In today’s edition of White Pine: Then & Now, we are visiting downtown Ely once again.
The original photo was taken during the first few months of 1949 during what is known as Operation Hayride (or Operation Haylift after the release of the movie by that name in 1950). The comparison photo was shot on December 30, 2023. We can see that aside from the Army trucks loaded with hay lining the main street in front of the high school ready to head out, it appears very much the same scene today. Surprisingly, not much has visibly changed over the nearly 75 years between these photos.
Operation Haylift was a program instituted by the federal government during the winter of 1948-49 after record-setting low temps and record snowfalls stranded livestock across much of the American west. Ely served as one of the operations bases due to its central location to many affected areas. The US Air Force provided around 200 aircraft into which many thousands of bales of hay were loaded and air dropped in remote areas to help feed cold and starving livestock, as well as supplies to stranded residents. In addition to the planes, the US Army provided hundreds of two and a half ton trucks (called deuce and a half by service members) to deliver hay to areas still accessible by vehicle. There was skepticism by many that the plan would actually work as low-flying aircraft could potentially scare already frightened animals, but through these efforts more than 2 million animals survived the blizzards.
I just got around to reading about the trucks in Ely and the airlift to deliver hay to the farm animals. The main aircraft that was used at that time was what they called the “Boxcar” coming from the shape of the airplane which resembled a box with wings and propellers. I remember seeing them parked at the airport as I was going to Ely. The plane had two tails and large rear doors that would open up for loading and unloading of the aircraft. They could fly slow and low and the hay bales would burst open upon hitting the ground.