Celebrating History: A slow week in Havre 100 years ago

By Emily Mayer

There wasn’t much going on in Havre 100 years ago this week. The Havre Plaindealer’s March 15, 1919 edition contained the usual articles of thrift. A list of “Nineteen New Victory Resolutions for 1919” was printed which stressed being thrifty not just at that time, but in the future. War stories, the aftermath of The Great War, and crop predictions were also part of the Plaindealer’s edition. A good wheat crop was being predicted, as was a good sugar beet crop.

The local Behind the Boys League was making plans for the upcoming Decoration Day holiday. The following article is complete with misspellings.

BEHIND THE BOYS LEAGUE PLANING MEMORIAL

’We, as a League, stand ready to assist any citizen or prospective citizen, American or Foreign birth, who is dissatisfied with our institutions and laws, to dispose of his chattels and transport him to any country or clime that they may select. Any lands he now holds revert to the government of the of the United States, which gave it.’

The above quotation is taken from the Behind the Boys League by-laws, and every member of the association as well as every returned soldier, is ready to do his part to live up to the paragraph. The officers are now making arrangements for laping the corner stone and for a big meeting in Decoration Day in Havre, where it is expected the monument will be erected to the boys who died that civilization might be saved.

Take note of the included section of this group’s bylaws. It’s completely unconstitutional, as were the sedition laws passed before it. No one gets to take some one’s land and expel them from their country of birth or naturalization simply because one is dissatisfied in what the government is doing. If so, there would be darn few of us here. This is disturbing to us today, but 100 years ago in the wake of the end of The Great War and a strong movement toward nationalism, this was not uncommon. And it wouldn’t be the worst of this movement to rear its ugly head throughout the nation, including little ol’ Havre, Montana. More to come in subsequent years.

Speaking of government, there was some interest in the upcoming city elections. Article again is complete with misspelling.

TWO CANDIDATE FILE IN THE SECOND WARD

Contest at Coming Primary Election Attracts Attention

Last Saturday the time for filing of candidates for the city primary expired and at that time P. C. Barrett and Phil Jestrab had filed as aldermanic candidates in the Second ward and R. M Rathbone in the First. No one had filed for the position that will be left vacant in the Third Wadr unless someone enters the contest in the city election.

Some interest has been aroused by the entry of two candidates in the Second ward but otherwise unusual apathy marks the attitude towards the coming primary election next week Monday, March 24. It required considerable persuasion on the part of friends to induce Phil Jestrab to consider filing for the place but now that he has entered the race they are very enthusiastic pointing to him as representative of a type which it is very much regretted can not oftener be secured to care for the interests of the city. They emphasize that he is not tied to any interest which has hopes of furthering its own interest at the cost of the taxpayer, and recite this history since coming her as evidence of a man qualified to give the interests of the city business lie consideration. During his residence here he and his brother have built up the firm of Jestrab Bros. until it has become one of the recognized big implement houses in the state.

In yesterday’s Havre Daily News, it was announced the Hill County Conservation District, HRDC, Downtown Gardens and Bob’s Greenhouse are partnering in a conservation and gardening project. This is great news! I grew up with my parents gardening and know well the benefits of growing one’s own food. Many of us experienced the same. One hundred years ago, the home gardening movement was also strong as part of the war effort, but now that the war was over, people were still keen to keep their home gardens going.

HOME GARDENING HAS FAST HOLD ON PEOPLE

Home gardening is starting off this year in every section of the country with the momentum gained during the two gardening seasons in which the United States was at war. This is the conclusion drawn from reports to the garden specialists of the United States department of agriculture from garden leaders in most of the states. According to these reports gardening has spread to every element of the people and has become a fixed factor in city and suburban as well as rural life. With experience gained by amateur gardeners in past seasons and with gardeners assuming a permanent rather than temporary character, this year is expected to be the greatest year ever recorded in making waste land produce food.