Time Machine: 80 years ago, famous 10th Mountain Division ski jumper killed in Italy
Vail Trail/Vail Daily archive
30 years ago
March 31, 1995
Vail Town Manager Bob McLaurin defended the idea to put a roundabout at the Main Vail interchange in an effort to reduce traffic, the Vail Trail reported, quoting McLaurin.
“This is, in our judgment, the most cost-effective solution for the traffic problems at the Main Vail interchange,” said McLaurin. “If there is a problem, this is the best way to solve it.”
Officials were considering moving back completion deadlines negotiated with the contractor, B&B Construction, in an effort to bring the project’s price down, the Trail reported.
“Originally the project was to be substantially completed by July 1,” the Trail reported. “Public works director Larry Grafel, however, said at Tuesday’s council work session that the bid may be reduced if the town allowed completion of the roadwork on the south side by July 4, and the north side improvements coming in August. Bid specs had called for penalties to be assessed for going over the July 1 deadline. B&B’s bid came in at $2.44 million, close to a half-million dollars over highest cost estimates.”
Support Local Journalism
40 years ago
April 5, 1985
The Eagle River was suspected of being polluted with more metals and acids than ever before due to the closing of the Eagle Mine near Gilman, the Vail Trail reported.
“In the past, the three mine tailings ponds south of Minturn were neutralized each year with lime,” the Trail reported. “But the mine was closed last June by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and no lime has been added since then.”
The EPA project officer for the Eagle Mine site, Barry Levine, said his department considers the absence of lime on the tailings a serious problem.
“While Levine says the EPA is unlikely to place any lime on the tailings ponds this year, he hopes the agency will at least be able to begin monitoring the river for pollutants by midsummer,” the Trail reported.
50 years ago
April 4, 1975
Representatives from Kaibab Industries and the Federal Timber Purchasers’ Association asked the Eagle County commissioners to revise their recommendation on the proposed Flat Tops and Eagles Nest Wilderness boundaries, but the commissioners did not do so, the Vail Trail reported.
“Kaibab and the Timber Purchasers’ favor smaller boundaries since no commercial timber cutting is allowed within a wilderness area,” the Trail reported.
The commissioners had adopted their position in September 1974, and the industry representatives asked them to reevaluate in March, the Trail reported.
“The county also encouraged that citizens in the affected area have the benefit of locally held public hearings by federal agencies before land use and development decisions are made,” the Trail reported.
60 years ago
April 1, 1965
The director of the Colorado Game, Fish and Parks Department called on the Bureau of Land Management to begin a program of public land range restoration to deal with the problem of large deer dieoffs in Colorado, the Eagle Valley Enterprise reported.
Since deer winter range is the determining factor in the survival of the herd during winter conditions, and since no more deer can survive in an area than the range can carry, department director Harry Woodward called for a stop to the BLM practice of spraying to eradicate sage brush and other broad-leaf plant species in the critical deer range areas.
“Sage brush is one of the most important of the browse species for taking deer through a heavy winter,” the Enterprise reported. “When taken with small amounts of other browse foods, sage brush can keep a deer healthy and strong for many months.”
70 years ago
March 31, 1955
The state game and fish department stocked 135,943 fish in Eagle Courtly during 1954, the Eagle Valley Enterprise reported.
“George Steele, regional fish manager, headquartered at Rifle, states that during last season, his department planted 61,529 trout … in Eagle River, Gypsum creek, Homestake creek, Sweetwater creek, Brush creek, Frying Pan river, Roaring Fork river and Black Lake,” the Enterprise reported.
Another 74,414 1-to-2-inch fish were stocked in high lakes and beaver ponds in Eagle County, the Enterprise reported.
80 years ago
April 6, 1945
Sgt. Torger Tokle, a world-famous ski jumper, was killed in action in Italy, the U.S. War Department announced.
“Tokle trained at Camp Hale in 1943 with the 10th Mountain Infantry Division, and it was at that time that he took out his naturalization papers and became a citizen of this country, before Judge Wm. H. Luby of Eagle,” the Enterprise reported. “He was born in Orkdal, Norway, March 7, 1919, and came to this country in 1942.”
