Ledger Looking Back 25 Years: 7/1/1998

JULY 1, 1998

Road construction crews resurfaced the I-90 interstate, and the benefits of the resurfacing extended far beyond the four lanes of I-90. After the top layer - millings - were stripped off, they were being hauled in and around Whitehall to improve five area roads. The millings were spread on Piedmont Road (about 1.1 miles), Yellowstone Trail (1 mile), Kelly Road (.3 mile), First St. extension (.5 mile), and the entirety of Pipestone Road. After the millings were stripped off the interstate, they were hauled to where they were dumped and then spread with a road grader. The next step included upgrading the millings with a bonding agent such as oil or water.

Whitehall area Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks warden Chad Murphy was investigating the shooting of a four-point buck mule deer. The deer was shot, either June 24 or 25, close to the Jefferson Valley Sportsman Association (JVSA) shooting range on the Tomahawk Ranch. Murphy called the shooting “a senseless killing,” and noted that no meat was taken from the deer carcass. The deer was simply shot and left to waste.

Whitehall Reader of the Week was Jack Klemo. Jack, a 30-year resident of Whitehall, had been coming to the library since it opened. He read up to 150 books a year, with his favorites being westerns, adventures, and mysteries. “I enjoy the sense of adventure…a good book carries you away,” said Jack. “They can’t keep enough coming in for me to read.” Jack’s favorite authors are John Grisham and Louis L’Amour.

Demolition of the old middle school building began on Saturday, June 27, and by the end of the day, the entire front entryway had been knocked down and hauled away. The school building, built in 1927 after the school building built in 1919 burned down, was targeted for demolition with the passage of the mill levy that authorized the construction of the new middle school. Work crews would continue demolition throughout the week and within days the entire building was expected to be torn down and removed.