Voices from the Past

August 26, 1921

Schools to Open Tuesday, Sept 6

School will open generally over the county Tuesday morning, September 6. Monday is observed as Labor Day and such is a legal holiday.

The average monthly salary to be paid teachers in this county this year will range from $90 to $100, whereas last year they were paid from $100 to $125. One rural school teacher, however, will be compensated $150 a month and it is said a patron of the school will board her free of charge.

An incomplete list of the teachers is as follows:

Mrs. Alice Oldenberg will teach on Indian Creek in 73, succeeding Mrs. Bertha Rice who has gone to Avery, Idaho. Miss Vesper Kelsey was engaged by several school districts. She taught the Divide School last year in 76 but this year accepted a position as teacher of the Moorhead School, succeeding Bessie Higgins, married. Miss Eula Foree will again teach the Cross S School in District 77. Miss Anna Harrsch will teach the Wright School in District 77. Mrs. Frank Ross who taught the Turret Butte School, goes to the Wallace School in District 22. Mrs. Fred Lewis will teach the Turret Butte School. Miss Irene Kelsey who taught the Beaver Creek School last year, goes to Stacey, succeeding Miss Dolores Lowe. Miss Ida Mayhan, teacher of the Little Pilgrim School last year, goes to Powderville, succeeding Miss Ione Pope, married. Mrs. Glen Nash, formerly Miss Pearl Forbes, who taught the Leno School last year, goes to the Doyle Creek School, succeeding Miss Carrie Russell, married. Mrs. John Gaar returns to the Durst School. Miss Henderson from Spearfish, S.D., will teach the Bridgeview School in District 24. Mrs. Jessie Munger will start her third term as teacher of the Hay Creek School. R. D. McCurdy returns to the Murray School at Coalwood. Robert Bishop, who taught the Brinegar School last year, goes to the Bidwell School. Mrs. John Severovic, who taught the Lewis School last year, takes the new school in District 93. Mrs. Fred Toman returns to the Bay Horse School.

Mrs. O.W. Garst will teach the Powell School. Miss Agnes LaFleur will teach the Third Creek School in District 81. Miss Gray will teach the Willow Crossing School.

The Broadus Grammar School will have three teachers, Mrs. Hazel Heaton, principal, who taught the Reder School last year, Miss Bernice Peasley, who taught the Sand Creek School last year, Miss Ethel Summers who comes here from Ekalaka. Miss Winona Lewis, who taught last year, did not reapply, and Mrs. Glenna Stewart has removed from the county.

The county high school faculty will consist of Dave DeLap and J.I. Westphal. F.E. Ball, who taught last year, did not apply for a position here this year.

August 23, 1946

Little Powder Bridge Burned

A fire caused by either a burning cigarette or a camp fire left by a tourist seriously damaged the east pier of the state highway bridge over Little Powder River last Friday morning. The eastern approach to the bridge was completely destroyed by the blaze.

The fire was discovered about 11 o’clock in the morning and the Broadus Volunteer Fire Department responded to the alarm. The members did not take the pumper to the scene of the fire as it was believed that the smoke was caused by a grass fire. However, when it was learned that the bridge was on fire, the pumper was brought to the blaze and water pumped from the Little Powder River to put out the flames.

The piers of this bridge are made of creosoted piling surrounded by a wooden bunker filled with rocks. All of this creosoted material was afire and it was necessary to spray two streams of water on the fire to get it under control.

The highway department started work on Saturday to repair the bridge and by Sunday evening had temporary repairs made so that the bridge could be used. While the bridge was under repair a temporary crossing of the river was made a few yards south of the structure.

August 22, 1996

Estimated 70,000 Acres Charred in Two County “Powderville Fire”

By Shirley Stuver and the Examiner

In the wind-whipped conflagration referred to as the “Powderville Fire”, which BLM sources say charred an estimated 72,000 thousand acres in 24 hours while spot fires county-wide were also being suppressed, the quietly-stated facts reveal courage, dangers faced and overcome by so many people that no report covers more than a small piece of the action.

All reports are true and accurate and all could be enlarged upon.

Actually, lightning-ignited fires began on Friday evening. The third day of the Powder River County Fair left rural areas shorthanded, as Nathan Rumph of the Biddle Volunteer Fire Department noted, for fire calls that came in at Biddle by 2:30 in the afternoon on Saturday, August 17.

On Monday morning, Ingrid Brown of Custer County on the west side of Powder River gave a concise accounting of personal knowledge and reports received. She said that all forage is lost on an estimated 70,000 acres of rangeland. All homes threatened and evacuated, which included Mentikov, Orestad, Keil, Jurica, Miles and Brown, were saved, and Mrs. Brown thought that stacked hay had been saved also.

Saving homes and hay were top priorities of firefighters, who simply could not get in ahead of the huge front with five to six-foot high flames, swept by 60 mile per hour winds which kept changing direction, said neighbor Jerry McGill. “I never saw anything like it, and I hope I never do again,” he said.

McGill said that at one point Saturday night, the fire began forming its own lightening-producing clouds to further threaten the firefighters, on the line with water spewing from hoses with metal attachments. It wasn’t exactly a comfortable situation, he said while praising the efforts of the firefighters.

The devastation was simply terrible, McGill said, adding that while miles of fence was destroyed and everyone’s cattle had intermingled, he had not yet heard of any stock losses. He said while surveying the damage Monday they could smell burnt hair in several places, but could not tell whether it “came from a rabbit, deer or cattle.”

Ranchers in the area, still in shock from the loss, he said, planned to meet at the Spring Creek School Monday evening to “try to decide where to go from here.” With little range land left uncharred, the outlook is indeed bleak for “some mighty good folks,” McGill said.

Mrs. Brown thought the Mentikov range had some unburned acres. Mrs. Brown and visiting daughter joined other ranch women in fighting the nighttime burn, but generally stayed at home on Sunday waiting to evacuate. The Sunday evening rain released many people immediate from fear, and contained the perimeters of the some 300 square miles of cinders.

Lillian Ostendorf gave terrain description and details. The fire also challenged the Ostendorf home and after ringing a few dozen homes Mrs. Tom Ostendorf will add names to those mentioned, on the west side of Powder River. She also added that there was another fire on the Bradshaw Ranch Monday.

Among those in the great sweep who lost range are John and Lewis Krutzfeldt and Bill Krutzfeldt, Charles Balsam, Jean and Scott Robinson, Tooke Ranch, Miles Ranch, Ed Orestad Ranch, Jim Beardsley, and John Mobley. Several of the ranches experienced near total loss of their rangeland holdings.

On the east side of the Powder, Jimmy Mallet “lost a huge piece,” and small pieces on McGill’s and Danny Maag’s were also involved.