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Show "I . W ' i". tr Mr. ntul Mrs. Hill K. llowhtinl u( (h-eeii Kivcr recently re-cently celebrated their (ioldeii Wedding Anniversary Anniver-sary and reiniiiisiHl alioul tlie days when Green River Ri-ver was surrounded by fruit orchards ami told of their life together. Well Known Howlands Celebrate 50th Wedding Anniversary By NILA MACKAY An open house was held Suiukiy, MaivM 15, l'.)7i), for Mr. and Mrs. Bifl 10. How-land How-land to celebrate the.r Golden Wedding Anniversary Mr. mud Mrs. Ixv I lowland were liosts for the affair, which was held at their home in El-m, El-m, Grand County. Many friends dropcd in to congratulate con-gratulate tlie ciu)le. Delicious Delici-ous refreshments wea-e serv-tt. serv-tt. Wlien you sin-ak of Marj and Bill, no last name is necessary nec-essary in Gixvn River; almo C everyone in town will know vho you mean. Tlie two names go together like Given mid River, Book and Cliffs, liohlx'rs and RHst. Marj and Bill 1 lowland look back thnHKji the years and jviss some of their remini-cences remini-cences on to you. Tltey were niiirriixl in El(;in 'in a two story hnuse on tho banks tf the Green River. This house is the 1 1 nvl.tn J home today. Marj's father, fcannicl W. Dunfoid, had it ha lt for his f.unly when he came here from Iow.i in l'J.)7, and Marj grew up there. Harry llowlaul, Bill's father, fath-er, came to the Green Rivet' valley hi U!i!l, and Bill sKnt lii- childhood here. After his teenage years he went into the army. Marj worked for tlie telephone company, and taught school in Elgin and in Thompson. When Bill came back to Green River, he called fre-iuen'.'ly fre-iuen'.'ly at the Dufford residence, resi-dence, and used to take Marj and her sister, Mori (Mr.-:. Mcrl Baldwin, Moab) out together. to-gether. One night he came to take them to a dance, but Merl was sick and couldn't go. After same persuasion, Marj went without her. That was their first "real" date. Bill was working for th; IVnvor & Rio Grande Western West-ern R -til road when they wero married. Tltey bought a littlo three room house for $.":)(). It was hx'ated down the road (south) of the Dufford's. Tltis l.t:le hoti.se" was later moved to Cisco, Utah and is now tho Texaco Service Station (her-. Bill recalls that he had five h-ldiirs left to his r.ame and he g ive it to the preacher who performed the ceremony (an Irishman by tlx1 name vl McCoruiel). The newlywed; !;penl Ih'-ir lioiieyiiioon al Hie I til! I ol !':, and Hu ll mnveil ml'i 111'' r own home; lnil li of Hie older hoys were Imi n there. When Billy w.i:j alioul : and Sam was four, lli y moved into the Dnlloiil home, l,ee w.i'i horn there, anil they h.'H'i; Jived tin re ever :;iiice, Tiieir first ear was a Model T Enid wilh side cur-t cur-t .' i it:;. It'll iieked up a hllln extra money hy ' haiilnig kids to school" in il. Marj remembers remem-bers a Ir p lo Er li Lake that tin V made in their fast car, Uli: li, she says, "was th.' Worst lisp I ever made jn Jiiy f fe." Of course, all of the roads in tho.e days wei'i: rough and rutty, and Billy (who was about four months old) came clo .-, lo hoiiucini; itg.ht out of his basket! II rained torrents most of th:; way. They went hy way of Jl:i-,.t-.sv I' and cat nc back through !'"'M"r. Going over Blue Ihll, M j can remem-her remem-her sill ir; on 'he running board and pumping gas into the carburntor with a hieyeie jiiimp to he'p them over t ) t ; top. Ill several places tlli'y had to use a block and taekls' to get lliein through. When they finally gut 1o Price, all the streets looked like rivers because of the rain. One windy day after they had moved into the big house, Marj drove the car home and paiked it out in front. Eater, wit: n Bill went out to use it, it was gone. They discovered dis-covered that the wind had blown it off the bank and into the river! Only the top was showing out of the water. wat-er. The "dead man" that they used to winch it out with is there to tlrs day but tlie car never did run again. An-o!!i An-o!!i r Model T took its pUce and it had glass "all the way an nind"! At one time, Elgin, Grar.d Cottn'y, bo.-j-.lcd a general store, a post off.ee., a school, a l.i ck yard, a tennis couit, and even a bssaball team! There were .'ever.al nice homes and lwautiiful orchards orch-ards on th" east side of the fixer, and in the spring tlie whole valley would blom from the "cut" sntth of th present Has'ip;s ranch to the town of Elgin. Some of the peaches grown here during; the "good years" w re sent back cast to be exhibited. Some of them measured seven inches in dia- iiie'rr. Then- is ;t picture in an old new paper of five ,pi .c lu s placed side hy ;,iio tli.it lu .cured one yard. Tli.r fruit grow rs gradually left Ihe valley as their crops won; ii nun d hy I ile '.prin;; frosts, their trees killed hy (-xln ma wai'ers, and fn i ;hl rales thai .made it prohibitive lo ship Iheir 'produce. I!, II and Marj bolh worked for the Midland Garage i:i Green River for many years M irj a.; a boolila eper; Bill as a mechanic and a truck (driver. Also, at one time, they sold Maxwell cars .and taught customers to drive them. The 1 lowlands went into the cattle, business in i !).-;(;. Bill How land Is al.v afh-c-tional'-ly known by Jii.-j rruiny fiiend. and asvx'Lates as "I'm aver Bill. 'Jhs ti'le canu-d by his ni.iry years of trapping trap-ping the sain'- on the Green River. He vi :m er.-rirne:d river ruun'-r aid has many hales to U-ll aljid oxintless days .sx-nt in tlie wild'J of Canyon Country. Ti; hou'o on the river bank is full of ni'-mories Marj's and the memories of tlie three wis who grow up there. Good tf,mes and bad times, glad times and sad times, full yeits and empty years (their three soas J eft home to serve their country during World War II). |