rolf Hougen; Secretary - Robert Rowan; Treasurer - Arthur McKay; Executive Officers are George Van Roggen, Mat Nelson, Gordon Lee, Ernie Theed, Arthur Jones, Howard Braden, Bill MacBride and Bob Cousins.

• May 10, 1952: Effective May 10, all trucks and automobiles are compelled to carry $5000 Public Liability Insurance.
• May 10, 1952: The body of Worden Elmer Wambolt, drowned at the Yukon River dam last Saturday evening, was recovered by a diver from Vancouver yesterday. Read the entire article here.
• May 10, 1952: Commencing with a Friday evening dance in the Inn Ballroom and a parade on Saturday, the Y.P.A. Sports Day should be a big event. A sports queen will be elected Friday evening from three contestants, Yvonne Russell, Janet Bottomley, Syivia Williams.

• May 16, 1952: "Bowling Alley Sold To Hougen's Ltd. The Whitehorse Bowling Alley was sold this week to Hougen's Ltd. According to Mr. Ralph Hougen, the firm purchased the alley to expand their present store. The alleys will be removed, leaving Whitehorse without a bowling alley."
• May 16, 1952: City Council refused the request of the Whitehorse Athletic Club to move from its present location above Pinchins Store to the home of Kai Gertsen on Second Avenue at Strickland. The club said the high rent at the current location made the move necessary, but neighbours and council members felt that being in a residential area was inappropriate.
• May 16, 1952: The Whitehorse Athletic Club was closed and fixtures and equipment seized by police after a raid on the premises, early last Sunday morning. Twenty patrons were surprised when police walked in. Cards, money etc, were all seized. They were charged with keeping a Common Gaming House.

• May 23, 1952: Young People's Association Sports Day. Yvonne Russell, Janet Bottomley, Sylvia Williams are Queen candidates. Yvonne Russell is elected Queen of the Y.P.A. Sports Day.

• May 30, 1952: The Junior Chamber of Commerce elects the following officers for the coming year: President, Mr. Charlie Blishen; Vice President, Burnie Moore; Secretary, Ron Sauder; Treasurer, Eric Small.

June

• June 13, 1952: Gordon Armstrong and T.C. Richards buy into Atlin mineral claims.

• June 20, 1952: The President of the W.D. MacBride Museum states that the Museum has been redecorated and that exhibits are being placed therein and will soon be open to the public.
• June 20, 1952: After four years of construction, the Donjek Bridge is officially opened June 15th. It is the most northerly bridge to be built by the Canadian Army.

July

• July 4, 1952: Yellow Cabs is starting a city bus service on July 7. The bus will serve Upper Whitehorse, RCAF areas, airport and D.O.T. houses. Stops will eventually operate throughout the city.
• July 4, 1952: Work on construction of the Dawson Road starts.

• July 11, 1952: Tourists Services opens an ultra-modern cocktail bar on July 9th. Tourists Services Ltd. have quickly expanded their business ventures in Whitehorse the last couple of years, providing the only tourist camp and trailer facilities in the city. The company has continually tried to cater to the general public, offering services in all branches of their operation. Cal Miller is Manager of the cocktail bar.

• July 18, 1952: The Hougen's Store is gutted by fire. The building had to be partially pulled down and rebuilt.
• July 18, 1952: A new drug store was to be opened in the former quarters of the College of Commerce on Main Street, next to the Capital Hotel.
• July 18, 1952: Magistrate A.H. Gibson, former Commissioner of the Yukon, takes over the Magistrate position formerly held by J. Kerr.
• July 18, 1952: The Federal Government confirms that Indians do not have the privilege of voting in the Territorial Election.

August

• August 8, 1952: A rash of vehicle accidents around the territory in the past few days have left one person dead and five injured, some seriously.
• August 8, 1952: Mr. Bill McBride reported at a Board of Trade meeting that the Yukon Historical Association is ready to open the Whitehorse museum. Many fine articles have been donated for the museum and great interest shown by visitors who have visited it. The members complimented Mr. McBride for his efforts in establishing the museum. One member stated that it should be the "Bill McBride Museum."
• August 8, 1952: A fierce fire engulfed an unused PMQ building Thursday noon. Prompt action by Town and Army firemen saved what could have been a major fire. The unused building stands close to a row of new homes recently constructed for Army personnel and if firemen had been unable to check the flames and one of the new homes caught fire, it would have been a serious loss to the Army.

• August 15, 1952: The Whitehorse High School was officially opened this afternoon with a ribbon cutting ceremony at the main entrance of the school. The school was acclaimed on a par with new schools being opened in larger cities. The building was constructed by Marwell Construction Co. Ltd., using subcontractors in Whitehorse.
• August 15, 1952: Ralph Caruso, part-time cab driver for Inn Cabs and employee of the White Pass and Yukon Railway, was brutally murdered at approximately 10:40 p.m. last Monday evening after telling two men he was unable to drive them to Prince George.
• August 15, 1952: General Enterprises Ltd. were successful in their bid for laying cement sidewalks from 3rd and Main to 4th and Main on the south side and from Wood Street to the new school on the east side of 4th Street. The successful tender bid $8.70 per sq. yd. One other bid of $11.25 per sq. yd. was received from Campbell's Ltd.

• August 22, 1952: The Territorial Council for the coming term will be as follows: A.R. Hayes, Carmacks; Alex Berry, Mayo; James Mellor, Dawson; John Phelps, Whitehorse; Fred Locke, Whitehorse.
• August 22, 1952: A record-breaking attendance was reported at the 4th Annual Kiwanis Horticultural Show, held in the Army Theatre Thursday evening. Dawson City displays of vegetables and plants drew much attention. As usual the Ben-My-Chree display was beautiful. Needlework, beadwork, art and photography were much admired as was the home-cooking exhibit.
• August 22, 1952: The Little Miss Muffett Shoppe, formerly The Salad Bowl, carries a stock of lingerie and babies' clothes.

• August 29, 1952: In line with the growth of the City of Whitehorse and the increased use of its communication facilities in the Yukon Territory, Mayo Utilities Company, Ltd., at a recent shareholders meeting, resolved to change the name of the company to Yukon Telephone Company, Ltd.
• August 29, 1952: Inn Cabs will have the first radio-controlled taxi cabs to operate in the Yukon Territory this week-end. Installation is now being completed to have two-way radios in five of their taxi cabs. The radio will have a twenty-five mile range. Manager Lloyd Camyre states that service will be speeded up considerably by the use of radio.
• August 29, 1952: Plans to lay a block of pavement on Main Street before freeze-up has been stalled through the lack of necessary equipment. The City was expecting to be able to rent a pavement spray truck from the NWHS.

September

• September 5, 1952: The Whitehorse sign at the top of the Two-Mile Hill, erected by the Board of Trade last year, will be washed and revarnished to protect it from the coming wintry weather.
• September 5, 1952: Co-sponsored by The Milepost, popular highway guide book, and the Nuffield organization of England, a 2,500-mile travel film has just been completed in sound and color for exhibit in 1953. Drivers from a British car dealer in Vancouver drove two Morris cars along the route.
• September 5, 1952: An increase in the number of thefts from automobiles parked on city streets is increasing, according to police. Two rifles and a substantial quantity of camping gear were taken in 3 recent thefts.

• September 12, 1952: The Princess Kathleen hit a reef on September 7 while sailing from Juneau to Skagway. All 307 passengers and 118 crew members were taken off safely. The ship then slipped off the rocks and sunk.
• September 12, 1952: A meeting between the new officials of the Yukon Brewery Company and city officials reveals the possibility of the brewery building a million and a half dollar plant in Whitehorse in the next year.
• September 12, 1952: The City of Whitehorse signs a 20 year exclusive franchise with the Yukon Electrical Company Ltd.

• September 19, 1952: The Board of Trade set October 27 to November 1 as radio week in Whitehorse. Goal is to raise money for the radio station.
• September 19, 1952: In his Just Whitlin' column, "Pack Rat" talks about Fern Woods' adventure hitch-hiking to Alaska. Read the entire article here.
• September 19, 1952: Attempting to clear a jam in the chute that takes asbestos ore to the Cassiar mill, Andy Wood from Orillia, Ontario, slipped and slid some 1,500 feet down it. An RCAF rescue plane landed on a nearby lake and flew him to Whitehorse, where he s nursing a broken leg and many bruises and cuts.

• September 26, 1952: The Whitehorse Inn opens one of Canada's most modern cocktail lounges. They call it the Rainbow Cocktail Lounge. All equipment and decor were of the latest, modern in every respect.
• September 26, 1952: The Whitehorse Star is available in Mayo and Keno.
• September 26, 1952: According to the latest census figures released in September of 1952, the total Yukon population is 9,096; 5,457 are males, 3,639 are females. There are 1,319 children under 5 years of age.

October

• October 17, 1952: The first of three columns in "From the Sidelines" discussing the Fish Lake power generaring plant of Yukon Hydro is published. Read all three here.
• October 17, 1952: Chapman's Shoe Store moves their present store from Main Street near Fourth Avenue to Fourth and Wood Street.
• October 17, 1952: A group of citizens organize the S.P.C.A. in Whitehorse to establish an animal care facility in the city.

• October 24, 1952: Yukon M.P. Aubrey Simmons says the Territorial Government should be severely criticized for attempting to build the Dawson Road when they do not have the equipment. This summer they have only built four and one-half miles of road at a cost we know will be high.
• October 24, 1952: The Board of St. Agnes Hostel for Protestant Children from along the Highway has planned a two-week campaign to raise money to pay the costs of putting the hostel into operation.
• October 24, 1952: Radio Week, furthering radio in Whitehorse and featuring special programming on CFWH, begins on Monday. A photo of thirty of the volunteer operators who keep the station on the air appears on the front page.

• October 31, 1952: An Order-in-Council, passed by the Government of Canada on May 14th, created the "Eagle Plain and Peel Plateau Reservation".

November

• November 7, 1952: The circulation of the Whitehorse Star climbed to an all-time high the latter part of October when demands for the paper increased the press run to 1,900 copies per week.
• November 7, 1952: RCMP reported the quietest Hallowe'en for some years, with no reports of severe damage by the celebrants. Numerous garbage cans and wood piles were scattered, windows soaped, but it was all in fun and wasn't serious, the police report.
• November 7, 1952: Brigadier Love informed the Board of Trade at their Tuesday night meeting that the Army will move the Board of Trade sign from its present location and place it in the centre of the new roundabout at the top of the Two-Mile Hill. One hundred and fifty dollars was voted to repaint and brighten the sign.

• November 14, 1952: Mr. W. G. Brown, former Administrator for the Northwest Territories, has been appointed as Commissioner for the Yukon replacing Fred Fraser.
• November 14, 1952: G. I. Cameron is appointed Sanitary Inspector of the Yukon.
• November 14, 1952: The Yukon Ski Runners elect the following officers for the coming year: President, Odin Hougen; Vice-President, Emie Viegel; Secretary, Barbara Mamen; Treasurer, Maisie Stegelman.

• November 21, 1952: A fire completely gutted a house on Sunday, November 16, killing Mrs. Elizabeth Beckley, her son Richard, and her brother-in-law George Beckley. Read the entire article here.
• November 21, 1952: The newly-formed Humane Society elected the following officers for the coming year on November 10th: President, Mrs. B. Craig; First Vice-President, Jean Mutch; Second Vice-President, R. J. Friend; Treasurer, Mrs. G. Dickson; Secretary, Mrs. Wilson.
• November 21, 1952: Citizens of Whitehorse will again enjoy curling this season in the RCAF hangar. There will be no independent club for civilians but the curlers will function as a group in conjunction with the RCAF and Army personnel, with a total membership of 300.

• November 28, 1952: City Clerk Percy Hewitt informed the City Council that a traffic meter had been placed on Fourth Avenue to count traffic volume. The meter indicated that 2,900 vehicles had passed over the air hose in 12 hours.
• November 28, 1952: The B.C.-Yukon chamber of Mines held their annual meeting. Forty members were present. President, Mr. Gordon Lee; First Vice-President, Gordon Dickson; Second Vice-President, Pete Versluce; Secretary-Treasurer, A.K. Farley.
• November 28, 1952: The Morley River Lodge and Filling Station, at Mile 777, Alaska Highway, was destroyed by fire on November 27th. Clyde Wann owned the lodge and it was partially covered by insurance.

December

• December 12, 1952: Because stranded motorists run the risk of freezing to death before help arrives, signs ordering "daylight driving only" may be posted for the winter on the new John Hart Highway, which runs 274 miles from Prince George to Dawson Creek, B.C.

• December 19, 1952: The Whitehorse Lodge B.P.O. Elks, No. 306, hold their annual installation meeting at the Elks Hall and the following officers were elected: Exalted Ruler, Leo Lortie; Immediate Past Exalted Ruler, Frank Mikusch; Leading Knight, Dick Carswell; Loyal Knight, Jack Connelly; Lecturing Knight, Don MacPhail; Esquire, George Webber; Historian, Reg Brynlund; Chaplain, Andy Borland; Inner Guard, Frank Dodsworth.

1953

January

• January 2, 1953: The vast $400,000,000. aluminum plant near Skagway has been dealt a death blow by the Canadian Government's refusal to supply water for the project. The plant to have been built by the Aluminum Company of America would have employed 4,000 workers and produced 200,000 tons of aluminum per year. Announcement was made by Alcoa with gigantic fanfare last August.
• January 2, 1953: Yellow Cabs started the New Year off right with four new Dodge cars. The new sedans are all two-tone, cream with maroon tops.
• January 2, 1953: As the number of accidents at the traffic circle built by Army engineers climbs, an editorial says the traffic hazard must be removed before someone gets killed. Read it and a previous editorial about the traffic circle here.

• January 9, 1953: A year-old battle between the City of Whitehorse and Mr. Dave McClimon over a house that did not meet the City's building by-law which calls for a clearance of five feet from side lot lines, was dismissed in Court last week. The by-law states that a home can not be built closer to the lot lines, but this home wasn't built there, it was moved to the site.
• January 9, 1953: White Pass and Yukon Route, operating through traffic from Vancouver to the Klondike, is adopting the "pick-up van" method of handling freight. Bulk containers made of metal and rendered flexible by wire clamps will be used to handle all sorts of packaged goods. For instance, a grocery order filled in a Vancouver wholesale warehouse will be shipped by the van system and is not opened from the start until the end of the journey.
• January 9, 1953: A Yukon trapper, Bill Hall and his son Teddy, 16 years of age, had a narrow escape early this week when nine wolves attacked them. They were attending their trap line 71 miles south of Whitehorse when the wolves came snarling at them from the bushes. Bill managed to shoot one and kept firing at the rest until he drove them away.

• January 16, 1953: The Whitehorse Legion elects officers for 1953: President, Earl Gay; First Vice President, R. Chapman; Second Vice-President, H. Cunningham; Sergeant-at-Arms, Bill Smoller.
• January 16, 1953: Another new type of business starts in Whitehorse when Mr. and Mrs. Pete Petiot open their self-serve laundry.
• January 16, 1953: Whitehorse City Council prepares a brief acquainting the Government of the needs of a water and sewer system in Whitehorse.

• January 23, 1953: An earthquake that shook the town of Mayo on January 18th lasted approximately four minutes. Residents were reported to have received quite a scare from the quake.
• January 23, 1953: George Murray claims in Parliament that the construction of the Alaska Highway by the Army was full of corruption. Between 1942 and 1945 about 14,000 pieces of equipment worth $10 Million were allegedly stolen.
• January 23, 1953: A round-up of all stray dogs will start next week, according to City officials. An experienced dog catcher has been engaged and he will apprehend all dogs without collars and licence tags. They will be destroyed immediately in the City gas chamber.

• January 30, 1953: 19-year-old Lena Emma Tizya has been chosen to represent the Girl Guides of the Yukon at the Coronation ceremonies in England in the Spring.
• January 30, 1953: Twenty-seven fire calls in 29 days has set a record for calls to the Whitehorse City Fire Department. Although no damage is reported, some could have been bad fires if they had not been spotted.
• January 30, 1953: A 70-year-old miner and a cow moose were found dead near each other on a lonely trail near Fairbanks, apparently victims of a bitfer wilderness battle. A half-wild team of malemute dogs owned by the miner, Lawrence Magnusia, crouched in the snow nearby. They paid little attention to their dead master but had been feeding on the moose carcass.

February

• February 13, 1953: The Junior Chamber of Commerce elect on February 9, 1953 Frank Algar as president after the resignation of Charlie Blishen.

• February 20, 1953: The Yukon Fish and Game Association elect officers for the coming year: President, Frank Mikusch (replacing Ted Pinchin); Vice-President, Lloyd Dunbar; Secretary, Rolf Hougen; Treasurer, Charlie Rosenberg.

• February 27, 1953: The new Whitehorse Civic Centre Arena officially opened on February 18th. The first ticket, for a midget hockey game between the Legion and Kiwanis, was purchased by Mayor Gordon Armstrong.
• February 27, 1953: Simpsons-Sears Ltd., large department store and mail order company, are opening a mail order store in Whitehorse next Monday, March 2. The store will be under the management of Mr. and Mrs. V. A. Chapman of Whitehorse and is located on Main Street near Second Avenue.
• February 27, 1953: A severe flu epidemic is reported to be responsible for preventing curlers from Dawson attending the bonspiel. It has been reported that schools and public gatherings have been closed because of the epidemic.

March

• March 13, 1953: The Whitehorse Inn opens an ultramodern restaurant that is declared the finest in Canada's North, one that Yukoners can be proud of.
• March 13, 1953: Thayer Lindsey, President of Ventures Ltd., told company shareholders in Toronto about his biggest venture: a hydroelectric power development in the Yukon. It would cost two billion dollars and develop as much as five million horsepower to run a great new metallurgical development in the Canadian Northwest. Known as the Frobisher Project, it would flood vast tracts of the Yukon including Whitehorse.
• March 13, 1953: At the annual meeting of the Yukon Historical Society, the following directorate was named: Patrons, Captain and Mrs. George Black; Honorary President, Honourable J. Aubrey Simmons, M.P.; President, W. D. MacBride; Vice-President, Mrs. Jas Porter; Secretary-Treasurer, C.A. Morrison; Executive, Mrs. E. Steeves and J. J. Elliott.

• March 27, 1953: On March 19th, a fire damaged the plant and stock of the Dawson News. Publisher W. Samuelson advised the Star he would be back in business in two weeks.
• March 27, 1953: The administration of the Yukon Territorial Government completes its move from Dawson to Whitehorse. Temporary offices were set up in one of the old school buildings at the north end of Third Avenue.

April

• April 3, 1953: CFWH returns to air next week. When the American Armed Forces radio programs were stopped, action was initiated to obtain CBC programs to supplement locally produced programs. On April 5 or 6th, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation programs will be available for the first time to Whitehorse listeners. CFWH remains a volunteer station.
• April 3, 1953: A supposedly rich nickel find near White River, approximately 300 miles north of Whitehorse on the Alaska Highway, has attracted hundreds of persons attempting to stake claims. According to an eyewitness at the scene, prospectors, truck drivers, wives and children have invaded the reported nickel area.
• April 3, 1953: BYN provided a bus to take people to Mile 1016 yesterday to search for 2 missing children. The body of the 4-year-old son Mr. and Mrs. Harrington was found overnight in the Alsek River, but the 3-year-old son Mr. and Mrs. Magnusson is still missing.

• April 10, 1953: The first meeting of the Territorial Council is held in the territory's new capital, Whitehorse, on April 8 in the courtrooms over the post office. Members from Dawson, Mayo, and Carmacks are in Whitehorse to attend the meeting.
• April 10, 1953: On orders from Ottawa due to an outbreak of rabies in Canada, dogs must now be confined or tied up. A very small group of fanatic dog haters are said to have brought about the order.
• April 10, 1953: Territorial Council members heard suggestions from Yukon trapper Johnny Johns to step up the killing of wolves in the Territory. He said he would like to see the bounty back on wolves including wolf pups.

• April 17, 1953: Sales of MacLeans Magazine boomed this week when an article on Whitehorse appeared, written by Jack Scott. He outlined his impressions of Whitehorse on his last visit here. In his usual style, he is not very complimentary towards living conditions or roads.
• April 17, 1953: City Council issued the White Pass Railway a permit to alter their present depot. A complete remodelling program is scheduled, costing $20,000, with paved walks and flower beds on First Avenue.
• April 17, 1953: Councillor Hayes of Carmacks says the Territorial Garage there is the sloppiest and most inefficiently operated camp in the Territory He says the Government had 47 pieces of equipment; 16 were in working condition, three condition unknown and 28 broken down or worn out.

• April 24, 1953: A week prior, Mr. and Mrs. Richard White, proprietors of the Capital Hotel, opened ten new rooms on the second floor of their hotel.
• April 24, 1953: Ralph G. Rogers, employed by the Canadian Army, was winner of the Whitehorse Ice Pool and $1,060 in cash. The ice moved out at 7:50 a.m. on April 22nd.
• April 24, 1953: Northern Commercial Company is advertising that they have 2 new Fords and 1 new Monarch in stock, and several new cars, 1/2-ton pickups and 5-ton trucks are en route.

May

• May 1, 1953: Crowds of people to overflow capacity filled the Court Room every day this week to hear evidence presented in the trial of Glen Donald Smith, 20 years of age, accused of shooting taxi driver Ralph Caruso in the head, killing him, last August. Smith was found guilty and was sentenced to hang on July 10th. On appeal, his sentenced was reduced to 15 years because of his level of intoxication.
• May 1, 1953: City Fire Chief Fred Blaker reported to City Council that firelosses for the year 1952-53 in the City amounted to $70,738 for the 94 fires occurring during the year. Over half of them were chimney fires. Three persons lost their lives, and losses covered by insurance totalled $85,506, leaving an uninsured loss of $5,232. The most serious was Hougen's Limited with a reported loss of $48,000, cause unknown.
• May 1, 1953: According to medical health officials, two known cases of polio are reported in the City. Rumors of deaths attributed to polio have been denied. Stricken victims are being cared for in the General Hospital, where an addiional four nurses have been engaged and an isolation ward has been set up to care for the patients.

• May 8, 1953: Six polio cases were reported to be confined to General Hospital today. Four of the cases are children and two are adults.
• May 8, 1953: The B.C. Provincial Government has made plans to survey an enormous tract of unexplored northern wilderness north of Fort St. John as a potential oil and natural gas reservoir. Air mapping of a potential highway route from Hazelton to the Yukon will be also be conducted, and a ground party will go into the Atlin Lake area by packhorse for ground surveys of the highway route.
• May 8, 1953: Commissioner W. G. Brown officiated at the presentation of funds and documents to Miss Lena Tizya who leaves the Yukon Saturday to attend the Coronation. Lena was chosen to represent the Girl Guides of the Yukon and will accompany other Girl Guides from across Canada.

• May 15, 1953: Monsieur Francois de Laboulaye, French Embassy Consular, was entertained at a luncheon Monday by the Territorial Government, City of Whitehorse, and the Board of Trade. Monsieur Laboulaye is making a tour of Western Canada to get acquainted with the people of the West and to tell the people what France is doing in the international field.
• May 15, 1953: Fire destroys Cole Brothers garage at Keno. In a matter of minutes the whole group of buildings was ablaze, and so hot that nothing was saved. Approximately $75,000 of damage was done. The diesel electric light plant also caught fire. As a result Keno will be without light or power until they can repair the plant.
• May 15, 1953: White Pass & Yukon Route announce that lots on Seventh and Eighth Avenue will go on sale.
• May 15, 1953: Alex van Bibber has announced that his Annual Champagne Rodeo will be held June 2nd.

• May 22, 1953: Persons having moved shacks or houses onto the new sub-division property west of Seventh Avenue between Wood and Cook Streets have until June 18 to purchase the property they are occupying. Anyone not intending to purchase property must remove their building immediately.
• May 22, 1953: Ferries on the three river crossings on the Mayo Road went into operation today, and traffic is now moving between Whitehorse and Mayo. The Haines Road will be open to light traffic Saturday and heavy traffic on Monday of next week.
• May 22, 1953: A Masonic Lodge was opened in Mayo on May 18th.

• May 29, 1953: Schools are closed as a precautionary measure to combat the spread of polio in Whitehorse.
• May 29, 1953: A precautionary measure to combat the spread of polio in the Whitehorse area has closed schools, shows, dances and all indoor public gatherings. Coming a few days before the Coronation Celebrations, the order has made it necessary to cancel all dances within a five-mile radius of Whitehorse. Picture shows, churches and club meetings are also banned. Cocktail lounges and beverage parlors are permitted to remain open, and because of that, four churches say they will defy the closure order.
• May 29, 1953: Sam H. "King" Cole, proclaimed king of the hobos and world traveller and philosopher, visited Whitehorse early this week on his way to Siberia, where his brother has been a missionary for 31 years.

June

• June 5, 1953: Police set up a road-block at the junction of the Mayo Highway to check cars for persons fishing illegally. Reports from members of the Yukon Fish and Game Association inditated that persons were catching up to 80 fish, some by spearing, and then throwing the fish into the bush. Other incidents of fishermen taking large numbers of fish near the dam have prompted police to conduct further inspections.
• June 5, 1953: The regulations issued in Whitehorse last week to prevent the spread of polio have now been extended to cover the entire territory.
• June 5, 1953: A new company is being formed in Mayo to distribute light and power and re-wire the town, due to high rates and slow re-wiring service by the existing company.

• June 12, 1953: Dawson's ferry was moved to the Stewart River and a smaller replacement has not arrived.
• June 12, 1953: A year-old threat to evict squatters occupying their Moccasin Flats property will be carried out Monday by the White Pass and Yukon Route.
• June 12, 1953: Total polio cases involving civilians in the Yukon have totalled 46 up to Thursday of this week. The Whitehorse Military Hospital has refused to release any information about their patients.

• June 19, 1953: Many a tear fell Monday and Tuesday as citizens, Indian and white, watched their rickety homes being crushed under the might of a bulldozer. The incident occurred on the White Pass property north of the shipyards and commonly referred to as Moccasin Flats. For years pensioners, Indians and wage-earners have lived on the property without consent, tax and rent free.
• June 19, 1953: The death of 29-year-old Collector of Customs Ian (Nipper) Murray last Wednesday from polio shocked the entire community. Nipper had been sick only a few days. Read the entire article here
• June 19, 1953: Charlie Lake Transport were successful in their bid for licences to haul a scheduled weekly service by truck from Vancouver to Whitehorse. They expect to run a direct haul in four days from Vancouver. One Whitehorse company opposed the licence.

• June 26, 1953: The first cocktail lounge in Mayo, in the Chateau Mayo, opened on June 22nd. The Chateau Mayo was purchased from Barker-Ray interests by Joseph Alexander Work and Dale Robertson early this year.
• June 26, 1953: The Strawberry Festival in Haines has been cancelled due to the high number of polio cases.
• June 26, 1953: A rich source of uranium has been discovered in Atlin. Construction of a road to the discovery has been started by Conwest Exploration Co.

July

• July 3, 1953: J. Aubrey Simmons is the candidate for the Liberal for the upcoming federal elections. George Black is nominated by the Progressive-Conservative Party.
• July 3, 1953: The White Pass & Yukon Route is advertising 15 departures of their West Taku Arm Excursion through the summer. Guests "Enjoy a 168-Mile Voyage on the Sternwheel Steamer Tutshi to Famed Ben-My-Chree." The round-trip fare including berth and meals is $27.25 from Carcross or $39.75 from Whitehorse.
• July 3, 1953: Extremely heavy rains during the past two weeks have made highways and City roads pools of slippery mud. Long-term lack of repair and maintenance of highways and bridges is also creating dangerous conditions.

• July 10, 1953: Vandals, believed to be young children, are reported to be creating havoc in the Whitehorse Cemetery. Broken and pushed-over tombstones and torn-up plants and flowers have prompted complaints.
• July 10, 1953: The Hotel and Restaurant Bartenders Union, Local 740 held their First Annual Picnic at the Robinson roadhouse on June 28. It turned out to be a greater attraction than was expected - at least 500 people came out.
• July 10, 1953: An increasing amount of careless dumping of trash on outlying roads and the careless dumping of garbage in the City Dump has forced the City to take measures to halt the practices.

• July 17, 1953: According to Yukon health officials, there have been no polio cases reported from civilian personnel in Whitehorse since June 28. Dawson has not reported a case since June 24 and Mayo since July 3. The newly-developed anti-polio serum gamma globulin has been helping check the spread of the disease.
• July 17, 1953: Afe Brown of Carmacks, who came to the Yukon from Tennessee in 1908, died on July 6th as the result of a stroke suffered 2 weeks earlier. He was 69 years old.
• July 17, 1953: Tense excitement prevailed at the shipyard this week as the Nenana, an Alaska paddlewheeler, was completed and ready for the long journey to Alaska.

• July 24, 1953: We're Late... But We Made It. This paper, containing 16 pages, was produced by two men in the shop rather than the usual four. We cannot guarantee much in the line of newsworthy stories but we do have some interesting ads that should make good reading at this time.
• July 24, 1953: A party of 13 patients, nine adults and four children, left Whitehorse for Edmonton and Calgary July 1 by RCAF Dakota, in line with the Federal Government's policy of providing residents of Yukon affected with paralysis due to polio, with physiotherapy treatment and rehabilitation. They were accompanied by two nurses.
• July 24, 1953: Mr. Ron Booth joins the Whitehorse Star next week to take over the position of editor. Mr. Thomas Bain will continue as publisher and production manager. A new office building will be constructed next month by the Whitehorse Star on their property now being used by Wise Agencies.

  

• July 31, 1953: On July 26th at 5 a.m., thousands of tons of sand crash down from the escarpment at the west end of Main Street. No injuries are reported, but the area is declared a "danger zone". All residents in the danger zone were told to evacuate their homes and seek temporary shelter elsewhere at the expense of the city.
• July 31, 1953: A land search party composed of personnel from RCAF Station Whitehorse has just returned from the scene of the crash of a Mitchell bomber of 418 City of Edmonton Squadron. This aircraft disappeared on a training flight in July 1952. The wreckage was finally discovered by two prospectors in the Mayo area, on a mountain side well above the operating height of a helicopter, making recovery and investigation difficult.
• July 31, 1953: Two young beaver built a dam on a small stream at Mile 592 on the Alaska Hignway, creating quite a problem for the RCMP, the NWHS Engineers and the Yukon Game Department. The beaver were live-trapped and brought to the McLean's Lake Game Sanctuary near Whitehorse.

August

• August 7, 1953: A photo reconnaissance plane operated by Spartan Air Service of Ottawa is reported to have crashed near Dawson on August 1st, killing both occupants, pilot Jimmy Lago and photo-navigator Benny Benoit. The aircraft, a converted Lockheed P-38 Lightning, was low on fuel and is thought to have attempted a forced landing on Pat Collis' airstrip about two miles from Dawson.
• August 7, 1953: Jeff Lattin's faithful old Model "A" Ford was destroyed by fire on Wednesday. Firemen had quite a time extinguishing the blaze that was destroying the wooden framework of the car, so axes were called into play and not much was left of the car.
• August 7, 1953: Christine Chaykowsky, three-year-old daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Roman Chaykowsky, "The Pines," Mile 872, Alaska Highway, is reported to have died shortly after being struck at the lodge by a truck operated by Loiselle Transport Ltd., and driven by Walter McCulloch. Read the entire article and the finding of the inquest that followed, here.

• August 14, 1953: Aubrey Simmons (Liberal Party) won the Yukon election, defeating Gordon Lee (Social Credit) and George Black (Progressive Conservative).
• August 14, 1953: Mr. C. V. F. Weir, engineer with the Department of Resources and Development, flew in to Whitehorse last week to investigate conditions of the hill that lies along the edge of the Airport Reserve. A slide, which endangered the lives of six families, occurred in this area on July 26.
• August 14, 1953: The Alaska Highway is in generally good driving condition throughout. Light rains have reduced dust conditions to a minimum in many sections. There is a detour at Mile 1,071.6, Congdon Creek, where a new bridge is under construction.

• August 21, 1953: A "Hospital Week" and financial drive is to be held in Whitehorse, September 28 to October 3, the objective being to raise sufficient funds to furnish and equip a Children's Ward at the Whitehorse General Hospital, and th balance of monies, if any, to be applied to the purchase of surgical equipment for the hospital.
• August 21, 1953: Mrs. Clara Goddard, first woman river boat pilot on the Upper Yukon River, died last week at her home in Auburn, Washington. Mrs. Goddard, who was 89 years old, followed her husband, Capt. Albert J. Goddard, to the Klondike in the early part of 1898. Captain Goddard was skipper of the first steamboat to make the roundtrip Whitehorse-Dawson run.
• August 21, 1953: A providential rain which fell last week saved the Whitehorse Lumber Company sawmill, owned by Earl Brooks, from the raging flames of a forest fire which started on Beaver Creek in Alaska and jumped the border Thursday of last week.

• August 28, 1953: Herman M. Peterson, widely known bush pilot of Atlin, was reported safe in Telegraph Creek. He was reported missing August 20 on a flight from Telegraph Creek to Stewart, B.C. Details of his rescue were not immedately available but the four-place Aeronca plane he was flying was washed out.
• August 28, 1953: Edward Raymond Haydon, age 20, drowned at Takhini Hot Springs Thursday evening. Haydon, in company with several other youths, had gone to the Springs swimming and evidently returned to the water to swim alone.
• August 28, 1953: Taylor & Drury runs a large display ad for Buick, Tourist Services a slightly smaller one for the A-40 Austin, and Richards' Motors a small ad for Chrysler and Plymouth cars and Fargo trucks.

September

• September 4, 1953: Heavy rains this past week have caused further shifting of sand on the Airport Reserve Hill in Whitehorse. A landsiide from this hill on July 26 threatened the homes of six families. The recent rains have resulted in heavy run-off which is under-mining the first slide and surrounding the threatened homes with a silt which is in some cases two feet in depth.
• September 4, 1953: Mr. S. Hovdebo has been appointed principal of the White- horse High School for the forthcoming school term. He served as vice-principal last year, and succeeds Mr. L. Todd, who has accepted a similar position at the New Denver High School in British Columbia.
• September 4, 1953: This week teen-age boys were apprehended while interfering with parked automobiles on the Taylor and Drury Car Lot in Whitehorse. The company reported that in recent weeks various cars on the lot had been pilfered or damaged, and as a result a watch was being kept on the night the youths visited the cars.

• September 11, 1953: For the last two summers reports have been coming in to the Yukon Game Department concerning the activities of mountain lions (or cougars) in the Yukon Territory. Until last year, when a mountain lion was observed in the vicinity of Canyon Creek by Mr. Learmonth, Forestry Engineer, it was thought that the Yukon was free of this harmful animal.
• September 11, 1953: Bids on the Haines-to-Fairbanks pipeline will be opened in Seattle October 14. The proposal calls for construction of a complete products pipeline system, with 615 miles of 8 5/8-inch welded steel pipeline, a POL terminal wharf at Haines, five pumping stations - four to contain housing - terminal facilities near Fairbanks, two intermediate take-off facilites, and tank farms at two of the pumping stations.
• September 11, 1953: Poison bait spread last March and April by the Yukon Game Department has killed at least 21 wolves. The Yukon experiment is considered a success and it is hoped to continue the control program in the near future.

• September 18, 1953: Myra Butterfield of Whitehorse was found guilty last Tuesday of poisoning a Labrador dog, the property of her neighbor, Mrs. Challand, using canary seed laced with strychnine, made for controlling mice.
• September 18, 1953: Aurora Communications, agents for Spilsbury and Tindall radio telephones, has moved to 306A Hawkins Street. Frank E. Doolan is the manager.
• September 18, 1953: Curling in downtown Whitehorse appears to be a sure thing thanks to a few enthusiastic and stout-hearted men. All they need now is some extra help in order to get the building closed in. Let all curlers turn out to help finish a really worthwhile project - not just a few. Work goes on every night except Saturday. Sunday is also a work day.

• September 25, 1953: William Stephenson Drury, well-known merchant in the Yukon, died in the Whitehorse General Hospital Monday morning, September 21st. Mr. Drury was taken ill last weekend and entered the hospital Sunday evening. Read the entire article here.
• September 25, 1953: William Anderson, a resident of Dawson, was shot on September 23rd, and died the next day. John Klingo, age 53, also of Dawson resident, has been arrested and charged with murder. The shooting incident is said to have occurred during a dispute over some property.
• September 25, 1953: Last night saw the opening of a fashion show produced by leading Whitehorse merchants, modeled by lovely local girls and sponsored by the Whitehorse Parent-Teachers Association. It was held in the Whitehorse Inn ballroom and will be presented again tonight.

October

• October 2, 1953: George Black received the Coronation medal, issued in honour of the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth on June 2, 1953, from the Secretary of State.
• October 2, 1953: A fire of undetermined origin destroyed the R.C.A.F. Ski Chalet on September 26th.

• October 9, 1953: The Whitehorse General Hospital Benefit Society raised $4,500 in their recent "Help Furnish the Children's Ward" campaign, and a separate ward at the hospital is now assured.
• October 9, 1953: The Whitehorse Board of Trade will hold its third "Radio Week" Campaign in aid of CFWH, on November 16-21.
• October 9, 1953: The Whitehorse Star is moving into the new office building situated on Main Street immediately east of the old office.

• October 23, 1953: B.C. government assistance in extending and improving a road into the McDame Creek area is making possible the production of chrysotile asbestos from a rich deposit discovered there in 1950. As a result, several million dollars have already been expended by Cassiar Asbestos Corporation in the construction of a mill townsite and development of the mine. Nearly 300 men are employed at the property.
• October 23, 1953: Personnel of RCAF Station Whitehorse who are occupying Married Quarters have recently elected a Council and Mayor to form a Community Council. Ninety-one percent of those eligible to vote exercised their franchise. The first mayor is Warrant Officer Bob Pfaff. The formation of a Community Council follows the practice already existing on Air Force Stations across the country. This area would later be named Hillcrest.

• October 30, 1953: Mr. White representing the residents of Mayo, addressed the Yukon Territorial Council asking for a new hospital building because of the poor state of the current building. as a result of the discussion, Council decided that some definite over-all plan on hospitalization in the territory should be made.
• October 30, 1953: The $30,000,000 contract for construction of the Haines pipeline has been awarded to three companies which bid jointly, Marwell Construction Co., Williams Brothers and McLaughlin Inc. No date has been announced for the start of construction but the completion date is September, 1955.
• October 30, 1953: In an effort to stop the sale of cigarettes to minors, City Council Tuesday night passed a resolution which prohibits the sale of cigar-ettes to children under 16 years of age.

November

• November 6, 1953: As of November 9, CFWH will resume continuous broadcasting throughout the day.
• November 6, 1953: The road to Carcross from Skagway has been started. A full survey to the Alaska boundary has been completed by U.S. Government surveyers and approximately one mile of road has been constructed. Funds to build the Alaska portion, which they estimate will be 60 pertent of the total cost of constructing the entire road, have been assured.
• November 6, 1953: Mr. Mike Nolan, owner of Marsh Lake Lodge, and big-game guide, announced this week that the lodge has been leased to Mr. Odin Hougen for a period of five years.

• November 13, 1953: Due to the unusually heavy traffic on Two Mile Hill by mining trucks and military vehicles, Yukon Council passed a resolution asking the federal government to make a grant to the Territory for upgrades to the road, including ditching and paving.
• November 13, 1953: Last week the Star completed the installation of a Hammond Easy-Kaster in the stereotype department. Advertisers will now be assured that they will receive sharp, clear casts from their mats.
• November 13, 1953: Preliminary work has begun on construction of the Haines pipeline. Surveyors are now working in the Kluane Lake district and it is expected that the winter months will be utilized by clearing right-of-way and stringing pipe along the frozen route.

• November 20, 1953: To keep the new John Hart Highway from Prince George to Dawson Creek open this winter, the British Columbia Department of Roads is operating two 80-horsepower tractors with V-plows, two heavy truck-plows, two graders, one Sicard rotary plow, and two Walters "Snow Fighters," which are four-wheel drive trucks with individual drive to each wheel, equipped with a V-plow and two wings. Total snowfall is heavy, reaching 20 feet at Azouzetta Lake.
• November 20, 1953: A total of twenty people appeared before the magistrate on charges of intoxication and were fined a total of $280 and $70 costs. One person was given 10 days in jail while another will have 15 days in which to think it over.
• November 20, 1953: Freight coming into the Territory by rail from Skagway has been tied up on the docks because of a strike by the Federal Labor Union No. 24464 in Skagway.

• November 27, 1953: Hougen's Ltd. announces the purchase of the building and contents of George L. Meikle, a Whitehorse electrical appliance store. The department will be incorporated into the Hougen's main store and the Meikle Building sold.
• November 27, 1953: Two men employed by Hudson Bay Exploration and Development Co., Ltd., reported seeing a strange object in the sky last Monday night. The men were returning to Whitehorse and were at about Mile 953 on the Alaska Highway when the airborne body (UFO) was spotted. Blue-green in color, it moved very fast and finally hit the ground and exploded about one mile east of the highway.
• November 27, 1953: The Honorable Mr. Jean Lesage, Minister of the Department of Resources and Development, announced on Tuesday that an appropriation of $1,000,000 to enable a loan to the City of Whitehorse for construction of a sewer and water system has been recommended.

December

• December 4, 1953: Federal Government officials have announced that Patsy Henderson, a Yukon old-timer and resident of Carcross, has been granted the Coronation Medal, honoring the coronation of Queen Elizabeth.
• December 4, 1953: The recent Radio Week netted approximately $3,700 after expenses for Radio Station CFWH. The gross take from all activities is expected to go over $4,200.
• December 4, 1953: A Board of Trade meeting was told Tuesday that already over $60,000 has been spent in surveying and forming plans for the proposed route of the road from Skagway to the B.C. border and that Alaska hopes to create a National Park near the B.C. boundary. It is believed that the B.C. Government favors the road plan. Estimates indicate that Alaska will bear 60 percent of the cost of the road to Whitehorse, British Columbia 25 percent and the Yukon 15 percent.

• December 11, 1953: "Grandma" Maggie Boeren, sister of the late Chief Jim Boss, died on December 3rd at the age of 109. Her husband, "Dutch Henry", had passed away 21 years before.
• December 11, 1953: Mabel A. Simmons, a prominent resident of Carcross and mother of Aubrey Simmons, died this morning at the Whitehorse General Hospital, at the age 79. She was buried at the Pacific Heritage Cemetery in Burnaby, B.C.

• December 18, 1953: Last Sunday morning about 12:45 a.m. police swooped down on a gambling establishment which is believed to have been operating in the city about two months. Jack Smith was found guilty of keeping a common gaming house and fined $250 and $3.50 costs.
• December 18, 1953: White Pass & Yukon Route Highway Division busses leave Whitehorse at 8:30 a.m. Saturdays and arrive at Dawson Creek at 01:15 Mondays. Northbound, they leave Whitehorse at 8:30 a.m. Sundays and Thursdays and arrive at Fairbanks at 8:48 p.m. Mondays and Fridays.
• December 18, 1953: Jack Connelly is installed as exalted ruler of Elks Lodge.

• December 24, 1953: The ice bridge at the Yukon on the Whitehorse-Mayo Highway has lately been used by light vehicles for crossing. Most of those who came across gave their car or truck the gas and came over like a scared rabbit with a fox on his trail.
• December 24, 1953: Resources Minister Lesage said in the Commons the Government is studying the Taku River as a possible site for a huge power development in the Yukon. However, he said it would be difficult for him to say at this stage whether there would be a port open to ocean shipping if the Taku River site was selected.
• December 24, 1953: Recently there has been a great deal of justifiable agitation on the part of Mayo District residents to have the vintage 1904 wiring in the Mayo Hospital overhauled. It was argued that the existing situation represented a definite fire hazard. Finally in desperation United Keno Hill Mines Ltd. put its men on the job, and the re-wiring is now complete.

• December 31, 1953: Initial work on the $30,000,000 Haines-Fairbanks oil pipeline started on December 22, with the stripping of the right-of-way between Fairbanks and Big Delta. The Oakes Construction Company of Anchorage has the contract for most of the stripping, with one piece of equipment and three men presently engaged on the work.
• December 31, 1953: For the first time in the Yukon's history, 3-D movies are shown - in Carcross.
• December 31, 1953: The first of a fleet of new 300-mile-an-hour Super DC-6B Clippers which Pan American World Airways is assigning to Alaska and Yukon routes arrived in Seattle December 24. Twice-weekly service to Whitehorse will beginn March 24.

1954

January

• January 8, 1954: Gordon Lyons is installed as Kiwanis president for 1954.
• January 8, 1954: Patsy Henderson, last survivor of the Carmacks party who discovered gold on Bonanza Creek, August 17, 1898, is awarded the Coronation Medal in commemoration of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth on January 2, 1954.

• January 15, 1954: The Duke of Edinburgh accepts the invitation of the Whitehorse I.O.D.E. and announces to visit Whitehorse during the summer 1954.
• January 15, 1954: Whitehorse City Council announces on January 12 that the Old Army Theatre in Downtown Whitehorse is sold to the Baptist Indian Mission School.

• January 22, 1954: Pan American World Airways inaugurates their super clipper DC6B service to Juneau, Whitehorse and Fairbanks. Don Davis, the local Pan Am manager hosts the travelers.
• January 29, 1954: Mayor H. Gordon Armstrong is re-elected for his third term as mayor of Whitehorse, with Gordon Cameron, Bill Hamilton, Bill Drury, and Owen Williams as Aldermen.

February

• February 12, 1954: Frank Sidney, Chief of the Teslin Indian Band, is presented with the Queen's Coronation Medal on January 28.

• February 19, 1954: Military, Air, and Naval attaches from over twenty-five different countries visit Whitehorse on an inspection tour of industrial developments.

March

• March 5, 1954: The first bonspiel was held at the Whitehorse Curling Club on February 26, with more than forty teams entered.
• March 5, 1954: The Dawson City Council of Mayor J. Collbourne and Alderman Fred Cook and Pat Callison are sworn to office during the recent visit to Dawson of the Honourable Justice Mr. J. E. Gibben.

• March 26, 1954: The Whitehorse Meat Market on the corner of Main Street and Fourth Avenue was said to be going out of business. Mr. Koffman, the owner, said he was expecting to close the store within a month.
• March 26, 1954: Mr. H. Samuelson, publisher of the Dawson Weekly News, announces that with the issue of March 25, the Dawson News will cease publication. The reason given was the increased costs and lack of advertising. The Dawson News was first published in 1899 during the Gold Rush Days. With the discontinuance of the Dawson News, the Whitehorse Star starts printing items of interests and happenings in Dawson on April 23.
• March 26, 1954: Crystal Jorde is elected Ice Carnival Queen 1954.

April

• April 2, 1954: It was announced that the cost of the proposed sewer and water installations in Whitehorse to the individual homeowner was to be about $10.00 a month. They expect that the work would be started in the summer with completion by 1955.

• April 9, 1954: After Martha Black suggested that the Yukon should have a territorial flower, the Yukon Territorial Council adopts the Pasque Flower, commonly known as the Crocus, as the territorial flower of the Yukon. However, shortly later, it is announced that the crocus will not be the territorial flower of the Yukon as it already is the emblem of Manitoba.
• April 9, 1954: A second shipment of Elk reaches the Yukon with the combined efforts of the Territorial Government and the Yukon Fish and Game Association. They release the animals as before, at Braeburn Lake. The program was started three years ago and was hoped to continue until at least one hundred head had been brought into the Yukon.

• April 30, 1954: W.D. MacBride is re-elected president of the Yukon Historical Society.

May

• May 7, 1954: Ernest Theed was elected President of the Whitehorse Board of Trade at the annual meeting. Rolf Hougen was returned as Vice-President, Art Jones as Treasurer, and Bob Rowan as Secretary.
• May 7, 1954: T.C. Richards retires as manager of the Whitehorse branch of Burns and Co. Ltd.

• May 13, 1954: The first official announcement that they would release the Army Engineers of maintenance of the Alaska Highway when public works Minister Winters announces that it would take several months to complete the transfer.
• May 14, 1954: The new building for the Bank of Montreal is under construction.

• May 28, 1954: The Whitehorse Junior Chamber of Commerce elects the following at their annual meeting: President, Robert Toth; First Vice-President, Al Prince; Second Vice-President, Archie Sinclair; Secretary, Ernie Delaney; Treasurer, John Stanley.

June

• June 4, 1954: City officials are very surprised when they learn that the taxpayers had voted 94 percent in favour of water and sewer.
• June 4, 1954: The Federal Government will build a new 120-bed hospital in Whitehorse this year providing satisfactory arrangements can be made regarding the financing between the Territorial Government and Ottawa. Plans were also drawn for a new hospital at Mayo.

• June 11, 1954: The Whitehorse Parent Teachers Association elect the following at their annual meeting: President, Mrs. C.D. Taylor; Vice-President, Mrs. Tom Greenswood; Secretary, Mrs. M. Chadock; Treasurer, Mr. V. Suddaby.
• June 11, 1954: The whole of the Alaskan-Yukon boundary line, extending for a length of 808.2 miles, is completed.
• June 11, 1954: The steamer Klondike opens the 1954 navigation season on June 12.

July

• July 9, 1954: The Yukon government is considering the adoption of a Coat of Arms, from three prize winning designs submitted by three Yukon School children: Alan McDiarmid, Tommy Nakashima, and Ione Cameron.

• July 16, 1954: Mr. Odin Hougen, manager of Marsh Lake Lodge, told the Star that his new cocktail lounge would open this week. The lounge was built on the east side of the lodge and extended back into the premises formerly occupied by the beer parlour.

August

• August 8, 1954: His Royal Highness, the Duke of Edinburgh, arrives in Whitehorse. The Duke made stops around Whitehorse visiting with its citizens. They held a reception that same evening in the RCAF Officers Mess where Commissioner and Mrs. W.G. Brown received more than 200 guests. The Duke and his party left the following day for Coppermine in the NWT.

• August 13, 1954: A new dairy is to open and will be known as the Whitehorse Dairy. The plant is located in the rear of the Pinchin Building. The milk will be bottled for home delivery and in cartons for store sale.

September

• September 17, 1954: Plans are revealed to construct for Whitehorse a Sewage Disposal Pumping Station at the North end of the City on Moccasin Flats.

• September 24, 1954: The sale of the Whitehorse Star is announced by Publisher and Owner Thomas G. Bain to Mr. Harry D. Boyle of Vancouver and Penticton, B.C.

• September 25, 1954: The annual fishing contest put on by the Yukon Fish and Game Association was officially finished the week before. The winner for the month of June was Johnnie Johns in the Lake Trout Class, with a trout caught at Tagish that weighed more than 40 pounds. Dr. A.C. Tanner won the Rainbow Trout Class, with his fish weighing in at almost three pounds.

October

• October 1, 1954: The Whitehorse Lions Club installs the following at their first meeting of the season: President, Lawrence Seeley; First Vice-President, Dick Carswell; Second Vice-President, Dave Porter; Third Vice-President, Percy Bethune; Secretary, Harry Fatt; Treasurer, Bob Hughes.

• October 8, 1954: A disastrous fire on October 2, 1954: destroys the garage of the British Yukon Navigation Company.
• October 8, 1954: For the first time in history the export tonnage through Whitehorse exceeds the import tonnage.

• October 29, 1954: In a simple ceremony on October 23, George Gleave, First Vice-President of the Canadian Legion, unveils the new Whitehorse War Memorial in the front of the new Federal Government building.
• October 29, 1954: The Federal Government's proposal for bridging the Yukon River and establishing a town site across the river met with mixed feelings initially in Whitehorse. After consideration most people felt, "Let's Go." The only reservation, and this was almost unanimous, was that no commercial development be allowed across the river for many years to come.

November

• November 5, 1954: The Federal Government building in Whitehorse opens its doors to the public. Commissioner W.G. Brown is the master of ceremonies for the opening. The reinforced concrete building contains approximately 56,000 sq. ft. of office space and houses all departments of government in Whitehorse.

• November 12, 1954: The Whitehorse Post Office moved into new streamlined quarters in the Federal government building. In its new home, the Post Office had 4,000 sq. ft. of floor space, 300 more boxes than in the old office, new equipment and room to expand facilities and service.

• November 19, 1954: The Elks (B.P.O.E.) at their general meeting elect the following: Exalted Ruler, R.A. (Dick) Carswell; Leading Knight, Don McPhail; Loyal Knight, George Webber; Lecturing Knight, Ray Brown.

• November 26, 1954: The Yukon Ski Runners elect the following officers: President, C. Skelton; Vice-President, B. Trembath; Secretary, D. Stephenson; Treasurer, M. Robertson.
• November 26, 1954: Clyde Wann builds the first section of the Beaver Creek Lodge (now Westmark).

December

• December 3, 1954: The Yukon Theatre opened its doors at Wood St. and 3rd Ave. The new theatre combines all the modern devices and good design incorporated in many larger theatres in outside centres. Sam McClimon is the owner.
• December 3, 1954: The construction of Bear Creek Community Curling Club is completed and Bear Creek residents are very proud of this addition to the community. Grant Barrett was the moving force behind this venture.

• December 10, 1954: The Whitehorse Branch of the Canadian Legion elected the following officers at their general meeting; President; J.E. Grasser; Vice-President; K.A. Rawden; Second Vice-President, R.J. Friend; Treasurer, J.A.C. McKenzie; Secretary, J.E. Turnquist.
• December 10, 1954: Y.O.O. Pioneers celebrate the 60th anniversary of the founding of their order. December 1, 1894 was the date of the first meeting held by the Pioneers in Forty Mile.

• December 17, 1954: The new school at Mayo is officially opened on December 10 by Commissioner W.G. Brown, at a ceremony sponsored by the PTA.

1955

January

• January 7, 1955: The Kiwanis Club of Whitehorse elected the following officers at their annual meeting: C.J. "Bunny" Lelievre as President; D.W. Busby as Vice-President; J.B. Armor as Secretary; George Frizell as Treasurer.

• January 21, 1955: The Whitehorse Branch, B.C.-Yukon Chamber of Mines elects the following at their annual meeting: Re-elected President, Gordon Lee; First Vice-President, Alex Berry; Second Vice-President, Don Taylor; re-elected Secretary-Treasurer, Harry Weiland.
• January 21, 1955: With the leadership of Mayor Gordon Armstrong and Len Wooley, a Better Business Bureau has been formed under Board of Trade Sponsorship.
• January 21, 1955: The Yukon Order of Pioneers hold their annual meeting and elect the following officers: President, Bert Barber; Secretary, Hector Grant; Treasurer, Elmer Gaundroue. For the 16th consecutive year, Tom Hebert was unanimously re-elected to the office of Warder.

• January 28, 1955: Miss Dalyce Smith of Whitehorse is selected as one of nine candidates from Western Canada to compete at the Banff Winter Carnival for the title of "Miss Canadian Rockies."

February

• February 17, 1955: On February 28, the Bank of Montreal opens new, modern premises that were formerly located at the corner of Main Street and Second Avenue. A.C.P. Jones, Bank of Montreal manager, explained that the increased banking in Whitehorse in the past few years has made it necessary for the bank to build larger quarters to give more efficient service.

March

• March 3, 1955: Pan American World Airways occupies new centrally located premises. The new office is located in the Whitehorse Inn in the space vacated by the Bank of Montreal.
• March 3, 1955: Miss Amy Lepage is crowned Winter Carnival Queen. The carnival is the first to be hosted by the Young People's Association.
• March 3, 1955: The Whitehorse Star formally introduces Mrs. James (Flo) Whyard as Women's editor. She is a newcomer to Whitehorse, but a resident of the North for nearly ten years, Mrs. Whyard pointed out the lack of women's news in the Star and found herself stuck with the job.

April

• April 28, 1955: The Yukon Historical Society, at their annual meeting, elect the following officers: Re-elected President, W.D. MacBride; Vice-President, W. Emery; Secretary-Treasurer, Mrs. J.D. Scott. The museum plans many improvements for the coming year, including enlarged facilities.
• April 28, 1955: Sarah Stringer, wife of Bishop I.O. Stringer, dies in Vancouver on April 10.

May

• May 5, 1955: Board of Trade President, Ernie Theed announces at the Board's annual meeting that the Whitehorse Museum would from now on bear the name of its greatest contributor, W. D. MacBride, who generously gave of his time, effort, patience, and knowledge in developing and maintaining this historic centre.

• May 12, 1955: The Whitehorse Film Council is formed. The following are elected: President, Archie Sinclair; Vice-President, Harry Weiland; Secretary-Treasurer, Mrs. L.A. Cyr; Librarian, Harry Thompson. The Whitehorse Film Council hopes to provide a complete community film service and reach its ultimate aim, the establishment of a large permanent film library in the community.

• May 19, 1955: The Yukon Fish and Game Association elects the following officers for the coming year: President, Mike Nowlan; Vice-President, Stuart MacPherson; Secretary, A.D. (Red) Gawne; Treasurer, Bill Waterous.

• May 26, 1955: Miss Freda Collins is crowned May Queen at the May Day Carnival that the Whitehorse Young People's Association sponsored. Other candidates were Betty-Lou Graham and Velma Berg
• May 26, 1955: The Whitehorse Junior Chamber of Commerce elects the following officers: President, Al Prince; Vice-President - Archie Sinclair; Secretary - Bob Grieves; Treasurer - Ernie Carriere.
• May 26, 1955: Rolf Hougen married Margaret Van Dyke in St. Joseph's Cathedral in Edmonton.

July

• July 7, 1955: Whitehorse's Dalyce Smith is named Miss Canada. She is also Pride of the Yukon, and Queen of the Canadian Rockies. She has now been recognized officially from one coast to the other as monarch of them all. Read the entire article here.

• July 14, 1955: Corporal L. A. Gibbs, who had been in charge of the Whitehorse R.C.M.P. detachment, left for Fort Smith, NWT, and is to be replaced by Sergeant J.B. Fitzgerald.

August

• August 11, 1955: The Duke River Bridge on the Alaska Highway opens August 5. It replaces a 1,400 foot timber trestle bridge constructed by the United States Army in 1943.

• August 18, 1955: A party of nineteen members of the Imperial Defense College and their commanding officer visit Whitehorse. They were on the annual tour of Northern Canada made by members of the college. They were entertained at the NWHS Officers Mess and made a tour of the Alaska Highway.
• August 18, 1955: London's Lord Mayor pays a brief visit to Whitehorse, arriving from Vancouver by plane in time to board the S.S. Klondike on its last trip to Dawson that season.

• August 25, 1955: Three members of the five man royal commission set up to study Canada's economic potential complete the first leg of their year-long job. They arrived in Whitehorse on August 18th and were entertained by F.H. Collins, Commissioner of the Yukon, and Brigadier H.L. Meuser OBE. CD, Officer commanding the Northwest Highway System.
• August 25, 1955: The newly formed St. John's Ambulance Association elects the following officers for 1955-56: President, Stanley W. Huston; Secretary, Mrs. Beatrice Crow; Treasurer, Leonard Wooley. A class in first aid was given twice weekly for a month.

September

• September 22, 1955: The Christ the King Parent-Teacher Association holds its first meeting in the CYO Hall. Howard Firth is named President; Mrs. Corinne Cyr, First Vice-President, and Mrs. Alice Lelievre, Treasurer.
• September 22, 1955: The Whitehorse Lions Club holds their first meeting of the fall season and elect the following officers: President, Percy Bethune; First Vice-President, Dave Porter; Second Vice-President, Dick Carswell; Third Vice-President, Matt Nelson; Secretary, Harry Fatt; Treasurer, W.M. (Slim) Connolly.

• September 29, 1955: Streets heaped with dirt, ditches sunk into the mud, and the roar of equipment meant sewer and water for Whitehorse residents. But, not unless they applied formally at city office. Application forms were available there for those wishing to get the benefit of the million-dollar project on this side of the river.
• September 29, 1955: Going ahead rapidly is the work on the Yukon River's first full-fledged bridge. A 300 foot, three span was rising to reach the area set aside as the city's new housing subdivision, Riverdale and the new hospital.

October

• October 20, 1955: Yukon Teachers form an association on October 7/ 8, 1955:, so they may promote the cause of education. The following officers are elected: President, Claude Campbell; Vice-President, Henry Bugara; Secretary, Miss Kay Stark; Treasurer, Noel Martin Koder; Executive Member, George Blair.

November

• November 24, 1955: An early morning fire destroyed the garage at Marsh Lake Lodge. The origin of the fire was unknown.

December

• December 15, 1955: White Pass and Yukon Route announces that the Steamer Tutshi on the West Taku Arm Service and Steamer Klondike on the Whitehorse-Dawson run will not operate in 1956. With Canadian Pacific Railways announcement of their 1956 schedule for the SS Princess Louise, company officials decided that operating the west Taku Arm Service without the Louise passengers was not economically feasible. This marks the end of fifty-four years of sternwheel operation by the White Pass.
• December 15, 1955: The Whitehorse Canadian Legion elects the following for the next year: President, Jack Connelly; First Vice-President, A.A. Ross; Second Vice-President, C.W. (Chuck) Badcock.

• December 22, 1955: The BPO Elks Lodge 306 install the following officers for the coming year: Exalted Ruler, Don MacPhail; Leading Knight, George Webber; Loyal Knight, T. Watson; Lecturing Knight, S. Husten; Treasurer, C.D. Boddulph; Secretary, J. Humme.

1956

January

• January 5, 1956: first issue with a new title design.

• January 5, 1956: "Court Happenings" has a lengthy list of cases, primarily for drinking and bad driving.
• January 5, 1956: Jack Colbourne, a former Vancouver resident who is now mayor of Dawson City, admitted to The Vancouver Daily Province that he brought the cold weather down with him last week. He will be in that city for another two weeks - about the time the weatherman imagines the cold could last.

• January 12, 1956: The Old Crow Ski Club was formed in November 1955. The officers were: President, Const. P. A. Robin, RCMP; vice-president, Neil McDonald; secretary, Miss Josephine Netro; treasurer, Rev. R. F. Wheeler, Anglican minister; coach and instructor, Rev. Father Mouchet, OMI, Roman Catholic priest; school committee, Minnie Frost, Helen Netro, Ben Charlie, Irwin Linklater; ways and means committee, Mrs. Clara Frost, Mrs, Effie Linklater, Joe Netro, Robert Bruce, Lazarus Charlie.
• January 12, 1956: The Kiwanis Club installs the new executive officers of 1956 on January 3. The new officers are Jim Norrington, Chuck Beaumont, Jack Willis and Neil Sutherland.
• January 12, 1956: The Whitehorse Branch of the Canadian Legion elects the new officers on January 4: Mrs. I. McCandless is the new president.

• January 19, 1956: Funeral services for 12-year-old John Carl Wilson were held this afternoon at the Old Log Church. The young boy died early Sunday morning as the result of a bullet wound in his head which occurred when a gun he was handling went off.
• January 19, 1956: A lumber company, several mining companies and others relying on the service given by the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals on the highway north of here have been notified the service will be discontinued February 1. They will then have to depend on commercial communication with their camps in outlying areas.
• January 19, 1956: Whitehorse's perennial mayor, big, breezy Gordon Armstrong is seeking re-election in order that he may complete the job that has been started and see the water, sewer, new sub-division and street and sidewalk programs through to completion. Mayor Armstrong has seen service with council since its first sessions after Whitehorse became a city.

  

• January 26, 1956: The Christ the King School is officially opened on January 14 by Commissioner F.H. Collins.
• January 26, 1956: Gordon Armstrong was re-elected mayor of Whitehorse on January 24, defeating Craigie Hood. Aldermen are Gordon Cameron, Bill Drury, Jim Hanna, and Jim Smith. However, it is understood today a group of citizens and, perhaps, council itself, is planning to lodge a formal complaint against alleged failure of polling booths to provide adequate privacy as required under the municipal ordinance. Results of such protest could be holding of a second election. At the same time the voters list has come under scrutiny and, it is thought, a protest with regard to it will be lodged also.
• January 26, 1956: W.S. McBride, National Employment office manager here, has inaugurated a campaign to promote work during the seasonal unemployment period, by means of a two-week drive. He quoted figures of recent unemployment registrations, with a total of about 500 on claim last week. Mr. Theed brought up the problem of disturbances and trouble which can in be caused by idle men. Mr. Setchell stressed the fact that many desirable citizens were forced to leave town as it was impossible for them to support themselves by unemployment benefits alone.

February

• February 2, 1956: On January 31, Judge J. E. Gibben declared the January 24th civic election void after an affidavit by Gordon Armstrong and H. D. Boyle about the secrecy at the poll.
• February 2, 1956: W. G. Hamilton, in charge of the British Navigation Company Ocean Service, anticipates the freighter M.V. Clifford J. Rogers will be repaired in time for schedule out of Vancouver February 10. This vessel has been out of operation since early in January due to diesel engine and propellor gear trouble.
• February 2, 1956: A fire that destroyed the home of Mr. and Mrs. Johnny Smith on the Indian Reserve last Saturday morning took the lives of their three young sons, Jimmy, Owen Kenneth, and baby Ronny. The cause of the fire is unknown and no inquest will be held.

• February 9, 1956: Arising out of a transportation bureau meeting, it was reported freight is being moved from Alaska to the DEW line installations in Northern Yukon and Northwest Territories instead of through Canada. Alaskan cat trains hauling from Eagle to Mackenzie Bay area are being serviced by American planes. This subject is now under investigation by the defence minister.
• February 9, 1956: Poet Robert W. Service is now past 82 but he can still be seen most mornings shortly after dawn performing keep-fit exercises on the shingle beach below his imposing Monte Carlo villa.
• February 9, 1956: City Council Tuesday night turned down purchase of a garage owned by Whitehorse Lumber Company located north of the Geary property. Suggestion made in a letter from R. J. Rowan was the building could serve as city garage and, later, the site might be used for combined garage and firehall. Property had been offered earlier at $35,000 but had been lowered to $32,000 for this offer.

• February 16, 1956: The community of Hillcrest is made up of 165 homes, 29 occupied by officers and the remaining 136 by NCOs and airmen. In addition to these homes a further 39 airmen and their families reside in the Standard Oil area, a little remote from Hillcrest. Read the entire article about Hillcrest here.
• February 16, 1956: Last Thursday hockey fans attending the game at Civic Centre between Legion and Merchants were greeted by two effigies suspended from the arena rafters over each end of the ice. The effigies were dressed in referee striped shirts an tagged with the names of two referees. Reactions were mixed, some of the fans were quite hot about the "stunt," others just shrugged it off.
• February 16, 1956: Alderman Cameron February 7 at city council charged the east bank subdivision was very unsatisfactory. Project as outlined on current maps would provide more grief than the city could ever handle. Narrow lots, no sidewalks and no alleys were principal points of criticism levelled at the new development.

• February 23, 1956: Martha Louise Black celebrates her 90th birthday tomorrow, February 24th. Among the many congratulators is Mrs. Eisenhower.
• February 23, 1956: Trains were snowbound this week on White Pass and Yukon Route. Drifts up to 14 feet at Inspiration Point, 17 miles north of Skagway, and up to 16 feet at Canadian shed just north of White Pass station, stopped even rotary plows. Forty-mile-an-hour winds coupled with temperatures of 40 below packed the snow so hard plows couldn't get through.
• February 23, 1956: Unfortunately the moral of Fire Chief Blaker's report on his department's activities is that most fires are our own fault. Of last year's 89 fires 36 started from overheated and defective chimneys and 15 more began in furnaces, boil- ers or pipes. Only conclusion possible to draw is these fires could have been prevented had proper precautions been taken with heating units.

March

• March 1, 1956: Some 160 uranium claims were staked in the Bennett Lake area near Carcross last week. Stakers said surface samples recently returned from the assayer's office were marginal. Ground where the first claims were staked is now being drilled.
• March 1, 1956: Seven miles of cable for the final link in the new Alaska Communi-ation System 110-mile line between Skagway and Whitehorse left Seattle January 13. The new line will add 13 voice circuits between the communities according to ACS engineers.

• March 8, 1956: Craftsman Cyril Medley Carney, 24, a member of No. 16 Company, Royal Canadian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers stationed at Whitehorse, has been honoured with a Queen's medal for bravery. Carney was fishing from a bridge across the Nares River at Carcross on July 31, 1955, when 7-year-old Larry Bratvold fell from the bridge. Having heard the boy state earlier that he could not swim, Carney leaped into the water despite a strong current and the fact that he himself is not a strong swimmer. The soldier succeeded in finding the boy who had disappeared beneath the surface. He used the current to carry them downstream to the railway bridge where both were taken from the water.
• March 8, 1956: Whitehorse Board of Trade struck a nerve with the transportation bureau investigation of DEW Line freight hauling. Information they have collected shows Canadians were given no chance to bid on the giant mid-winter haul to DEW Line points out of Eagle, Alaska into the Yukon. Neither surface carriers nor airlines, apparently, were permitted a chance at the job. Read the entire lengthy article here.

• March 30, 1956: Yukon pioneer and Premier of British Columbia from 1933 until 1941, Thomas Dufferin "Duff" Pattullo, dies in Victoria.

April

• April 5, 1956: Governor General Vincent Massey names the Yukon River bridge after Robert Campbell.
• April 5, 1956: The new owners of the former Hickey Garage in Dawson City, Ted Thomas and Will Crayford, have changed the name to "Klondike Motors".
• April 5, 1956: The Yukon Coat of Arms is officially approved by Her Majesty the Queen.

• April 12, 1956: Commissioner F.H. Collins announces that effective April 1, the ferry crossings over the Yukon, Pelly and Stewart Rivers on the Whitehorse-Mayo Road and across the Yukon River and Dawson will be free to the public. This means that all roads in the territory are now toll-free.
• April 12, 1956: Members of the Women's Auxiliary to Whitehorse General Hospital said goodbye to their President, Bea Marr. Margaret Healy succeeds her.

• April 19, 1956: Corridors through Alaska Panhandle to give Yukon and northern BC access to Pacific Ocean are proposed in the House of Commons by Yukon MP, Aubrey Simmons.
• April 19, 1956: New lots will go up for sale in the East Bank Subdivision on April 23.
• April 19, 1956: Resolution Stirs P.T.A. Ire. A resolution by Dawson City councillor Vic Mellor expressed the belief that school timetables were already full and there was no room for religious education.

May

• May 3, 1956: first issue with a new title design.
• May 3, 1956: C.F. Abrams, Executive-president of the White Pass and Yukon Route, announces the company will ask householder occupying company land in Whiskey Flats to sign a lease. The lease to occupy would require nominal rental payments. A week later, BYN officials report that a majority of residents of Whisky Flats agree to sign leases to occupy their homes that are located on company property. On June 14, the first eviction of the Whiskey Flats is announced for June 18.
• May 3, 1956: A group of Alaska Highway lodge keepers form the Yukon Lodge Keepers Association. Mike Nolan of Marsh Lake, president, W.G. Brewster of Haines Junction, vice-president, Clyde Wann of Whitehorse, secretary-treasurer.

• May 10, 1956: Slim MacMillan, bush pilot and prospector, died in a Vancouver hospital last weekend after a plane he was piloting caught fire in the air above Teslin airstrip. He died of pneumonia contracted while still in critical condition from the burns.
• May 10, 1956: Mrs. Haldenby, wife of the Anglican minister in Dawson, narrowly escaped death when the ice went out at Dawson on May 7. Mrs. Haldenby was walking on the bar with her two small children when the ice jammed and the water swirled in behind her. Luckily there was an old gasoline shovel of McCormick's parked on the beach which she managed to reach with the ice and water at waist level. Fire crews came came quickly and were able to rescue her and her children with ladders.
• May 10, 1956: The Nisutlin Bay Bridge at Teslin was officially opened on May 2nd. Commissioner F.H. Collins cut the ribbon and Reverend Father F.B. Triggs, OMI, blessed the bridge. See the article, a lengthy letter to the editor, and early and current photos of the bridge here.

• May 17, 1956: City Aldermen Drury and Smith were appointed to discuss means of alleviation with territorial engineer regarding dust due to streets being dug up from all the new construction.
• May 17, 1956: Plans for the projected 12-bed hospital at Mayo are progressing well. Last year the temperature was as low as -48...inside the old hospital!

• May 24, 1956: New Hospital Started; Building Boom Offers Two Hundred Jobs. 12-acre new hospital site, with a $4 million hospital. "Go ahead" to commence federal construction of fifty-eight houses in new subdivision. Concrete poured at Bank of Commerce site.
• May 24, 1956: Timed to coincide with the opening of the Haines Highway, the Lynn Canal Corporation of Haines announces the opening of its modern hotel in the city center.
• May 24, 1956: Three young boys were playing by the river below Whitehorse Rapids on Tuesday, May 22, when they found a box containing 25 dynamite caps. One of the boys kept one of the caps and threw the remainder into the river. Later the same evening the boy tried to light the cap with a match in the dormitory of the Indian Mission. The cap exploded, causing burns and damage to three of the boy's fingers and one of his eyes.

• May 31, 1956: Plans for CBC to broadcast in the Yukon are underway.

June

• June 7, 1956: Commissioner F. H. Collins outlined current developments taking place - a new subdivision, water and sewer system, hospital, and bridge. The new subdivision will consist of 200 lots at an average price of $1500 per lot.
• June 7, 1956: Mr. And Mrs. Bill Clarke were presented with ivory Eskimo carvings by more than 75 friends at the DOT Rec Hall. Bill was a weather observer here for the past six years and his wife was a nurse. They are moving to Vancouver.
• June 7, 1956: The passing away of Reverend Father Phileas Gaghe which occurred in the General Hospital Saturday morning, June 2, has left a gap in the chain of the old timers of the Yukon. Read the entire article here.

• June 14, 1956: Last Thursday the oil of cooperation was poured upon the troubled waters that had seethed up between board_of trade members and servicemen stationed here. Action started when the board sent a brief to Ottawa complaining of alleged "encroachment" by service activities upon business of downtown merchants due to heavily subsidized operations.
• June 14, 1956: The police court was a very busy place the last 10 days or so. No less than 44 persons were charged with being drunk and all were convicted. Space prevents us from listing them.
• June 14, 1956: Arctic Volkswagen Sales is advertising "The Sensational New Karmann-Ghia. Beautiful Sports Car with Streamlined Continental Styling."

• June 21, 1956: A Whiskey Flats eviction plan and injunction to stop the move-off has brought to a climax the difference of opinion held by railway company and squatters on the flats. The company view is the land belongs to them, and they want to collect rent from persons occupying homes there. Most of the residents refuse to pay.
• June 21, 1956: Out of the total of 37 teachers at Whitehorse Elementary-High School, 16 are leaving and heading the list is Principal Stan Hovdebo who is going to Toronto to complete his MA, after six years in the Yukon.
• June 21, 1956: This year through the co-operation of Skagway, Haines and Whitehorse, an International Queen of the North will be chosen. The queen will win an expense-paid trip to the Seafair in Seattle. The Whitehorse candidate is the popular 1956 May Queen, Penny Collins.

• June 28, 1956: The Rev. Hesketh, rector of Christ Church Cathedral since 1953, and his wife are leaving for St. Catherines, Ontario, where Rev. Hesketh will be chaplain of Ridley College, a boys' school with 400 students, from which he graduated in 1945.

July

• July 5, 1956: A plaque, commemorating the handover of the Alaska Highway from the United States Army to the Canadian Army, is unveiled by Major General G. Walsh, CBE. DSO. CD. It was inscribed: "At this site on April 1st, 1946, the United States Army officially handed over the Alaska Highway and associated facilities to the Canadian Army. This plaque is dedicated to those who built and cared for the Alaska Highway by the members of the Northwest Highway System, June 1956."

• July 12, 1956: Latest addition to B.C.'s coastwise shipping services is the 4,000-ton Clifford J. Rogers. Under the command of Capt. R. W. Sparks, for many years with Canadian National Steamships, the Clifford J. Rogers carries a new direct freight service between Vancouver and Skagway. The ship is owned by British Yukon Ocean Services Ltd., a subsidiary of the White Pass and Yukon Route.
• July 12, 1956: Three experienced engineers and a student trainee have started on an 800 mile long engineering reconnaisance of the power potential of the Alaska section of the Yukon River. The group left Circle last week.
• July 12, 1956: One of the Yukon's best known and best liked residents was laid to rest today in the Whitehorse Cemetery. Mrs. T. C. Richards, wife of Thomas Cecil Richards, died the evening of July 9.

• July 19, 1956: The Mayor's Committee, consisting of Alderman Jim Hanna, Bill Drury, John Scott, Bill Taylor, Al Bate and Harry Boyle, is going ahead with definite plans to add onto the Civic Center building. Estimated to be ready by summer 1957.
• July 19, 1956: Father Patrick James Lynch, OMI, leaves for a Prairie post. He was parish priest of the Sacred Heart parish in Whitehorse since August 16, 1951.
• July 19, 1956: The June report on construction of the water and sewer system reveals work progressing on schedule in most phases. Pipelaying and services went ahead during the month, with the mains all down and only 50 services left to do in the new subdivision. Work was started on the other side of the river because of frost conditions, aggravated by the traffic in town.

• July 26, 1956: Major General Walsh of the Canadian Army said that now with the Government of Canada in full charge of the Alaska Highway, every application for access roads, every item respecting culverts and right-of-ways leading to the Highway must be processed through Dawson Creek - Whitehorse - Ottawa. All this should be under immediate control of the Province of B.C. and the first unit to be turned over should end around Mile 60.
• July 26, 1956: Inspector J. R. Steinhauer, RCMP, with his wife and daughter Jean are leaving Whitehorse July 27 after four years in the Yukon.
• July 26, 1956: B.C. and Yukon representative of the Historical Sites and Monuments Board of Canada, Dr Walter N. Sage from Vancouver, was sent here last week by the Department of Northern Affairs and National Resources to investigate museums and historical societies in the Yukon, and to get a general line on the problems of marking things here in North.

August

• August 2, 1956: The first scheduled flight of a Pan American Super "Strato" Clipper left Whitehorse this morning at 11:15, skippered by Captain Kowing. It's the first of its kind to fly into Whitehorse on a regular flight, three times per week. It will be south bound only, to Juneau and Seattle.
• August 2, 1956: On July 22, John Diefenbaker, the opposition's chief foreigns affairs spokesman, urged the Canadian government to ask the United States government to let Canada have access to the sea through the Alaska panhandle.
• August 2, 1956: On March 1, John F. Frey - "Walking John" - stood on the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. On Tuesday of this week, after 131 days, 2,623 miles and 5,895,00 steps, John reached Whitehorse. This leg of the journey has brought him closer to his destination which is Fort Yukon. He now has only approximately 33 days, 722 miles and 1,485,000 steps to go.

• August 9, 1956: Nearly 100 men are now working on Dawson & Hall projects in the city, 50 of them at the new hospital and the rest at the Bank of Commerce building and the bridge. Work is also starting on the Territorial houses, where framework will be pushed ahead this fall. Good carpenters are still in demand on those jobs, which will take about two and a half years to complete. Local labor is being used as far as possible.
• August 9, 1956: The new Taku Hotel, the finest and most modern hotel in the north, officially opens tomorrow. It boasts 28 rooms, all with bath and telephone, coffee shop and the Taku Bar.
• August 9, 1956: In response to many requests, the City will start fresh water delivery immediately; those who use the service will be billed monthly. This is not for City profit, but as a service only.

• August 16, 1956: Sophie Yawny and Ernie Armitage have leased the '98 Hotel and bar.
• August 16, 1956: For the next three years, J.T. Parsons, with 26 years service, will be the Yukon's RCMP Inspector, with forty-two men under his supervision. Inspector Parsons and his family come from Victoria, BC.
• August 16, 1956: Dalyce Smith, former Miss Canada from Whitehorse, is married on August 13 in Haines.
• August 16, 1956: Aubrey Simmons, M.P. at Ottawa, sends the Star office a wire stating: Proposal that Northwest Territories Power Commission erect at hydroelectric power plant at Whitehorse Rapids on Yukon River has been approved by Government.

• August 23, 1956: Representing all countries of the Commonwealth, members of the Imperial Defense College arrived for a short inspection of the Yukon as part of their familiarization tour of Canada.
• August 23, 1956: Preliminary work is scheduled to commence this fall and completed by fall 1958. lt is proposed to install a second generating unit at Mayo with estimated completion set for late 1957. New plant in Whitehorse will produce sufficient power to permit production of steam for heating and process purposes in the new hospital and for the DND.
• August 23, 1956: Radio Station CFWH moves to Air Base in the former Roman Catholic Chapel. Change in location is needed to have technicians more easily available, who already work at the Telecommunications Centre just across the road from the station at the Air Base.

• August 30, 1956: What once was an ordinary little hill on the other side of the river is being now transformed into a water reservoir with a three million gallon capacity. The completed structure will be 20 feet high, 135 feet wide and 203 feet long. Marwell Construction Company Limited, as sub-contractors to Prodor Construction Ltd., are working 12 hour shifts at the reservoir.
• August 30, 1956: The Alpine Hotel at 204 Rogers Street is an experiment for both Whitehorse and its owner, Max Fuerstner and Sargio Clinaz who started building 13 months ago and only work on it in their spare time. Fuerstner is employed at Taylor & Drury and Clinaz is at the Post Office. The building is arranged like a hotel, has a community kitchen and laundry facilities, and also boasts hot water heating with baseboard radiators (an innovation for northern hotels).

September

• September 6, 1956: Sponsored by locals, plans to form local branch of the Canadian Red Cross Society are commencing. Judge J. E. Gibben will act as Chairman for the first meeting, which will be addressed by Red Cross officials from Vancouver.
• September 6, 1956: Whitehorse people learned with sorrow last week of the death of CPA flyer Phil Iverson. He was one of the 15 killed in the crash of a CPA DC-6B at Cold Bay in the Aleutian Islands last Thursday. There were 22 aboard the plane when it left Vancouver International Airport bound for Tokyo, Japan.
• September 6, 1956: Mr. Gerry Bontain and Doug Mofrell, technicians from the Northwest Telephone Company, Vancouver, are in Atlin on a mission of mercy, namely the improvement of the telephone service between there and Whitehorse and Telegraph Creek. Here's hoping.

• September 13, 1956: Many friends of Mr. and Mrs. Howard Firth gathered at the Whitehorse lnn Ballroom in honor of the Golden Anniversary of T.A. Firth & Son. The general insurance firm was originally established in Dawson in 1906.
• September 13, 1956: A switch left open in front of Carcross station caused the derailment of southbound WP&YR train at 10 am last Friday. When engineer Joe Shelby crossed the open switch the diesel engine and four ore cars went off the rails. Force of the train telescoped the cars. Ties were broken and rails bent, causing a twelve hour delay in schedule.
• September 13, 1956: Maid of Erin mine, "Rainy Hollow," on the Haines Road, will be shipping 4,000 to 5,000 tons of copper this year. Ore from the mine will be shipped through Haines, Alaska. Vancouver Tug Boat Company's big tug "LaBelle" is due back in Vancouver this week with 1650 tons in a barge. The silver-copper ore is shipped from tidewater at Haines to Tacoma, Washington.

• September 20, 1956: No paper.

• September 27, 1956: After occupying its premises across Main Street for more than fifty years, the Whitehorse Branch of the Canadian Bank of Commerce is moving, and it will be officially opened by Commissioner F .H. Collins. The most notable figure associated with the Whitehorse branch was Robert Service who worked here and at Dawson City from December 1904 to 1909.
• September 27, 1956: The White Pass & Yukon Route is offering special week-end fares to Skagway and back for $12.50 return.
• September 27, 1956: Last weekend NWHS Headquarters moved to their new location in Camp Takhini. Brigadier Meuser with his staff, the Pay Office, Civilian Personnel Office, Garrison HQ and Highway Maintenance Establishment HQ all vacated their offices in the town area. Two 15 ton trailers were brought from Dawson Creek to move large items and the rest was done with three ton trucks.

October

• October 4, 1956: D.W. Ballentine was buried in Dawson at the Pioneer Cemetery, where his wife. Elizabeth Jane, is buried. Ballentine, whose story is in many ways the story of the Klondike, is a man described as a tremendous granite slab of a man who packed a record load of 250 pounds up the 45-degrees lopes of the Chilkoot in '98.
• October 4, 1956: St. John Ambulance Association will start fall classes in first aid at the high school. Local branch President Gordon Riggins. Secretary- Mrs. Kay Johannes.

• October 11, 1956: Mayo Elects Curling Cub Executive - officers are Tom Prangley, President; Jim Boyes, Vice-president; Mrs. W.R. Gordon, Secretary-treasurer.

• October 25, 1956: The Teslin Inn is destroyed by fire, loss estimated at $60,000. Owned by Ray Hyde and leased by Gordon Crum, the Inn housed a cocktail lounge, tavern and restaurant as well as 10 rooms.

November

• November 1, 1956: Replicas of the coat of arms and the armorial bearings are now on sale for $1.00 at the territorial agency's office.
• November 1, 1956: Original plans for Northern Canada Power Commission's dam have been altered, lowering the proposed height of the earth fill structure but still raising the river level at the dam site 53 feet above the river bottom. Water level in Miles Canyon will be raised only 12 feet. Hopes the dam would create a virtual lake from the rapids to Marsh Lake will not be realized.

• November 8, 1956: Annual Fish and Game Association election results in two former officers being reelected. President Mike Nolan (re-elected). Vice-president Bob Friend.
• November 8, 1956: To make the Civic Center the place to go, a completely new system will be put into effect this year under a full-time manager, Bert Law.

• November 22, 1956: This year marks the fiftieth anniversary of Poole Construction Co. Ltd., who won the contract for construction of the $7,000,000 power project at Whitehorse Rapids. Working with the Edmonton contracting firm will be John. A. Maclsaac.
• November 22, 1956: Yukon Rexall Drugstores opening at old Canadian Bank of Commerce building at Second and Main. Bob Lynn owns Rexall Drugstores, the largest self-served drugstore in the north between Dawson Creek and Fairbanks.
• November 22, 1956: Preliminary work on the dam starts this month by John A. MacIsaac Construction Co.
• November 22, 1956: Whitehorse sewer and water systems are to cost $350 to $450 thousand dollars more than the quoted $ 1,700,000 price, due to re-design of the system, which took place after contracts had been entered into.

• November 29, 1956: Joe Sparling, president of Alaska-Yukon Refiners and Distributors, and J.C. Rogers, president of investment firm H.C. Flood, outlined the development plans for construction and acquisition of marine terminals, tankage, warehouse and loading facilities. Bulk storage plants are scheduled for Fairbanks, Haines Junction and Whitehorse.
• November 29, 1956: A five-nurse health scheme for the Yukon approved at fall session of Territorial council. Nurses will serve Whitehorse, Carmacks, Dawson, Mayo, Haines Junction and Watson Lake.
• November 29, 1956: A 3-ton Army truck and a White Pass locomotive were in collision late Tuesday afternoon in the Refinery area. Driver Pte. Leslie was badly shaken but unhurt despite being thrown clear of the cab, which was torn from the chassis of the truck.

December

• December 13, 1956: Mrs. Albert McMillian, manager of the White Pass hotel in Whitehorse from 1900 to 1910, dies in Vancouver.

• December 20, 1956: A newly completed men's dormitory is now ready at St. Joseph's Hostel, just across the street from Maryhouse at Sixth and Cook.
• December 20, 1956: Whitehorse Junior Chamber of Commerce bill a new campaign as "The Tragedy of Darkness," taking attack on the lack of street lighting facilities on the Two Mile hill.
• December 20, 1956: New Hospital Nearly Complete. Staff and patients will move in as soon as the Inspection party arrives.
• December 20, 1956: Guy S. Churchward, who was among the 3,000 vigilantes who formed a committee in Skagway to deal with the lawless Soapy Smith and his gang, died in Mayo on December 6.

1957

January

• January 3, 1957: On December 17th, patients were moved into the new Mayo Hospital, despite it being -40 outside. The new hospital was recently completed by Humphrie Construction from Vancouver.

• January 27, 1957: Yukon MP Aubrey Simmons said the federal road program in the north has been far from adequate. Priority needs include rehabilitation of the Canol Road, construction of 3 major bridges on the Whitehorse-Dawson road, and construction of a highway to Aklavik.

February

• February 7, 1957: Bud Harbottle has crashed his Cessna 185 near Telegraph Creek. "Nobody's hurt but the plane is demolished."
• February 7, 1957: Big game guide Mike Nolan is touring southern BC showing his wildlife films.
• February 7, 1957: Latest information available on Alaska-Yukon's proposed refinery at Haines comes from the Vancouver Province business page. Read the entire article here.

• February 14, 1957: Mrs. A.K. Viaux, owner of the White Pass Hotel, dies at the age of 89.
• February 14, 1957: A new Catholic chapel will open on February 17. The building was moved from McCrae to property donated by the White Pass, near the Whitehorse Indian Reserve.

• February 28, 1957: In a lengthy article, Roy Minter stresses the need to start promoting the Yukon Territory as a tourist destination. It was only 6 years prior that Alaska started doing it, and last year tourists spent $13 million there.

March

• March 7, 1957: Over 4,000 people attended the first car show to be held in Whitehorse, at the Civic Arena om March 1 and 2. There were 26 new vehicles on display at the show, which was sponsored by the 6 local dealers.

• March 21, 1957: Yukon's MP Aubrey Simmons announces that the federal government will spend $105,000 on reconstruction of the Canol Road.
• March 21, 1957: A lengthy article by Helen Thurber describes the construction and current status of one of the town's favorite tourist attractions, Martin Berrigan's "log skyscrapers." Read the entire article here.
• March 21, 1957: Roy Minter doesn't like the "torture chamber" description of the Alaska Highway being used by current Chevrolet truck ads following a road test by a fleet of Chev trucks last summer.

• March 28, 1957: At the end of this week Macpherson's Drugstore - Whitehorse Pharmacy - will cease to be. It was the only drugstore in the Yukon from about 1940 until 1953, but with the pharmacist at the 2-year-old pharmacy at the Medical-Dental building leaving, C. S. Macpherson will be spending all of his time there.
• March 28, 1957: Funeral services for 96-year-old A. N. Lawrence were held at Wark's Funeral Chapel in Dawson on March 26th. For many years Mr. Lawrence was Postmaster at Quartz Creek.
• March 28, 1957: For more than a month CPA has made a regular Sunday flight from Whitehorse to Aklavik to bring foodstuffs to construction workers on the new townsite on the Arctic coast. To date about 67,000 pounds have been transported from suppliers in Edmonton and Whitehorse.

April

• April 11, 1957: On April 8, Aubrey Simmons is chosen by the territorial Liberals as candidate for the forthcoming elections.
• April 11, 1957: The Yukon Council decides to adopt the fireweed as the emblem for the Yukon Territory. The crocus had also been considered, but was not chosen since it is the Manitoba provincial flower.

May

• May 9, 1957: Erik Nielsen is nominated as the Yukon candidate for the Progressive Conservative party.

• May 30, 1957: Dawson City and Mayo were flooded on May 23rd as the water in the Yukon and Klondike rivers rose.
• May 30, 1957: The sternwheeler Yukoner was sold by the White Pass last week, for $450. She was the first boat sold during the planned cleanup of the old shipyards. Read the entire article here.

June

• June 13, 1957: "City of Gold", a film depicting the history of gold in Dawson was awarded the grand jury award for documentary film at the Cannes film festival on May 18th.

• June 20, 1957: J. Aubrey Simmons is initially announced winner of the closest Yukon elections ever (June 15). However, a month later (July 18), the Whitehorse Star reports that irregular votes may cause the election to be voided. On August 1, the Yukon Conservative Party files a petition claiming that 630 votes are irregular. In the following the elections are declared void by a court (October 11). The new election, held in December (December 16), is won by Erik Nielsen who will be the Yukon's MP.

July

• July 11, 1957: The Dawson Branch of the B.C. and Yukon Chamber of Mines and the City Council are joint hosts for France's ambassador to Canada Francois La Coste.
• July 11, 1957: The Whitehorse City Council discusses possible locations of a city garage.
• July 11, 1957: Lucas Kraytbosch, Consul of the Netherland, pays a week-long visit to the Yukon.

• July 25, 1957: Wing Commander T.T. "Ted" Scovill is the new commanding officer of the RCAF station in Whithorse. The handing-over ceremony is covered in the Whitehorse Star on August 29.

August

• August 29, 1957: The Northern Affairs Minister, Alvin Hamilton arrives for a two-day visit in Whitehorse on August 31. The last trip to the Yukon by a Northern Affairs Minister was in 1954.

September

• September 5, 1957: Northern Affairs Minister Alvin Hamilton announces that works on a bridge over the Yukon River at Carmacks will start in 1958.

• September 19, 1957: This year has marked the disappearance of two famous landmarks in Whitehorse. The first was the old steamer Yukon, sold for scrap earlier this year, while the second, also going for salvage, is the old RCMP Police Barracks on Fourth Avenue.
• September 19, 1957: A proposal for a city bus system was made to City Council last week. Frank Loewen appeared at the meeting with the request that Council members grant him a franchise for a bus company within city limits. Council was unable to give a reply because no rate or schedules were submitted to them.
• September 19, 1957: From White Pass recently came the announcement that Roy Minter had joined their staff in a public relations capacity. A Whitehorse resident since April 1955 when he was posted here with the Army, the former Captain took his discharge from the Army last month.

• September 26, 1957: Indians in the Whitehorse area now have a chief, for the first time in their history. Chief Billy Smith was elected this summer to head the Whitehorse band, with Councillors Scurvy Shorty and John McGundy. Their term of office will last for two years.
• September 26, 1957: Whitehorse is in the middle of a flu epidemic and it's spreading rapidly. As of yesterday there were 243 cases known, 80% of them children or young adults. Mile cases could well triple that number.
• September 26, 1957: Carbon monoxide fumes from a portable gas engine claimed two lives last week at a small mine near Elsa. Dead are Ernest J. Schoemig, and Albert Thum, who died while trying to rescue his partner. This makes a total of four deaths in the Yukon within two years through use of gasoline engines underground.

October

• October 10, 1957: Next year Whitehorse will have two beautiful new churches. Now under construction are the United Church at 6th and Main, and the Whitehorse Baptist Church at, 2nd and Rogers Street. Not since the turn of the century has there been such church building activity. Read the entire lengthy article about Whitehorse church history here.

• October 17, 1957: At noon yesterday the north span of Peace River bridge collapsed. Army highway engineers had kept a wary eye on the bridge for a week because it was thought some slight movement of the north anchorage had occurred. Anticipating the trouble, arrangements were made to operate a two-car ferry from Clayhurst, about ten miles downstream from the bridge.

• October 28, 1957: The Yukon's first grocery supermarket is to open November 1st at the Tourist Services complex. Read the full page of articles about the store and its manager, James Smith, here.

November

• November 7, 1957: Mrs. Martha Louise Black died on November 1st at the age of 91. She was buried at the Whitehorse Cemetery.
• November 7, 1957: First Edsel sold in the Yukon (and first 1958 car) was a "Citation" model to Cpl. Clifford Millard who drove the new beauty home October 25 from Whitehorse Motors. A dental assistant with the Army here, Cpl. Millard said he had wanted an Edsel since they first came out. His is a 4-door hardtop with 345 hp, teletouch drive, quadra beam headlights and all the trimmings, in colonial white and royal blue metallic.
• November 7, 1957: Dick and Ivy White say "Farewell" to the patrons of the Capital Hotel and Starlight Lounge, which is now owned by Cal and Marty Miller.

• November 28, 1957: Chris van Overen is the new manager of the Taku Hotel.

December

• December 12, 1957: Opened last Saturday, December 7th, the new RCAF Recreation Centre boasts the largest gymnasium in town. Measuring about 60 x 100 feet, the hardwood floor is marked for basketball, badminton and volleyball courts. Construction of the $400,000 centre began last June.
• December 12, 1957: The last of 65 houses in East Whitehorse was occupied at the end of October, with that the housing development is now completed.
• December 12, 1957: A new 160-foot bridge across Contact Creek, Mile 588, has just been completed.

• December 19, 1957: In a tight by-election held as the result of protests over voting in the June federal election, Progressive Conservative candidate Erk Nielsen won over Liberal Aubrey Simmons.
• December 19, 1957: At a city council meeting last week, the new subdivision that has been called East Whitehorse was officially named "Riverdale." One alderman suggested that some people were afraid it would be called South Whiskey Flats.
• December 19, 1957: Soon to leave the familiar corner office on Main Street are Pacific Western Airlines staffers Gordon Cameron, Lloyd Romfo and all the rest of the gang. With PWA closed here for the winter, office space will not be used. Business will open again next spring but the Main Street office will not house PWA. It is understood jeweller Dave Rust is moving in.

1958

January

• January 2, 1958: At a tax assessment Court of Revision the week before Christmas, it was stated that they worked from a basic value of $10,000 for commercial lots and $1,500 for residential lots. Depending on location, this figure was raised or lowered. Ten years ago many lots sold for as low as $50, but today could be sold for $1,000.
• January 2, 1958: Along with formal speeches and ribbon-snipping for the opening December 7 of the new Recreation Hall at the Airbase, RCAF construction people sent along an amusing "Statement of Account" which was presented to Wing Commander T. T. Scovill. Although the end figure $478,000 for the building might be close, most of the items on the bill were obviously meant in fun.
• January 2, 1958: WaterWorks Superintendent Jack Cherry has little pots on many streets_burning old tires to thaw the ground so workmen can turn on bleeders in the sewer and water system.

• January 9, 1958: Mystery shrouds the New Year's Eve shooting at Calumet which took the life of 26-year-old Siegfried Sharpf, but one of his best friends, Kurt Kuhl, 36, was arrested and charged with murder.
• January 9, 1958: Rattling teeth and windows around town this morning was a big blast from Whitehorse Rapids Power Development. Work is starting on the east bank of the river for the main dam, and the blast today was mostly on the surface to loosen ice. Not much rock was jolted loose.
• January 9, 1958: By November this year the new hospital will be completed with its 120 beds ready for occupancy. Started in June 1956, the buildings at the hospital site were designed by Edmonton architects Rule, Wynn and Rule with Vancouver firm Dawson & Hall as major contractors along with several sub-contractors. Cost of the new hospital will be $3,800,000.

• January 16, 1958: Floodgates of civic controversy were full open here this week after brash and brawling Norm Chamberlist challenged qualifications of candidates in the January 23 civic election. Norm, a predictable comet on any election-time sky, flashed into view on schedule at city council last Tuesday when he declared that a number of candidates are not qualified within the meaning of the Ordinance. That view was not held by council nor by Don MacWilliam, acting for city solicitor Stuart Enderton.
• January 16, 1958: Dick Gillespie has been hauling ore from Clinton Creek to Dawson for the past 3 weeks. Tim Cole takes the ore from Dawson to Whitehorse and from there it is taken to Cassiar, B.C. The road into Clinton is very heavy and in some places the snow is 20 feet deep and Dick Gillespie has to go over the top.
• January 16, 1958: Hugh Williams of Canadian Coachways says his company is working out a bus-plane-train tour from Edmonton that would be given a trial this summer and, if successful, would be carried on in a large way the following year. Travellers would go one way by bus with a leisurely highway trip, travel to Skagway by train then fly home.

• January 23, 1958: Former Old Crow Chief Peter Moses receives a medal from the Governor-General on January 12th, for his role in preserving customes and traditions.
• January 23, 1958: Dr. Aaro E. Aho, P. Eng., Geological engineer, has announced the establishment of his own consulting practice in North Vancouver. From 1953 until 1957 he was Exploration Manager for British Yukon Exploration Company, Ltd., a subsidiary of the White Pass and Yukon Corporation.
• January 23, 1958: Supplies of polio vaccine ran out last week on the final day of a three-day clinic for adults getting third doses. Nearly 500 people attended for the final shots of vaccine. More vaccine has been ordered for the rest of the adult population who missed out last week.

• January 30, 1958: Shock and sympathy swept through Whitehorse this week when residents learned of the sudden and unexpected death of Mr. Justice J. E. Gibben at 10 am Tuesday morning following a heart attack which struck some time Sunday night. He was born in England on June 19, 1895, and his family moved to Winnipeg the following year.
• January 30, 1958: A quiet, almost secret wedding ceremony at the Church of The Perpetual Help January 16 in Vancouver united Sadie King, 65, with George Black, 84, former commissioner of the Yukon and ex-speaker of the House of Commons.
• January 30, 1958: Whitehorse Credit Union was one of 133 new credit unions formed in Canada during 1957, bringing the total number in Canada to 3,073, and 23,411 in the Western Hemisphere.

February

• February 6, 1958: Ted Anderson is re-relected Chairman of the Yukon Indian Advancement Association. He was one of the founders of the organization.
• February 6, 1958: The first cat train bound for the Eagle Plain oil fields reached its destination last week after eleven days on the trail. With Max Kiniken as captain, the train left Flat Creek on January 20. Scheduled to start back Tuesday this week, the men expect to be at Flat Creek in about five days.
• February 6, 1958: Christ Church Cathedral was thronged with guests Saturday evening for an early New Year wedding of widespread interest when Ione Jean, only daughter of Mr. and Mrs. G. I. Cameron, became the bride of Arthur Karsten Christensen. The groom is the son of Mrs. Johanna Christensen and the late Alfred Christensen of Kimberley, B. C.

• February 13, 1958: Resources Minister Alvin Hamilton announced last week survey work will start on a road through the rugged Yukon mountains to the Arctic Coast. Tractor teams will set up camps for surveyors who will trace the route to the coast. Present plans call for the road to link Flat Creek, south of Dawson City, with Tuktoyaktuk.
• February 13, 1958: A low rental housing project will be built in Whitehorse this summer, reported Erik Nielsen on his return from Ottawa. He said 32 three-bedroom units would be constructed across the river, with tenders being called before April 1 and the target for occupancy this fall. However, on April 16, the territorial council turned the project down.
• February 13, 1958: The steamer "Klondike" will go on its final journey when she leaves the Yukon some time this year. The paddlewheeler and the barges "Ibex" and "Takhini" were sold in January to Vancouver restauranteur John Lester, who plans to convert the ship into an ornate restaurant. The purchase price for the boat and barges totalled about $25,000.

• February 20, 1958: In a very enthusiastic radion auction, Lions members, CFWH staffers and Yukon Telephone men raised approximately $1,800 for the Lions pool.
• February 20, 1958: Strong words flew in last week's city council session about the civic centre. Mayor Cameron said it will not be opened in its present condition. It will take about $140,000 to complete the building.
• February 20, 1958: A truck loaded with 14 tons of groceries, organized by White Pass to fill the gap while the company's ship is undergoing repairs, rolled away during a brake check at Mile 353 and went over a 300-foot bank.

• February 27, 1958: Northern Affairs Minister Alvin Hamilton announces details of national development program aimed at the Yukon and NWT. The top priority road is the Flat Creek route to Fort MacPherson, Arctic Red River, East Three and Tuktoyaktuk.
• February 27, 1958: At Canyon Creek, Melvin Oscar Riley, 39, tried to get oil from the American Army's pipeline. The line broke, resulting in the loss of 3,360 gallons of diesel fuel. Magistrate Adams fined Riley $25 and he was ordered to make restitution to the U.S. Army for the lost fuel, valued at $483.84.
• February 27, 1958: One of the smartest face-lifting jobs in town these days is going on at the Yukon Jewellery and Novelty Shop, better known as the "Kee Bird." With an eye to modern display ideas but not forgetting the lure of rustic northern motifs, Jack Needham is supervising a complete new look for the familiar store.

March

• March 27, 1958: Yukon Electrical and Yukon Hydro have been sold to Canadian Utilities of Edmonton as of March 31st. Read the entire article here.
• March 27, 1958: Northern Affairs Minister Alvin Hamilton announced the transfer from the United States to Canada of ownership of the Canadian portion of the four-inch Canol pipeline from Skagway to Whitehorse.
• March 27, 1958: In a Letter to the Editor, Erik Nielsen detailed Prime Minister Diefenbaker's 4-year National Development Policy, which would see $35 million spent on roads in the Yukon, including the Flat Creek - Aklavik Road (later named the Dempster Highway).

April

• April 3, 1958: Flames gut the Elks Home in downtown Whitehorse. The historic building was one of the oldest in Whitehorse and onetime home of Robert Service.
• April 3, 1958: The Northern Affairs Department approves a street paving program for the city of Whitehorse. Initial stages of paving will go from the foot of Two Mile Hill along Fourth to the UKHM loading area and down Main Street to the White Pass building.
• April 3, 1958: A freak accident early this morning took the life of Billy Smith, 27, who died in general hospital after falling into an oil residue pit near the old refinery area. Apparently the young Indian was returning home sometime after midnight when he fell into the abandoned pit, used when the Canol pipeline terminus was located here. Army firemen were called to help get him out about 1 am.

• April 10, 1958: Driving will become increasingly hazardous on Fourth Ave. next to the Whitehorse Cleaners, with all this neck-stretching to see a certain billboard there. When questioned about their work, the two local artists responsible said, "We wanted to call this work of art 'Nude Sliding Down a Fire Pole', but for the sake of the aesthetically timid viewers, we decided on 'You Can't Take It With You.
• April 10, 1958: What looked to Whitehorse residents Monday night like a big, red star sitting atop Grey Mountain turned out to be a camp fire. This report came from an RCAF team who investigated in their Otter Tuesday morning after numerous calls were received from local people.
• April 10, 1958: Prison terms at grim Fort Saskatchewan pen were handed out recently by Magistrate Adams to Joe Brown, 25 and Albert Rateschack, 19 in connection with an attack on Leslie Clark. The Magistrate sentenced Brown to six months and Rateschak to four months. During a drinking party at Clark's shack, the two men used an open safety pin and a knife on their host.

• April 17, 1958: A proposal for low rental apartments in Whitehorse was thrown out yesterday by territorial councillors. Introduced by councillor John Phelps, the resolution called for apartments blocks of 15 suites each to be built in west Whitehorse. Cost of suites individually would be no greater than $10,000. Councillors from Dawson, Mayo and Carmacks vetoed the idea.
• April 17, 1958: Our woefully inadequate business licensing by-law will soon cease to exist. In its place will be a new one, set up by Alderman Jimmy Smith and Fire Chief Fred Blaker, who have been working hard in recent months to correct what Mr. Smith called "the incomprehensible inequalities" of the present by-law.
• April 17, 1958: W. G. (Bill) Madley knows the territory well, having driven through it as a trucker with Keno Hill and having travelled for Watkins products. In Whitehorse many residents met him when he made deliveries for Whitehorse Dairies. Now Bill is with Whitehorse Motors in their sales department, a job he finds easier because he is acquainted with many Yukoners.

• April 24, 1958: Officials of Yukon Electric Company announced the company will reduce electric bills by a flat five per cent discount effective with the billings made after May 1. This temporary arrangement will be discontinued when supply commences from the Northern Canada Power Commission's new hydro project and an agreement has been reached as to the cost of such energy.
• April 24, 1958: Visitors at Watson Lake last week included Dan Culver and Henry Gleisen of Telegraph Creek. Arriving at the south end of Dease Lake and finding a fairly well frozen bombadier track, they decided to drive down the thirty-three miles of lake and succeeded in doing so, arriving in Watson Lake in the afternoon. After a short overnight visit, they loaded up with supplies, and returned to Dease Lake and Telegraph Creek.
• April 24, 1958: At a conference of Yukon High School Administrators held April 9 and 10 in Whitehorse, one of the problems discussed was that of the "bench-warmer,” a colloquialism used to describe the student who persists in failing to apply himself to his studies, and thus becomes a burden on both the public purse and the school which must still attempt to educate him.

May

• May 8, 1958: A newly passed Liquor Ordinance allows banquets with liquor on Sundays and extends "drink up" time in bars from 15 minutes to half an hour.
• May 8, 1958: A huge nugget of native copper now sits in front of the MacBride Museum. Getting it there was quite a story - read it here.
• May 8, 1958: Soon to vanish from the local scene completely is the Elks Building, gutted by fire on April 3. Al Wengryn and his partner, Nels Madson, who hope to have the site cleared by May 24 - they competed with 27 other bidders for the contract. Al tore down the paddle-wheeler "Yukoner" last year.

• May 22, 1958: Joanne Parsons is named Queen of the May at Whitehorse's annual May Day Celebrations.

June

• June 5, 1958: The first car rally in the Yukon, called the "Cheechako Rally", takes place on the Carcross route on June 1st.
• June 5, 1958: CBC plans to extend and improve radio broadcasting service in the north. It is planned to build a shortwave station in Vancouver to beam CBC programs to the Yukon and the Mackenzie district of the Northwest Territories, to be completed by 1960.

• June 19, 1958: Work has begun on construction of the bridge over the Yukon river at Carmacks.

  

• June 26, 1958: Not since the cremation of Sam McGee "on the marge of Lake Lebarge" has a fire stirred up so much public interest as the one which started last Thursday at Mile 10 on the Mayo Highway, not far from fabled Laberge itself. According to an RCAF spokesman, the fire started in an area where obsolete bombs were being exploded by Airforce armament personnel. The Airforce said they cannot take responsibility for the blaze and will make no statement as to how it started, apart from saying the fire did break out where bombs were being detonated.
• June 26, 1958: Proctor construction started work on the reconstruction of the Elsa road June 18, only two days after the signing of the contract for eight of the twelve miles to be done. At the moment there are two D-8 cats stripping away the overburden. When the fires in the district are brought under control there will be another D-8, belonging to Don Buyck, added to the heavy machinery in use.
• June 26, 1958: After many years of operation on a volunteer basis, radio station CFWH will soon be staffed by CBC personnel, hired locally. CBC will take over on October 1, but some upgraded equipment will be shipped in before that.

July

• July 3, 1958: Forest fires are still burning out of control in many parts of the Yukon today. Yesterday's rain helped some, but only put out one fire which started near Grey Mountain Tuesday. Elsewhere in the territory, nine major blazes are keeping forestry division personnel busy night and day. Now burned over 56 square miles, the Mayo road fire broke out severely Monday. About 30 men and four cats are at the site, trying to prevent the fire from travelling down a valley toward Takhini hotsprings.
• July 3, 1958: Probably because of the holiday weekend, the fewest voters on record turned out Monday for the civic election. With a possible 1,000 votes, only 460 ballots were cast to elect aldermen James Howatt, Edmund Jacobs, Herbert K. Law and N. V. K. Wyle. Defeated was Norm Chamberlist who had challenged last January's election. In the last election 690 ballots were cast.
• July 3, 1958: A famed Alaskan prospector and explorer Alexander Malcolm (Sandy) Smith, died last Tuesday at the age of 99. Several books have been written about him. Smith was second in command of the Sir Hubert Wilkin 1926 expedition, was a trail blazer for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and was a member of the first geological party to go up the Yukon River in 1902.

• July 10, 1958: The month of June 1958 was the hottest and driest on record in Whitehorse. Mean temperature for the month was 60.7 F (15.9 Celsius), six degrees above normal. The forest fire situation continues to be serious, with several large lazes still out of control after weeks of burning.

• July 10, 1958: Hardworking members of Yukon Fish and Game Association were elated to learn last week their fight for fish ladders at Whitehorse Rapids dam has been successful. This climaxed a battle started in February 1957. The association was also responsible for getting that are that will become a lake cleared to provide good boating and safety for float plane operations.
• July 10, 1958: An earthquake in the Gulf of Alaska was felt throughout the southern Yukon. Though the brief article said "no damage has been reported so far," this earthquake resulted in what is still the largest tsunami on record, at Lituya Bay - 5 people were killed. For much more information, see "The world's tallest tsunami - Lituya Bay, Alaska, 1958".

• July 17, 1958: As Whitehorse residents fearfully watched the northern sky Monday night, the advancing wall of smoke brought personal disaster to Harry Gordon-Cooper at Takhini hotsprings, Joe Kawchuk at Mile 936 on the highway and three Indian families living at Mile 955. Completely destroyed in minutes were all buildings at Mr. Kawchuk's farm and at the well known hotsprings.
• July 17, 1958: On Monday night when forestry engineer George Wilson considered the fire situation in the territory had reach near disaster proportions, the military was called in to help. At that time, fires from Mendenhall creek and Stoney creek joined to sweep towards Whitehorse. Spurred on by a forty-mile-an-hour wind the two fires covered an area of about 32,000 acres.
• July 17, 1958: August 4 has been set for official opening of the new Northern Metallic Sales (Yukon) Ltd. warehouse, situated north of Tourists Services supermarket. The company's headquarters is in Dawson Creek, with another warehouse in Prince George.

• July 24, 1958: Rain saved Whitehorse last week. If it hadn't come, forestry officials say there would have been little hope for the town with a 30-mile front of fire advancing. In some places 20 miles away, the fire came up within five miles of the White Pass tank farm and was seen plainly from city streets Friday evening.
• July 24, 1958: A Work Bridge has been constructed approximately one-third the distance across the Yukon River at Carmacks. This bridge will eventually extend the full width of the river, and as a result, the Yukon River will not be open for navigation beyond this point for an indefinite period.
• July 24, 1958: Mr. and Mrs. George Black left Whitehorse Tuesday for their new home in Vancouver. Before going, Mr. Black left this message: "I liked it in the north and I'm sorry to leave but Vancouver is better for my feet and my purse."

• July 31, 1958: A group of 13 hikers which had been led by Ted Lattin and included Blondie Hougen as official photographer, arrived back in town by train yesterday after a 3-day hike across the Chilkoot Trail.
• July 31, 1958: K. J. Robinson has arrived in Whitehorse and commenced his duties as Manager of the Whitehorse Airport. In the transition from RCAF to DOT control of the aerodrome, Mr. Robinson has been extremely busy with problems of staff, accommodations, and equipment. He is from Winnipeg, and is married with two sons, 11 and 12 years of age.
• July 31, 1958: Members of the government survey crew working out the road from North Fork of the Klondike on out to Blackstone and thence on to Aklavik were in Dawson yesterday in full force. There are five different parties on this project which began about April 1 and will continue on as long as weather permits, likely September. Al Wright is in charge of a reconnaissance party finding a way through the Richardson Mountains.

August

• August 7, 1958: Army Day, an interesting and important part of the Jubilee festivities will be held here Saturday. The event will give local residents a chance to see some of the inner workings of NWHS and the men who keep its wheels turning. Included will be a band concert, static displays, film showings and an open PMQ.
• August 7, 1958: Twice within fifteen days fire broke out at the Satellite Printers, located at First and Jarvis. An overheated stove pipe lit the floor joists at the shop July 22 about 7:25 a.m. Little damage was done. However in a blaze Tuesday evening about 9:35 the interior of the building was gutted.
• August 7, 1958: Taylor and Drury Ltd., pioneer Yukon merchants, moved ahead again this week when the firm decided to remain open every weekday night for evening shopping. The store will now remain open weekdays until 8:30 pm. In conjunction with this change, store employees' work week has been reduced from 44 hours to 40, and there will now be two shifts.

• August 14, 1958: Prior to May 1957 the idea of a swimming pool for Whitehorse had been discussed by many groups and individuals, but nothing was done to make the dream a reality until Whitehorse Lions took hold of the project. The Lions Pool, 45 by 105 feet in size, opens today.
• August 14, 1958: City council anticipates paving on Second and Main will be undertaken next year. Work of bringing the two streets to grade will be done this summer and fall. Second will be paved from Main to Lowe and Main from the White Pass depot to Fourth.
• August 14, 1958: The Salvation Army is now in town, and permanent officers Capt. and Mrs. Gordon Kerr will arrive here about September 13. They will be located at 311 Jarvis Street - that's the corner of Fourth and Jarvis, the yellow house.

• August 21, 1958: Cal Miller was charged with attempted murder in magistrate's court Tuesday morning following a shooting at the Capital Hotel in which Mike Cole of Keno and Cal's wife, Marty, were wounded. Most seriously injured was Mr. Cole who was shot in the abdomen and creased on the head by bullets. Mrs. Miller was hit in the arm and also creased on the head.
• August 21, 1958: With the cooperation of local merchants who held off advertising, The Star had planned to suspend publication this week. However, it later proved necessary to publish the territorial election proclamation and so this miniature four-page issue was produced, although the paper is short staffed with most away on holiday.
• August 21, 1958: Television in two months for Whitehorse is the promise of Ray Marshall of Vancouver Television Services, who spent several days making a survey of the district this week. The wired TV will be on a pay-by-the-month, closed circuit basis. It is anticipated several local stores will open TV sales departments.

• August 28, 1958: Skagway's first annual gala sourdough Statehood celebration, Canadian Commemoration and Labor Day festival has attracted considerable attention, says Mayor Cy Coyne. On Saturday the heretofore unnamed park at the Point will be named Eisenhower Park, and the dock road will thereafter be known as Congress Way in honor of Alaskan Statehood bill passing Congress and signed by the President.
• August 28, 1958: A bad accident a week ago pointed up to Haines Junction residents once more the need for a resident district nurse. As a result of a head on collision between a car and a pick up, eight people were taken to Whitehorse for medica] attention. Only 4 were hospitalized for any length of time and a resident nurse available at the scene of the accident could have done much to relieve the suffering and perhaps done away with the need to send aii the accident victims to Whitehorse.
• August 28, 1958: A change in the Jubilee entertainment for Haines Junction was the band of Lord Strathcona's Horse. An outdoor band concert early in the evening was well attended and enjoyed by all except the band who were forced to stop early owing to black files.

September

• September 4, 1958: Northern Affairs Minister Alvin Hamilton will arrive in Whitehorse Monday night for a week-long visit in the north. Accompanied by Deputy Minister R. G. Robertson. Mr. Hamilton will travel to Mayo, Carmacks and Dawson City September 10, with a flight from Peel Plateau to Fort McPherson over the new highway route the next day. On Friday next week they will stop at Old Crow, returning to McPherson to open a school and hostel there. Next will be Aklavik, Tuktoyaktuk and Inuvik, also known as East 3, which is the new Aklavik townsite.
• September 4, 1958: The above-normal temperature conditions which prevailed in Whitehorse for the past five months came to an end in August with an average temperature of 53 degrees, 1.8 degrees below normal. Highest temperature for the month was 71.6 on August 12.
• September 4, 1958: Newly opened on Main Street this week was the Hub Shoe Store in the former location of the Hub Cafe. Owner of the building Jessie Marshall, was joined in the new enterprise by Florence Mussatto.

• September 11, 1958: Territorial councillors for the next three years will be Dawson, George Shaw; Mayo, Ray McKamey; Carmacks-Kluane, John Livesey, Whitehorse East, Charlie Taylor and Whitehorse West, Jim Smith.
• September 11, 1958: By next year, Whitehorse likely will boast a smart bus depot. Tentative plans are now being made by Canadian Coachways to build a new terminal here for their Yukon customers. Steadily expanding since their arriva] in July 1957, Coachways began with one trip a week from Dawson Creek to Whitehorse. In October last year they increased their service to twice-weekly and in May this year the schedule was upped to three times a week.
• September 11, 1958: Among the most unique visitors to the Yukon this past summer was a television crew from Toronto who arrived at the invitation of gold rush jubilee director Roy Minter to film a Trail of '98 story for the CBC program "Folio."

• September 18, 1958: Robert W. Service, whose lusty verse still is heard around the world, died last Thursday night (September 11th) at 84 in his villa on the coast of Brittany in France. A heart attack was the apparent cause of death. His wife was with him when he died.
• September 18, 1958: Tenders will be called this fall for the beginning of work on the Flat Creek - Fort Macpherson road, J. W. Murphy told Whitehorse board of trade members last week. Mr. Murphy is house of commons mines and forest committee head. He was here with Gordon Robertson, deputy northern affairs minister.
• September 18, 1958: A good-sized crowd turned out September 13 to watch the Yukon's first annual truck roadeo, arranged by Hugh Williams of Canadian Coachways, Lieut. Jim Wallace, George Smith and Ken Garvice. It is planned to make it an annual event.

• September 25, 1958: The front page has four articles including a detailed itinerary of the upcoming visit of Prime Minister Diefenbaker. He and his wife will arrive on a turbo-jet Viscount at noon tomorrow. Stores will close at 8 pm so staff members can hear his speech.
• September 25, 1958: A decided improvement in the local dog situation was commented upon by city councillors at a recent meeting. Eric Brown, appointed dog catcher August 21, has evidently done a good job, aldermen agreed. According to statistics supplied by the city clerk, since Mr. Brown's duties began, a total of 51 dogs have been picked up. Of this number 32 were destroyed.
• September 25, 1958: Bright but chilly weather favoured the opening of the Yukon Automobile Club Time Trials held in the afternoon. Many interested spectators were treated to the first such event held in the Yukon.

October

• October 2, 1958: Hundreds of Yukoners last weekend met and talked to the Right Honourable John G. Diefenbaker, Prime Minister of Canada, and his wife. The three-day visit was barely started when it became evident friendly informality was to be the keynote.
• October 2, 1958: The purchase of Yukon Telephone Company by Canadian National Telecommunications (CNT) has been approved by Order in Council at Ottawa, Erik Nielsen, MP, announced in Whitehorse this morning. Terms of the sale were not made known. Plans for the system, which includes Mayo as well as Whitehorse, have not yet been expressed by CNT officials.
• October 2, 1958: A total of 14 additional street lights will soon be installed in Whitehorse. Decision for extra streets lights was made at a recent city council session when aldermen discovered funds were available in the street lighting budget for this year. According to city clerk J. H. Thompson, last year's budget was about $3,700 while for 1958 $5,000 was set aside for street lighting.

• October 9, 1958: A shooting trip ended in tragedy Tuesday for an RCAF Station Whitehorse airman when LAC "Denny" Denette died near Tagish Bridge. He and LAC Doucet were fishing and duck hunting about noon when Denette reached for a shotgun which lay in the bottom of the boat. The gun discharged and the blast entered Denette's chest. Death was instantaneous.
• October 9, 1958: Motorists are advised that Third Avenue from Lambert Street south to the nearest alley is now closed. Decision to reserve this street for children attending Lambert Street school was made at the September 23 city council meeting.
• October 9, 1958: Now available to lovers of northern poetry is the second collection of "Ballads of the Northwest," by Carcross resident Thomas Brooks.

• October 16, 1958: Commissioner F. H. Collins declared the Elsa School officially open on Wednesday, October 8, in a smartly-staged ribbon-cutting ceremony. Mrs. Collins assisted her husband in the ritual.
• October 16, 1958: Ice in the Pelly and Stewart rivers caused both ferries to be pulled off last Sunday. If the current mild weather continues they will be back in operation within a few days.
• October 16, 1958: Yukon councillors will soon be asked to consider the establishment of a central vocational school with hostel accommodation at Whitehorse. Nurses' Aide training will be a feature of the new general hospital.

• October 23, 1958: No trace has been found of two Camp Takihini men missing in the dark waters of Marsh Lake since Sunday. Object of an intensive search are Ralph Huene and Louis Kuhn who were last seen about 4 pm Sunday when they left the island near the North end of Marsh Lake. Read the entire story here.
• October 23, 1958: Whitehorse East councillor Jim Smith said in reply tom the Commissioner's opening address at council that it is time to start laying the foundations for responsible government for the Yukon.
• October 23, 1958: Canadian Nationa) Telegraphs are scheduled to take over Yukon Telephone Company November 1. All personnel are being given the opportunity to continue their employment under the new management. Whitehorse automatic exchange handles approximately one thousand telephones and the company also operates an exchange at Mayo with connections to Elsa and Keno. Radio communication is maintained between Whitehorse and Mayo.

• October 30, 1958: Northern Affairs Minister Alvin Hamilton today announced a $1,000,000 refinery for Haines Junction. To be built by Alaska-Yukon Refiners and Distributors, it will provide income for 40 to 60 families.
• October 30, 1958: W. S. Martin, QC, noted lawyer of the Niagara District, shared some stories about his father, Whitehorse steamboat Captain Paddy Martin. Read that and another article about Captain Martin here.
• October 30, 1958: Like turning off a tap, engineers supervising the Rapids Dam project turned off the flow of the Yukon River twice recently, completely drying up the river in spots. Youngsters took advantage of the opportunity to find lost fishing equipment.

November

• November 6, 1958: Stuck on the Haines road last weekend were three trucks whose drivers had been warned the road was closed for the winter. Marooned until rescued by a NWHS crew from Haines Junction were three flat-bed trailer trucks, operated by Arctic Motors Freight, hauling lumber to Tok Junction and Fort Greely.
• November 6, 1958: Resolution asking that provision be made for placing natives back on Indian status when they have adopted white status but have proved unable to reach the standard of citizenship which might reasonably be expected of them was passed by territorial council last week. Putting forth the resolution was Whitehorse East councillor Charley Taylor, Yukon born representative.
• November 6, 1958: Public concern over prospective rates in the new hospital across the river may be aired next Thursday night. At territorial council, Councillor Jim Smith's resolution urges that the rates be set at an inclusive rate of $17.50 per day and that any operating deficit be handled by the territorial government with the assistance of the federal government until the national health scheme could be instituted in Yukon.

• November 13, 1958: Yukon Electric Power is now providing Haines Junction with electricity.
• November 13, 1958: Taylor & Drury's new completely modernized food market opens tomorrow at 10 a.m. A draw will be held for an all-expenses-paid trip to Vancouver, a luxurious fur coat, and a fully-stocked Frigidaire freezer.
• November 13, 1958: The federal cabinet is expected within two or three weeks to give the go-ahead to advanced planning for a proposed nuclear blast under the rich Athabaska oil sands of Northern Alberta - reputed to be the world's biggest untapped oil reserve. It is thought that the heat and pressure from a nuclear blast would melt the tar-like oil in the sands thin enough to flow freely and collect in the crater.

• November 20, 1958: Commissioner F. H. Collins announced Thursday that the daily rate at the new Whitehorse genera] hospital has been pegged at $18. He said this would be below the $24 a day estimated operating cost per patient but the difference would be born by the territoria] government.
• November 20, 1958: Now settled in thelr new location are staff members of Yukon (Rexall) Drug store. According to manager Bob Lynn there is about 800 square feet more space at the new building than in the former site in the Elks block.
• November 20, 1958: Nice to see a quiet man rewarded for community service. Some community benefactors like to stand in the spotlight waving a banner reading "Look at Me" whenever they do something good but such a one definitely is not Hoy Cameron who was named Sportsman of the Year by the Fish & Game Association. A man to go about his job without stirring up a lot of fuss or attention for himself, Hoy was a great choice for the honour.

• November 27, 1958: Alderman Ed Jacobs attended a League of Alaskan Cities convention in Juneau. Alaskans feel a special pull towards the Yukon, he reported, and seem to think the proposed coastal highway from Prince Rupert to Juneau will bring Alaska and the Yukon even closer. The corridor idea is supported strongly by Panhandle cities.
• November 27, 1958: As part of the Northern Radio Service the CBC took over Dawson radio station CFYH this month. "The Voice of the Yukon" was known for the past ten years as the hundred watt station with thirty eight announcers. It has served the Dawson district well on an entirely volunteer basis.
• November 27, 1958: City councillors this month went on record as being unanimously in favour of fluoridation. The local PTA are 100% in favour of using fluoride in Whitehorse water. In order to set up equipment to use fluoridation it will be necessary to take a plebiscite at a cost of about $500.

December

• December 11, 1958: Yukon Car Club had a real driving test for local car jockeys at the group's last car rally. Nine cars participated and the drivers found themselves on roads they hadn't known existed before the course was set, and drivers had some slippery hills to contend with.
• December 11, 1958: Although rail and bus transportation was not affected by the recent cold weather, plane schedules have been upset considerably. Delays up to 12 hours resulted from fog, which cut visibility to zero. Cold temperatures alone do not affect planes, but the fog rising from open water on lakes and rivers hamper flying.
• December 11, 1958: Another forward step toward low-rental housing was taken at the December 9 city council session. About a dozen lots have been offered by local property owners in answer to a city request for suitable low-rent unit locations. It was obvious many hoped to make a killing by sale of the lots to the government. Prices asked ranged as high as $5,000 for one lot and councillors agreed this was ridiculous.

• December 31, 1958: One of Canada's best-known geologists, Dr. Charles Camsell, died at his Ottawa home December 19, at the age of 82. Born at Fort Liard, Northwest Territories, the son of a former chief factor of the Hudson's Bay Company, he had spent many of the best years of his life poking and probing through northern areas in search of minerals and other geological lore.
• December 31, 1958: Sen. Richard L. Neuberger is again trying to arrange an agreement for paving the Alaska Highway in Canada. Only 300 miles of the 1,500-mile highway now are paved and all the paved mileage is in Alaska except or some 50 miles from Dawson Creek to Fort St. John.
• December 31, 1958: Establishment of an air ambulance service in Dawson Creek to serve the region has been suggested by Mayor Roger Fersyth of that city. Dawson Creek was proposed as the logical base for the service because the city soon would have a new hospital.

1959

January

• January 8, 1959: President Eisenhower last Saturday proclaimed Alaska the 49th state of the U.S., pushing the national boundaries 1,500 miles to the west. The new 49-star flag, chosen from almost 2,000 suggestions, also was unveiled at Washington.
• January 8, 1959: Engineers at the Whitehorse Rapids power plant this week straightened out technical difficulties which had caused two power failures within the past week. Fault was not with Yukon Electric's distribution system. Apparently the governors on both generators at the Rapids powerhouse became unstable, which caused racing of motors in electrical appliances in town.
• January 8, 1959: Lucky chance that brought Dawson City's William Braga along the 50-below-zero Whitehorse-Dawson Highway may have saved five persons from freezing to death. Four women, all Dawson teachers, and a man were driving from Whitehorse when their car stalled and they began hiking toward Midway Lodge. One of the women suffered severely frost-bitten feet.

• January 15, 1959: Tempers flared this week as hockey commissioners locked horns with city conncillors over the civic arena. Main beefs of the commission ncluded the doors, dressing rooms, condition of the ice, the PA system, lack of boxes for goal judges and general management of the arena.
• January 15, 1959: Yesterday a northbound train arrived here from Skagway, the first since January 5. White Pass officials said snow conditions this years were the worst since 1948, when trains were held up for 30 days. Winds up to 75 miles an hour in the pass caused heavy drifting and packing of the snow. Between Mile 19 and 21 it was reported last week there were drifts between 15 and 18 feet deep.
• January 15, 1959: On their recent trip to Dawson to open the new school there Commissioner and Mrs. F. H. Collins experienced some of the coldest weather they have ever seen in the Yukon. Mr. Collins said it was reported 80 below at the Pelly Crossing and 78 below at the Stewart.

• January 22, 1959: The White Pass paddlewheeler "Casca" has been bought by the Eagles club, who plan to renovate the steamer as a tourist attraction and club headquarters.
• January 22, 1959: The Yukon Territorial Council announces its plans to inaugurate the national health plan in the Yukon by January 1960.
• January 22, 1959: Five camp sites have been selected in the United States and Canada for overnight stops for a series of escorted motor tours over the Alaska Highway next summer. Alaska Wagontrain Inc., a new company from Fairbanks, plans to escort motor caravans of up to 25 cars over the highway from Dawson Creek to Fairbanks.

• January 29, 1959: An asbestos strike has been reported in the Tachilta Lake area of northern B.C. which is about 35 miles west of Dease Lake. B.C. Yukon Air Services, based at Watson Lake, have been flying steadily last week ferrying men and supplies to the region. Five different mining companies have men in the area. One unconfirmed source reports the find to be larger than Cassiar.
• January 29, 1959: A nursing station is to be built at Watson Lake this year. Construction of the five room unit is to begin in May with July as the estimated completion date.
• January 29, 1959: Reader's Digest have written Bill MacBride to say they will have a photography team in Canada looking for cover material for the magazine this summer and may feature some of the museum stuff.

February

• February 5, 1959: From air cadet to jet pilot is the record of F/O Lance McCowan, who received his pilot's wiwgs last month at Gimli, Manitoba. After graduating in 1957 from Whitehorse high school, Lance joined the RCAF to be a jet pilot. He was among 65 chosen from 1,000 applicants in western Canada. Of these, only nine completed the course as pilots. Sponsored by NATO, the course prepares the young men to fly CF-100s.
• February 5, 1959: Many changes in the Whitehorse traffic bylaw are being discussed, including angle parking, parking meters, and speed limits. During discussion on speed limits, works superintendent Ron Moss pointed out that dust doubles at every five-mile increase of speed. Instead of the present 25-mph limit in town, council thought 20 mph would be better.
• February 5, 1959: On last Saturday's train the biggest "cat" ever to be seen in the Yukon rolled into town. A Caterpillar D-9, the 35-ton behemoth was bought from Northern Commercial by Action Mining Company for use at their Boullion creek operation. Worth $62,000 the D-9 is about 18 feet long, 12 feet wide and almost nine feet high.

• February 12, 1959: Publisher Harry Boyle adds "Illegitimus non Carborundum" (not proper Latin, but Don't Let the Bastards Grind You Down) to the masthead.
• February 12, 1959: Half the front page is taken up by a report from the executive of the Whitehorse Merchants hockey club regarding a controversial player allocation.
• February 12, 1959: Dawson pioneer Mrs. Catherine Rendell died at her home in Vancouver on January 13th. She was famous for carrying a flat iron across the Chilkoot Pass in 1898. She was offered $100 for it, a small fortune in 1898, but turned it down.

• February 19, 1959: On January 18th, a dog team driven by Pat Lund, 13-year-old son of Watson lake Hotel proprietress Rita Lund, was struck by a car driven by Herbert Kaiser. Both dogs were killed, and the car didn't stop. Evidence pointed to Kaiser, who was arrested and on February 12th was sentenced to a $300 fine and costs.
  
• February 19, 1959: Fire last night gutted the Fourth and Main premises of Canadian Coachways and the offices of Dr. Kay MacDonald. Hardworking firemen fought for hours to save the next-door Simpson-Sears Building and the now vacant office formerly occupied by Capitol barbers.
  
• February 19, 1959: Massa Sakata, owner and operator of the Sourdough Cafe bar at Keno, returned recently from a visit to Vancouver. While there Massa got himself a new hearing aid and is now happy to be able to visit with his customers.

• February 26, 1959: Old Crow post office opened February 25th, marking the first Canadian postal service for this northern settlement.
  
• February 26, 1959: Prime Minister Diefenbaker Friday ruled out Canadian participation in an American senator's plan to pave the Canadian section of the Alaska Highway. A government official said later this does not alter the existing program of paving short stretches of the highway each year, however.
  
• February 26, 1959: The Peace River Development Company announced at Vancouver it has designs for the first part of a hydro-electric project in Northeastern British Columbia which eventually may cost as much as $500,000,000. The main dam, 500 feet high, will be built in the Peace River canyon, about 16 miles west of Hudson Hope.

March

• March 5, 1959: Residents of Atlin are pushing development of a new route to Yukon and Alaska. Known as the "A" route, the proposed road would take off from Hazelton in central B.C. and head toward Atlin, following a course about midway between the Coast Range and the Stikine Mountains.
• March 5, 1959: Two Alaskan flyers, S/Sgt. Barber, USAF, and mechanic E. Cook, arrived at Watson Lake February 14 to attempt recovery of fully reconditioned Cessna 120 Sgt. Barber had crash landed in the Telegraph Creek area last fall. However, heavy snow had cracked a main wing spar and the aircraft may not be recoverable.
• March 5, 1959: Einar "Blondie" Hougen died in California on February 28 after a prolonged illness. His funeral was held in Vancouver on March 5. At the time of his death Blondie was 33 years of age. He was widely known throughout the territory as an accomplished outdoorsman and photographer.

• March 12, 1959: One of the most famous of Yukon oldtimers died yesterday in Dawson. He was A. J. "Hardrock" MacDonald. Most of his forty years in the north was spent in the Mayo area. In the mid 1930s, Hardrock made his legendary walk from Mayo to Aklavik in 17 days, carrying only a rifle and a sack of salt.
• March 12, 1959: Owing to continuing open water conditions upstream of the Yukon River ice bridge at Carmacks the possibility exists that the ice bridge may become unserviceable earlier than usual. Prospective users of the ice bridge should not rely on heavy traffic use after March 28th.
• March 12, 1959: Watson Lake R.C.M.P. have moved into their new quarters which were completed last week. The move from the airport to the "Wye" took the best part of a week to complete including radio equipment and antenna pole, the cells and miscellaneous equipment. Officers from Whitehorse inspected the new buildings during the week.

• March 19, 1959: Yukon International Ski Championships will be held this weekend and, from the way entries are being received from Alaskan centers and points throughout the Yukon, the affair promises to be the biggest of its kind ever held in the Yukon. It is hoped to have at least thirty local competitors. Entry fee will be one dollar for each event entered.
• March 19, 1959: Following modern merchandising methods used in outside stores, Northern Commercial have revamped their sales areas to make it easier for their customers to shop. The main idea has been to put related items together, for instance all men's and boys' wear goods are located on the same floor area as sporting goods and camping equipment, for the benefit of male customers.
• March 19, 1959: Small planes are big business in the Yukon. Proof of this is Lloyd Romfo's airbase operations. With Yukon Flying School as his mainstay, pilot Romfo in recent months has gradually expanded his one-man enterprise. In addition to giving flying instructions locally, he supervised arrangements for a satellite flying school this spring at Watson Lake.

• March 26, 1959: The homesteading 59ers arrived in Whitehorse last night about seven o'clock and by seven this morning were gone again on their trek from Michigan to the Kenai peninsula. With 37 people, inculding several small children and one dog, the group are travelling in a 17-vehicle caravan. Mostly driving late model cars with trailers, the group also have a number of trucks and one four-wheel vehicle.
• March 26, 1959: Yukon Coachlines, now operating once weekly to Dawson and Mayo-Keno, plan to run three trips a week to each terminal after break-up they announced this week. In addition, the new firm intends to organize excursions for local people and for tourists wishing to see more of the territory than is often available to them.
• March 26, 1959: Recognizing the fact there will be a need for flags for everyone for the Royal Visit the local Boy Scouts Association has agreed to sell flags for the occasion. All Scout Troops in the area will participate and it is expected every house in Whitehorse including Hillcrest, Camp Takhini and Riverdale will be canvassed.

April

• April 2, 1959: Public interest plus a sunny spring day combined to deluge the new hospital with a flood of visitors Monday - the official Open House for local people before the new buildings settled down to their day-to-day routine. Estimates of the number of people ranged as high as 2,000.
• April 2, 1959: A landmark in Dawson City since 1901, the Ogilvie Bridge over the Klondike River just south of the city collapsed on March 28 after being struck by a White Pass truck.
• April 2, 1959: Yukon MP Erik Nielsen has made the first factual report on the pole line to link Yukon centers. He said telephonic communication between Whitehorse, Mayo, Keno, Elsa and Dawson was targeted for completion before the end of this year, possibly by the end October. As well, plans are now afoot to provide Mayo, TWatson Lake and Haines Junction with radio stations.

• April 9, 1959: Yukoners should never again see a repetition of the 1958 forest fire holocaust, during which a total of 1,554,402 acres or 2,429 square miles were burned. Additional staff have been hired, three new warden stations established, and two aircraft leased - a helicopter and a PWA Beaver. Besides being used for fire patrols, the Beaver will be equipped with water tanks on the floats for fire fighting. With a total capacity of 80 gallons, the tanks work on a revolving axis which enables the pilot to scoop water out of a lake, filling the tanks in 18 seconds.
• April 9, 1959: The Bailey bridge "borrowed" from the Flat Creek-Fort Macpherson project will be installed near the site of the present downed Ogilvie Bridge at Dawson pending selection of a new site for a permanent bridge.
• April 9, 1959: Yukon Territory will have a seven-man council after the 1961 territorial elections, as the Minister of Northern Affairs has approved a request for two additional council members.

• April 16, 1959: Local men at Old Crow have been successful in cutting large building logs for the proposed new school. Some of these logs will have to be brought many miles down river after "break-up" on the Porcupine.
• April 16, 1959: Three buffalo, two cows and a yearling, were spotted on the Nisling River near Aishihik about 20 miles above the Donjek last week. Two bulls and four cows were brought from Alaska a few years ago but one cow died in transit, and although protected, one bull was shot.
• April 16, 1959: At the end of their month-long trek from Michigan to Alaska, the 59ers are now finding things aren't so hot in the north. After putting up with bad luck, illness and poor weather on their 4,500 mile journey to the Kenai Peninsula, the now-leaderless group has found few homestead sites are available in Alaska.

• April 23, 1959: The new Bailey bridge across the Klondike river at Dawson City was opened to the public Thursday, April 16, and all the excitement of crossing the ice bridge is over. There is a speed limit of 5 miles an hour for crossing the bridge which is to be strictly enforced. The new bridge is about 160 feet in length.
• April 23, 1959: The United States has proposed legislation which would authorize appropriations of $11,000,000 a year for six years starting July 1, 1960, for improving and paving the Alaska Highway and the Haines Cutoff in Canada on condition that Canada spend the same amount for the program, and then would maintain the roads for year round use.
• April 23, 1959: In a statment to the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Montreal, Whitehorse businessman Rolf Hougen said "No more do we have the pioneers who are willing to carve a bare existence out of the wilderness. They want communication, transportation, electricity, radio, running water, etc, and will settle for nothing less."

• April 30, 1959: At five o'clock yesterday morning, one of the city's best-known landmarks collapsed in a heap of broken timbers. Being torn down to make way for a new cathedral, Sacred Heart church had stood proudly in the center of Whitehorse for almost sixty years. Timbers for foundations were prepared during the winter of 1900 and the Catholic church was ready for worship in the fall of 1901.
• April 30, 1959: Now hunting around in Kluane Game Sanctuary are two members of the Chicago Zoological Society, J.L. Hanson and his brother, Louis. They are out to get three Dahl lambs to be presented to the Brookfield Zoo in Chicago. When they're born around the middle of May, the lambs will stay at the 1019 Experimental Farm awhile before flying Pan Am to their new home. Another group of lambs, possibly six, are due to be taken to the Alberta Game Farm next month, under supervision of Al Oeming.
• April 30, 1959: Encouraged by progress in their "shack disposal" program, city council this week announced the next step in their clean-up year will be stricter enforcement of the Garbage By-law.

May

• May 7, 1959: Watson Lake Motors has requested a franchise to distribute power in Watson Lake, but Yukon Electric started discussions several months ago about serving the community, at lower rates. The information will be forwarded to the Northern Canada Power Commission for consideration.
• May 7, 1959: Contract for construction of garages in Riverdale was awarded last month to Northgate Construction Company of Edmonton for $18,993. The double garages will be built on lot lines between existing government houses.
• May 7, 1959: A congressional resolution is being drafted to authorize the Corps of Engineers to begin planning the world's largest dam in Alaska. The resolution will request $130,000 to start the engineering studies of Rampart Dam on the Yukon River - a project which Engineers estimate could generate 4,700,000 kilowatts.

• May 14, 1959: For more than an hour at Tuesday's city council session, the question: of "to build or not to build" the Elks Home at the corner of Fourth and Hawkins was argued back and forth. A new petition shows area residents are solidly opposed.
• May 14, 1959: Tourist work will get a boost again this summer from Roly de Grosbois who will be in the North from June 22 to August 22. He will be on loan from the dominion travel bureau. Up here last summer he did a great deal to assist in laying down a tourist development program.
• May 14, 1959: First gold dredge of the season to start operating was No. 6 at Granville. Digging started April 30th. Bud Guiler, one time dredgeman in Dawson, passed away recently in California. He was about 53 years of age.

• May 21, 1959: Ascension Day, May 7, marked an important event in the history of Christ Churca here when ceremonies were held for breaking of ground for the new cathedral. The Old Log Church was filled to overflowing as the service began with Choral Evensong.
• May 21, 1959: A very excited young girl was named Queen of the May last Saturday night when Y.P.A. President John Dumas placed the crown on Miss Judy Lelievres' head. With her duties of May Queen for the coming year, Judy was presented with a beautiful $300 wardrobe.
• May 21, 1959: A new trend in homebuilding was set this week by 918 Construction Company. On the first of May there was an empty lot at 708 Black Street. Just 21 days later, workmen were putting finishing touches on a smart two-bedroom house. It was built with plywood, ideal for low cost home building, and the house has a price tag of $8,995. It is expected to sell during the open house this weekend.

• May 28, 1959: Full military honors will be accorded the late Capt. Ralph B. Huene, CD, tomorrow. His body was found Sunday afternoon in Marsh Lake. With Sgt. L. J. Kuhn, he had been missing and believed drowned since October 19 last year. Read the entire story here.
• May 28, 1959: Tenders have been called for construction of a Tourist Camp Ground Building and Facilities at Fox Lake, and Tourist Lunch Facilities at Twin Lakes, Carcross, and Tagish.
• May 28, 1959: Work started again this week on Riverdale hostels, after a two-week delay because of a mysteriously rising water table. Consensus appears to be the construction of the Whitehorse Power Development dam has something to do with it, with water seeping down from the new lake behind the dam.

June

• June 4, 1959: Tuberculosis continues to be a major problem in the Yukon. Yearly chest X-rays are the best way to locate and control TB, advise Northern Health Services officials. Under supervision of public health nurses, the annual X-ray survey begins here June 8.
• June 4, 1959: In the city's fight to rid the community of death-trap shacks, permits will no longer be given to move barrack-type prefabricated Army buildings from highway construction days.
• June 4, 1959: The federal government will donate Whiskey Flats to the City as a park, City Councillor Jim Howatt told the initial meeting of Whitehorse Ratepayers Association last week. He said a clean up program was being draughted now. It was the intention of the government to set up a river steamer on a concrete foundation at the flats eventually once the property had been cleared.

• June 11, 1959: Shock and sadness descended upon the territory Saturday, clouding the sunny weekend and bringing grief throughout the Yukon. Dead in a triple tragedy at Pine Lake were Reverend Stanley Watson, 33, of Haines Junction; his father, James Watson, 58; and Bill Hough, 44, superintendent of the experimental farm at Mile 1019. The trio were drowned on a fishing trip when their 12-foot fibreglassed boat capsized. Read the entire article here.
• June 11, 1959: Bids for local street paving were opened Monday afternoon but nothing will happen right away. All four bids submitted were higher than the $300,000 federal allowance for paving Whitehorse thoroughfares. The bids will be sent to the project's consultants, Haddin, Davis & Brown of Edmonton, for discussion.
• June 11, 1959: After more than 50 years service to the White Pass and Yukon Route, Clifford J. Rogers, Sr. was recently appointed Board Chairman. He started his career as a telegraph messenger and baggage handler in Whitehorse, where his father was the company's general agent.

• June 18, 1959: On June 12th, pioneer store owner Isaac Taylor died at the age of 94. Little more than a year after his arrival in Vancouver in March 1898, foundations were laid for the merchandising empire of Taylor and Drury, which once had posts throughout the Yukon. His partner William Drury died in September 1953. Read the entire article here.
• June 18, 1959: Surveyors from the Edmonton firm of Hamilton and Olsen spent a couple of days last week locating base posts in various parts of the city. City councillors decided in March to get the survey company's men to help straighten out local lot lines and streets. While digging around, the surveyors in one or two cases came across old markers dating back to 1901.
• June 18, 1959: Cal Miller was granted a new trial Monday by the B.C. Court of Appeal. He has been at liberty on $5,000 bail since October 31 last year, when he was convicted and sentenced by Judge Parker to one year in jail. A local jury found the hotelman guilty of discharging a firearm with intent to cause bodily harm to Malcolm Derward Cole on August 20 last.

• June 25, 1959: The Empress of Winnipeg, one of Canadian Pacific Airlines' Britannia jet props, landed at Whitehorse to refuel on a flight from Tokyo. Locals "were amazed at the size of CPA's monster."
• June 25, 1959: The long lost grave of Kate Carmack is found in Carcross on May 18. Read the entire article here).
• June 25, 1959: Six weary but happy mountain climbers drove into Whitehorse Tuesday night having successfully ascended 19,850-foot Mt. Logan. They are the first Canadian team to make the east ridge. The climb up and back was good without any accidents until they took rubber boats down the Donjek River. Within a mile of the Alaska Highway, the raft with all their equipment and 1,800 slides was dumped. They lost practically everything including cameras, skis and personal possessions. The few pictures saved were strapped on Hans Gmoser's back.

July

• July 2, 1959: On June 26th, 100,000 rainbow trout eggs arrived from Summerland, B.C., for planting at Louise Lake, about ten miles from town on the Fish Lake road. Local fishing enthusiasts, including a number of teen-garers, safely bedded down all the eggs.
• July 2, 1959: Dog catcher Doug Brown continues to be busy, judging by his latest report to city council. For the period May 20 to June 20, he impounded 19 dogs. Only one of these was claimed by its owner, In all, 14 dogs were destroyed as strays and four at the request of owners.
• July 2, 1959: On Sunday, June 28th, the Yukon Automobile Club held their second Gymkhana of the season. Seven entrants in all, ranging from an Austin Healy Special to a Renault Dauphine, competed. The amazing driving skill of Gerry Braden, already known for his navigating abilities, was more than evident as he drove his Volkswagen to eventual victory.

• July 9, 1959: Monday, July 6 was a red letter day for Whitehorse. That morning work began on street paving here. Turquoise and orange ectuipment of Dawson Wade and Company rumbled down to First and Main to start the job and by mid-week, two blocks had been torn up. About 30 men are working on the job, most hired locally.
• July 9, 1959: The possibility of a new Yukon mine was reported last week in the Northern Miner. Favorable results have been obtained at the Canol Metal Mines molybdenite showing at Sheep Creek. It was located by prospector Arnold Racicot four years ago. Until the Canol Road was repaired last year, nothing could be done economically in the way of developing the property.
• July 9, 1959: It was a big moment for Judy Lelievre last Friday night (July 3rd) when she was proclaimed the new Haines Strawberry Festival Queen. Now Judy will represent the north when she goes to the Seattle Seafair for a five day, expense paid holiday on August 2. Along with the trip, she won a beautiful $150 wardrobe.

• July 16, 1959: Officials of the Wenner-Gren B.C. Development Company last week said the company's proposed northern railway will probably run northwestward from Prince George to the Yukon border. Decision on a final route won't be made until possibly the end of October, but aerial surveys are being made along this general northwesterly route.
• July 16, 1959: Yukon Coachlines will be running buses to Dawson City on August 14th and 15th for special Klondike Nights events.
• July 16, 1959: As promised earlier this year, Yukon Forestry Division now has three new park wardens, stationed at Whitehorse, Watson Lake and White River.

• July 23, 1959: The Queen and Prince Philip visited the Yukon on July 18th, staying in the DOT residence near the old airport terminal. The royal visit was surrounded by the week-long Trail of '98 Carnival. Some of the plans in her Yukon tour needed to be changed due to the Queen's "illness". It was later announced that the Queen was pregnant with Prince Charles.
• July 23, 1959: Canadian National Telecommunications (CNT) plans a major upgrade of the very broken down system they bought from Yukon Telephone Company this spring. Read the entire article here).
• July 23, 1959: Interesting to be reminded by Commissioner Collins last week that the territorial government was the first in the world to have polio immunization free of charge available to residents of all ages. Tremendous credit to our administration.

• July 30, 1959: Premier Bennett proposes to the federal governement that British Columbia be given part of the Northwest Territories in return for full provincial maintenance of the 600-mile section of the Alaska Highway.The extra territory would include the power-rich and oil rich Mackenzie River basin and would make British Columbia the biggest province in Canada.
• July 30, 1959: Seven companies are exploring the Eagle Plain and Peel Plateau area for oil and gas, and their twelve crews total 86 men. Amerada Petroleum, Atlantic Refining, and California Standard are representative of the United States interest in the region and Granwick Mines and Midland Petroleums is the Canadian firm in this area.
• July 30, 1959: Application to move the Riverboat Cafe, that is presently located at Mile 900 of the Alaska Highway, into Whitehorse was made at last City Council meeting. Joseph Schmidt outlined the project which would include the boat in its present condition plus /adding a basement and addition to the end. A location for it has not yet been determined.

August

• August 6, 1959: An extension of the Vancouver Island Highway and a car ferry to Kitimat to provide a shorter route to Alaska is being studied, a B.C. government official said last week. From Kitimat a connection with the Stewart-Cassiar road would be made via Terrace.
• August 6, 1959: A reduction in financial requirements for U. S. motorists en- tering Canada may be made according to a story in the Fairbanks News-Miner. Curently travellers on the Alaska Highway are required to have $250 for the driver and $100 for each passenger, as well as a valid credit card. This was made necessary because more and more tourists are becoming stranded in Canada with insufficient funds to pay for the gas and oil and lodgings.
• August 6, 1959: Maurice C. W. "Moe" Grant took over as the manager of Whitehorse Motors starting July 7.

• August 13, 1959: An option on copper claims in the Bornite Creek-Kathleen Lake area, staked by Bert Boyd in 1958, has been taken by Conwest Explorations Ltd. and a diamond drill crew has been moved in to the site. The equipment was taken up Kathleen Lake 6 miles by boat.
• August 13, 1959: The Shooting of Dan McGrew adds a new touch to the museum-like walls of Jack Needham's Kee Bird Shop. Burned into moosehide by Whitehorse artist Ione Cameron in 150 hours' work, the famed Service poem is told in verse and picture by the graphic work of art which hangs on the back wall of the main shop.
• August 13, 1959: Suggestions for a 1,225-foot sidewalk from the north corner of Wheeler and Fourth to the south corner of Baxter street were discussed by City Council. Everyone agreed that the section concerned badly needed the sidewalk because of the pedestrian, school children and vehicle traffic in that area.

  

• August 20, 1959: A faint trickle of rumour broke into a wave of confirmation when official news of the Eagle Plain oil strike was aired by Commissioner F.H. Collins here at noon Monday. The strike was made by the Peel Plateau (Consolidated) Exploration Company at Chance No. 1 Well 200 miles north of Dawson.
• August 20, 1959: An early-morning fire at the Scotty Creek Lodge on the Alaska Highway on August 6th completely destroyed the important stopping-place.
• August 20, 1959: The total population of the Yukon, based on a "reasonably accurate estimate," is 13,000, of which 9 were Eskimos, 1,850 Indians and 11,141 white.

• August 27, 1959: Commissioner F. H. Collins cut the ribbon to officially open the Yukon River Bridge at Carmacks Sunday afternoon amid a sprinkling of rain. It is the first of three bridges which will replace ferrries on the North Whitehorse to Mayo - Dawson Highway.
• August 27, 1959: Probing an old, cold trail in the Yukon is Dr. A. L. MacNeish, federal archaeologist. He is seeking proof of the theory that the natives of northern Canada emigrated from Siberia many thousands of years ago.
• August 27, 1959: The Alaska-Yukon Refiners & Distributors Ltd. products treating and separation plant that came on stream August 14th at Haines Junction (Mile 1016 Alaska Highway) is designed to produce asphalt, bunker fuels, diesel and stove oils.

September

• September 3, 1959: The Selkirk Street School in Riverdale is opened by Commissioner F.H. Collins. Taking part in the official ceremonies are Mayor Gordon Armstrong, Member of Parliament, Erik Nielsen and Territorial Councillor, Charlie Taylor.
• September 3, 1959: This week nobody has to guess twice as to what the favorite outdoor sport in Whitehorse is. It's watching street paving. First layers of the hot asphalt-sand-gravel mix were put down last Saturday morning between Second and Third. This week the block east of Main toward the depot was finished. Next week's work will be along part of Second and Fourth.
• September 3, 1959: By the end of this month, Canadian Coachways will have three specially built coaches serving the North. The new buses were temporarily held up due to the steel strike in the east this year. With three buses coming North and three others going South every week, the Coachways is kept busy on regular runs throughout the summer and winter.

• September 10, 1959: Snow and rain failed to stop the skilful drivers entered in the first annual Alaska-Yukon Car Rally last weekend. Thirteen cars left Whitehorse Saturday bound for Haines.
• September 10, 1959: On September 7th, Wein Alaska Airlines pilot Clyde Rud was flying south when his Stinson Voyageur developed engine trouble and he was forced to land on the Alaska Highway north of Haines Junction near Boutillier Summit. Gordon Cameron of Glacier Aircraft Repair drove out the next day to inspect the plane.
• September 10, 1959: Pointing out that 35 per cent of the dollar value of ore shipped out of the Yukon to B.C. and U.S. smelters was taken up by transportation costs, Board of Trade President Rolf Hougen called this week for construction of a Yukon smelter.

• September 17, 1959: A tornado hit Watson Lake on September 9. There were no casualities but poplar, jackpine and spruce trees varying in height from 30 to 70 feet and four to 10 inches in diameter were uprooted and piled together like matches.
• September 17, 1959: Old Crow gets its first piano. It has been brought down on the river from Dawson City and will be used for teaching purposes.
• September 17, 1959: One man lost his life and five other people were saved in a dramatic accident Sunday on Lake Bennett. Missing and presumed drowned is 60-year-old Moller T. Olsen, a White Pass section hand employed at Bennett section.

• September 24, 1959: Icy Yukon waters claimed two more victims last weekend bringing to six the number of people drowned this year in the territory. Police are still trying to find the body of Alan Lyle Weber, who fell into the river near the south end of Whiskey Flats about 8:45 a.m. Saturday. Drowned the same day at Lewes dam was Kazimierz Sleszynski, whose body was recovered from the dam. Read the entire article here.
• September 24, 1959: The new black topping in Whitehorse is bringing out the stock car racer that lurks in the heart of many local drivers. Some of them have been getting heavy-footed with the accelerator on the new pavement. However, speeding will prove un-wise, RCMP advise.
• September 24, 1959: Cal Waddington is a new announcer at CFYT, a good one, too. He replaced Nelson "Ted" North, who got married to Trudy DeWolfe on September 12th.

October

• October 1, 1959: In Dawson, Cole Brothers have just about finished the dyke and the Klondike and Yukon rivers will have to do some rising before they will flood the town again.
• October 1, 1959: Reductions announced last week by the power company were aimed at users of hot water heaters, electric that is. Figures out to about $5.95 per month for an average family using an average amount of hot water. There are about 10 individual homes using electric hot water heaters and a good many government residence using them, says Yukon Electrical Company. pany.
• October 1, 1959: Teachers from throughout the Yukon will gather in Whitehorse next week fot a three-day session of in-service training. Classes will adjourn in territorial and separate schools for the annual institute and convention which will bring nearly 100 teachers to this city.

• October 8, 1959: Indian Affairs in the Yukon should be taken over by the territorial administration, Mr. Justice Parker suggested at a meeting of Whitehorse Board of Trade Tuesday night. He said the welfare of the Indian was no different than the welfare of any other person and all should be treated alike.
• October 8, 1959: A landmark for more than half a century disappeared from Whitehorse this week. Sent to Skagway for today's sailing of the "Clifford J. Rogers" and eventual sale in B.C. was the crane and boiler from the White Pass docks. The original crane was a wooden one, built in 1908. The boom broke on that crane and it was replaced in 1939 by the big steel-framed structure which ever since was a familiar sight just behind the White Pass depot.
• October 8, 1959: The Yukon's first oxygen producing plant went into operation here last week. Brought from Phoenix, Arizona by local garageman Ed Jacobs, the plant was formerly an American Army mobile unit. Looking like an over-sized highway van, it arrived in July and was set up at Mr. Jacob's Lambert street shop.

• October 15, 1959: Next spring has been scheduled for completion date of the new motel and B.A. service station next door to the Taku Hotel on Fourth Avenue. Now under construction by local building contractor Arne Anderson are the first nine units of a proposed 17-unit motel.
• October 15, 1959: City council is refusing to pay General Enterprises for concrete sidewalks in front of Tourist Services and between Wheeler and Cook streets due to test reports stating that cement content was obviously very low with high silt content in the sand.
• October 15, 1959: At Old Crow a, new school is under construction from logs cut by the residents themselves in order to keep the money in the community.

• October 22, 1959: Restaurant workers in Whitehorse are being checked by public health officials in an effort to find a suspected typhoid fever carrier. Search was instigated after the third case of typhoid in as many months came to light here Saturday.
• October 22, 1959: Erik Nielsen, MP, will attend the regular meeting of the Indian Advancement Association Tuesday, October 27, to discuss native cooperatives and, particularly, handicraft projects under such a scheme. The meeting will be held in the dining hall of the Indian Mission School at 8:15 pm.
• October 22, 1959: In The Stroller's column: "Last week city council agreed 'No Drinking' signs should be put up at the city center. Tsk tsk, more's the pity that they're needed."

• October 29, 1959: Yukoners learned with deep regret of the death in Vancouver of "Larry" Higgins, September 17. Mr. Higgins retired two years ago from his post as liquor superintendent for the territoryy after spending more than 40 years im the North. He was born in Cork, Ireland, in 1884.
• October 29, 1959: With ferries out on the Dawson-Mayo road, CPA is making the best of the situation with daily trips fo Dawson and Mayo in the DC3. The United States Airforce came in Sunday with four 102's, led by a British built B-57 Canberra.
• October 29, 1959: A Christmas Shoppers Special bus will be run both north and south on the highway as a pre-Christmas special by Canadian Coachlines on Friday, December 4. The bus will pick up passengers from Watson Lake north and from Burwash Landing south to bring them to Whitehorse for Christmas shopping in the Yukon's capital.

November

• November 5, 1959: Proctor Construction of Whitehorse, well-known in the heavy construction field, is building a 200-mile-long road from Hanson Lakes into the Peel Plateau, for Amerada Petroleum.
• November 5, 1959: Yukon pioneer Hector Grant died at work in Whitehorse last week. An accountant for the Northern Affairs Department, he was born in Dawson on August 25, 1914, and he spent most of his life in that community. Read the entire article here.
• November 5, 1959: The ski hill will be in much better shape this winter. The trail for the new rope tow has been levelled, the air force recreation branch has been placing some nice finishing touches on the chalet., all the trails have been cleared of brush and the winter's supply of wood thas almost all been brought in. It should be emphasized that all this work is done by volunteers, not by a paid staff.

• November 12, 1959: Sixty years old at the beginning of the month was Dawson's first school, St. Mary's. On November 1, 1899, Rev. Father E. Gendreau, O.M.I., opened St. Mary's with the help of Sister Marie Calazance as principal and Miss Mamie Connor as assistant teacher.
• November 12, 1959: Everything continued quiet in police court last week. Perhaps because of the lull in crime the police lately have been cracking down on minor traffic offenders. Recently five dollar fines have been levied for not stopping at stop signs, not dimming lights on the highway, not having a driver's licence, not having mufflers on vehicles and speeding.
• November 12, 1959: Responding to a complaint that they had erected their land line on the Braeburn flight strip, CNT said at the time of the line survey, this field was covered with very high dense brush and to mistake it for a landing field would have been ridiculous. Their crews have now not only moved the line to the opposite side of the road, they have cleared the field and put it in serviceable condition.

• November 19, 1959: Yukon residents were shocked by the sudden death on November 11 of John Cochrane (Curly) Stevenson. A resident in the north since 1922, he was well liked and respected in many parts of the territory. Read the entire article here.
• November 19, 1959: A joint Civil Service Federation of Canada and Civil Service Association meeting was held at the Capitol theatre to inform government employees and other residents of steps being taken as a result of Finance Minister Fleming's refusal to grant civil service pay increases. There are about 1,080 civil servants in the territory, the bulk of them being DND employees.
• November 19, 1959: At an open council session, Commissioner F.H. Collins expressed the hope that the "Roads to Resources" program of the Federal Government, which includes the bridges over the three great rivers bisecting the Whitehorse-Keno highway and similar structures elsewhere will be continued at an accelerated pace in the coming year.

• November 26, 1959: WHTV is going right ahead with the cabling of the Riverdale and Camp Takhini areas in spite of old man winter and a steel strike that has delayed the arrival of some supplies.
• November 26, 1959: Yukon Electrical Company has been granted a franchise for distribution of power in the Watson Lake area.
• November 26, 1959: Arguing against the Taxation Ordinance which provides for territorial taxes, the lawyer for Yukon Consolidated Gold Corporation stated the assessment made this year was entirely disproportionate. He pointed out there wasn't a thing of any size belonging to YCGC that would be saleable when the operation comes to an end.

December

• December 4, 1959: When the issue of separate schools came up in territorial council last Thursday for preliminary talks, the gallery was filled to standing room. Not settled yet, the matter is scheduled for further investigation at tomorrow afternoon's session. Last week, Father Studer spoke in support of a brief presented by the Catholic Episcopal Corporation requesting expansion of separate school facilities here. He said it was the wish of Roman Catholic ratepayers that a separate high school be built, possibly in Riverdale.
• December 4, 1959: The total cost of a hospital insurance program for the Yukon would be in the neighourhood of $610,000 a year, territorial councillors were told this week. Main points of interest for councillors is the federal government's decision on a request made last spring, when Ottawa was asked to pick up the tab for the cost of Indian care and everything over $25 per day for other Yukon hospital patients.
• December 4, 1959: Canada's first national flag could well come out of the Yukon. Harry Gordon-Cooper, pilot, prospector, former hotsprings owner and now clerk of the court has designed a Canadian Flag which not only fits the traditional rules of heraldry but meets the historic and sentimental needs of most segments of the nation. In addition, its design is sufficiently striking to arouse the Patriotic spirit that normally lies fairly dormant in the Canadian heart.

• December 10, 1959: A large-scale search for California pilot Ralph Kolsrud, missing since Monday somewhere North of here on a flight in his wheel-equipped Cessna 180 between Northway, Alaska, and Whitehorse is being pressed by the RCAF and private aircraft.
• December 10, 1959: Police this week recovered the bodies of two men drowned in Kluane Lake. Reported missing November 30 were Burwash resident James Frederic Watt and Aishihik resident Walter David. Apparently the two men were crossing the lake with a dog team and came to a soft spot in the ice.
• December 10, 1959: A staggering 2,570 Pepsi Cola bottle caps were collected by Greg Phillips to win first place in the cap collecting contest sponsored by Northland Beverages. Greg McLeod with 2,529, Pepsi caps won second place. Third went to Michael Roberts with 2,214 tops. Top prizes includes a bike, skates, and records.

• December 17, 1959: Mayor Cameron announced on December 13 that he will not run in January's civic elections.
• December 17, 1959: American pilot Ralph Kolsrud was found last week half-way between Haines and Mile 1016, about 84 hours after he was first reported missing. He was found uninjured, walking about 10 miles from his plane, which was not damaged.
• December 17, 1959: Private individuals driving children to and from school in outlying districts came under discussion at territorial council after police at Destruction Bay said ordinary insurance was insufficient. YTG is in the process of notifying all people who carry children to school to have their insurance policies endorsed for carrying passengers for hire.

• December 24, 1959: Future municipal elections will be held annually but with only half the council seats up for votes each time. This will help to maintain continuity in the membership of council. Two-year term remains the same.
• December 24, 1959: On the lookout for agricultural as well as mineral prospects, Conwest's Alec Berry this month began investigations of the "Donjek berries". A silvery white berry, this wild fruit is found only on the gravel bars of the Donjek River.
• December 24, 1959: Both the Yukon mines chamber and the B.C.-Yukon Chamber of Mines are protesting the proposed establishment of a national park in the St. Elias range. They say it has good mineral prospects and it would be wrong to keep prospectors and mining oompanies out.

• December 31, 1959: Two children were burned to death yesterday afternoon at Koidern in a sudden blaze that destroyed a CNT repeater station dwelling. Dead, are five-year-old Grant Steven Kerik and his three-year old brother Rodney James Kerik.
• December 31, 1959: A Christmas Day fire gutted a warehouse at the Riverboat Cafe, Mile 900. The blaze destroyed the light plant and building supplies stored in the warehouse. The fire apparently was started by a traveller who ran out of gas and started a fire in a bucket of oil in the warehouse, for warmth.
• December 31, 1959: Cement on the north Fourth Avenue sidewalk was found okay this week after city council had questioned its quality and held up payment to contracting firm General Enterprises who had laid the walk.

Continue to January 1960