Feb. 11, 1926
Within the year since the Willson and Sylvester Mill Co. of Wrangell grew into the Wrangell Lumber and Power Co., immense changes and improvements have taken place in the plant almost unnoticed by local citizens. The company has taken over the electric light and power franchise for the city, and an up-to-date 375-kilowatt-hour electric plant has been installed in connection with the sawmill’s steam power plant. In order to do this, an additional 500-horsepower engine has been installed for the exclusive use of the electrical system.

Feb. 10, 1951
City Engineer Tom Voorhies was still in Juneau today, completing engineering plans in conjunction with the Alaska Public Works agency for construction of the seawall on the reef in front of town, Mayor Vern Smith reported. It is estimated to cost in the neighborhood of $150.000, financed under the territorial public works agency. While details are not complete, general plans for the seawall call for it to be 1,400 feet long, running along the outside rock reef, with log-cribbing construction along the south wall.

Feb. 11, 1976
A contract between Alaska Wood Products’ Wrangell Mill and the United Paperworks International Union was adopted Feb. 3. The union represents a 70-plus member work force at the mill and entered the talks armed with a strike vote. A federal mediator was called in for last week’s 13½-hour session. The new pact includes wage increases averaging 96 cents an hour the first year and 80 cents the second year, with a $6.82-an-hour initial base minimum wage, all retroactive to last June 1, according to Earl Tice, a representative of the union.

Feb. 8, 2001
The school board and Wrangell Teachers’ Association have come to tentative agreement on their 2001-2004 contract. There was a strong interest in alignment with the community-initiated strategic plan. As proposed in the strategic plan, teachers will receive a salary increase. Since Wrangell’s current salary schedule is one of the lowest in Alaska (50th out of 53 districts), an increase keeps Wrangell competitive and able to hire and keep quality staff, according to a jointly issued press release. Other changes include an addition of two extra teacher contract days, a modest health insurance co-payment and increased educational standards for staff.