Stories

“People walked on boardwalks, the P&IN Depot had a station agent, and the crash of the Great Depression was felt on all sides of Meadows Valley.”

William March was four years old in 1929. He had five older siblings and a collie dog named “Jack”. Bill’s father built and owned meat markets in both New Meadows and Council from 1925-1931.

The New Meadows market was where the Sterling Bank (2022 Idaho First Bank) now stands, in the center of New Meadows with Highway 95 bisecting the north and south portions of the town. Butchering and curing meats were done on site.

Meat was sold and the parts that didn’t sell, now considered delicacies, appeared on the March Family’s dinner plates. Oxtails sold for 25 cents per lb., Alaska salmon, Great Lakes smelt, and East Coast cod, packed in barrels, were delivered during the season weekly by truck from Seattle.

Next-door was Joe Caha’s creamery. LaFay’s pool hall and barbershop and Irvins’ Garage (formerly Shaver’s and presently Meadows Valley Market) on the north side faced south and across the street were LaFay’s Theater.”

As a four year old, Bill spent hours alone creating his own routine while his older brothers and sisters attended school. He would grab his dog Jack’s ruff and head down town.

Home was near the Odd Fellows (IOOF) hall, a building that had been one of the town’s five brick buildings that began its life as a bank. Young Bill would meet fellows along the street and would talk them into a nickel for an ice cream cone at LaFay’s Soda Fountain or a pot of cream at Joe’s. On his way home he would head down to the depot to visit with the station agent, in hopes of maybe seeing a train arriving from Council, that came to town 3 days a week.

One day, his sisters took him to the depot with the promise of a train ride to Council for his birthday. He still hasn’t forgotten the mounting anticipation, then disappointment of returning home for a “surprise birthday party” but no train ride.

Shortly after Bill completed the first grade the family moved on to Council, Idaho. After Council the family moved to Gooding, Idaho, Boise, Salt Lake City, Denver and graduated from Twin Falls High School at the age of sixteen.

Many of his summers were spent in McCall, Idaho with his aunt and uncle. Bill attended Mechanical Engineering School at Iowa State under the Navy V-12 program and went on to serve aboard ship in the Pacific Theatre in World War II.