Images of Old Hawaiʻi

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Flag Day

Flag Day is celebrated on June 14.

(It also marks the birthday of the US Army; Congress authorized “the American Continental Army” on June 14, 1775.)

Flag Day commemorates the date in 1777 when the Second Continental Congress approved a resolution to adopt a design for its first national flag –

“Resolved, that the flag of the United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white, that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new constellation.”

Today, the American flag consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the canton (referred to specifically as the “union”) bearing fifty small, white, five-pointed stars arranged in nine offset horizontal rows of six stars (top and bottom) alternating with rows of five stars.

The 50-stars on the flag represent the 50-states and the 13-stripes represent the thirteen British colonies that rebelled against the British monarchy and became the first states in the Union.

The first flags were used to assist military coordination on battlefields.  National flags are patriotic symbols with varied wide-ranging interpretations, often including strong military associations due to their original and ongoing military uses.

Bernard J. Cigrand is considered by many to be the “Father” of Flag Day as we know it today. Working as a school teacher in Waubeka, Wisconsin, Cigrand arranged for his pupils at Stony Hill School to celebrate the American flag’s ‘birthday’ on June 14, 1885.

Shortly after this celebration, Cigrand moved to Chicago, Illinois, to attend dental school. His dedication to observing the birthday of the flag did not stop with his move.

In June 1886, he publicly proposed an annual observance of the flag birthday in an article entitled “The Fourteenth of June,” published in a Chicago newspaper. His efforts remained steadfast in the years to come. (Postal Museum)

From the late 1880s on, Dr. Cigrand spoke around the country promoting the annual observance of a flag day on June 14, the day in 1777 that the Continental Congress adopted the Stars and Stripes. (University of Illinois at Chicago College of Dentistry)

In 1888 William T. Kerr of Pennsylvania founded the American Flag Day Association of Western Pennsylvania, an organization to which he dedicated his life.

(A lesser-known claim is that of George Morris of Connecticut, who is said to have organized the first formal celebration of the day in Hartford in 1861.)

In 1916 Pres. Woodrow Wilson proclaimed June 14 as the official date for Flag Day, and in 1949 the US Congress permanently established the date as National Flag Day. (Britannica)

Flag Day is not an official federal holiday, though on June 14, 1937, Pennsylvania became the first (and only) US state to celebrate Flag Day as a state holiday.

According to the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), “Our national standard has undergone more design transitions than any other flag in the world.”

4 U.S. Code § 8 – Respect for flag notes (from Cornell Law School): No disrespect should be shown to the flag of the United States of America; the flag should not be dipped to any person or thing.

  • The flag should never be displayed with the union down, except as a signal of dire distress in instances of extreme danger to life or property.
  • The flag should never touch anything beneath it, such as the ground, the floor, water, or merchandise.
  • The flag should never be carried flat or horizontally, but always aloft and free.
  • The flag should never be used as wearing apparel, bedding, or drapery.
  • The flag should never be fastened, displayed, used, or stored in such a manner as to permit it to be easily torn, soiled, or damaged in any way.
  • The flag should never be used as a covering for a ceiling.
  • The flag should never have placed upon it, nor on any part of it, nor attached to it any mark, insignia, letter, word, figure, design, picture, or drawing of any nature.
  • The flag should never be used as a receptacle for receiving, holding, carrying, or delivering anything.
  • The flag should never be used for advertising purposes in any manner whatsoever.
  • No part of the flag should ever be used as a costume or athletic uniform. However, a flag patch may be affixed to the uniform of military personnel, firemen, policemen, and members of patriotic organizations.
  • The flag represents a living country and is itself considered a living thing. Therefore, the lapel flag pin being a replica, should be worn on the left lapel near the heart.
  • The flag, when it is in such condition that it is no longer a fitting emblem for display, should be destroyed in a dignified way, preferably by burning.

The original Pledge of Allegiance was written by Francis Bellamy (1855 – 1931), a Baptist minister, in August 1892. The Pledge was published in the September 8th issue of The Youth’s Companion, the leading family magazine and the Reader’s Digest of its day.

In 1892, Francis Bellamy was also a chairman of a committee of state superintendents of education in the National Education Association. As its chairman, he prepared the program for the public schools’ quadricentennial celebration for Columbus Day in 1892. He structured this public school program around a flag raising ceremony and a flag salute – his Pledge of Allegiance. (WA Secretary of State)

Bellamy’s first recited Pledge of Allegiance was:  “I pledge allegiance to my Flag and to the Republic for which it stands one Nation indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all.”

“One Nation indivisible” referred to the outcome of the Civil War, and “Liberty and Justice for all” expressed the ideals of the Declaration of Independence.

“The flag of the United States” replaced the words “my Flag” in 1923 because some foreign-born people might have in mind the flag of the country of their birth instead of the United States flag. A year later, “of America” was added after “United States.”

No form of the Pledge received official recognition by Congress until June 22, 1942, when the Pledge was formally included in the US Flag Code. The official name of The Pledge of Allegiance was adopted in 1945.

The last change in language came on Flag Day 1954, when Congress passed a law, which added the words “under God” after “one nation.” (US District Court, Southern District of WV)

I pledge Allegiance to the flag
of the United States of America
and to the Republic for which it stands,
one nation under God, indivisible,
with Liberty and Justice for all.

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by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Brother Matthias Newell

“Victoria is the county seat of Victoria County, and is situated in the southeastern part of Southwest Texas, on the right bank of the Guadalupe River, about 114 miles southwest of San Antonio, and 28 miles from the Gulf of Mexico.”

“It is one of the oldest towns in the state, having been founded in 1822 and incorporated in 1836, the first year of the independent Republic of Texas. The actual history of the school in Victoria goes back to the time of Reverend A Gardet who took over the care of St. Mary’s Parish in Victoria in 1857.”

“After building a church and a convent of the Incarnate Word Sisters he erected a building of two stories on the corner of Main and Church streets. In this building he started a day school for boys.”

“[I]n 1870 a group of three Brothers, on their way from New Orleans to San Antonio, went through Victoria. One of these Brothers [was] Matthias Newell …. The Brothers spent several days with the pastor whom Brother Matthias described as a ‘very friendly old man.’”  (Pariseau)

Matthias Newell ( 1854-1939) was born in Zerf, Bavaria, where his father was a forest warden. The Newell family immigrated to the US while Matthias was still a child. In 1868 he joined the Society of Mary at Dayton, Ohio. (Texas Ornithology Society)

“Brother Matthias, as Mr. Newell is familiarly known to the Catholic brotherhood, came to the [Hawaiian] Islands some seventeen years ago [1885] from San Antonio, Texas, where he had already gained the local title of ‘Rattlesnake-catcher,’ owing to his zeal in the various branches of natural history.”

“From the Brothers at the college I learn that after a year’s residence in Honolulu he moved, to Wailuku on Maui, where he spent fourteen years in the Catholic mission in Iao valley. … From Wailuku Mr. Newell was removed to Hilo on Hawaii”. (Bryan)

“When the Sacred Hearts sisters discussed hiring lay teachers, math and science were the fields they most willingly abandoned. Even when a competent science teacher found his way onto a faculty roster, he was unlikely to transform his class with innovative methods.”

“Brother Matthias Newell, who taught at St. Mary’s School from 1896 to 1924, supplemented the brothers’ income by practicing applied science. He was the agricultural inspector at Hilo’s wharf, cared for the Territorial Nursery there, and monitored the seismograph machine.” (Alvarez)

“In August 1909, Brother Mathias Newell was appointed to establish a tree nursery in Hilo by the Territorial Board of Agriculture and Forestry. He was given a small stipend for supplies and compensation for his time.”

“Brother Mathias was an avid cataloger of species, having recorded specimens of birds and moths endemic to the islands in the 38 years he spent in Hawai‘i.  …”

“The nursery proved successful as in the first year Brother Mathias distributed 3,500 trees to residents in Hilo and Hāmākua. Around this time, homesteading was booming across the island – there was a great demand for fruit and timber trees – while there was also a curiosity about what could grow in the range of Hawai‘i Island’s climates.”

“Charles S. Judd’s interest in testing exotic trees on Hawai‘i Island led him to Brother Mathias. Charles was the Territory of Hawai‘i superintendent of forestry from 1915 until his death in 1939. He was born and raised in Hawai‘i, and after graduating from the Yale School of Forestry, returned to direct the administration of the forest reserve program.” (Anderson, Ke Ola)

But it was the ‘A‘o that is more memorably linked to Brother Newell.  “The ‘A‘o went unnoticed by foreign naturalists for a long time, given the fervor by outsiders in the last decade of the nineteenth century to document bird life in the islands.”

“‘I have described a new Puffinus from Maui,’ mainland transplant Henry Henshaw wrote in 1900 to Ernst Hartert, the ornithology curator at Walter Rothschild’s private museum in Tring, England, referring to the bird’s first published description.”

“‘It ought to be common but if so how did [collectors Henry] Palmer, [Scott] Wilson and [RCL] Perkins overlook it?’ … Henshaw named the bird after its discoverer, Brother Matthias Newell, a missionary in Wailuku, in 1894.”

“One of the sugar plantation workers employed by Werner von Graevemeyer, a manager, caught one of the birds, skinned it, and had it sent immediately to Newell to be stuffed.”

“Henshaw noted at the time that the species was ‘numerous enough’ but that the mongoose was rapidly exterminating the birds.”

“The ‘A‘o had been first discovered by nonnatives in 1893 when one blew ashore on Maui after strong southerly winds and heavy rain,  but nothing came of it until the following year. It had apparently been long known to the natives.”

“William Bryan and Alvin Seale noted in their report on a 1900 collecting trip on Kauai.  ‘The fact that the native name of this bird has come down to us through all these years …”

“… but that the species to which it had been applied by the kanaka naturalists should but so recently come to the light of science speaks much in the favor of those skilled old bird-catchers who had worked out the ornithology of their land with such exactness.’”

“Very little was known about the ‘A‘o, and Henshaw noted in 1900 that ’as to nests and notes upon the breeding habits of Hawaiian birds I assure you the gaps will be long in filling.’ By 1908 it was thought to be extinct.”

“However, a trio of the birds was sighted offshore in the summer of 1947 between Kauai and Ni‘ihau.  Eight years later the bird was confirmed to exist, and in 1967 it was discovered by none other than John Sincock to be breeding on Kauai.” (Unitt)

“The field biologist located the bird’s long-lost breeding grounds and would go on to fill in just the kinds of gaps Henshaw had lamented decades earlier.”

“As a result, more than sixty years after Henshaw’s initial description of the bird (the 1947 sighting) buried in a report on Alaskan birds, went almost entirely unnoticed), the shearwater received some renewed attention.”

“The nesting locations of the Newell’s shearwater on Kauai and other islands had been known to both natives and foreigners in the early twentieth century, but were forgotten. It was later discovered that colonies existed on other islands, but mongoose predation, feral cats, and Barn Owls had dramatically reduced their numbers there.”

“Henry Henshaw noted that natives had found the birds in the burrows on Maui and brought them to Matthias Newell alive. Ornithologist William Bryan, writing to Richard Sharpe at the British Museum, observed in 1908 that …”

“…‘P newelli … nest[s] in the high cliffs 2000-4000 [feet elevation, on Molokai in holes under the roots of etc in the tangle trees – undergrowth and vines and are very hard to locate.’”  (Lewis)

“Newell’s Shearwater nests only in the Hawaiian Islands, primarily on Kauai. Its pelagic range lies primarily in the Equatorial Countercurrent, between 4° and 10° N. It occurs mainly between 160° and 120° W, but small numbers range east to 106° W, well to the east of the longitude of California.” (Unitt)

“It breeds in at least 20 colonies on mountain slopes in the Hawaiian Islands. The main colonies are on Kauai, on slopes around the Alaka‘i Plateau and probably in the Mokolea Mountains. Its distribution on the other islands is uncertain but it is known to breed on Molokai and the island of Hawai‘i and may breed on O‘ahu, Maui and Lānai. “

“From April to November it can be seen in the waters around the Hawaiian Islands, particularly around Kauai. Outside the breeding season, it disperses into the tropical Pacific Ocean. Its distribution at sea is little known but many move south and east into the waters of the Equatorial Counter Current.”  (Ramel)

“The species has been collected or photographed as far west as Guam and Saipan in the Mariana Islands. It has been collected as far south as Tutuila, American Samoa, and Dargaville Beach, New Zealand. There are no previous records of Newell’s Shearwater for the coast of North America or as far north as the latitude of Del Mar (32.95° N).”

“A Newell’s Shearwater (Puffinus [auricularis] newelli) captured alive on land at Del Mar, California, on 1 August 2007 was the first of its species to reach the continent of North America or a latitude so far north.” (Unitt)

The Newell’s Shearwater has been declining at an accelerating pace on its breeding islands, principally as a result of depredation by introduced predators, habitat deterioration and hurricanes. Therefore, it is listed as Critically Endangered.  (BirdLife)

“In 1924, Newell returned to the University of Dayton where he taught until his retirement. His collection of plants, birds and insects went to the Bishop Museum in Honolulu.” Newell died in Dayton, Ohio, on October 12, 1939. (Texas Ornithological Society)

© 2024 Ho‘okuleana LLC

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Local Land Use Planning

I’ve been in the private sector for about 45-years, 2-years in County Administration and 4½-years in State Administration.  I firmly believe that issues are best dealt with at the level closest to the people affected – I am a ‘home rule’ kind of guy.

And, with respect to land use planning – let’s face it, the State doesn’t plan, it regulates.

Almost 120 years ago – 1905 – the State legislature passed “The County Act” (Act 39.) Contrary to the suggestion in the name, State government retained many traditional county government functions and over the next many decades took on even more, making Hawai‘i the most centralized state government.

This included Act 187, the Land Use Law, enacted in 1961 and Act 100, the Hawaii State Plan in 1978.

The 1961 Land Use Law created the Land Use Commission (LUC) and gave over-arching land use control to the State – in part, because the Counties did not have the resources or authority to deal with controlling the post-statehood building boom.

However, we need to remember; in 1961, Counties were under the heavy hand of the state and were not authorized self-governance.  Essentially, with the strong, centralized state government, Counties weren’t allowed to do much of anything.

It wasn’t until 1968 – when the State Constitution was amended – when the Counties were given the power to adopt charters of self-governance.

The Counties have grown up over the past 50+years – it’s time the State backs-off and gives the Counties the opportunity for true self-governance.

Sure, we tried planning at the State level, but we have obviously moved from the context of “planning” (as a policy function) to permitting (a move strictly toward regulatory activity.)

Even the LUC website notes: “The Commission acts on petitions for boundary changes submitted by private landowners, developers and State and county agencies.”

In addition, even though the law requires the state to review classifications and districting of all lands every five years, it hasn’t done so since 1992 (over 30-years ago.)

The Land Use Commission process is a reactionary, regulatory process, not a visionary (i.e. planning) process.

And, the Land Use Commission is quasi-judicial – it’s like a courtroom with lawyers and witnesses that are subject to cross-examination – making it legalistic and confrontational.

Most agree that Planning requires community involvement and input.

Given this, who is in the better position to engage the public in genuine and meaningful land use planning discussions?  I think it is the Counties and evidence confirms this.

Think back … when was the last time the State asked you what you thought about land use or planning matters? 

On the other hand, Counties are constantly including the community in their planning functions.  Simply recall the numerous island-wide public forums on creation and updates to General Plans, Sustainable Community Plans, Community Development Plans and other localized plans across each of the Counties.

How could (does) the State possibly match this level of community participation?  What more could a few Honolulu bureaucrats and consultants possibly add by holding a couple more meetings per island to discuss that Island’s or community’s land use concerns?

And, why should we impose Honolulu bias on the neighbor islands?  Let’s leave land use matters at the on-the-ground level – in each respective County, by each County.

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by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Provincias Unidas del Río de la Plata (United Provinces of the River Plate)

Starting May 25, 1810, it is called the War of Independence Argentina (known as Provincias Unidas del Río de la Plata (United Provinces of the River Plate)) through a number of battles and military campaigns that took place in the framework of the Spanish American wars of independence in several countries in South America.

There are three main military fronts: the eastern front or the coast (Paraguay, the Banda Oriental, the Mesopotamia Argentina and the naval battles in the Rio de la Plata and its tributaries;) the northern front (upper Peru and the Municipality of Salta del Tucumán;) and the front of the Andes (Chile, Peru and Ecuador.)

There were also conflicts at sea.  Corsairs, sometimes called ‘pirates,’ would harass Spanish merchant ships wherever they found them.  From 1815 and 1816 corsair action caused great damage to the trade Spanish.

The war lasted fifteen years and ended in victory for the separatists, who managed to consolidate the independence of Argentina and collaborated in other South American countries.

On July 9, 1816, the independence of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata was declared (which included modern-day Argentina, Uruguay and part of Bolivia) in a meeting of congress in Tucumán. Independence was put into effect in 1817, when General San Martín’s troops won definitive victory over the Spanish army.

Viceroyalties continued to exist in Paraguay and in Upper Peru, causing constant confrontations between royalists (loyalists to the Spanish King) and revolutionaries.

OK, so where does Hawaiʻi fit into this story?

One Argentine corsair was Hipólito (Hypolite) Bouchard (1783–1843,) born in St. Tropéz, France, who by 1811 was sailing for the revolutionaries of the La Plata River region of Argentina. He was granted Argentine citizenship in 1813.

In 1817, Bouchard took his vessel, La Argentina, on a two-year trip, the first circumnavigation of the globe by a ship under the Argentine flag, and which included raids against ships and territories of the Spanish Empire.

One trip took him to Hawaiʻi.

On August 17, 1818, Bouchard arrived on ‘La Argentina’ at Kealakekua Bay.  He found the Argentine corvette ‘Chacabuco’ (‘Santa Rosa’) in the Bay and learned that the crew of the Santa Rosa had mutinied near Chile’s coast and headed to Hawaiʻi, where the crew had attempted to sell the vessel to the Hawaiian king.

King Kamehameha bought the ship (for “6000 piculs of sandal-wood and a number of casks of rum.”) Bouchard found things to trade (reportedly Bouchard gave Kamehameha the honorary title of colonel together with his own uniform, hat and saber (nava-org)) and he took charge of the Santa Rosa, which he had to partially rebuild.

During negotiations with King Kamehameha, he also signed and Kamehameha placed his mark on an agreement.

In part, the agreement set to “consign to Senor Don Eduardo Butler, resident of the Sandwich Islands, the offices of agent of my nation with full authority in national matters, political affairs, national commerce and in mailers of the Cabinets”.

It also noted, “… when ships from the United Provinces of the Rio de la Plata arrive in that dominion that this gentleman (Butler) have authority, in company with Your Majesty Kamehameha, over all matters pertaining to the Government of the United Provinces of the Rio de la Plata … I beg Your Majesty to recognize Senor Don Eduardo as agent of the Government of the United Provinces”.

Reportedly, in the memoirs of Captain José María Piris Montevideo (member of the expedition) Bouchard asserts that Kamehameha signed a Treaty of Commerce, Peace and Friendship with Hipólito Bouchard, which recognized the independence of the United Provinces of Rio de la Plata.  (Some suggest this was that document.)

Under this claim, Hawaiʻi was the first country to recognize Argentina as an independent state, followed by Portugal in 1821 and then in 1822, Brazil and the United States of America in 1822.

The ‘Argentina’ (captained by Bouchard) and ‘Santa Rosa’ (captained by Peter Corney) left Hawaiʻi and headed to California.  They first visited California’s Fort Ross, a Russian settlement north of Monterey, to obtain needed supplies.

On November 20, 1818, the watchman of Punta de Pinos, located in a tip of Monterey Bay, sighted the two Argentine ships. The governor was informed; the Spanish prepared the cannons along the coastline, the garrison manned their battle stations, and the women, children, and men unfit to fight were sent to Soledad.  (MilitaryMuseum)

Before dawn, November 24, Bouchard ordered his men to board the boats. They were 200 of them: 130 had rifles and 70 had spears. They landed and the fort resisted ineffectively; after an hour of combat the Argentine flag flew over it.

He moved on; on December 14, 1818 Bouchard brought the La Argentina and the Santa Rosa to within sight of Mission San Juan Capistrano and sent some of his crew ashore with a demand for provisions.

There he requested food and ammunition; a Spanish officer said “he had enough gunpowder and cannonballs for me”. Threats annoyed Bouchard; he sent one hundred men to take the town. After a short fight the corsairs took some valuables and burned the Spanish houses.

The Argentines held the city for six days, during which time they stole the cattle and burned the fort, the artillery headquarters, the governor’s residence and the Spanish houses. The creole population was unharmed.

On April 3, 1819 Hipollyte de Bouchard’s long expedition ended. He went to Valparaíso, in Chile in order to collaborate with José de San Martín’s campaign to liberate Perú.

While Bouchard was authorized to seize the Santa Rosa, the reference of the ‘treaty’ and recognition of Argentina as an independent state were made by others. Bouchard does not make that claim and he apparently did not have the authority to do so, anyway.

In Argentina, Bouchard is honored as a patriot and several places are named after him (among these a major avenue in Buenos Aires.)  In addition, in recognition of the reported ‘treaty’ and recognition of Argentina as an independent state by the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi, there is a street in Buenos Aires, Argentina named Hawai (a bit misspelled, but the point was made.)

(Lots of information here from Alexander (Hawaiian Historical Society) and Military Museum.  A special thanks to the Hawaiʻi State Archives for allowing me to see and photograph the agreement between Bouchard and Kamehameha.)

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by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Montana Mule Skinner in the Islands

“Irvin Atchison was born in eastern Montana, near the Yellowstone River, in 1914, an area that was ‘an oasis of cottonwoods just east of dry, open prairies and desolate badlands.’” (MontanaSeniorNews)

“He was born on Jan. 22, 1914, in Miles City, the eldest son of Amelia Weigum and Robert Aitchison. He liked to recall that he was born in the same home in which his father had been born in 1885. His parents homesteaded on Hay Creek between Fairview and Sidney.” (Sidney Herald)

“After Atchison’s father died in the great flu pandemic of 1918-19, leaving his widow scrambling to provide for three young sons, Atchison spent several years shuttling back and forth between his grandparents’ home in Miles City and his family’s home near Sidney.”

“It was a hard life for the young boy. His grandfather was an abusive alcoholic who forced Atchison to do back-breaking farm labor from dawn to dusk, while frequently yelling at and beating him.”

“With this kind of childhood, Atchison could easily have developed a ‘harsh view of life… (but) something prevented (that).’ That something, Atchison told Daniel Miller, was Montana.”  (MontanaSeniorNews)

“The land where he grew up, with its enormous sky, vast prairies, and seemingly endless grasslands, lifted Atchison’s spirits in the darkest times and kept him balanced.”

“From an early age, Atchison gravitated toward working with the horses and mules that were so essential to farm and ranch life. In his teen years, Atchison’s abilities with equines meant that he could sometimes get extra work caring for and training them.”

“By the early 1930s, a terrible drought had descended on eastern Montana. ‘Soil turned to dust, dust rose in clouds, and the clouds blocked light from the sun…When the winds died down, the (grasshoppers and crickets) came.’ More than 70,000 farmers and ranchers in Montana went bankrupt.”

“Atchison never stopped searching for agricultural work, usually horse and mule handling, but many landowners could not offer to pay cash; they could only exchange a bed and meals for work. He also tried the rodeo circuit with no success.”

“Atchison and a friend “hoboed” their way on trains to San Francisco, where Atchison signed up with the Marines. He trained at Fort George Wright in Spokane, Wash.”

“Then he shipped out of Angel Island near San Francisco as part of the 21st Infantry Regiment, to Oahu, Hawaii.” (Montana Senior News) The 21st Infantry Regiment was assigned to the Hawaiian Division and was stationed at Schofield Barracks.  The mission of the division was to defend the island of Oahu especially the naval base at Pearl Harbor. (25thIDA)

“Atchison’s gift with equines led to him being assigned to work with the pack mules that hauled freight for soldiers, including leading the animals on a secret mission into the Oahu mountains.”

“By 1935, Atchison’s deep homesickness for Big Sky Country convinced him to leave military service. After returning to his beloved state, he attended business school, married, and had children and grandchildren, and sold farm equipment. Atchison also became a respected breeder of Arabian horses, until his death in 2009.”

“In a time of great economic distress in the United States, when, like so many, Atchison’s family was struggling financially, the boy was grateful to receive free uniforms and boots, government-funded meals, and a small stipend. Plus, he learned valuable military skills.”  (MontanaSeniorNews)

“On Jan. 21, 1939, in Miles City, he married Marian Stone, daughter of Dudley and Eva Hanrahan Stone. He dearly loved and adored his wife whom he affectionately teased on a regular basis.”

“He had a keen sense of humor which he displayed throughout his life. Having been raised with high Christian values and principles and a sense of decency, family and community, he was dedicated to his wife and three daughters. He provided for his daughters’ advanced educations which allowed them to fly with great independence towards their successful futures.”

“For many years he was a first-class salesman for Yale Oil Company, Tractor and Equipment Company and Farmhand Company. During the 1950s he was a very successful entrepreneur in several business ventures.”

“One of which was the Yellowstone Machinery Company, a John Deere dealership in Sidney. For many years he was recognized and honored by Deere & Co. for achieving national records in sales.”

“In 1962 he sold the dealership and moved to Billings where he became a real estate agent specializing in ranch properties.” (Billings Gazette)  Irvin George Atchison passed away on June 5, 2009.

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