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Show ''' f. V 'W ii yi yi I1 n "yy y rry yfxr vesrTVW'y y4, ,'l y I I Y The Salt Lake Tribune, Sunday, March 5, 1478 '" . ?. Post offices where Lark citizens still gather By Judy Magid Lifestyle Wruei LARK If you want to see anybody or find out whats point! on in Lark, come on down to the post office "I guess just alxut every Is sly in own gets in here, says Jessie Neilsen, postmaster for over ost mistresses 24 any more. years. ("No 1 m a tost master.) "We dont have Eveiyones either home delivery here office lo or gets mail general delivery So they all come down. James Ross, a resident for about as long as Mrs. Neilsens leen iostinaster, agrees that the Mist office is a pretty miortant place for more than one reason. "The stores been dosed for a Unit two years and the gas station is gone. Tins and the church house are about the only places you can see more than a at a time, he says. couple of Town Will Close The big topic of discussion is the closing ol tne town. Ive lived here for so long, Ross says, "and I really dont want to live anywhere else. Ive got family in California but when I retired eight years ago I didnt want to go there and I dont want to go now. got a hiM Mrs Neilsen has had to face realily in her life Fme and accidents have taken their toll m every mining town that ever lived and Lark is no exception. The fire in live Lark tunnel m 1450 was a small disaster as disasters go with five men dead When it was over, Mis. Neilsen had lost her husband and her father Adjust and Go On "Its been 28 years, she says, "and you adjust and go on Your friends and ncighUirs are dose and understanding That helps. Susie Oliver agrees Her husband was killed on a second job last November. "Sometimes 1 just want to get the kids and run away and leave everything, she says. "But my husbands people are here. After he died, the town was so good to me People brought food and were kind I really feel 1 belong here. "There are times when I think that I cant stand it. I dont think I could bear it without people like Jessie. They really like to come here, smiles Mrs Martinez Theres a big, stove in the center warm, of the kitchen and a huge refrigerator, presumably containing a few goodies for the kids. "I'm trying to throw out years of stuff, Mrs. Martinez explains. "This has been a good place to raise the kids, and theyre all good kids. And I guess the house really is too big for me to take care of . . And she's off to rescue clothes from the line before it starts to snow. "Weve made plans to move to Magna, says Genie Martinez, "and Rudy and I plan for his folks to live with us. We werent quite ready to buy a house, but sometimes you just have to move ahead faster than you thought. You know, when we were first married, our big dream always was for Rudy to get on at Kennecott. And he is working there and we're moving on But its kind of hard for the older people. Bertie Thomas, at 88, has been a Not everyone who lives m Lark is connected with the mines. wood-burnin- We moved here because its difficult to "ont houses when you have a lot of little kids and a big dog, says Peggy Smith, who rents a place in Lark. Mrs. Smith said that the rents in Lark are very low and that it would be difficult to find another place to live. (One Lark renter said that he paid a month for a place that will cost him over $.'500 m Magna ) Even for mining people, the idea of Lark as a small town is the most important thing about it. $5 "My husbands family has lived for years," says Genie Martinez. "We have adjoining backyards with his folks, and Carlos, whos only 4, runs back and forth from grandmas all day Stove here Wood-Burnin- g "Carlosito," greets Clara Martinez, And in the kitchen "come to grandma of Mrs Martinezs house is still another grandchild. g Lark resident for fil years (Lark was founded in 1900) and says that he and his wife. Myrtle, will have to move. Lets of Good Times "I could move the house," he laughs. "Three out of four rooms would move. But I guess I dont worry about it too much. 1 got Myrtle to do my worrying for me. "Myrtle and I, well, I guess well move on down to Midvale. Im active in the Masons and Myrtles in the (Eastern) Star, and I guess we'll get along with our business somehow. "But I do kind of worry about the old people. It's going to be hard for them to move, he adds. "I'm not moving!" declares Hilda Grabner, 81, but the wallpaper cleaner is still in its package because she may not get around to "doing the walls. Using Water Correctly Mrs. Grabner loves to tell how she and her neighbors worked to make gardens around their houses. We knew how to conserve water soft-eye- a packaged frozen strawberries. Just a little something sweet, and Jessie Neilsen has found a way to stop by for a quick hello. "Lark is just going to join the long line of empty mining towns and camps, says one old resident, wno asked not to be named. Death is something every mining man knows very wrell. And the death of whether its because a mining town the mines played out or the company can't needs the land for other reasons be much of a surprise to any of us. "Its been a good tow'n and I hate to leave. But remember, without the mine, there would have been no life for us at all. Neilsen, busy getting some- Mrs. 'way before all the drought worry lad year. We ust'd all our waste water for the gardens and we were even competitive with who had the nicest garden "Its a good thing Ive always been she says. "When my independent, husband knew he was dying, he cut me a years supply of kindling wood for the stove. He said he hated to think of me out there chopping wood. I cant tell you how much kindling Ive chopped since And thats another thing about this moving business. Ive got enough kindling to last me for next year, too' d when Mrs. Grabner gels she talks about the town's past. "They were rough people,, the miners, but they were good hearted, wonderful people. A man would crne here for work and then, when he had enough money, hed bring his family . Company Store Was Great' "The company store was wonderful Wiiy, sometimes these men would come here for work with only the clothes on their backs. The store would advance them credit for hard hats and boots. Its been a good town, with good people, Mrs. Grabner says A knoci on her door, and a hand reaches m with ones mail, comes over to the counter to reminisce. I havent bved in but two houses my whole life, she says. First I lived in my family home, then in a house with my husband and kids. Now Im back in the family place again. I came here as a bitty girl. My father was a miner and I married a mining man and stayed here. "Maybe Im like an ostrich with my head in the sand, but Ive just made no real plans to move. Cant face reality, I guess," she adds with a smile. q & fi Hilda Grabner, left, has enough kindling for a year. Genie Martinez, Carlos will move earlier. Carla Martinez says maybe the house was getting too big anyhow. James Ross says he didnt want to move when he retired and doesn't want to now. & f4. It'-- Tribune Staff Photos By Lynn R. Johnson v I have my wife Myrtle to worry for me! Bertie Thomas, 8s, admits to fretting about what will happen to those unable to move. I Corccrn for Lark "We aic concerned with what hippens m We care about the people who live there." l.aik Ken E Kefauver, public relations sjx.kes man for Kennecott Copper Corporation, said that the company has set lip a counseling office m Lark to try to offset problems faced b residents "Our intent is o try to do what as we are able to do so, he said . JtS!: olitary swing hangs against ac kg round of boarded windows t Lark Elementary. is right as far Kennecott, whuh purchased Lark from IV Industries six years ago, announced in December, 1977, that it would close the town and advised residents to begin relocating by Aug 31, I ) r A i V, 2 a v 1478 A letter was sent to all residents in which they were told we would set up a counseling office to deal directly with the individuals Mr Kefauver stated involved, "I think Kennecott has a very respectable record of concern and i le rstaudmg for mining people and their rroblen.j. We will do our host to assess individual problems and to facilitate and aid those people in the most equitable way we can " n j ' .V-- h 5i Lieges. There are things in life that you have to accept and you adjust, says Jessie Neilsen, postmaster for 24 years. ' |