This Week in Odessa History

The fledgling town of Odessa celebrated Halloween in style 109 years ago.

A lively night was reported in The Odessa Record’s issue of November 6, 1903:

The Halloween party given by 15 Odessa young ladies at the IOOF Hall last Saturday evening was a decided success. A few days before, about a score of their gentlemen friends received invitations to the event and all but three ungallant fellows responded.

On entering the room the gentlemen passed between two rows of ghostlike figures, each with a hand outstretched. The hall was appropriately decorated, with streamers hung from the ceiling and a liberal spray of autumn leaves all about. Japanese lanterns and big, luminous pumpkins lighted the scene.

The evening passed pleasantly, with those present tempting fortune in diverse ways. One of the young ladies filled the role of fortune teller and the booth in which she held forth was filled during the greater part of the evening. A nice light supper was partaken of just before midnight, after which members of the party serenaded a number of absent friends at their homes. Another jolly crowd, pleasure bent, assembled the same evening at the Grant Hotel, where dancing to music by Smith & Barno’s orchestra was in order and the dining room ready for action upon the guests arrival. The party grew in numbers so rapidly that the group was obliged to seek larger quarters and adjourned to the Warsinski Hall, where the dance went merrily on until midnight, when all returned to the hotel to partake of a bountiful repast. After this, they once again returned to the hall and with waltzes and two-steps passed the time until the hour of three, when all returned to their homes each feeling that it had been an evening most pleasantly spent and one long to be remembered.

100 Years Ago

From The Odessa Record

November 15, 1912

Spokane is given over this week to the glittering reign of King Apple V, who already has far outshone the splendor of his predecessors at the four previous National Apple shows, and during the remainder of the week the show will be the biggest event in the country.

As against a total of 2,000,000 at last year’s show, 3,250,000 apples are displayed this year. Yakima Valley Fruit Growers’ association alone has five carloads, consisting of Yellow Newton, Pippins, Spitzenburgs, Winesaps, White Winter Permains and Arkansas Blacks. The Wenatchee Valley has three cars.

Theodore Roosevelt made a formal statement tonight bearing upon the election and the future of the progressive party. In line with previous expressions of his own and of his colleagues he reiterated that the “progressive party has come to stay” and “so far from being over, the battle has just begun.”

75 Years Ago

From The Odessa Record

October 28,1937

The thieves that visited Odessa last week as part of a criminal ring that had been active in eastern Washington during the past week, later to be captured at Seattle, had left a long string of crimes, it was revealed by officers.

Thefts of several cars, including some at Spokane, Coeur d’Alene, Harrington, Dishman and Odessa, were reported, while merchandise stolen from the Penny store at Odessa was found in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho and at Yakima, Wash.

The car stolen from the Odessa Trading Company was the one the thieves drove to the coast. It had its hub caps shot off in a chase from police officers.

25 Years Ago

From The Odessa Record

October 29, 1987

Two positions on the town council of Odessa and the mayor’s chair are all contested in next Tuesday’s election, while a third council seat will be filled again by incumbent Ed Deife.

Current councilman Harold Kern faces political newcomer Harvey Delzer for the mayoral post, presently held by Dorothy Schauerman who declined to seek re-election after one elected term.

In council position two, teacher Carl Ryan and county foreman Mel Quincy are vying for the council seat left vacant by the resignation of Anona Heimbigner when she moved outside the town limits. Heimbigner’s term was expiring, and she had announced she would not run again.

Council position three pits Walter Implement partsman Jim Tanferani against store owner Linda Burghard. They filed for election to the seat left vacant by the retirement of councilman Ivan Hemmerling, who chose not to file again after two terms.

10 Years Ago

From The Odessa Record

October 31, 2002

Hutterite: A World of Grace, a picture book illustrating the life in the eastern Washington Hutterite colonies, including Lamona, Marlin, Stahl, which surround Odessa, is not being featured at the northwest Museum of Arts and Culture (MAC) in Spokane.

It has been 50 years since Ab Davies looked Odessa over one Sunday morning and decided this was a good place to bring his airplanes and being his business as a spray pilot. Today, Odessa Aviation has another name, now called Smith Air and is owned by Mark Smith.

The Davies moved to Odessa in 1953 and started a new business spraying wheat fields, moving 4 of his planes with him.

The name of his business was Inland Service Corps doing business as Odessa Aviation. Davies flew for 10 years spraying field after field for the farmers until his retirement. He had four other pilots helping him with the spray.