100 years ago

• Under the head of “Living Pioneers of Washington,” Professor Edmond S. Meany, of the State University, wrote about Flora A.P. Engle, one of the “comparatively few” survivors of the second Mercer expedition. Asa Mercer, first president of the Territorial University of Washington, made two trips back east for the purpose of bringing to Puget Sound widows and orphans whose husbands and fathers had been killed in the Civil War. Not all were widows or orphans, but all were known as members of the Mercer expeditions. Engle’s father and sisters had come in the first expedition, while she came on the second with her mother and brother, arriving on the island in 1866.
• John Draft had a nine-pound carrot on exhibition at the bank. The carrot was raised on Idle Rest Maple Dairy Farm and was considered a “beauty,” proof of ideal soil and climate conditions.

75 years ago

• The I.O.O.F. Oak Leaf Lodge of Oak Harbor won the district pennant for the third consecutive time, thus bringing it home for keeps. The pennant was an award to the Odd Fellow lodge that sent the largest number of members to the district meetings of the Order, which included Island, San Juan and Skagit counties. A lodge had to win the pennant three times consecutively in order to retain it permanently.
• There was an increased demand for skilled labor. Employers in the area called for a total of 149 workers through the local employment service office in October. One-hundred-forty of those were placed with private employers and nine were referred to contractors operating under governmental contracts. There was a shortage of certain skills in the area, particularly those related to defense industries and the Army and Navy.

50 years ago

• After 14 hours of deliberation, a jury in Skagit County found for the defense (Anacortes and Oak Harbor School Districts) in a history-making lawsuit brought by John Carabba on behalf of his minor son, Steve, who became paralyzed in a wrestling match against Oak Harbor on Jan. 31, 1963, in the Anacortes school gymnasium. Stanley Mondhan, jury foreman, Anacortes, told the Whidbey Press that this was the hardest decision that any jury in a civil case would ever be called upon to make.
• After telling a sad story about his family starving, a robber placed a gun in the face of Robert Todhunter of Tod’s Cranberry Service and forced him into the back room of his Mobile Service Station, which was located near Deception Pass State Park. The robber took about $150 from the till, stuffed it in a paper bag and fled the scene. He had worn a woolen ski cap over his head and neck, partly obscuring his face to prevent identification. Wayne Richer of Winona, Minn., was arrested as a suspect and taken into custody later that evening because his car matched the description of the robber’s. There was no money in the car. It was later discovered that Richer had an accomplice who he said had performed the robbery but who had walked out on him. Richer had stolen the car in Minnesota and it was believed he had picked up his accomplice en route to Whidbey.

25 years ago

• The Fakkema family of Oak Harbor was named Washington Dairy Family of the Year. Ryan and James Fakkema, Dick and Cathy Fakkema, Hap and Karen Fakkema and their families operate Beach View Farms Inc. in the Swantown area. The family had first been selected as Island-Skagit Counties Dairy Family of the Year and were honored by the local dairy federation and the public at a gala the previous summer. They won the Washington State Dairy Federation’s top honor at the federation’s annual meeting in Spokane.
• After more than two hours of “spirited” public debate, the Coupeville Planning Commission voted to recommend approval of Island County’s request to rezone the Main Street Market building from commercial to municipal. The county wanted to buy and remodel the building for government business offices and a low-income medical clinic.
• The Langley City Council was considering a 100 percent municipal fee increase for water and sewer hook-ups. According to Langley Clerk/Treasurer Sharon Stewart, the fees had not been increased in nearly 10 years despite Langley’s steadily growing population