Enrollment was up in the Grand Forks Schools 25 years ago. Superintendent Mark Sanford said about 8,650 students showed up on opening day. Across the river in East Grand Forks, opening enrollment was 1,835.
Also in September 1986 around Grand Forks:
** Two women were killed Sept. 1 when 20 vehicles piled up in a chain reaction collision on Interstate 29 six miles north of Drayton, N.D.
The women were later identified as Barbara Brotold, 25, Chicago, and Dorothy Carmichael, 40, Anawa, Man.
** A new timetable had Mesaba Airlines adding two flights to its four daily trips to Minneapolis at the time when Republic Express was discontinuing its one daily flight to Minneapolis.
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Northwest Airlines would be operating four flights daily on Oct. 1.
"Grand Forks will get six daily flights to the Cities," the Herald headline read. And a Herald editorial hailed the coming of Mesaba as a good omen because it would take away total dependence on Northwest Airlines.
** Two thousand students enrolled at UND without proper measles shots. The state law required students to prove immunization against rubella.
UND President Thomas Clifford gave students until the beginning of the second semester to comply. He said out-of-state students were not aware of the requirement. There were 10,500 students on campus.
** American Crystal barred the public from meetings of growers, where financial matters were discussed. The move agreed with a resolution approved by the Red River Valley Sugar Beet Growers Association, composed of 1,700 shareholders.
Payments for sugar added about $160 million to the Red River Valley economy each year, the Herald reported. Mark Dillon, company spokesperson, said, "Growers tell us they don't approve of reading about their earnings in the newspaper."
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The times seemed good 25 years ago. Greater Grand Forks residents were going to Shakey's Pizza at 3225 S. Washington St. for family night Wednesdays. Sanders 1907 was located in the building at 83 Kittson Ave., where the Rhombus Guys hold forth with pizza today.
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The A&W on Gateway Drive was advertising its Double Supreme Burger. Blizzards were in their second year at Dairy Queens here and all over. Dairy Queen was reported to have sold 175 million Blizzards in 1985 with prospects for twice as many sales in 1986. And that was in spite of the large fan base at the time for Haagen-Dazs ice cream.
Soccer seemed to have arrived in the city schools. Central had a team in 1985, and 1986 brought the first team to Red River.
Among names in the news 25 years ago:
** Fred Orth, who died at the age of 89, was described as a "self-made man." He never attended college, according to his obituary, but he became the best friend of a former UND President George Starcher. And he served for 15 years on the Board of Higher Education.
"Orth's death removed almost the last of the small group generally regarded as movers and shakers of Grand Forks," Herald editor Jack Hagerty said in his column.
"A number of them met daily at the Golden Hour restaurant at 3 p.m. for coffee. Among the group were former Mayor Harold Boe, Attorney Harold Shaft, H.H. Herberger and Loyde Thompson.
"Orth was brought to Grand Forks from Minnesota to the First National Bank during the Great Depression. He had learned as a bank examiner the problems of a new bank. By the time the economical situation turned around, the First National Bank was the largest independent bank in North Dakota."
Also in the news 25 years ago:
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** Interim Grand Forks Police Chief Chester Paschke was appointed as chief by Mayor H.C. Wessman.
** Lisa Waddell was chosen Potato Bowl Queen.
** Janet Sorenson of rural Fisher, Minn., yodeled her way to victory in the Jimmie Rogers yodeling contest.
** Bill Skrei, 26, topped Bob Dunbar for the championship in the annual North Central Invitational tournament at Grand Forks Country Club.
** The Carriage House at the Myra Museum grounds designed by Grand Forks Architect Myron Denbrook won top honors from North Dakota Chapter of the American Institute of Architects. Another award went to Mark Foss Associates of Fargo for the UND Center for Aerospace and Computer Science.
The 20-foot by 40-foot Carriage House was buuilt by Baukol Builders and paid for by the Myra Foundation. It had a heated shop and two large garage stalls for storage.
