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About La Grande evening observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1904-1959 | View Entire Issue (June 22, 1932)
Page Four LA GRANDS EVENING OBSERVER, LA fciRANDE, ORE. Wednesday, June 22, 1932 YiHag e of Cove Is Progressive And Attractive Stackland Pioneer In Cherry Growing Covo nestles on tho weat slope under the foothills of Mount Fan nie, In a natural cove on tho east ern side of the Grand o Rondo val ley. This valley extends 16 miles west to La Qrande and 35 miles north from Union to Elgin, a beau tiful farming country. Cove has a population' or nearly 600. An electric power plant Is lo cated on Mill creek, two miles above Cove which furnishes power and light for the entire valley. Cove has a flouring mill, general stores, drug store, blacksmith shop, gar ages, fruit packing houses and ninny other business enterprises, besides live churches and a grude and high school. . Farming, dairying, stock raising and fruit growing are the principal Industries of Cove. The farm crops consist principally of wheat, oats barley and hay. As a stock country, Union county and the Grande Ronde valley have been noted for nearly 60 years, formerly for Its horses, but later for Its cattle, sheep and hogs. With a great deal of outside range and splendid natural meadows, the stock business is very attractive and profitable. The dairy Industry, for the same reasons as the stock bus iness, Is suited to this locality. Fruit growing Is one of the lead ing Industries and also one of the most profltnblo and promising. The sweet cherry heads the list of many fruits growl n In Cove and of which nearly one million pounds nre pro duced annually. Berries of all kinds do well, as do peaches, apricots and apples. Cove Is an Ideal spot for the vaca tionist, the hunter or the fisher man. East of Cove lies a vast for est solitude which may be pene trated on horseback or on foot. Hundreds of miles of primeval for est are there, with countless moun tain streams and lakes. A standard grade school and high school are maintained at Cove. Boys' and girls' vrk lutcreata a larger percentoge of the pupils In Cove than any other school in Union county. The constant Ideal of the community for its schools Is the development of citizenship in Its truest sense. Going to Cove by automobile, the tourist has the advantage of excel lent highways. Connection Is mado to all of the cities and towns in f " i V" i t 1 if.,',) IV" Early Development Recalled by Settlers (Continued From Page One K.IK! J. STACKI.AM) Of Cove. Ore. Pioneer commercial cherry grower of Eastern Oregon, now one of the largest in the Pacific Northwest, having over 10.000 trees growing at Cove. He Is bIbq a pioneer fruit shipper to eastern and foreign mar kets, beginning his operations in 1803 and for a dozen years handled nearly all the surplus fruit grown In Union county. At tho same time he has traveled a great deal, spending four months in Europe after the war to study tho economic nnd political condi tions. Ho has been n lifelong stu den t of pol 1 1 lea 1 economy, social sclcnco nnd delved deeply Into many philosophies nnd all questions of major importance to the world, has written thousands of letters and ar ticles trying to help cure the eco nomic ills nnd bring about n new and better system under which the American people, as well aa the masses all over the world niny gain a better and more secure existence for the future, than In the past. He has over 50 years of business experience and Is stttl actively and prominently occupied as a leading fruit grower and distributor. While also putting In long hours writing i to help save this nation from this economic crisis, and its very exis tence as a democracy for tho whole people ond Insisting that this ter- can be stopped Immediately If the right remedies are npplied. the Grande Ronde valley by well PlhLXf;,h.r,y.!- re! rlble nnd dangoroua condition tourist and the resident Is, the swimming pool which affords n re freshing plunge and much enjoy ment. This spacious pool Is sup piled with wnter from naturally warm mineral springs and It is a popular point of Interest and rec reation. . Cove Is a live-wire llttlo commu nity, working hard to Improve It self and always Interested In wor thy endeavors that will assist and benefit the homeowners. One of The Coves' Home Cooking Is Daily Attraction At Dinner Nook Tho Bnlley Dinner Nook Is one of the newest businesses of tho busy community of Cove. With the vi cinity open for such an undertak ing. Bailey IVCcFiutrien, proprietor. opened his Dinner Nook on Feb. 14, 193'J, and has since enjoyed an en- wr j jrj j couraging return. Veteran IfUliuerSt Homo cooklna. featuring Saturday and Sunday chicken dinners, is the mnln attraction. City was a mora thriving town than La Grande, and sovoral of tho busi ness places originally located here were moved there. Then came tho moving of the county scat from La Qrande to i Union. Two elections were neccs sary before the change' was finally made. The vote was first taken In 1872 to decide whether La Grande, Union, Oro Dell, BummervlUe or Cove would be the county seat of Union county, and none or the five re ceived a majority vote. At the No vember election In 1874 It was again voted whether La Grande or Union ! the two towns receiving the high est vote In the first election would be the county seat, and Union re- I celved the largest vote. The county court house was first built here In 1804 or '65, when Union county was cut off from Baker county. The court house stood where the L. H. Russell home now stands in Old Town, and a part of the Russell home Is a part of the old building. When It came to moving the county seat to Union from La Grande, a Union delegation came to La Grande and loaded the old log Jail on wheels cut from a log and moved the entire thing to Union, fording Catherine creek to get there. , Then (he Kail road For a few years It seemed that La Grande would die a natural death, then came the advent of the rnll road, which saved It. As soon as the first surveys for the road were made and the place selected for the location of the ni 11- Th e first passenger train pulled road depot, what little business that remained In Old Town was moved near to the railroad and It was around this that the present city cf La Grande wns built, into La Grande July 4. 1884. which was a big day In the history of the city, and was one which Is still vivid In the minds of the old pio neers, who were here at thnt time. PANORAMA OF COVE AND THE WALLOWA MOUNTAINS V. ' HI "H-V1'"'' '.' Cove is situated at the foot of a range of the Wallowa Mountains on th e east side of the Grande Ronde valley, 16 miles from La Grande. It is known as a cherry center, hundreds of tons of the fruit being shipped from this point each year. Mt. Fanny is the high peak in the background, reaching an altitude of more than.7000 feet above sea level. A trail leads over the mountain range to the Minam river, the favorite haunt of many f ishermen. Apple Growing Continues to Be Important Industry in County In Union county we have In apple bearing orchards 1600 acres, with approximately 80,000 bearing trees. i There are 130 acres In prunes, with approximately 9100 bearing trees. Of cherries, there are 180 acres, with approximately 11.000 bearing trees. There has been an Increase In prunes of practically 70 acres and a decrease in bearing cherry trees of practically 40 acres. These figures are due to the fact of crop failures, bad prices at times and winter freeze, all of which have discouraged growers, and as a result they hove pulled down their trees, or have abandoned their orchards and engaged the land In other pur poses. The same conditions are found In some other sections of the northwest, and they are no worse here than in other counties. The possible exception may be with the cherry trees, which are more sus ceptible to winter killing in some of the counties farther west. How ever, with proper care in putting the tree to dormancy, there is no more danger here. In fact there should be less, as the trees here are much hardier. The approximate yield In Union county Is 375 car loads of apples. It meant much to them and equal- I "TV" set re ly as much to La Grande as a city. ! Bar.d ess .ascertaining the adapt- One of Coves' pioneers, tho pres ent manager and owner of Cove Quality Market. Is Mr. O. M. Gardner. He settled In Covo more than 30 Tho Bailey Dinner Nook Is located in the center of town, within easy reach of everyone. Home cooking, years ago and one of his first civic 1 PIeasnn' surroundings and the doll- acts for the development of this com munity was the construction of the high school building in the year 1899. He later served as principal or the school for a period of two years, hav ing served a term at teaching at an earlier date In the Normal school. clous dinner that is served mnke tip a delightful hour for anyone. Cove Noted For All! FOHCK I.WKilMJ, 1KN. MITCIIMJ. SAYS Big DETROIT. Mich. The United States continues to trail other na tions In military aviation, in the onlninn rf Tlrli rifii Utlliam Yields Of Fruit M1UneU wnw the nations Our p limes, even the latest pursuit type, he says, are 40 to 60 miles an hour slower than those of other great powers. Military advance ment in aviation has not kept pace with commercial strides, he believes. The Doisel cnclne has nuicle erent advancement. General Mitchell said. ( One section of the county is espe cially noted for the quantities of smaller fruits produced each year, and the quality also of that fruit. That section Is Cove. Of the small er fruits, strawberries are produced In quantities only second to chrr- , tun win aim me ruinate com- and seems to have a bright future, fining to produce largo crops each, M ftll lUd to ftVl)ltion the flCro. ' 1 nautical division of the weather bu- riums and prunes nre also quite reau has been a great help to onion adaptable to this locality and the 1 ami potato growers, ya the gen largo crops gathered in a nornml rrnl. and a handful of' corn syrup year are of an unexcelled quality, j nibbed on the wings, will do more ?m.."? . theiT ,mV0 "ito kP the ire from forming than shipped from this county as hlgn M anything the government tnia rie 60 car loads In one season. ' vised. Store tin llillng Moved Mhny of the old buildings which had been constructed in Old Town wero moved to the new town. Although the population Imme diately began to grow and La Grande again took the aspect of a thriving town there were still other hazards to overcome. The INSli Fire During the year 1886 ranch of the business section of tho town was wiped out by fire, hair of a block of buildings between Depot and Elm streets on the south side of Adams avenuo being totally destroyed, in cluding two hotels, a livery stable and other places The section was all rebuilt and again in 1891 another fire broke out and destroyed all pf the building! on the' west side of Depot street between Adams avenue and Jeffer son avenue. Including: the first brick building In the city, which was con structed by A. Sommer, ability of the soil conditions, and consequently mnny failures have followed due to the owners not tak ing the necessary precautions to have the soil analyzed for adapta ablllty found there. Fruit can be raised In . Union county at practic sive. Add;. to this the cost of irri gating; the water and the cost of spreading the same. These two items are almost entirely additional to the expense required in this locality, due to the foct that two sprayings an nually In Union county appear to control the pest and, as a rule, our winter snows give sufficient mois ture In the mountains plus what rain falls In the summer time, so that irrigation Is not necessary. The remarkable thing about what an orchard means to a locality is the fact of the tremendous amount of money It produces from the soil each year which goes largely to in dividual workers of the county. We. of course, fail to grasp the things In some cases which would ultimately bring to our county more returns than any other one thing. This is due to the fact that we are too apt to look to the boosting of this or that which will bring imme diate returns and when we are told velopcd the fact that three years out of five were profit-taking of considerable dimensions. Of the two years of time; one was a loss of crop by frost and the other a bad price year, making the returns only equal to the outlay of cost. But in the period of five years the same or chard returned to the grower a net Income of 15 per cent on the invest ment of about 400 per acre. The development of these orchards could bo carried on by many busi ness men up to a period of good bearing at a negligible cost. At that time, the orchard could be handled In groups and managed profitably If only small. It Is a safe bet to say that within five years such small tracts located .close to our towns would bo sought for by small home owners and good prices would be realized as soon as tho orchard is able to produce a living for those taking care of it. There are certain fruits that are better adapted to Union county soils. Of the cherries, there are three varieties, Bings, Lamberts and Royal Amies. The last named Is the greatest producer of the three and while it may only bring a me dium price In comparison. It is quite tlcally worthless small tracts of lands within the confines of Union county, lying on the hillsides or Isolated In the timber, not worth the price of grain grown on them, would be v logical. These could be used to bring a greater population to Union county, that could build ud within a nerlod of 10 vears a production In fruit growing that , sofely. would unquestionably exceed $2,-i (Reprint of article prepared by H. 000.000 annually. When we stop to H. Weatherspoon of Elgin, Oregon, think that this great sum is the new for the Progress Edition). dollar taken directly from the soil each year and contributed to the extra wealth from dormant soil as at present. It would certainly be well worth the time for any .cham ber of commerce or other business organization In this county to give due consideration and co-operation wherever ventures can be made that it requires from eight to 10 years for an orchard to become prof- a sure bearer and finds a ready mar- iiauie -as it does with cherries, we j wun ine apples, it may be are prone to throw up our hands i that so far as experience has and forget It. As a matter of fact I taught us. probably the best set- the situation Is not as different from any other business concern, from mills, factories, or any other commercial , enterprise which re quires eight or 10 years to build up tings are Rome Beauty. Winter Ba nanas: Delicious and Newton Pip pins. On soils of a heavy and moist character. the Jonathan proves profitable as do a few other varle- a business which would make a re- ties. Unless you would be p re turn of dividends much smaller than pared in extremely dry years to lrri in the case of an orchard. K&te to some extent it is not good From past records, it is evident ' J"d?ment to set varieties as Newton that it Is time we are taking a lit- riPPns an- encious on sandy soil tie ereater interestin rpnlenishinw lana- However, wnen there is a soft ally one-half the expense required "r, e;!;? soil underline th ton .mi. This is""" v""" u,B.ureMras.w ,ne Uh o n;nti:aM' r due to the fact that usuallv soils I unuea aiats- owlnS to the fnct I . . 1 in the northwest districts. This is ' that over a period of 80 years, about There will be a generation come to every 20 years there have been j this section in time, which will be booms, so to speak, in the matter I practical in the growing of fruits, of setting orchards to replenish and and their management, together take the place of orchards which with their ability to do things will with clay sub-soil hold the maxi mum moisture of over 38 pounds to tho square foot, when well mulched. So far as moisture is concerned, it product at harvest time. t nave outllved their usefulness. This j reverse the general order of the fl d, "JL. tW' V""cy thc nd so faT as rords sho- there finest looking apples, with the ex ception of the winter banann. but are only one or two localities In i southeastern United Stntes that are i,o,. . . """- at present setting out new orchards Z ml S ,T y P" r. kCCPlng or ay consequence. The bearing .L,lnd. "a'..ct1""' to. "Mute of an orchard depreciates aftef the world and while that docs not lit has reached Its maximum, at the Jnfiv .?gn , P;T" C,B7-I creator If slightly neglected and ow Si it i. I k f ?. nC? to the that scarcely any . 1S ,rarc'V I', ,OT lhe rea-1 orchards In the west have not J. D. Slater had his law office In n that dealers quickly understand j reach!(, ,heir maxlnvum bearing. LOGAN ANDERSON HOME This phntoffTOiih Sh,,s the home r 1 ..can AmtoiM.n. foil. OlTCOtl. COVE SWIMMING POOL this building and was the last per son to leave it after the fire had started to burn. Judg J. W. Knowles, who was then Justice of the peace, also had an office in the building. In July of the same, year fire, which started In the old Blue Moun tain hotel, which was located on the corner where the Elks building now stands, destroyed all of the buildings on that street as far east as the Presbyterian church, also a one-story building where the Som mer hotel now stands and two build ings on the corner of Washington and Depot, where the Modern Laun dry is now located. First Hotel Destroyed The first hotel built In La Grande the Stulta hotel was destroyed in the first fire. Another hotel built about the same time as the Stultz hotel was owned by Joe Palmmcr and R. E. Brian. After the fires the building lo cated at the corner of Adams avenue and Depot street was the largest building to be constructed In La Grande. The Island City Mercantile and Milling company, which started op erating at Island City In 1869 under tho ownership of John Caviness and M. Sterling one of the first flour ing mills In the county was soon moved to La Grande by Fred Holmes and ot her business were moved here. When moved to La Grande the business was owned by the M, & M. company. County Seat Krtunicil Then In 1802 the county seat was moved back to La Grande, several men ot the city going to Union on Sunday and bringing the books and court records to Ia Grande. The present county court house, built as a 'city hall and rented to the county at the rate of one dollar a year, was built that year. Th county ; rented the building on the one- i dollar-a-year bl for 15 years, at 1 the end of which time it was pur-! chased from the city by the county. Since the return of the county seat to l-a Grande the growth of the city has been steady, both in population and In the siTe of the city itself. New additions have been made from year to year and new buildmcs wore constructed, until to day the city ranks among the lead ing cities in the state or Oregon and is the metropolis of the large Eastern Oregon country. nancial condition of the apple growers. It Is hardly to be expect ed that this class of fruit growers will develop from the truly Ameri can boy of today, much to our re gret, but from a generation of peo ple who apply themselves strictly to their work and are very careful of their outlay of expense while the development is going on. While there is some resentment at the thought of foreign born, or children of foreign born parents settling in the various localities of the Pacific Northwest, yet it occurs to me that unless there Is a very quick change ZP'c H,Hf0t, ?CBLM ,to "' condmons do no't '? Lcwth hLBh.' Irrigated, cold cn aml ter Ktu . .. , u V B PplCS' menced. It will only be a question1 In the condition of affairs, that we while they have a place In the mar- 0 tlmc untll other-countries wllllof the Pacific Northwest may ex- . reauuj unuersuxxi by , shipping their fruits to the Pt " major part of the future buyers and users of the same, are Unlte( stRtcs aI1(, wc w, be , development in the fruit industry to highly perishable and quickly go to our or that vMch holS j be done by that class of people, decay If not consumed within a few . produc,d erc. Tjlat fact hns j With this In mind in all of our ad da s after being taken from storage. bce born out n the decreasing 'vcrtlslng matter which may be Moreover, the greatest profits arc acrQas.e ot swcet c,)erries grown In I broadcast from time to time. If first not In producing the highest class , tne Unllert stat(,s an(1 now we flnd wo should ,nvltc only Americans to ot apples. The profits come rather. , ourselvc3 snort ln tnls fruK come and help share our prosperity, in this section, from producing the j Hcrc ln Unlon ,.ouu,v. we havc ! it would be well to keep In mind T...m.J'PP !hC apP'c ,hat ls' many five and 10-acre tracts of land! n invitation to those who havc with n the reach of the common thal ., Talx tllls tnltt to p,,rfec. j learned the lesson of life from the people. They make up the bulk of i tl011 anA ,. one luves,iUg ,n a 10- j parents who may be of foreign birth, consumers and to supply the de- I ac trnct D tnl5 frult thl5 vpar or 5et as truly American as wo that . K. :l . i P ' next W'- ln the nfxt 10 5'eare waJie clalm no olncr distinction. up to the fact that 10 acres of Our soil, which Is adapted to grain : healthy, growing cherry trees, care- growing In Union county is well and j fully tended, will be worth ln the definitely known and Is being used .open market $10,000 or more. Cher-land farmed bv modern methods. Tn To those who will be patient and ; rics from this locality, at smaller' day It is. seemingly, making all the careful In growing orchards, there i prices than growers have been get- j returns that are possible. Yet we is not another crop In Oregon soils ting during the last ten ycare, have , should bear In mind that this class that makes as great returns per produced as high as $1000 to $1400 j of agriculture has developed ln acre, over a period of time, as does 1 per acre, which Is probably one of ' acreage In Union county to prac the apple, cherry and prune. The tho best profit-taking businesses ' tlcally the limit and we may not markets covering the last 30 years that can be engaged ln. The aver- expect any greater population from have fluctuated greatly at times, but ' age price over a period of ten years this source. Therefore, it is to be tho average profit-taking. In three of a carefully kept orchard has dc- ' seen at a glance that to utilize prac years out of five, has produced a I - " - ' u.- - - : - , ; medium to large profit on tho acres Itable than to produce a fruit so superior ln every regard that Its sale Is confined to the news stands, etc. 4-11 Club Activities Supplement County Agricultural Project (Continued from Page On ThW pool li unique hi hrlng ftirnNNet! lth a riitri.t uv ,( frrHlt warm sprint water th.il the water U romplrtrlv tu!i;rd evrry M'icn hour ami is rlear and sKirklli.s. Association with and partlctpattot. in this event. We are proud of the work which has been done by club members of our community. We are just a little more proud of these line boys and girls who will some day be better prepared and ready to 'carry on" when dad and mother are gone. engaged. In fact, a cherry orchard in heavy bearing 'will produce otten in one year what is equal to 20 years if the land is engaged In the rotation of Grain crops. Facta are, that lands classify themselves into which will and will not produce profits, due to the fact that drainage and underlying sub soil is the keynote to the whole sit uat Ion. The most valuable apple and cherry lands are the medium sloped to even steep lands near the base of the mountain lands with soft sub-soils. These are t he best fruit lands and as a rule are prac- j tlcally worthless for growing of grain and hay crops. , That Union county could become one of the richest counties by add ing a general setting of cherry. prune and apple trees on the little hillside farms is unquestioned. In fact, we could become as great in Union county, so far as acreage would go, in growing of fruits a have the districts of Wena tehee and Yakima In th? state of Washington, which are today the greatest apple crowing districts in the United Statfa. The keynote to the situa tion Is a thorough study of land in ;he first place: second, learning the adaptability of ,the variety to be ; supplied: third, being very careful! to study the methods of producing the fruit, and last, a careful mar keting of the fruit after it has been produced. The problem greatest In the cost of production in the sections north and west of us is that of irrigating and the fighting of pests. These conditions are getting more complex as the years ito by. The orchards of the northwest, especially west of the mountains, require the com mencing or spraying at the begin ning of spring, and then a contin uation of that same practice prac- fillv avorv tit Hivi until th flMt of September. This t very ex pen- ESilkSJH GROCERIES -MEATS QUALITY MERCHANDISE Red & White Grocery & Market Iudecm!eutly Owned &- 0iemted W. J. Hulfiiiark. Prop. Cove. Ore. THREE HOME PRODUCTS Three High Quality Flours frlk CRAK. I ... . . . - v . -3 r-i i. .1 ,iiiiasi Three 100 Home Products -., . -;- if 7? It! rNnj!f)'"A Three Reasons For CONFIDENCE In This Community The Ii Grande Milling Company is a fundamental factor in the prosperity of La Grande and the Grande Ronde valley, providing an important market for local grain, and employing many local men. Home indus tries are the biggest of all reasons for Confidence! La Grande Milling Co. COVE Vacations Suggestions: FILMS. FISHING TACKLE MAGAZINES. CIGAKS, CIGARETTES AND CANDIES FULL LINE OF FIREWORKS COVE PHARMACY OREGON CHICKEN DINNER 15c SATURDAYS SUNDAYS Ice Cream - Cold Drinks BAILEY'S DINNER NOOK COVE OREGON QUALITY GROCERIES AND MEATS GUARANTEED MERCHANDISE COVE QUALITY MARKET 0. M. GARDNER COVE. OREGON COVE SWIMMING POOL "FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH" Complete Change of Warm Mineral W ater every six hours. Beautiful icnic Ground. " " '- ATTENTION CHERRY GROWERS! of his sen-ices. ' ' WhoeVer choOMS to ke e
