History Corner

For those of us who were around Council in the 1950s, ‘60s and ‘70s, Carl Swanstrom was a local institution. His most notable characteristic was his height, which was 6 feet 8 inches. He sometimes reported his height as 5 feet 20 inches.

Carl’s father, Samuel August Swanstrom, was born in Sweden in 1872, came to America in 1887, arriving in Idaho in 1889. He worked at the Haas store in Weiser, but in the early 1890s he came to Salubria where he was engaged in the Mercantile business with the Haas Brothers and later as a partner with Moses Ne__ ? and John A. Denney. In 1896 he married Bertha Hill who was born in Sweden and came to Salubria when she was 15 years old to be with her sister, Mrs. Riel E. Wilson, in 1894.

Salubria Citizen, Sept 20, 1895: J.A. Denney and S.A. Swanstrom have dissolved their partnership in the Salubria store. (You may remember the scandalous story about Denney marrying his step daughter.)

Sam and Bertha’s son, Carl, was born June 7, 1897. He would be their only child.

Weiser Signal, September 26, 1901: “James Colson has sold his ranch at Salubria to S. A. Swanstrom for $2,750.”

Carl grew up on the ranch but seems to have been in the military in 1919, stationed at St. Louis, Missouri. How his military record reconciles with his college days is not clear. In the fall of 1920 he was a senior at the University of Idaho’s College of Law, and was editor of the University Argonaut.

After graduating from the U of I, Carl worked at a law firm in Boise for a short time before taking a similar job at the law office of A. H. Mohler at Cashmere, Washington.”

Adams County Leader, Dec 28, 1923: “Carl H. Swanstrom has taken up residence at Council, where he will associate with W.R. McClure in the practice of law. Mr. Swanstrom was raised in Salubria Valley and was a classmate of Mr. McClure at the U of I. He has been appointed Deputy Prosecuting Attorney for Adams County.”

In the spring of 1924, William McClure moved to Payette, and Carl Swanstrom took over McClure’s former position as Prosecuting Attorney.

Carl married Irma Lillian Buell (known locally as “Lillian,” 1903–1996) in 1926. At some point they bought a house at 302 East Whiteley Avenue from a Dr. Biggs.

In 1927 Carl was the Council Chamber of Commerce Treasurer. In January 1928 Lillian gave birth to a daughter, Carolyn. Another daughter, Barbara, was born in 1929. A son, Hugh Roger Swanstrom, was born in 1930. He was always known as Roger. A second son, Carl Buell Swanstrom, was born in 1932. He was always known as “Pete.”

In the fall of 1936, construction started on Carl’s law office, on a lot he purchased from Bill Winkler, on the NE corner of Moser Ave. and Main St. It served as his law office for many years until he retired in 1972. (This was the former location of the Winkler blacksmith shop.)

In the 1930s Carl Swanstrom was a director of a local sawmill, was one of the founding directors of the first Council Hospital and was part of a group of men who went on frequent fishing adventures to places like Black Lake. Those men included Dr. Thurston, Earl Miller, Bert Hagar, Gene Perkins, Alva Ingram and Vern Brewer.

Carl’s parents, Sam and Bertha Swanstrom sold their ranch in the “Highland district” and moved to Cambridge in 1944.

A series of deaths struck the Swanstrom family in 1946 and ‘47. Sam died in 1946 at the age of 74. Bertha then moved to Council to be close to Carl. She only lived about a year after that, dying in December of 1947.

Also in the summer of 1946, Carl and Lillian’s 18-year-old daughter, Carolyn, became ill. Not finding helpful medical treatment locally, in February of 1947 they decided to drive to a facility in New Mexico. By the time they got to Denver, Carolyn’s condition became critical, and she was taken to a hospital there. She died on March 6. Here grave is in the Hillcrest Cemetery at Weiser.

In the 1950s, Pete Swanstrom graduated the U of I, Roger married Yvonne Barman at Seattle, Barbara married Walter Samulsky, and Roger’s wife gave birth to the first of their three sons at Council.

Meanwhile, Carl continued as the county’s Prosecuting Attorney, while practicing law in partnership with his son, Roger.

Both Roger and Pete inherited their father’s height.

In 1960, Roger was appointed as Senator from Adams County to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Senator Lester C. Palmer. Voters replaced him with Rollie Campbell that November.

In 1966 Roger moved his family to Grangeville, where he practiced law and became a judge.

In 1968, voters chose Beverly Elder as the county attorney, but Carl won back that office in 1970. He retired in 1972, due to health issues. Carl died June 3, 1976 at the Council hospital at the age of 78. He had served as Adams County Prosecuting Attorney for 44 years (not consecutively) and was reelected 23 times.

In 1973, Roger was appointed District Judge of the Second Judicial District of Idaho. In 1981, Governor John Evans selected him as one of the three original members of the Idaho Court of Appeals, where he served until 1988. His legal opinions remain influential in law schools today, known for their fairness and emphasis on rehabilitation over punitive sentencing. Roger died in 2017.

Pete retired from the Army as a Lieutenant Colonel in 1976, after 20 years of service. Moving back to Idaho, he worked for Northrup-King Seed Company and then the State of Idaho Agriculture Department until he retired. Pete died in 2019.

Carl’s widow, Lillian, died in 1996 and was buried beside Carl at the Weiser cemetery. Barbara died in 2020. Roger’s widow, Yvonne, lives in Boise.

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