40 YEARS AGO
An inmate at the Bear Creek Camp working at the camp sawmill managed to obtain about three hours of freedom. Grant Hall of the district corrections center in Kamloops stated the inmate, Richard Thomas Ferguson, had been missing for about ten minutes before his absence was noticed by the gang officer. The escapee was spotted by an off-duty guard from his backyard in the Greer subdivision.
The Thompson-Nicola Regional District was to receive a 64-hectare lot of Crown land worth $100,000 for free. It was located southwest of North Barriere Lake and east of the Barriere town site with a 2,000-metre frontage on Barriere River. The area was formally used as a recreation reserve. The TNRD earmarked the lot for district park purposes.
A broken valve was the cause of a breakdown in one of two compressors at the Sportsplex which left the skating arena without refrigeration to maintain ice for about a week. The annual service on the two compressors was skipped the year prior, due to a lack of funds.
Crews were busy working to construct a bridge over the Clearwater River.
35 YEARS AGO
TNRD Area A director Paul Caissie was concerned about additional costs within the library district. Those living in Kamloops would be spending $5 extra for a home assessed at $50,000, whereas a similar home in Clearwater would up the amount to $14.55. He said the “inequity disturbs him.” The information was released before library referendum.
Consolidated Rexspar gave up on its plans for a uranium mine near Birch Island. The mining company said they decided the mine was not economic under the conditions at the time and had been discouraged by the moratorium on uranium mining in B.C.
30 YEARS AGO
A semi truck hauling 45 tons of American beer jack-knifed on Highway 5 on the hill just above the Wells Gray Inn. A local towing company tried for two hours to get the truck out of the ditch. The beer in the trailer had to be unloaded and stored.
Private Clarence William Johnston of Blackpool, who was killed in an accident April 19, 1941, while a member of the Canadian Armed Forces, had a lake named in his honour. Johnston Lake is east of Swayback Ridge, south of Mahood Lake.
Clearwater’s Sheena Watt was home for a short break after completing a four-month tour in Japan with Disney World on Ice.
25 YEARS AGO
A Williams Lake man took over his brother’s Blackpool residence, holding police at bay with weapons kept in the home. After nine-and-a-half-hours he walked out of his brother’s house empty handed to surrender to waiting police.
A former member of the Clearwater RCMP detachment, Robert Joseph Rousseau, pleaded guilty to a charge of perjury in provincial court in Kamloops. A 19-year veteran of the RCMP, he resigned from the force earlier that year. He faced four charges of perjury from various court cases in 1994 and 1995 where he’d represent himself as a radar instructor, when, in fact, he wasn’t, said Sgt. Rex Henry, NCO i/c of the Clearwater detachment.
With reference to the amalgamation process between School District 24 (Kamloops) and School District 26 (North Thompson) as a “hostile takeover” the North Thompson Board passed a motion that “School District 26 withdraw from the current process of the transition committee” at the regular meeting.
20 YEARS AGO
About 70 people attended a public information meeting about incorporation for Clearwater, less than half of the 200 attendance a few months earlier. The vote was to be held later that month.
Slocan lumber was used by the U.S. Department of Commerce as a benchmark for the sale of over 30 million board feet of the same product to the U.S., ending up in $10.5 million annually in provisional dumping duties against Slocan, the highest for any company in Canada. The company supported then Prime Minister Jean Chretien’s efforts to negotiate a speedy resolution to the dispute.
The year 2001 saw a number of significant improvements to Wells Gray Park, including a new parking area at Helmcken Falls, new water filtration at Spahats and Clearwater Lake campgrounds and a new viewing platform at Osprey Falls.
15 YEARS AGO
Raft River Elementary was recognized as being among the best in B.C. during the annual Garfield Weston Awards for Excellence in Education ceremony. The school was a runner up in the Improvement in Academics – Elementary category. The award came with a $1,000 prize.
A grand opening was held at the North Thompson Sportsplex for the expanded lobby. Renovations for the expansion were made possible by a grant from the 2010 Olympics/Paralympics Live Sites project and included upgrades with improved accessibility, such as a lift to the second floor lounge and bleachers.
10 YEARS AGO
Yellowhead Mining announced it had purchased the former Weyerhaeuser sawmill site near Vavenby. The announcement followed one about two weeks earlier that the provincial Environmental Assessment Office had approved the application information requirements for Yellowhead’s Harper Creek project.
The main message that came from a Healthy Forests-Healthy Communities forum was that local residents want more local control over local forests. About 60 people participated, with Clearwater-based forest technician Sandy Mackenzie acting as moderator.
The Clearwater Secondary School senior girl’s volleyball team won three out of three games during playoffs in Chase. The girls beat Chase, Logan Lake and Clinton in straight sets.
5 YEARS AGO
The large Douglas fir slab from the Loggers Memorial in Reg Small Park was to taken away by forklift to be refinished and repaired at Clearwater Secondary School in preparation to being rehung.
Chapter’s bookstore in Kamloops was to host local author Eleanor Deckert for a book signing later in the month for her first book titled 10 Days in December. It had been in print for one year and sold well over 500 copies.
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