70 years ago

Nov. 27, 1953

Elk were a problem in Glacier National Park. An annual elk census showed about 3,140 elk, up about 850 from a 1951 census. The Ole Creek, Belton Hills and Double Mountain herds had increased about 30% the park said. Back then, Glacier did a host of census on its animal herds, counting actual numbers and estimating the rest.

60 years ago

Nov. 29, 1963

Front page story featured Mike Berne, who settled two miles southwest of Columbia Falls in 1890, several months before the town was founded. 

The state still had plans to ship the 10 widows at the Montana Veterans Home to the home for Senile and Aged in Lewistown. There was an ongoing court battle over the move.

50 years ago

Nov. 30, 1973

It was the wettest month ever in 25 years — when  they started keeping records— at the Hungry Horse Dam. The Dam had seen 10.24 inches of precipitation. The average was about 3.5 inches. Still, the government was considering cloud seeding to increase precipitation in the area to ensure the power supply.

40 years ago

Dec. 1, 1983

Glacier National Park employees expressed grave concerns about a program known as A-76 which looked to privatize trail and road maintenance, among other things, to private contractors. They were worried about the landscape and cultural resources being impacted.

30 years ago

Nov. 25, 1993

Workers who were laid off from the Columbia Falls Aluminum Co. plant were finding new jobs. 

One woman was happy because she got a job at the new Costco store in Kalispell. Another man also got a job at Costco and said it was great to be at an upbeat store rather than being dragged down by life at the plant.

20 years ago

Nov. 27, 2003

Residents wouldn’t have much say in the future development of 92 acres of Forest Service land in Hungry Horse. The Forest Service would sell the land to private parties to finance a new Hungry Horse/Glacier View Ranger Station. But it wasn’t zoned, so the future would be up to new landowners. Today, it’s still vacant for the most part.

10 years ago

Nov. 27, 2013

A DNA study estimated that there were about 600 or so black bears in Glacier National Park. Researchers were able to use data that was originally designed for grizzlies to make the determination. 

They just had to wait several years for funding to analyze the DNA, as both species were attracted to “hair traps” that provided a non-invasive way to count the animals.