OROFINO Former Clearwater National Forest Supervisor Ralph S. Space, a longtime Orofino resident, died of pneumonia Wednesday at Clearwater Valley Hospital in Orofino. He was 92.
He was born April 13, 1901, at Quenemo, Kan., the son of Christian and Ida Wildin Space.
The family moved to Idaho in 1902, and he was raised on the family ranch between Weippe and Pierce. He attended the Space grade school, and graduated from Weippe High School in 1918.
He attended the University of Idaho at Moscow, and graduated with honors and a bachelor's degree in forestry in 1925.
He accepted an appointment from the U.S. Forest Service in 1925, and worked as a ranger on the Blackfoot Forest in Idaho. In 1936 he was assigned to the Northern Region headquarters at Missoula, Mont.
He married Myrtle Lake Sept. 27, 1937, at Kalispell, Mont.
In 1954 he was appointed supervisor of the Clearwater National Forest, a position he held until retiring in 1963. His wife died in 1975.
He was a former president of the Kiwanis Club at Orofino, and was active in the Boy Scouts both in Montana and Idaho.
He was also a two-time master of the Orofino Masonic Lodge, two-time District Deputy Grand Master of Masons, Masons Grand Historian for two years, and past Worthy Patron of the Order of Eastern Star.
He was a 32nd degree Knight Commander of the Court of Honor in the Scottish Rite, and a member of the Clearwater Historical Society. He wrote numerous articles on local history, for which he was given a Meritorious Achievement Award from the Lewis and Clark Heritage Foundation.
He was a past president of the group that established the Nezperce National Historical Park, and was a member of the Orofino United Methodist Church and the Society of American Foresters, to which he was elected a Fellow in 1984.
He published three books, including ''The Clearwater Story,'' a book chronicling the history of the Clearwater National Forest.
Survivors include a son, James Space of Fairfax, Va.; a daughter, Judith Space of Orofino; a sister, Ida Ruth Space of Coeur d'Alene; and two grandchildren.
Five brothers died previously.
Visitation hours are from noon to 8 p.m. Tuesday at Pine Hills Funeral Chapel in Orofino.
A funeral is scheduled for 11 a.m. Wednesday at Pine Hills, with burial to follow at 1 p.m. at Normal Hill Cemetery in Lewiston.
The family suggests memorials be given to the Kiwanis Club Scholarship Fund, P.O. Box 1317, Orofino, Idaho, 83544.
