Peek at the Past: As it appeared in the Jan. 8, 1953 Frontiersman

Police chief suspended in disciplinary action

Effective on Jan. 8, Police Chief Bernard Bouwens was suspended of all duties as chief of police in the city of Palmer for a period of 10 days.

Mayor Alfred Hagen said the reason for the suspension was a failure to carry out orders of the mayor and dereliction of duty. The action follows Bouwens' refusal to cut down the police force as of Jan. 1 and handle the city policing himself, which he apparently did not due.

Members hear of local marketing problems

Establishing an even flow of Valley produce to the Anchorage market seemed, in the opinion of members of the Anchorage and Matanuska Valley chambers of commerce, the main objective in aiding expansion and growth of the Valley.

In speaking to the capacity attendance, John Croul, manager of the Anchorage chamber, asked how they could help the people of the Valley help themselves.

Dog licenses down

Only 22 dogs in the city of Palmer have been licensed so far this year, way down from recent years. Of these, 19 are males and three are females.

At the Co-Op, towel sets were on sale for a buck and toasters were marked down to $1.98. In the men's department, a wool coat/sweatshirt had a $7 price tag, while lined gloves were $2.50. In the one-stop shopping style, you could also get "your farm machinery and tractor in shape for spring" while you did your shopping.

At Koslosky's, a package of peas were 29 cents, a pound of dry onions was 19 cents and a large tube of shaving cream was 39 cents. The "special value of the week" was spaghetti, which was 19 cents for a 15-ounce tin.

An advertisement detailed what you should do in the case of an air raid. A three-minute wailing siren meant there was an attack, and three one-minute blasts meant the attack was over.

If you wanted to get out of Alaska, you could take the Alaska Steamship Company, who advertised that "family travel is fine when you take the Alaska line. Spacious accommodations and friendly service!"