1919: Filer shuts its doors for the first Armistice Day

FROM THE ARCHIVES - On Nov. 13, 1919, the Filer Record reported how the town marked the first anniversary of the Armistice that ended the war. The governor had made Tuesday, Nov. 11, a state holiday, and the paper said practically every place of business in Filer closed for the whole day, from banks and stores to barber shops and pool halls. Schools across the county were closed too.

The Record said many residents, including the whole membership of Filer's American Legion post, went to the celebration the Legion staged in Twin Falls. Others went hunting or had friends to dinner, and the paper noted that more than one home was saddened by the reminder of loved ones lost in the war.

The same front page carried a Wendell Commercial Club proposal for a bridge over the Snake River near Clark's grade, about 12 miles north of Filer. The Record said the span would need to be about 140 feet long.

Source: Library of Congress, Chronicling America: The Filer Record (Filer, Idaho), Nov. 13, 1919, page 1