1975
The Whitehorse Star Reports in 1975
| January | |
| January 3, 1975 | Montague (Monty) Alford is named to the Order of Canada. He receives the award for his pioneer work in hydrometric surveying in the North and as a pioneer in Yukon mountaineering. |
| January 13, 1975 → February 7, 1975 → May 2, 1975 → May 9, 1975 → May 16,1975 → November 5, 1975 |
The territorial council is one of the dominant news topics in 1975. On January 13, 1975, Ken McKinnon, minister of local government, Gordon McIntyre, minister of education, and Hilda Watson, minister of health, welfare and rehabilitation are sworn in by Commissioner James Smith. (see also December 13, 1974) Former territorial councillor John Livesey defies the election of Hilda Watson. Livesey's application states that at least 26 people voted unlawfully in the Kluane riding. February 7, 1975, local Government Minister Ken McKinnon resigns from his job as station manager for WHTV to avoid conflict charges. He is followed by Hilda Watson who resigns her post as Kluane MLA and minister May 2, 1975 following the allegations. On May 8, 1975, Whitehorse West MLA Flo Whyard is chosen by the Legislature to tbe the new minister of health, welfare and rehabilitation. On May 16, 1975, Gordon McIntyre resigns from the Executive Committee and his job as minister for personal reasons. Dan Lang appointed Education Minister is appointed to replace him. Finally, in the November 3 by-election, Hilda Watson (defeating John Livesey) and Walt Lengerke (defeating Don Branigan) are elected Kluane and Riverdale MLA by an unquestionable majority. |
| January 13, 1975 | Zinc dethrones gold as the number one mineral in the Yukon with respect to the highest total value. |
| January 15, 1975 | Gordon "Cam" Cameron and his wife Martha are selected Mr. and Mrs. Yukon 1975. |
| January 22, 1975 | Federal Health and Welfare Minister Marc Lalonde and the Yukon government agree on the transfer of all federal health services to the territory. |
| February | |
| February 14, 1975 | Former northern affairs minister Arthur Laing dies February 12, 1975 in Vancouver. |
| February 14, 1975 | Dave Cummins is appointed manager of CKRW, following Sandy Brown. |
| February 19, 1975 | An American Broadcasting film crew comes to Whitehorse and Watson Lake for a film on the airplane crash and the successful 49-day search of Ralph Flores and Helen Klaben that occurred in 1963. |
| February 21, 1975 | The '98 Hotel and the Whitehorse Inn lose their liquor licenses due to serious infractions of the liquor ordinance, particularly those dealing with minors and intoxicated persons. |
| March | |
| March 5, 1975 | Father Brian Kearns is named "citizen of the year" by the Kiwanis club of Whitehorse. |
| March 14, 1975 | Dawson's Black Mick celebrates his 105th birthday. |
| March 31, 1975 | As of April 1, 1975, all temperatures issued by the Atmospheric Environment Service (weather forecast) are given in Celsius degrees rather than Fahrenheit degrees. (see also March 19 1976) |
| April | |
| April 8, 1975 | The territorial government announces that the rural TV program for community with less than 500 people is planned to start soon. The territorial's budget allows for $96,000 to be spent on installing the Anik signal receiver. |
| April 23, 1975 | The unemployment rate hits 19% in the Yukon. |
| May | |
| May 28, 1975 | The historic gold mining centre of Bear Creek, seven miles from Dawson City, is developed into a major tourist attraction. The Historic Sites branch of Parks Canada bought the property from a private owner. |
| June | |
| June 13, 1975 | The election of Willard Phelps is declared void, following the petition of Don Branigan. (see also December 30, 1974) |
| June 25, 1975 | Rolf Hougen, representing nine local volunteer and community craft groups, plans to take over the T.C. Richards building and turn it into a craft centre. The Richards building is a log house at Steele and Third. It was built in 1946 as a home for T.C. Richards. |
| July | |
| July 7, 1975 | The Dawson City post office, built in 1901, is restored and opened for the first time since 1934. It's open for public use, but only stamps can be bought there. |
| July 16, 1975 | The people of Old Crow express their disapproval of the planned Berger pipeline. |
| July 25, 1975 | The Engineering Mine near Atlin is re-opened by a Vancouver company, due to consistently high gold prices. |
| August | |
| August 6, 1975 | City Manager Walter Lengerke has resigned his position after one and a half years. |
| August 20, 1975 → November 26, 1975 |
The Yukon's Women's Mini-Bus Society submits to the city council a proposal for minibus system in Whitehorse. In November, January 26, 1976 is announced as the target date for the start-up of the Whitehorse Mini-bus transit system. |
| August 22, 1975 | Whitehorse airport goes bilingual with the installation of its new signs. |
| August 27, 1975 | The territorial department of education begins teaching of the metric system with the start of the 1975/76 school year in Yukon schools, beginning in Grades 1 and 2. |
| September | |
| September 8, 1975 | Northern Affairs Minister Judd Buchanan is seeking a replacement for Commissioner James Smith as smith announces he would like to resign from his job after nine years in this position. |
| September 8, 1975 | Northern Affairs Minister Judd Buchanan opens the controversial 30-megawatt Aishihik hydro power project. |
| September 22, 1975 | The Whitehorse Star celebrates with a special issues its 75th anniversary. |
| October | |
| October 24, 1975 | At age 45, Mayor Paul Lucier is appointed the North's first senator. |
| October 31, 1975 | Historic Five Finger Rapids is ruled out as a possible dam site by Commissioner James Smith, chairman of the Northern Canada Power Commission. |
| November | |
| November 21, 1975 | The B.C. government intends to stretch its railway from Dease Lake north to Lower Post near Watson Lake, according to an agreement reached with the federal government. |
| November 21, 1975 | Whitehorse's number of theatres is cut in half with the demolition of the Capitol Theatre on Main Street announced for January 1976. |
| December | |
| December 5, 1975 → December 10, 1975 |
Televison arrives in Teslin with the installation of a Telesat earth station. A few days later, TV in Teslin is shut off pending the approval for an interim licence. |
| December 12, 1975 | Ione Christensen is elected mayor of Whitehorse. |
| December 17, 1975 | The Atmospheric Environment Service (weather forecast) announces the introduction of a new windchill measurement system, starting January 1, 1976. |
| December 19, 1975 | For the first time in its 28-year-old history, the Whitehorse Chamber of Commerce has an executive manager: David Morrison. |
| January 7, 1976 | The wedding of Grafton Njootli and Nancy Barnett on December 27, 1976, is the first Old Crow wedding before a Justice of the Peace, Charlie Abel. |
