Jim Kershner’s this day in history

From our archives, 100 years ago

Something unprecedented was about to happen 3,000 feet down in the Bunker Hill and Sullivan Mine: the filming of a movie.

The company was preparing to make a movie showing all aspects of mine work, including “the dripping, mucking of the ore and hoisting.”

Filming had never been attempted before because there had been no way to get sufficient light. However, the mine’s electrical expert had “secured a single arc light of 8,000 candlepower, sufficient to light up the largest stope in the big mine.”

The plan was to exhibit the movie all over the country.

From the runaway file: The story of Harvey Reynolds, 9, was tugging at the heartstrings of even the most hardened police authorities.

Juvenile officer Floyd Gelvin first found the boy roaming the streets in search of his mother, who had been a guest at a local hotel, but who had apparently departed for Colfax and put him in a Spokane orphanage. Harvey ran away from the orphanage and told the officer he was trying to figure out a way to get to Colfax.

Police took him back to the orphanage, but several days later, he ran away again. Gelvin again found him on the streets. This time, the orphanage refused to have him back.

Tearfully, the little boy pleaded with Gelvin: “You take me to your home, and I’ll make you a nice boy.” Gelvin said he “would have, had he possessed a place.” Instead, he took the boy to the juvenile department.