Past tense: July 3, 2014
File photo
65 years ago – 1949
Everyone was invited to the dedication ceremonies for the Atwater Kent Bowl on the grounds of the Idyllwild Arts Foundation.
60 years ago – 1954
The Jerry Johnson family was happily welcoming Air Force man Jim Johnson home to the mountains on furlough.
55 years ago – 1959
The District Court of Appeals denied a liquor license for the Idyllwild Inn. The Idyllwild Protective League had spearheaded opposition to the inn’s cocktail bar.
50 years ago – 1964
The Chamber of Commerce was making final preparations for an “old-fashioned pit barbecue” at the Town Hall campfire site. Tickets were $2.50 for adults and $1 for kids under 12.
45 years ago – 1969
Wearing a “Try Harder, Charlie Brown” sweatshirt, Paul McNally, 4, of Glendale was found unharmed by Riverside Mountain Rescue Unit searchers after being lost near Stone Creek for nine hours. The rescue was just one of three RMRU searchers made within a 23-hour period.
40 years ago – 1974
Idyllwild’s Soroptimist Club celebrated its first birthday.
35 years ago – 1979
Summer jobs for economically disadvantaged youth ages 14 to 18 were being offered at the county parks, Idyllwild Park Visitor Center, Town Hall and Anza Co-op. Pay was $2.90 an hour.
30 years ago – 1984
The Hemet Unified School District was moving forward on studies for a secondary school at the Jim Burn site in Garner Valley, but the plans were not without opposition.
25 years ago – 1989
About 800 people attended the Patriots Feast picnic and concert at the Robert E. Holmes Amphitheatre at ISOMATA. The concert was performed by the Idyllwild Master Chorale.
20 years ago – 1994
The Town Crier was purchased by Tindle Newspapers Ltd., an English company that owned about 70 newspapers in the United Kingdom.
15 years ago – 1999
History came alive at Idyllwild’s fourth-annual Historical Encampment held at Idyllwild Pines Camp. The five-day event featured re-enactments of Revolutionary and Civil War battles.
10 years ago – 2004
The Forest Service’s firefighting team on the Hill got bigger and faster with the addition of a Bell 407 helicopter stationed at Keenwild Guard Station in Mountain Center.
5 years ago – 2009
A major district-wide reduction would eliminate funding for middle-school sports for the coming school year. Saving $60,000, money for coaches, referees and travel had been completely cut.
1 year ago – 2013
Idyllwild House Publishing Co., Ltd., owned by Jack and Becky Clark of Idyllwild, purchased the Idyllwild Town Crier from Tindle Newspapers Ltd. of England. Becky had been publisher-editor from 1996 to 2009, and had worked at the newspaper for many years prior.
