100 years ago
On Feb. 20, 1923, while overseeing a Superior Court case about real-estate commissions, Judge George B. Simpson appointed Elvira Burnham as jury foreman. Simpson noted during the trial that no woman had served in that role prior to Burnham.
75 years ago
On the morning of Feb. 24, 1948, Orchards residents crowded the fourth floor of the Clark County Courthouse to hear the “chicken vs. the plane” case. Poultry farm owners E. E. and Lucille Anderson claimed the roar of planes from the Kidwell Flying Service made the chickens nervous and even “driven to suicide.” The hens received a partial victory, with the judge ruling the mechanical birds could no longer fly over the farm.
50 years ago
On Feb. 20, 1973, Donald Cassady, renowned Vancouver architect, received additional funds to remodel the Skamania County Courthouse. Cassady’s designs include the 1963 Fort Vancouver Regional Library and the Skamania County Branch Library in Stevenson. (Cassady died on Aug. 21, 2021.)
25 years ago
Beginning Feb. 25, 1998, more than 120 students participated in a two-day mock trial event held at the Clark County Courthouse. Ten teams from schools throughout the county participated, with Fort Vancouver and Ridgefield high schools making it to the state’s Mock Trial Championships held in Thurston County about a month later, in which Ridgefield placed second.
