Medford mail tribune., November 21, 1956, Image 11

o
3
''JTi- ':py
ft''"
t ! ' o f
Workhorse War II Airplane Still Has Prominent Role
TAKII Wit peESJEENCY Pnnce Wan Waithay
akofl, fhimiter of foreign affairs of Thailand, and his
daughter, Priacess Winam Worawam, arrive at the
United Nitioris building in Naw York. The 65-year-old
Princfc was unanimously elected President of the UN
' Generaf Assembly, succeeding Dr. Jose Maza of Chile.
The, Princess ervei as her father's personal secretary.
Los Angeles (U.R) They
stopped building the C-47, the
workhorse of World War II. on
VE day, but like the model-A
Ford it goes on and on.
They're still making parts for
the old flying wonders that
wrote heroic legends in the skies
across both oceans and drew the
wondering gasps of the men who
flew them and the grateful
thanks of a nation at war.
Aviation experts say that the
C-47 beat the Liberty ships as a
logistic weapon that helped to
; win the war. It won a place in
the Smithsonian Institute.
The first of some 12.000 C-47s
rolled down the Donald W.
Douglas assembly lines in Santa
Monica. Calif., in December,
1935. It was the third design in
the Douglas series, the DC-3,
called by the Army Air Force
the C-47 and by the Navy the
R4D. . '
Douglas still makes parts for
the C-47 and will continue so
long as there is a demand.
Airline Service
The ship has been known vari
ously as the Jungle Express, the
Sky-trooper, or Old Fatso. The
British called her the Dakota.
And American fighting men had
all sorts of affectionate names
for the "old reliable."
At one time. 90 per cent of
U.S. air travel was via the DC-3
The latest census in 1955 re
vealed that more than 1,500 still
are flying an estimated 17.000,
000 passenger miles daily. Own
ers, aside from the military, in
clude major U.S. airlines and the
airlines of nearly every foreign
nation.
Even the Russians purchased
a few in the late 1930 s and, un
der a licensing agreement, began
turning them out in quantity as
the Ilyushin LI-2. This craft is
the mainstay of air transporta
tion today behind the Iron Curtain.
The DC-3 took part in every
major encounter in World War
II, ferrying men and supplies
shuttling back and forth from
airstrips in the rear to hastily
scraped clearings to unload her
precious cargoes to battling serv
icemen and to serve as airborne
ambulances.
The planes chalked up an un
believable flying record. Once in
a midair collision, a DC-3 lost
five feet from one wing top and
landed safely with a full load of
passengers.
In China one was strafed on
the ground by the Japanese and
lost its right wing. It was fitted
with one from a DC-2, the prede
cessor ship, which was a good
10 feet shorter. It took off just
51st.'Yejr-
Medford
'Jnited Presj hjll Leased' Wire
Price 10c
Tribune
United Press Full Leased Wit
2nd Section .
MEDFORD, OREGON, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 1956
Pages 1-6
Montana Home Has Unique Niche in State Tradition
Lewisto"vn, Mont. tlLRi
The high, brick home of Mr.
and Mrs. Ray .DockSry Sr., of
Lewistown has a unique nichr in
Montana tradition.
The two-story house .at the
head of Lewistown' Main street
marks, according to government
surveyors, the exact geographic
center of Montana.
, Lewistown residents carry, the
story even further.
The precise center, 'they in
sist, is rigfct in ;h Dockerys'
kitchen sink
From the Dockcry sink to the
Canadian border north of Chin
ook, Mont., is 135 miles. Equi
distant to the south is the Wy
oming state line near Red Lodge.
Built in 1312
JEast and west, 246 miles in
each direction, are the North
Dakota line east of Glendive,
Mont., and the Idaho boundary
west of- Missoula, Mont.
The. western state line of Mon
tana, the nation's third largest
state with a land area of 147,-
000 square miles, wanders along
the Continental Divide. So in de
termining' that Lewistown
and particularly the Dockery's
house was in the center, th
surveyors took an average of the
line s distance from here.
The "Montana Center" home
was built in 1912 by Hal and
Louise Akins, parents of Mrs.
Bonda Dockery. Akins, a pioneer
Lewistown merchant, moved out
of the home in 1927 and turned
t
'wok'
&
.AMERICA'S FINEST TRAIN
Unien Pacific's
c
OF
TY
ORTLAND"
A . . and
V4i2r FROM T , 4v
I 7 PORTLAND - . -V '
v -oxr-.
EAST
Your carefree holiday starts the min
ute you step aboard. A courteous crew
takes over and you have nothing to do
but enjoy yourself. Just for fun visit the
Dome Observation Lounge cars and dine
under the stars in the exclusive Dome
Diner. Your choice of luxurious Pull
man or your own reserved Coach-seat
accommodations.
FRED UNGENFLDER
-351 Fttock Block
Portland 5. Ore eon
"pneraf Pawenccr Accnt
Phone CApitial 7-rL
it over to' their daughter, her
husband an attorney and
their family.
The brick house, towering
over Main street and connected
to the sidewalk by a set of steep
stairs, has 10 rooms, plus
sleeping porch and a basement.
Three lofty pines shade the home
from the west.
No More Horses
In an interview with United
Press, Dockery said that shortly
after the Akins moved into their
new residence, a party of gov
ernment surveyors working in
the area came to them voluntar
ily and reported this was Mon
tana's exact center.
"We've never measured it and
have never attempted to push
this as a claim to fame," Dock
ery said with a smile, "but the
surveyors report is now gener
ally accepted."
He admitted, that since the
central location report became
generally known in the area,
many people have paused to
look at the house, but Dockery
said it doesn't bother him or his
wife.
'When we moved in there,"
he added, "the house stood prac
tically alone on the hill. But
now, as Lewistown has grown.
we're right in the middle of the
town.
Visiting farmers used to teth
er their horses on long ropes
near the house while they went
about their business, but they
can t- do that any more."
Mental Hospital
Layout Approved
Salem (U.R! A general
layout for the Portland State
Mental hospital near Wilsonville
has been approved by the State
Board of Control.
Although money is currently
available for only 460 beds of
the 1500-bed hospital, approval
of the layout will enable Port
land architects Stanton, Boles,
Maguire and Church to proceed
with preliminary plans for the
entire institution.
Total cost of the hospital will
probably run upwards of $15
million, according to XJov. Elmo
Smith.
Architect Rollin Boles told the
board one of the major problems
thrashed out by a special com
mittee of institution heads arch
itects and doctors was the size
of the wards.
Pendleton Resident
Engineer Retires
Pendleton (U.R) Walter S.
Hodge, 69-year-old resident engi
neer for the State Highway De
partment at Pendleton, has an
nounced his retirement after 39
years of service.
Hodge started work for the
highway department in 1918 at
New Era and had been resident
engineer at Pendleton since 1943.
He is a native of Coquille and a
graduate of the University of
Oregon.
No successor has been named.
Dm Mall Tribune Want Ada
Fur Restyling
Let us give your fur coat the
New Look
CLEANING GLAZING
Frances' Furs
Formerly Franco Dallaira
1100 Crater Lake Ave.
Talephoae Remain! 2-6526
the same.
Designed to carry 21 -passengers
the C-47 habitually was
overloaded. During the evacua
tion of Burma one C-47 carried
74 passengers, including Lt. Col.
James Doolittle returning from
his Tokyo bombing raid.
It carried paratroopers, weap
ons, bulldozers, gasolftie and
anything else that needed haul
ing. A wing that was too big to
fit into the fuselage was tied un
der the belly.
It flew twn airhnrna rlit.ietnnc
to battle in Normandy oD-Day
in June, 1944.
The government gave Donald
W. Douglas the Exceptional
Service Award specifically for
the design and building of the
C-47.
Nowadays there are newer,
faster and more comfortable
ships. But as the pilots say, "any
one can fly 'old fatso.' All you
need is the fuselage and a little
know-how."
IT'S NOT TOO LATE
To Gel a FINE
TURKEY
Phone Right Now
3-4462
MARKET
J202 North Rhrenida
OPEN EVERY
NIGHT TIL
MIDNIGHT
. TO bUY OR SELL - USE TRIBUNF CLASSIFIED ADS
THE FUM POD
lAiHOUS FAMILY LOlt'
fllioiltelllii
AND THROUGHOUT THE YEAR!
X:
f late home pfenfy
EVERYBODY'S
II
REFRESHER
COURSE
H
Snider's Ice Cream is one food
that's sure to please. Kids grow
up loving it . '. . big folks never
outgrow it. And no wonder! Ice
Cream is so satisfying ... so much
fun! Better check your 'supply!
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving!
'OS
cream
is
OrTi
D
o
Oe O
e O
o O
o
a o (P
o o
O O
8
O O O
o
o o
o
o
o o
G
I