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About The news-review. (Roseburg, Or.) 1948-1994 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 23, 1956)
8 The News-Review, Roteburg. Or. Thur. Feb. 23, 1956 Growth Of Riddle Came In Three Major Stages MOST SPECTACULAR INDUSTRY in the Riddle area is the Hanna nickel mining and iJf-'LS V j Vj MM, feMW smelting operation The company ,s still developing to mine the biggest nickel ore . i V y -C)V, &&H& fl!WSA' operation in th. United States. The company this year expects to have two mora smelters t A'- 3 "-A ' ,4 ' i X-ti " 'VKZ m5vSi t'lTI-r ' in operation. It now hos two ' -""t , V J ' ffJ&'H J'' C 7 W f p, m m ' ' ';,rr rilFfW.W' lww , W m "1! 4 i' VS AWESOME TITLE of municipal administration building is tagged to Riddle's new city holl, now under construction . The exterior of the building and upstairs quarters for fire men hove not been completed. s . ' i p""ii Ill 1 "1 X, Al Tin,! 3 1 A RIDDLE FROM THE AIR This Delano Aerial a three mile radius of the city are 10 lumber and area, drawing a monthly payroll of $600,000, Surveys aerial photograph shows one of the plywood mills and the M. A. Hanna Co. nickel according to Fred Scheffel, city superintendent. county s tastest growing areas. Kiddle. Within operation, borne 1,UUU men are empioyea in tne By PAUL JENKINS The lower Cow Creek valley in which the town of Kiddle lies was .settled by white people in 1851, the m first family, that nt William ji. Kiddle, coming in the spring of that year. The Riddlei were prolific as well as noted people, and as the years rolled by strangers who were taeuui never spone aeroga lorily ot anyone in the valley, knowing full well they might be speaking of a relative of the per son they were addressing at the time. The growth of the town of Rid dle has been indexed by a series of three spas ins, the first induced i NEW HOMES are th Riddle area's biggesr need now with the booming of industry there. The Hanna company even had to build five homes for its company officials in Riddle. Also, recently built is the twin Oaks Addition, but even these two proiects failed to alleviate the need. "You just can't find a place here", said Fred Scheftel, city superintendent. IS .... ! a,l4"' -tfr-V-t'-i-'f'ifi r- ' --Vnminrriwuin , -' - ; 'f 'm;x J ",-V.f.'..' l. ' I. , j ...)... "v- . v;twi bv the coming of the Oregon and I 19 California railroad in 18S2, with its i attendant influx of railroad con struction workers. Members of the Kiddle family, of course, owned and donated the land for the town site and the O & C obligingly named the town in their honor. These were truly wild and wooly times, spoken o( to this day by its old timers in tones of awe, if not of reverence. With the passing of the railroad construction gangs Kiddle settled down to a placid growth, support ed by agriculture and bolstered with hope for the future. This hope was justified, but was hooked to a very slow burning fuse. Nearly til) years were to elapse before Kid dle really was to prosper, in the best sense of that word. The coming of this prosperity, in terms far beyond the imagination of even the most hopeful boosters of the region, occurred immediate ly afler the end of World War 11 with the advent of the sawmilling industry. It was responsible for growth spasm No. 2 and shook Rid dle to its very foundations. The town had good foundations, however, capable of supporting tha many problems encountered in sudden and tremendous population Sawmills soon dotted the nearby ff; V J aiKiscaue i oei eve mere now are :r j ? about 15 within a two or three mile radius and hundreds workers came, were housed (even tually) and furnished with power cipa! services so necessary, but so K4Xt2f -'f 1 i ... j . v u.tm in aimctc aim nj mi. ' It! K1 I ll' THE LUMBER INDUSTRY is still the mainstay of the Riddle area economy. Ten mills, including the big Harbor Plywood operation, are located within a three-mile rodius r L4 ira to acnieve and pay lor. 1 f&Vft v-y" "vt- t The third spasm manifested it-' f t If when the great industrial firm r'V "jTT?' lianna exploited the nickel-bear-1 L- -Sa -S.; . of Riddle. Aoov is poet of the Riddle Lumber Manufat turing Co lumber mill near Riddle m-mm of lianna exploited the nickel mg ores so abundant near the town. Three years ago this or ganization begun erection of a plant for its nunhg and smelt ing running into a figure popularly quoted as 28 million dollars. Some ;iiH) men have been employed there local brliof that with th. addition I ONE WAY BRIDGES ore o bone to Riddles entries ond of two new furnaces now ready for exits One of these is the Cow Creek Bridge above. All me, future labor needs will double j bridges connecting Riddle with the rest of the county " . , ! ore one way. However, the county will soon repuiid the inee per loaf 01 acu . Rro n. nr,,, k,iH ., mnk. it a twn-wov soon arenrdina ta Supt. Scheftel. AJ m if'TWC Kill v 3 iS V'l 1 1 m Vf- II. '..11 W':f taiit in Kiddle's history have been spok en of as "spasms" because of the sinxularly rapid and almost ungov ernable nature or thetr appearanc ENTRY TO NEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is shown above. With the rapidly growing population, the city's school system was desperately in need of new school facilities. A comparatively small bond issue, however, was defeated BUSINESS EXPANSION follows population increose and Riddle is an example. Above is the new plant of the Clark Linder oil consignee The plant has a new office, new tank filling unit, and new paved area as tie result ot the expanded business of the area. il..... .......nflin. .Nr. Thnir nal.l Riddle met thfP morODnripi I es. Kach called for the display of t,,rn nas become more or less fam-' increasing determination which! by trie voters until a citizen's advisory committee was necuc ana leverisn eoersy on inc ,,ar o , an; The providing of ' rapidly u overcoming in many formed to investigate. As the result of the investiaation- part of public - spirited residents soh,wi faeilitie for an unprecent-1 difficult problems encountered. Riddle voters approved a $265,000 bond issue to build who were entrusted with th. han-!ei1 nmnivr o( ch,ldren. water syi-'The people there are entitled to I ne.w ,,hool Puoils ore .xrvrtpH tT . Z dim of municipal affairs. ..,,, ,ey,.w disposal, iiuht and take a bow from each municipal-! ne FT , u o i?fct ,0 sfort USinn Of course, living in Douglani power, street improvement and . ity in the county. They have earn- ot the building by Morcn y. I h drummer in the picture county u yon do, yom know what' maintenance, proper policing, tlc.ied tribute, the hard way. 1 above is Mike Kucker. O
