Yesterdays: One drainage in Glacier had at least 23 grizzlies, DNA study found

70 years ago

Feb. 5, 1956

The Park Service had plans for “improvements” at Rising Sun. The net result was an ugly facility that is still in use today, unfortunately. Lake McDonald had all but frozen over.

60 years ago

Feb. 4, 1966

Front page photo featured Plum Creek founder D.C. Dunham looking over a new dimension sawmill in Columbia Falls that was designed to take smaller logs. Plum Creek started in Columbia Falls in 1945 and employed 24 men.

50 years ago

Feb. 5, 1976

The phone company continued to grow, with service across the Flathead up and in Columbia Falls proper, it was up 5.54%. Phone books, which listed just about every number in the county, had been mailed. Today, they are no longer printed.

40 years ago

Feb. 5, 1986

Glacier National Park opened its doors for West Glacier students after their school burned down the week before. The park welcomed classes, which were held in Glacier’s community building. A crowd of about 2,300 turned out to support the Columbia Falls Aluminum Co. plant as the Bonneville Power Administration proposed a variable power rate structure for aluminum plants in its service area of the Pacific Northwest.

30 years ago

Feb. 1, 1996

The weather had been brutal, with wind chills dipping to 40 below zero and the actual temperature about 24 below. The winds had been whipping to 40 mph for the past several days and snow had buried dead cars.

20 years ago

Feb. 2, 2006

A DNA study of grizzly bears found that Glacier National Park had the highest concentrations of bears in the region and one drainage in Glacier had at least 23 individual bears. The Columbia Falls speech and debate team won its 8th state title.

10 years ago

Feb. 3, 2016

The Columbia Falls city council voiced approval of  Superfund designation for the Columbia Falls Aluminum Co. site. Work toward cleanup should begin in 2027.