In this installment of A Look Back in Time, the Friday, Feb. 21, 1936, edition of The Chronicle featured a story about Chehalis resident Kirt Lund, who was sentenced to “be chained to a post in front of the J.C. Penney store on Market Street and that he should practice on the bugle,” as a part of a Chehalis Elks Lodge membership initiation.
FBI agents were assisting Centralia police with tracking down suspects who broke into the Washington National Guard armory in the Hub City and stole a number of guns, according to the Thursday, Feb. 21, 1946, edition of The Chronicle.
And in the Tuesday, Feb. 21, 1956, edition of The Chronicle, it was reported that police from both Centralia and Chehalis were investigating a string of shootings involving someone taking aim at multiple businesses’ windows in the Twin Cities with a BB gun.
A Look Back in Time is compiled using Chronicle archives stored at the Lewis County Historical Museum — located at 599 NW Front St. in Chehalis — along with digital archives on newspapers.com.
Friday, Feb. 21, 1936
• Chehalis resident Kirt Lund was sentenced to “be chained to a post in front of the J.C. Penney store on Market Street and that he should practice on the bugle until he becomes proficient at bugling,” The Chronicle reported. His sentence came after Lewis County Sheriff John A. Blankenship carried out an “arrest” of Lund and he was put through a mock trial on the charge “of trying to break into the local (Elks) Lodge,” overseen by Lewis County Superior Court Justice Lee J. Campbell. “It was all a part of the initiation ceremonies through which Kirt Lund was to go while joining the Chehalis Elks Lodge. Justice Campbell pronounced the ‘sentence’ after a ‘jury’ composed of members of the Elks found Lund guilty … He was taken to the front of the store, where he was chained and padlocked to the building, and he was left for an hour. Periodically he was forced to sound a blast on the trumpet. The Elks took advantage of the opportunity and placed signs near the victim advertising a dance to be sponsored by the lodge.”
• Centralia resident Oscar P. Swondahl became the first traffic accident fatality in over two years in the Hub City after he walked out into a downtown intersection and was hit by a car driven by Centralia High School student George Dunckley the previous day, The Chronicle reported. “Swondahl’s skull was crushed and his neck broken. He died a few minutes later in a hospital … The accident occurred at the corner of Tower Avenue and Maple Street. Young Dunckley reported to the police that he was not driving at an excessive speed; that Swondahl started to walk across the intersection without looking up; that he applied his brakes and his car skidded, the rear end hitting the pedestrian as it swung around and knocking him to the pavement.” After hitting Swondahl, Dunckley’s vehicle also hit a parked truck. “Young Dunckley was released on his own recognizance by the police pending the inquest. That Swondahl may have been intoxicated is indicated by the fact that a bottle of liquor was found in his pocket, and the assertion of Walter Wagner, manager of the state liquor store, that he had refused to sell him liquor yesterday afternoon because he was already under its influence. Swondahl, a WPA (federal Works Progress Administration) worker, had resided here two years, his home being on Delaware Avenue. He was a native of Norway. His wife, from whom he is separated, resides in Everett, and a brother in Minnesota.”
• Rhode Island red chicks from the Red Bird Ranch, located at 510 South St. in Centralia, were listed for sale in The Chronicle’s classifieds for 10 cents each.
Thursday, Feb. 21, 1946
• FBI agents were assisting Centralia police with investigating and searching for suspects after a robbery occurred where a number of guns were stolen from the Washington National Guard armory in the Hub City, The Chronicle reported. “Stolen were three Thompson sub-machine guns, three Enfield rifles, model 30-06, and three .45 Colt revolvers. Police were notified of the break-in at 2:50 p.m., Tuesday. Upon investigation they found the thieves had entered the building from the second story by smashing a large plate glass window. Access to the gunroom was made by first snapping a chain and springing the lock to the outer door; then using a hacksaw to weaken the bolt that secured the guns. After the bolt was sufficiently weakened, a tire iron was used to break into the room. The criminals had for equipment a stepladder, sledge hammer, two iron bars for prying, a marlin spike and two tire irons, later found to have been stolen from 422 N. Gold St. The ammunition room had not been broken into, and police believe no ammunition was obtained.”
• Chehalis School District board member Theodore “Ted” R. Teitzel unveiled tentative construction plans for a new two-story senior high school building for the district, which district residents would have the chance to approve or deny in an upcoming March 2 special election, The Chronicle reported. “A picture of the proposed building, as prepared by William Mallis, Seattle school architect, has been released by the board, together with what information is now available as to what items have been tentatively planned for inclusion in the structure. ‘It is planned,’ Teitzel declared, ‘that the new building shall house ample facilities to provide the type of educational program needed and wanted by this community. It is further planned the building shall house the regular 10th, 11th and 12th grades of the senior high school, and permit the development of a 13th and 14th year secondary school educational program along certain vocational lines as the needs and interests of the community shall direct.’” Planned classroom facilities included an agricultural unit, an industrial arts shop, a gymnasium, a home economics and commercial department, a science lab, a music department and a library. “Also planned are an art room, an auditorium or assembly room with 750 seats, a lunch room and kitchen, and administrative offices for the principal and superintendent.”
• A six-room “modern” home with a large barn, hen house and silo on 98 acres of “good fertile soil, 55 acres in cultivation” located “on a good road close to Silver Creek was listed for sale in The Chronicle’s classifieds for $12,500.
Tuesday, Feb. 21, 1956
• Both Centralia and Chehalis police were investigating after a number of business owners in the Twin Cities — including The Chronicle — reported someone was shooting out their businesses’ windows with a BB gun, The Chronicle reported. “The first report came Monday evening from Centralia after the large glass window of The Daily Chronicle’s press room was broken, eight pellets of some type having blasted as many deep pits in the glass. The shot struck near the middle of the window and was contained within a pattern about 18 inches in diameter. Centralia police, who recovered one pellet from The Daily Chronicle window, said they believed it was BB shot which broke the window … In Chehalis, police Tuesday morning reported three Chehalis Avenue business houses suffered window damage by BB shot; Harry’s Barber Shop, the C.C. White Paint Store and Garbe’s Tavern. Two other Centralia business places reported damage Tuesday: The Building Trades building on North Pearl Street — four holes in one large window, and Reda Hardware — four shots in one window and one in another.”
• Lewis County Soil Conservation District board chairman Wendell H. “Steve” Hansen announced a number of local farmers with land along the Newaukum River had been showing “keen interest in protecting their eroding river banks,” The Chronicle reported. “(Harry) L. Smoots and W. (Bert) Moran, near Onalaska, and Charles Russell, south of Forest, report they must do something this summer to avoid loss of buildings and extensive acreage. (Sterling) C. ‘Bud’ Breen reported river cutting on his farm, and also protective work he had done. He stated he had a lease on good rock for riprap just two miles west of Chehalis. (Eniz) E. Rowland, (U.S. Department of Agriculture) Soil Conservation Service, said, ‘if the rock will meet weight requirements, it will save excessive hauling costs to farmers needing riprap in the Chehalis, Centralia and Claquato areas.’”
• A six-room “modern” home with a fireplace, a garage, a large barn, a granary and other outbuildings on a “40 acre ranch 14 miles from Chehalis” was listed for sale in The Chronicle’s classifieds for $10,000. A two-bedroom home in “city limits” in Centralia was listed for rent for $45 a month.
Monday, Feb. 21, 1966
• The previous Saturday had apparently been a reason to drink for four young Lewis County residents, who were all arrested by Lewis County Sheriff’s Office deputies for underaged drinking, The Chronicle reported. “They were John Harold Severns, 20, (state) Route 2, Chehalis; Richard Gene Smith, 19, Chehalis; Gary Lee Wallin, 20, Winlock, and Lewis Joseph Legat, 18, Route 2, Winlock. All are charged with illegal consumption of liquor while minors and released on their personal recognizance pending Napavine Justice Court trials before Judge William Robbins.”
• Members of the Lewis-Pacific Dairymen’s Association were preparing to hold their 44th annual “Darigold Days” meeting that week in Chehalis which was home to a Darigold plant, The Chronicle reported. Dairy-themed events were scheduled from Wednesday through Saturday, with the main meeting being held on Friday. “Keith Walker, association manager, said Monday the 44th annual meeting of the dairy organization will be Friday at the R.E. Bennett auditorium and will attract nearly 1,000 dairy farmers and their wives. A highlight of the meeting is the annual distribution of dividend checks. The business session opens at 10 a.m. (Lewis-Pacific) employs 180 persons. In addition to the $1.5 million employee payroll, the firm has a $6 million production payroll. Stores and restaurants throughout the Twin Cities will be featuring Darigold products during the four-day event.” The Darigold plant would remain in Chehalis until December of 2025, when Darigold officials announced the plant’s impending closure as the company moved its operation to a new, modern dairy processing facility in Pasco.
• Randle District U.S. Forest Service staff members Tim C. Rogan and Bill E. Squires were both given performance awards along with $100 bonuses for their work during flood events, The Chronicle reported. “A Forest Service statement accompanying the awards said the men were cited for ‘Exemplary work during the January and February floods of 1965.’ They are credited with protecting numerous fills from washing out and preventing thousands of dollars of road construction costs. The awards were presented earlier this month.”
• A “nice, modern” three-bedroom home with wall-to-wall carpeting, a fireplace and a patio in Centralia was listed for sale in The Chronicle’s classifieds for $18,500. A one-bedroom furnished home in the Rochester area was listed for rent for $50 a month.
Saturday, Feb. 21, 1976
• Washington State University Lewis County Extension Agent Bonnie J. Wenzelburger announced new U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) beef grading standards were set to be implemented in the county by the next Monday after an initial attempt to implement them 10 months earlier had been delayed, The Chronicle reported. “The new standards will require that beef be graded for yield as well as quality. Beef carcasses will be compared by the pounds of retail cuts they produce, as well as by eating characteristics. Also, the shape of the animal’s carcass will no longer be a factor in grading. However, most people will only notice the change when they buy U.S. prime and choice beef cuts, says Mrs. Wenzelburger. These cuts may not be quite as good as before … The 10-month delay in implementing the new grading system was caused by legal problems in Washington. Whether you support it or not, the new grading system will allow grass-fed beef, or beef simply fed less grain, to fit into the grading system, says Mrs. Wenzelburger.”
• A 15-year-old Rochester girl was assaulted and almost kidnapped earlier that week according to Thurston County Sheriff’s Office deputies, The Chronicle reported. “The girl was walking to a grocery store Thursday afternoon, deputies said, when a man in a car pulled up and offered her a ride. She refused. The man, however, drove along slowly while the young girl continued walking, deputies said. Finally, the man drove past, parked his car and got out, confronting the girl with a small gun. Deputies said the suspect grabbed the girl by the throat and threw her to the ground. The man fled, however, when the girl began screaming. Deputies said the incident occurred at 178th (SW) and Pendleton streets. Deputy Gordon Bennett has been assigned to investigate the case.”
• Animal complaints topped the list of types of complaints received by the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office in 1975 according to statistics released by the sheriff’s office, The Chronicle reported. Of the 12,210 complaints logged, 1,168 of them had to do with animals, an increase of 352 compared to the previous year. “Other complaints include seven concerning unidentified flying objects, an increase in one from 1974.”
• A “newly remodeled home” with a covered patio, a two-car garage and a large barn on 20 acres of land near Winlock was listed for sale in The Chronicle’s classifieds for $42,000. A two-bedroom furnished mobile home in Rochester was listed for rent for $225 a month.
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To submit a historical photo or document to The Chronicle, email reporter Owen Sexton at owen@chronline.com.
