Past Tense: March 7, 2013
65 years ago – 1948
The proprietor of Thorn’s General Store, Pine Cove, advertised, “I’ll sell you stuff if you’ll hunt me up. It’s too cold to be at the store every day.”
60 years ago – 1953
Ernie Maxwell was a member of the snow crew team that trekked Tahquitz Valley to complete the sixth- annual snow survey. Ten test holes were sunk to come up with an average depth of 45.7 inches.
55 years ago – 1958
A queen was being sought to reign over the upcoming Bear Festival sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce of the San Jacinto Mountains.
50 years ago – 1963
The Coordinating Council met to discuss plans and problems at Town Hall. A way for financing the community facility was sought.
45 years ago – 1968
San Bernardino National Forest celebrated 75 years.
40 years ago – 1973
Idyllwild’s town center rang with the report of gunfire when members of the Southern California Gunfighters’ Association held competitions for style and speed. They were shooting blanks.
35 years ago – 1978
Pine Cove Property Owners Association (PCPOA) asked Caltrans to install flashing red lights at each approach to Dead Man’s Curve on Highway 243 in Pine Cove. Caltrans officials would not permit it, even at PCPOA’s expense.
30 years ago – 1983
Banking got easier for Hill residents when a Security Pacific Bank branch opened in Idyllwild. Previously, customers used a mobile office that came to Idyllwild each Tuesday.
25 years ago – 1988
The pros and cons of the $15 million Idyllwild-area sewer project were debated once again during an all-day hearing at Town Hall conducted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
20 years ago – 1993
Margaret Williams, in an interview detailing her long residency on the Hill, described what it was like for commuters in 1929. “It was a one-way road [from Hemet] and we would hold the flag until there were enough cars to go, and they would hold the cars coming the other way.”
15 years ago – 1998
Michael Mileham and Jeff Craig announced that pre-production would soon take place on “Hook, Line & Sinker,” a murder mystery set at Lake Hemet.
10 years ago – 2003
MedData, a medical billing company employing about 28 local people, announced it would close its Idyllwild office.
1 year ago – 2012
Hemet High School teacher Janel Ramirez, 31, was arrested on suspicion of having had sex with a student.
• • •
The Idyllwild career firefighters accepted a seven-percent pay reduction.
