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1926: Dr. Harold S. Colton of the University of Pennsylvania faculty, who with his charming wife long have been ardent friends of Flagstaff and recently brought a fine country home here, sounds a note of warning against trying to make this a health resort. His letter is self-explanatory (excerpted): “My dear Mr. Moran: Yesterday I received a letter from Miss Stewart asking me to help get in touch with certain individuals in connection with the campaign to get the National Sanitarium for Tubercular Children, Inc., located in Flagstaff. “Mrs. Colton and I believe in Flagstaff. We believe that it has a wonderful future as a great tourist and educational center. We have visited nearly every state in the Union and after 14 years have settled here. We know of no other locality that contains the diversified interests found (here.) This is not only for tourists but also for the wealthy “dude ranch” habitue, forever in search of new sensations; while yearly its reputation is increasing as a center of educational work and scientific research in varied fields. We believe that this is a country for well people and that Flagstaff will utterly kill its future prospects as a dude ranch center by advertising itself as a sick country like Silver City or Prescott. In the east, Arizona has the reputation of being a vast sanitorium. As a consequence the eastern vacationist shies off…”

1951: The Reddy Kilowatt Electric show, largest exhibit of its kind ever to be held in Flagstaff, has been scheduled for September 25 and 26 at Rees hall of the Federated church, according to R.B. Nairn, district manager for the Northern Arizona Light and Power Company, sponsors. Cooperating in sponsorship will be Flagstaff electrical appliance and equipment dealers, as well as various state distributors of the electrical equipment and apparatus. Slogan for the show is “You can do it better electrically,” and the purpose is to assemble under one roof for the people of Flagstaff, a complete showing with actual demonstrations of the many types of electrical equipment that we have come to depend on for modern convenience and efficiency in our everyday living. Among those items to be exhibited will be electric ranges and cooking equipment, freezing units, refrigerators, coffee makers, ironers, laundry and clothes drying equipment, home lighting, and infra red, ultra violet and fluorescent lighting for industrial and commercial application. Four home service economists will be provided by the power company, as well as home economists for the General Electric company, Sunbeam, and the Westinghouse company, to demonstrate the use of each appliance and piece of equipment shown. Each person attending will have the opportunity to register upon entering for the many prizes to be given away. The grand prize will be a modern automatic electric range, donated by the Northern Arizona Light and Power company.

1976: Coconino County will not buy the Arizona Snowbowl at this time, but the door remains open to future consideration of the issue. The County Board of Supervisors, with a 2-0 vote, today rejected an offer by Summit Properties, Inc., operators of the Bowl, to sell the facility for $485,000, with a $200,000 immediate downpayment. Supervisor Tia A. Tachias, Flagstaff, was advised not to vote on the issue because he remains party to a suit filed in U.S. District Court, Phoenix, by Summit. The suit stems from the long controversy surrounding the development company’s land on Hart Prairie, directly below Snowbowl on the western slopes of the San Francisco Peaks. Tachias, however, did say he felt that future consideration of public purchase of the ski facility was “almost inevitable.” The bowl, apparently, will revert back to its former ownership, Grasmoen Realty, Flagstaff, Sunday. The supervisors revealed today, however, it would continue to be operated during the forthcoming winter season.

During the school year, the Sun will be printing the school newspapers for Coconino High and Flagstaff High and as a public service they will be carried in The Sun. We feel this is one way in which the schools and community can be tied closer together and even many adults who no longer have children in high school are interested in school activities. The first issues of the high school newspapers are scheduled this weekend.

2001: The San Juan Southern Paiute tribe is fighting to keep its land and struggling to keep its culture. Tribal council member Mabel Lehi may know best. She was active in the 20-year fight for a land settlement with the Navajo Nation and is still active in keeping tribal tradition alive. Lehi, a basket weaver, started weaving at age 6 under the instruction of her great-grandmother, who passed on to her the traditional patterns and designs that she has memorized. “She was a great teacher of the culture,” Lehi said. She learned another lesson from her great-grandmother too — to keep the Paiute culture alive in the young generation. Lehi is teaching basketry today at the Tuba City public schools for a culture day. She also teaches singing and traditional songs to young Paiutes. Located on the south side of Tuba City, her tribe is still “pretty traditional,” she said. “We are a real small tribe — not over 300 now.” Lehi is one of six tribal council members and her nephew is president of the tribe, she said proudly. She is also the coordinator for the elderly of the tribe.

Massive airline layoffs. Empty hotels and restaurants. Wall Street’s biggest weekly point decline ever. The economic damage from the terrorist attacks has virtually guaranteed a recession this year, many economists said Friday. The only questions remaining: How long and how deep? “I think we’ll have a mild recession that will end sometime in the first three months of next year, but we really don’t know yet. Things are very uncertain and everybody is nervous,” said David Wyss, economist at Standard & Poor.

Susan Johnson has lived in Flagstaff for over 30 years and loves to delve into her adopted hometown’s past. She has written two books for the History Press, Haunted Flagstaff and Flagstaff’s Walkup Family Murders, and, with her son Nick, manages Freaky Foot Tours. You’ll find her hiking the trails with her corgi, Shimmer.

All events were taken from issues of the Arizona Daily Sun and its predecessors, the Coconino Weekly Sun and the Coconino Sun.