A weekly look back compiled by the Clark County Historical Museum from The Columbian archives available at columbian.newspapers.com or at the museum.
- 100 years ago
At a luncheon on July 16, 1924, C.A. Pender, vice president of the Prunarians, gave two members the go-ahead to hunt for gorillas roaming the forests around Mount St. Helens. Chester Palmer and Ralph A. Dickson were to “capture dead or alive” some sasquatches for display at the Prunarians’ annual picnic in August. Though the late summer event had contests, music, and sports, no sasquatches were on display.
- 75 years ago
On July 14, 1949, The Columbian highlighted the mountaineering skills of Vancouver’s Zach Stewart. While in high school, Stewart ascended Mount St. Helens. He continued his adventures while attending Yale, scaling numerous peaks in Washington, Oregon and California. Stewart even climbed Devil’s Tower in northeastern Wyoming, which he described as “the most difficult climbed I ever made.” Over the summer, he planned to ascend Mount Rainier and “some of Alaska’s lesser-known mountains.”
- 50 years ago
Women were flocking to barber shops in Vancouver and elsewhere, The Columbian reported on July 17, 1974. Moler Barber College owner Glenn Turner observed that for the first time, the college’s class was half women. He noted more women also owned their own barber shops, although nothing had prevented this in the past. A recent graduate of the school, Teddi Bainbridge, said, “Women’s lib opened the door.”
