Peek at the Past: A look back in Mat-Su's history

As it appeared in the Dec. 14, 1972 Frontiersman:

City hopes for home mail service

The Palmer City Council took action in hopes of bringing door-to-door mail delivery to Palmer, even though the city does not yet have minimums the Postal Service normally uses before starting mailmen on their rounds.

The city manager was instructed to apply for house-to-house delivery, but its not expected that such service could begin before another year.

The U.S. Postal Service usually will not go to the more expensive door-to-door delivery unless the city has at least 750 delivery spots or a minimum of 2,500 people. A recent study showed about 469 stops, with an optimistic estimate of 500 people.

Teelands honored

Over 200 friends, former employees, family members and satisfied customers attended the retirement party for Walt and Vivian Teeland at the VFW hall in Wasilla last Sunday.

Walt Teeland described the purchase from Mrs. Orville G. Herning and her son, Stanley, and told some of the history of Herning's operation of the store, which originally opened in Knik in 1905.

Vivian Teeland was presented with an axle handle, to remind her of the early days when she sometimes needed extra clout to deal with unruly customers who made infrequent appearances.

An advertisement for the new Ford Courier -- retail price $2,222 -- boasted its standard equipment, which couldn't be found on other models.

"Bright-finish bumper and grill, whitewall tires, dual sun visors and dual armrests" were reasons to buy, as well as the "handsomely tailored interior, which has fully vinyl headliner and door paneling."

In real estate, you could buy one-acre lots in the Butte area for $1,625.

Globe Construction Company was offering three-bedroom homes for $29,000. You could also buy 13 1/2 acres in the Fairview Loop area for $16,000.

At Koslosky's, you could get your Christmas dinner bought. Tom turkeys were 43 cents a pound, while boneless hams were $1.19 a pound. A three-pound can of coffee was $2.49, while five pounds of bananas ran you a buck.