FROM THE FILES

125 Years Ago

Adams County News

July 12, 1899

Irby & Benward finished up a well on July 8 for Mr. Carl Ewald at a depth of 238 feet thirteen miles west of town after only ten days drilling.

Sheriff H.E. Hill informs us that the Inland Telephone and Telegraph Co. of Spokane have the poles and wires up as far as the Chris Kyriss place which is ten miles east of Ritzville on the Sprague road. We will soon be connected up with the long distance telephone.

100 Years Ago

Ritzville-Journal Times

July 10, 1924

First visit in twenty years

Arthur and Ernest Keller of Coeur d’Alene and Chester Keller of Greenacres spent the Fourth here. They are sons of the late Mr. and Mrs. D. Keller who were the first white settlers here. They came here in 1878 or 1879. Their first home was in the coulee over near the Marcus Thom place where they opened up a shallow well. Later they moved to a place north of where the town now stands, taking up land there. The Kellers also ran a hardware store and harness shop after the railroad came through and the town was started.

75 Years Ago

Ritzville-Journal Times

July 12, 1951

Antelope herd growing

up; 13 spotted lately

Adams County’s antelope herd is growing up, Game Protector Clark Martin reported this week. Martin said at least 13 adult and young antelopes were spotted recently in the Cow Creek area and that there might be more than that, since antelope tend to scatter in the summer while herding together in the winter. The antelope were released to open range here in April of 1950 as a state game department experiment. About 12 animals were scheduled for release but only eight—six does and two bucks—survived. Now they’ve expanded to at least 13.

Rash of accidents includes

fifth fatality for this year

Four accidents in the past week raised Adams County’s 1951 highway death toll to five and sent two Ritzville youths to the hospital. The fatality was 50-year-old Bill McIntyre of Connell, who died Saturday morning in Ritzville General Hospital following a one-car accident south of Lind late last Thursday afternoon. Tuesday night three more accidents occurred. Two involved Ritzville youths and the third a pair of premix cement trucks near Lind.

Most serious of Tuesday night’s accidents occurred about 2:15 a.m. 1.5 miles west of Ritzville on the Moses Lake highway when a 1946 Chevrolet driven by Adoph L. Sauer, 19, left the highway and rolled into the ditch. Law officers said the car drove 588 feet along the left shoulder before ripping out three guard rails and plunging down a 20-foot ditch.

Sauer, son of Mr. and Mrs. Rudolph Sauer, and his passenger, 16-year-old Tom Carrico, son of Mr. and Mrs. Floyd H. Carrico, both are in the Ritzville General Hospital. The car was a total loss.

50 Years Ago

Ritzville-Journal Times

July 11, 1974

Domina new HS principal

Kenneth Arden Domina of Trout Lake has accepted a contract for $16,000 a year to become principal of Ritzville High School. The contract was received during the past week by Supt. Kenneth White. Domina is married; his wife’s name is Sanae, and they have four children: Kevin 20, Kirk 17, Keith 16 and Keena 6.

He has been at Trout Lake since 1967 as a teacher and junior high principal and became high school principal there in 1971. Ritzville’s new principal began his teaching career in 1959 and has coached boys’ and girls’ basketball. Domina saw service in the United States Air Force and is a graduate of the University of South Dakota.

25 Years Ago

Ritzville-Journal Times

July 15, 1999

Fitch, Yerxa to play all-star basketball

The Washington State Girl’s All-Star Basketball games will be played this Saturday, July 17, beginning at 6 p.m. at St. Martin’s College in Lacy. Two Ritzville athletes have been invited as members representing B schools. Amy Fitch and Megan Yerxa join seven other B school players selected by the Washington State Girls’ Basketball Coaches Association and sportswriters.

—The Journal