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By John O. Cotant In the 1930s, everyone was involved in the Depression. I often walked down the alley just after dusk with my mother taking food to a family. That family would not have a pan to put the food in. I would be carrying a large pan of the same food we were eating in our home that night. And Mother perhaps would have a loaf of newly baked bread. Whatever we were eating for supper that night was the same food we took to the family. Mom and I did this many times and I am sure that several moms did the same thing. During summer vacation we had our chores to do. I had the lawn to mow and on Monday morning, wash day, I had all the socks to scrub on a scrub board. My knuckles would be sore when I finished. After we had our assignments completed, we boys often went to the old Overland baseball park to play baseball. At the park there were always men whom we called hobos. These were fellows mainly from the South—Tennessee, Georgia, Arkansas, Kentucky, Alabama. These were states...
The Pocatello Library Board of Trustees, circa 1955, in the anteroom to the "Junior Room" in the Pocatello Public Library. From left to right, Art Scott, Margaret Reilly, O'ertel Hoit, Lucille Uhland, Blaine Gasser and Roy Miller. The photo is courtesy of Blaine Gasser. 
Click here to view the gallery of photos from the East Idaho State Fair from the past. 
I read the article by Mr. Wolfe on Old Fort Hall. There are many stories about the location of the old fort. I shall now give you a version that I experienced when I was a kid 12 years of age. My grandfather, Eph Josephson, was born in Brigham City, Utah, in 1865. Eph had a twin brother, Joseph, so we had Ephraim and Joseph of biblical names. At the age of 14 Eph left home and found work with the “Bar M” Cattle Company headquartered in Brigham City. Eph’s father had passed on and so the only income to the family was virtually nothing. The money he made working for the “Bar M” was nearly all returned home to his mother. He kept the bare minimum that he needed. Throughout Eph’s life although he never had money to send home, he always mailed by train from American Falls to Brigham City to his mother butter, bacon, pork, beef, all food that his mother could use. I would listen to my grandfather when we visited their Rockland, Idaho home, tell my father, J.O. Cotant...
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Philip Varney is the author of seven ghost town guidebooks, including Ghost Towns of the Pacific Northwest, Ghost Towns of Northern California, Arizona’s Ghost Towns and Mining Camps, and Ghost Towns of Colorado. Varney visited his first ghost town—Central City, Colorado—at the age of 11 and has been an enthusiast ever since. A former high school English teacher and department chairman, he has toured and photographed more than six hundred ghost towns throughout the American West. In addition to his ghost town books, Varney has authored a book on bicycle tours of southern Arizona, was a contributing writer for Insight Guide’s Wild West, and has been a contributor to Arizona Highways magazine. Philip Varney lives in Tucson, Arizona. By Philip Varney For The Journal As a writer of nonfiction, I’d like to think most of my observations are objective. In the last thirty years, I’ve written books about ghost towns in all the western states, but I have to admit that my feelings about Idaho defy...
With the new school year beginning, Yesteryear highlights a few photos of Pocatello classes and extracurricular activities from way back when. Photos courtesy Kevin R. Marsh, Idaho State University Department of History
The old Bonneville Public School on Clark Street in Pocatello, exactly where the post office is currently located; the demolition was completed in 1964. Pictured are Rick Cuoio and his sister Christy. Photos from the Fred Cuoio collection. 
Aircraft Mechanics School, ISU, 1942
Dear Bob,
About the picture. It was taken at I.S.U., in the summer of 1942. I think one of the guys was called Don Curtice. We lived in a motel, on 5th Ave., across from the campus. I'm standing next to the instructor, top row left, aircraft mechanics school graduates.
Love, your brother Clarence.
I talked to my brother about this picture and got the following additional information.
Q: Why did you go to aircraft mechanics school?
A: I was looking for a job, and the government had an ad in the paper stating they would pay you to go to school, if you became a aircraft mechanic.
Q: How much did you get?
A: We got 25 dollars a week.
Q: How much did your motel room cost?
A: I think it was a dollar a day, for two. I spilt the cost with my roommate, Don Curtice.
Q: Was the plane in the background a Steersman?
A: I don't know.
Q: Did you work on the plane in the background?
A: No, it was a prop for the picture.
Q: How long was the school?
A: About three months
Q: Where did...
By John O. Cotant The New York Yankees were always my favorite team. Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig were my favorite players. We could only read about them and their games or once in awhile at the theater on the news they would show a short on the World Series. One day we had been playing baseball at the park. About 1 p.m. we quit and decided to go swimming. We had a pool in the canal where we worked before water came into the ditch, widen the ditch and place a diving board. We could swim in our nude and after being in the water would lay out in the dust. I do not remember any of us getting sick. I gulped water a couple of times but didn't seem to bother me. One large pool we had was called the "headgates." This is where the canal company diverted the water to various smaller canals. This main canal was probably 40 feet wide, 6 to 8 feet deep and at the headgates the sides were concrete. There would be 50 to 75 boys and girls swimming there on a hot summer day. ...
William Henry Jackson (1843-1943) was an early photographer of the American West, as well as an accomplished artist. He traveled the Oregon-California Trail in 1866 and 1867, and later in life painted a series of watercolors based on his experiences.
This photo depicts one of his watercolors of Fort Hall, painted in 1837. Editor’s Note: The following are Alfred W. Stoker’s reminiscences of his career as a railroad telegrapher, edited and adapted by Jo Ann Ruckman. “Al” Stoker began working for the railroad in 1899 and retired in 1961 at the age of 78, having compiled what still may be the longest record of service of any employee of the Union Pacific Railroad. He was also known in Pocatello as an avid and expert fisherman. He died in Boise in 1973. This story was first printed in the Pocatello Tribune on June 5, 1939.
The Pocatello office is one of the largest of the “last stand” of a string of railroad relay telegraphy offices left because automatic operation has, in the past 10 or 15 years, made great inroads in these telegraph offices. Expert “knights of the key,” as they were called, telegraphers of the old school, skilled for their speed, endurance and penmanship, are scarce these days. ...
Based on the accounts of travelers in 1848 and 1849 there is evidence that the first Mormon women to reside in Idaho were at Fort Hall. Hazen Kimball, who traveled to Salt Lake in 1847, according to church related documents. And in January 1848 Kimball was granted permission to relocate from Salt Lake to California. Kimball with his wife, Decinda, and children Helen and George, lived at Fort Hall for a few months while awaiting a wagon train going to California. Henry Bigler, a Mormon Pioneer and member of the Mormon Battalion, makes reference to Hazen Kimball in his diary. August 15, 1848 "At eleven last night we rolled out for water...At six this morning arrived at the sink of the Humboldt and camped. The water here was not very good. Cattle did not like it. Towards evening eighteen emigrant wagons rolled in and camped by us. They had met our packers about forty miles ahead of us and had traveled about one hundred miles without water. These emigrants came by way of Fort Hall. There was one family in the crowd...
The Bannock County Historical Museum is having a program on the Portneuf Aquifer on Saturday, Aug. 21 at 7 p.m. at the museum.
The meeting is free, as is admission to the museum at that time. The speaker will be Archie Sheppart, who works for the Pocatello Water Department. He will cover such topics as Pocatello's water history, our sources of water, water purification, water preservation and conservation, as all these areas are of importance to our current and future water supply. 
By John O. Cotant I want to talk about the greatest baseball player of all time, and that is George Herman "Babe" Ruth. The story about Babe Ruth that I am telling in this article is taken from the book, "The Year Babe Ruth Hit 104 Home Runs." Authored by Bill Jenkinson, the year that Ruth would have hit 104 home runs was 1921, and he would have hit that many if he had been playing within the parks and rules of today. Jenkinson has researched all the baseball papers of those years Babe Ruth played. The information is all there. In those days sports writers wrote detailed articles about the baseball games and especially about any game with Babe Ruth on the field. The articles tell where Ruth hit the ball, how far and if it was a home run or 450-plus foot out. If you have the desire to know more than I have written, because I have just touched the surface of all Jenkinson has written about Ruth, purchase a copy of the book. You who are baseball...
On May 22, 1886, a tremendous wind storm swept over Eagle Rock, blowing and wrecking havoc on the railroad's roundhouse. The decision was made not to rebuild the railroad's roundhouse in Eagle Rock. It was rebuilt 50 miles south in the town of Pocatello. This photo is of the Pocatello roundhouse during its heyday. Pocatello's growth soon skyrocketed from just the few buildings that were here before the railroad made the decision to move its roundhouse and repair shop to the city. In 1887, Eagle Rock's population dropped from 2,000 to 400.
A roundhouse is a building used by railroad for servicing locomotives. Roundhouses are large, circular or semicircular structures that were traditionally located surrounding or adjacent to turntables. The defining feature of the traditional roundhouse was the turntable, which facilitates access when the building is used for repair facilities or for storage of steam locomotives.
Early steam locomotives normally traveled forward only. Although reverse capabilities...
Editor's Note: The following recollections of the Auditorium Theater were written by Robert E. Watson and first printed in the Idaho State Journal on April 29, 1951. The Auditorium was built by a company organized by Col. G.A. Hannaford and opened in January 1901. Over the years it was owned and operated by a number of people including Frank M. Watson, owner of the Hub Store and father of Robert E. Watson. "Bob" Watson was an usher at the Auditorium from 1907 to 1908. He later took over his father's men's clothing store and died in Pocatello in 1964. This article was edited and adapted for use here by retired Idaho State University history professor Jo Ann Ruckman. In the early days of Pocatello it wasn't practical for all devotees of the theater to journey to New York City to view the latest theatrical productions, so arrangements were made to bring the finest shows to Pocatello. Rail connections between Salt Lake City and Butte and the east...
Dr. Minnie Howard, M.D., was always the authority on the Oregon Trail and Fort Hall. She signed my ‘‘official Fort Hall Centennial book’’ in 1934. As I recall, Dr. Howard lived on South Garfield in Pocatello, next to the public library. Her articles in the book were illustrated by Bethel M. Farley and were most helpful in helping a young man appreciate the amazing history of the trail and the pioneers who settled Idaho and the Northwest. I am also indebted to my Pocatello High School history teacher Himena Hoffman (signature HH) who reminded me that there was more to the newspaper than comics and sports. The Oregon Trail monument on the high school grounds also aroused my curiosity. After all, these events occurred just a short time prior to my high school days, since Pocatello was still a young city developed by the Oregon Short Line of the Union Pacific. Dr. Howard reminded us that Mount Kinport was the highest point on the mountains that surrounded Pocatello....
This piece was originally published in the Union Pacific Bulletin new letter in July 1946. Rampton Barlow, Pocatello music instructor, who organized the union Pacific R.R. chorus here in 1940, is preparing his men for a number of Southeast Idaho appearances. The group has become increasingly popular in the Pocatello area since it went in1941 to the National Federation of Music of Music Club's convention at Los Angeles, Cal. Since then the chorus has sung "several hundred times for public gatherings, I don't know how many," Mr. Barlow said. He added little solo music is sung in the chorus' appearance, but several first-rate soloists have developed among the men. Information and photo courtesy Fred Evans. 
By Paul Massier for Idaho State Journal "Barnstorming" was a term used by pilots of airplanes when they put on shows of exciting and dangerous acrobatic stunts in rural areas during the 1920s. Some of the stunts even consisted of such daring maneuvers as one of the pilots walking from wing tip to wing tip while the other one was flying the plane a few hundred feet in the air, and then leaping from the wing of one flying plane to the wing of another plane. Acrobatics consisted of horizontal rotations and vertical downward wobbly rotations. Included also, were 10 and 20 minute rides given to passengers (for a price) in their two-seated propellor-driven airplanes.
After World War 1 the government offered thousands of surplus planes for sale at bargain prices. Former military pilots bought many of these and decided to put on such daring shows. These planes were made mostly of wood and cloth and did not have satisfactory navigation equipment. Also, they were not...
Annette and Peter emigrated from Norway October 1883. In an Idaho state Journal article dated July 14, 1957 it was claimed Annette Larsen (Nettie Powell), was the first white woman to reside in Pocatello. I believe they may have confused Annette with her mother, Maren Andersen, who proceeded Annette by a year, arriving in 1882. Maren Andersen, along with a daughter Inga, came to the United States, eager to join the Mormons. Maren came, under the auspices of a Mormon missionary program called, "Passport To Paradise". She apparently didn't understand polygamy, and when she found out what it was, she left the settlement in Utah, and moved to Pocatello. Nettie Powell lived out her life, in the house at 910 South Main, across from Paul Roberts Machine shop. Maren Andersen married Leonard Deutshenbauer, and together they owned the Pocatello House, on the southeast corner of Center and 2nd Ave. 
By Bill Ryan One of the joys of my tenure at news director for KSEI was getting to know and work with the members of the Pocatello police force. The figure of 80 sworn officers sticks in my mind, but now I think that number is high. The cramped station was located at Second and Lewis. John Perkins was chief, and Pete Rountree was captain. The detectives I knew were Glen Hadley, Al Kuta and Bob Fackrel, and one of the most unforgettable and likeable men I’ve ever met was identification officer Y.D. (Yancey) Black. A veteran officer who’d really been around and knew the ropes was Sgt. Harry Carahoff, the desk sergeant I remember most. Jack Bates was another sergeant who had come up through the ranks. The patrol shifts were 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., 3 to 11 p.m. and 11 to 7. Just like on “Hill Street Blues,” there was always a roll call and muster as each shift started. I felt privileged to be allowed to join the 20 or so men to hear about the latest crimes, most of them petty, against persons, domestic disturbances or burglaries....
By Alison B. Law Historical monuments, markers and landmarks dot Utah and Idaho counties and thanks to a project by the Sons of the Utah Pioneers, they are easier to find. When Stan Allen joined the Temple Fork Chapter of the Sons of the Utah Pioneers 15 years ago he was given the assignment of being in charge of the monuments for the chapter. He asked what had been done previously and was told nothing had. He decided to fulfill his assignment, never dreaming of the extent of work it would take. The Temple Fork Chapter covers Rich and Cache counties in Utah and Bear Lake and Franklin counties in Idaho, Allen said. He began to search for a comprehensive list from other historical societies in the area, but said they each had only partials lists. He took the lists and started his journey to visit each one, taking photos and a physical address. While visiting cities and towns he would also check around the churches, city halls and schools to see if he could find any other historical markers. Allen said he also...
By Arie Kirk for The Herald Journal in Logan, Utah One of the oldest buildings in Preston was demolished July 19. The century-old, school-district-owned building, which was north of Preston High School, will be replaced by a parking lot, said Brian Mendenhall, Preston School District business manager and clerk. Preston High School Principal Jeff Lords said that with the space available now people park "all over the place," so the school needs more parking. "It's kind of a mess out here with the students and even with the school activities," Lords said. Mendenhall said the property will be filled and leveled immediately. Because of funding, he is unsure when the lot will be paved but he expects it to be completed within the year. Lords described the demolition as "bittersweet" because Preston is losing a bit of local history. "You hate to see history like this go," he said. The building, which measured approximately 10,000 square feet, was built in the early 1900s. Because of age, its condition was getting "pretty...
Editor's note: This article is about the beginnings of Pocatello General Hospital. This hospital was torn down in 1957 after the present hospital on Memorial Drive had been built. This story first appeared in the Pocatello Tribune on May 11, 1923. It has been edited and adapted for use here by retired Idaho State University history professor Jo Ann Ruckman.
The first hospital in Pocatello was the Japanese hospital on the west side, used exclusively for the care of Japanese laborers on the Oregon Short Line Railroad. Most operations were performed in homes. The early-day doctors also relied on Mrs. Burbank's and Mrs. McMillan's rooming houses for surgeries and convalescent care.
Nannie Maines, a trained nurse, came from Iowa to Pocatello in 1905. Mrs. Maines saw the urgent need for a hospital in a town of near 5,000 souls and spent her spare time in talking hospital. Mrs. Maines worked steadily and faithfully and finally with the aid of Mrs. George Derr, Mrs. A.L. Cook and the Methodist and...
Editor's note: The following article is the Pocatello Tribune's account of the Fourth of July celebration in 1905. It was printed on July 5 of that year. The story has been edited and adapted for use here by retired Idaho State University history professor Jo Ann Ruckman. The Fourth of July celebration in Pocatello yesterday was one of the most successful from every point of view ever given in the city. The only disagreeable thing to mar the pleasure of the occasion was persistence of the energetic zephyrs in wafting over the city from early morn till late at night. The program was most complete from the salute in the morning until the fireworks at night, and much credit is due the executive committee for the success of every detail of the celebration. The Indians took a very prominent part in the parade and the celebration yesterday. They presented a magnificent appearance in the parade and their sun dance on the...
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