Past Tense: May 5, 2016
File photo
65 years ago – 1951
Izaak Walton League members took part in a work party, cleaning the Fuller Mill Creek campground.
60 years ago – 1956
Inie and Johnny Wilson celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary.
55 years ago – 1961
In addition to a parade, carnival, square dance and ball, the fifth-annual Idyllwild Bear Festival featured a Pauline Bunyon chainsaw contest, stagecoach rides through the village and a barbecue featuring buffalo and bear burgers.
50 years ago – 1966
Workers were clearing the site for the Shell gas station soon to be erected at the junction of Ridgeview Drive and Idyllwild Road (now Highway 243).
45 years ago – 1971
Idyllwild’s traditional Mother’s Day snow missed by one day.
40 years ago – 1976
Village Market was advertising strawberries at 4 pints for 89 cents, Italian squash for 29 cents per pound and romaine lettuce at 19 cents a head.
35 years ago – 1981
A public hearing was held on a proposed tax levy of standby charges for fire suppression services by the Idyllwild Fire Protection District.
30 years ago – 1986
The Garner Valley Fire Station switched from being an all-volunteer station to being staffed 24 hours a day with paid firefighters.
25 years ago – 1991
The 1990 census figures showed that, while the population of Riverside County had soared between 1980 and 1990, the population of the Idyllwild and Pine Cove area dropped nearly 3.7 percent. However, student enrollment at Idyllwild School had grown more that 30 percent in the same period.
20 years ago – 1996
The Idyllwild Arts Academy’s International Chamber Orchestra performed at The Kennedy Center’s 25th-anniversary Gala — touted as the Washington, D.C. event of the year.
15 years ago – 2001
A new grass-roots organization was created on the Hill — the Mountain Communities Fire Safe Council.
5 years ago – 2011
Idyllwild’s own Casey Abrams left the “American Idol” stage creating a final impression that would last for many seasons. Singing “I Put a Spell on You,” Abrams showed why this “jazz messenger” had found his way into the hearts of not just his Idylwild supporters, but fans the world over.
1 year ago – 2015
The Idyllwild Christmas tree got some much-needed nurturing from Phyllis Mueller. A soil analysis showed that the soil surrounding the iconic Sequioa was in need of a healthy dose of magnesium. Muller organized a project to air spade the soil, supply a mulch mixture and give a dose of nutrients to aid in the tree’s growth.
