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Show Feature Post Office Continued from Page 12 As has been mentioned previously, Charles Oliphant was the first one to care for the mail. That was in the very early days of the settlement, 1872. Lawrence Mariger followed. Fifty years later a letter was found when the building in which he had kept the office was being remodeled. Next came B. L. Young; then Joel Johnson. He was followed by Fuller Broadbent who was postmaster the year he was married, 1892. Samuel Brinkerhoff followed Fuller, and he served until Persis Spencer became postmistress. She served most efficiently for many years. Prior to this the office bad been in various homes, in the court house, or in places provided in the postmasters place of business. Mrs. Spencer built a post office at 22 North Main. Hers was the first real post office in Kanabs history in which provisions were made to carry on the work efficiently. Letter boxes were installed and conveand renient window-deliver- y ceiving spaces provided. A service desk was placed in the lobby, and there was also floor space sufficient to meet the needs at that time. Other provisions in- - date until July 12, 1934. When Mr. Dailey entered this service Kanab office was fourth class and depended on the cancellation of stamps, plus certain percents of cancellation additional-such as three cents for making each money order, allowance for better distributions, incident to the office being a distributing office, and inadequate appropriations for light, heat, rent, wages and other maintenance requirements. A notification out of Washington, DC, dated July 1920, stated: Your office has been advanced from fourth to third rate class and your salary as postmaster has been fixed at a rate of $ 1 , 100 per annum. Prior to this, Kanab had been made a central accounting office for the county and neighboring towns in Arizona. This made SOUTHERN UTAH NEWS WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 6, 1995 deliveries, sign for them, just as they did for registered letters or other registered mail. This idea was passed on, Mr. Salyard got a promotion and Mr. Dailey got orders to use his spare registry receipt book for parcel post insured mail. That plan was immediately adopted. Some of the clerks who served as helpers to Mr. Dailey were Edna Johnson, Bernice Palmer Pugh, Lora Pratt, Wilmirth Johnson Brown Jones, Emily F. A. Brinkerhoff, Lundquist, Leah Hoyt Chamberlain, Dailey and Leola Ford. Clerks who had served with Mrs. Spencer included Emily Riggs MacDonald, Bessie Spencer Bateman and Fannie Young Lundquist. Clair Ford, who succeeded Mr. Dailey, took office July 12, 1934, and served until 1946 when he much additional accounting was succeeded by Claud Glawork. But with the change in the zier. Mrs. Fay D. Hamblin and rating, Kanab office was made a Duane Meeks have assisted in district office for postal saving the office. business with Salt Lake City, the Kanab Post Office was advanced to second class in July central accounting office. Shortly after this, foreign 1949 and was thus able to ocbusiness was es- cupy new quarters and enjoy money-orde- r tablished in the Kanab office. new privileges. The office was Now the postmaster was re- moved to a larger building just quired to purchase a safe to hold one door north of the building money and other valuable items. provided by Mrs. Spencer, where Heretofore, funds had been de- it remained until 1961. On posited in privately owned safes Wednesday morning November or depositories. Accordingly an 1, 1961, a new Kanab Post Office historic safe was procured from opened for business. Final installation ofboxes was the Kane County Court House. A new county house was being completed Tuesday, and movbuilt with vaults for the safe ing of some equipment from the keeping of valuables. Now the old office on North Main Street safe from the old building, the was made before opening. The spacious new building loone that had been brought from Toquerville when the county seat cated at 40 South Main Street, was changed to Kanab, became contains 3,175 square feet of floor the property of the postmaster. space, has a parking space in It was sold to the next postmas- front for four cars at a time. covered loadAlso, two ter who followed Mr. Dailey. During Mr. Daileys term of ing docks and a large cement office mails increased many parking area for post office times over previous years. Good trucks, incoming and outgoing roads, parcel post increase be- in back, and is all fenced with cause of zoning and charging attractive link wire. There are 672 new boxes and a according to distances shipped, locked vestibule for night delivtogether with size and weight increases in parcels, and insur- ery of mail. Try Corporation of ance for parcels, made the mails Salt Lake City, with Richard a way of safe delivery, cheap, Stromness as contractor, constructed and own the building, and convenient. is leased to the governwhich Mr. Banks who served as truck mail man in 1953 felt that high ment. Personnel of the new Kanab express rates compared to parcel post rates also added to the Post Office includes: Claude M. increase of the parcel post ser- Glazier, Mrs. Isaiah (Faye) Hamblin, Mrs. Delmont vice, as much as 25 percent. The insurance of parcel post (Athene) McAllister and Theo was introduced during Mr. McAllister. Last year the Office a Citation for Daileys term. It came about in received an interesting way. A racket had Beautitification of Post Office 30-fo- ot Julius Dailey eluded parcel post scales which helped considerably in handling the mail, since parcel post was increasing rapidly. This building provided office room for the next two succeeding post masters and for a short time for Mr. Dailey. At the beginning of the next term following Mrs. Spencers, further consideration was sprung up. Many persons grounds,B. from President Johnson, under the needed bv the postal service. claimed indemnity for lost par- Lyndon Rent, clerk hire, light and fuel as well as needed additional equipment were items which made the appropriation received from the government insufficient. Mr. Dailey received his appointment and his commission on February 20, 1920. He held forth in the building occupied by Mrs. Spencer from that cels. Mr. Dailey mentioned this fact to Mr. Salyard, the postal inspector on one of his visits. He said he was aware of the condition, but didnt know what could be done to correct it. Mr. Dailey replied that the way to correct it would be to have people receiving parcel post direction of Lawrence OBrien, Postmaster General. NOTE: Chief sources: Articles by D. U. P. members on Kanab Mail service and paper by Julius Dailey and newspaper clippings. Exerpted from a book titled The History of Kanab Tim Clarkson, a junior at Kanab High School, poses with a marble plaque he received from a very thankful California family. Clarkson rescued them from a ledge on one of the red cliffs behind the Holiday Inn. Tim Clarkson -teenage hero So many times when you pick blocked by a thirty-foo- t cliff. It up a newspaper, or turn on the was dark by this time and the TV, you hear horror stories about pair had resigned themselves to what atrocities certain young spending the night on the ledge. folks are committing. Very few Meanwhile, back at the ranch the stories relate good things (in this case, Holiday Inn!) anxious relatives awaited their rethat a majority of our teen-ager- s do from Sensation- turn. At 1 1 p.m. Niswongers wife alism sells, and happenings of went to the front desk to discuss their concerns with staff. Tim heroism takes second place. Recently, Tim Clarkson, a immediately volunteered to go Kanab High School student, son out and look for the lost ones. of Dale and Patsy Clarkson, ex- They also alerted the Kane emplified a high level of resource- County Search and Rescue fulness, quick-witte- d thinking, team. With flashlights in hand, in a and stamina thrillingnight- Tim climbed up to the cliff right time rescue of two people ma- below us. Having shimmied rooned on a cliff outside ofKanab. up and down numerous trails The Jerome Niswonger family and cliffs since he was a little of California were guests at the boy, Tim confidently led them Holiday Inn where Tim is em- down, pulling them up one cliff, ployed. About 8 p.m. the doctor traversing another, and finally old son about 1:00 a.m. guiding them and his seventeen-yea- r decided to take advantage of a down off the mountain to safety. The Niswonders are loud in lovely night and explore a bit. led them to their praise of Tim, and conTheir wanderings the top of a nearby cliff. Going gratulate Holiday Inn for having employees ofhis caliber. It is up was easy. It was in the arose. the that problem young people like him that make The climbers soon found them- us confident of our future. Thank selves on a ledge of approximately you Tim, for being a good day-to-da- y. com-ingdo- twenty feet with the descent Look So? our Sootball contest starting in nest week's paper! |