Drilling Specialties Company, a subsidiary of Phillips Petroleum Company has announced plans to establish a plastic pipe factory in the Mid-American Industrial District, near Pryor, Oklahoma.
The Company, which expects the new plant to be operating by April, is negotiating an on-the-job training program with the Bureau of Indian Affairs to prepare Indian workers for jobs in the plastic industry. An initial group of 20 Cherokees will be employed, with the figure doubling when full-scale operations are reached.
Pryor, in the heart of Oklahoma Cherokee country, has a notable record of cooperation with the Bureau, and with State and local development agencies, in creating new jobs for Indians.
NEW MEXICO FIRM WILL TRAIN INDIANSTypical of the many companies that utilize the opportunity to train Indian workers on-the-job under contracts with the Bureau of Indian Affairs is Mt. Taylor Millwork, Inc., of Grants, New Mexico. The company recently negotiated a $6,025 contract to train nine Indians for jobs in the manufacture of lineal molding.
On-the-job training is part of the Bureau’s overall Employment Assistance Program which combats Indian unemployment through training, placement, and the creation of an ever-increasing pool of trained Indian workers.
TIMBER ENTERPRISE THRIVES AT FORT APACHEThe Fort Apache Timber Company, an enterprise of the White Mountain Apache Tribe of Arizona, reports that it is showing a substantial profit. The company began operations in a new sawmill on August 31, 1963. P.N. 74966-66.
The successful operation is traced to a reorganization carried out in May 1964 involving a change in plant management and improvements in milling, woods management, and sales operations, the Bureau of Indian Affairs reported.
WATER EXPLORATION AT BIA SCHOOL SITESWells ranging in depths from 100 feet to 1,600 feet are being drilled at seven locations of schools operated by the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Arizona and New Mexico. The drilling, conducted by L. P. Cromer, of Laveen, Arizona, under a $94,400 contract awarded by the Bureau, will seek to supplement the water supply for school plants at Wide Ruins, Beautiful Valley, Gray Hill, Polacca, Cibecue, and Cedar Creek, in Arizona, and at Huerfano, New Mexico. Outcome of the exploration program will determine the feasibility of new or additional facilities at these sites.
CHEROKEE MOTEL PAYS AHEAD ON BIA LOANBoundary Tree Motel, at the southern gateway to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina, reported that 1965 was the best year in its 20- year history. As a result, the owners--the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians-- have paid ten years ahead, through 1975, the principal installments on a loan extended by the Bureau of Indian Affairs to finance the operation.
The attractive guest lodge, host to thousands of reservation visitors each year, boasts a swimming pool, dining room seating 300, snack bar, and service station. During peak operations in the summer season, the enterprise provides employment for about 70 Cherokees.
RED LAKE MILL TO BE REBUILTWhen a fire destroyed their tribal sawmill at Redby, Minnesota, last December 3, the Chippewa Indians of Red Lake Reservation went into action to restore operations. The Red Lake Tribal Council passed a resolution authorizing rebuilding of the mill, which employs 70 tribal members, and plans are now well underway for completion of a new plant by next September.
Construction on the main mill building, a 50 by 150 foot steel structure, will start as soon as spring thaw comes. Work on auxiliary buildings will begin at once under a contract with the Mater Division of the Appleton Machine Company, Appleton, Wisconsin, the company which will also provide engineering services and supply and install new equipment. Total cost of rebuilding the enterprise is estimated at $370,000.
Meanwhile, provision has been made for those whose jobs were Wiped out by the fire. About half of the millworkers were set to work preparing the mill site for rebuilding. Still others are engaged in logging to keep timber coming in for operation of a portable mill that was quickly installed. When a second portable mill is installed soon, all former mill workers will be employed again, utilizing timber on hand and supplying customers.
