in other words
july19
2018
The Good Ol ’ Days
By Tobie Finzel
Mildred Weed Memories
Mildred Weed Evans was the
daughter of Oscar Weed and grand-
daughter of Judson Weed, one of the
earliest settlers in Vernonia. She passed
away last October at the age of 102.
Mildred was born August 4, 1915, on
the Weed homestead on Timber Road.
In 2004, Bill Weed, another descendant
of Judson and the primary Weed family
historian, interviewed Mildred about her
memories of growing up near Vernonia.
Several members of the Weed clan vis-
ited Vernonia recently and left a set of
notebooks including the transcription of
that interview.
The 1912 Weed farmhouse,
which replaced an earlier cabin, still
stands but has not been occupied by
Weed family members for many years.
Mildred and her parents, Oscar and Bes-
sie Weed, lived on the same property but
in a different house which is no longer
standing. When Oscar was elected Co-
lumbia County Sheriff, the family moved
to St. Helens for eight years, shortly be-
fore Judson’s death in 1929.
Mildred was only 14 when Jud-
son died and had few memories of him,
except that he was a gentleman like her
father. She recalled that he always par-
ticipated in Memorial Day services as a
member of the Grand Army of the Re-
public (GAR), the Civil War veterans
group that later became the American
Legion. When she was a child, Judson
was one of the three remaining GAR
members in Vernonia and was leader of
the group. She remembered seeing him
sitting in a car and riding in the Memo-
rial Day parade that went down Bridge
Street to the Pioneer Cemetery where
marchers put flowers on the graves.
Along the way, those walking in the pa-
rade dropped flowers into Rock Creek
from the bridge
Mildred’s grandmother, Emma-
line Van Blaricom Weed, was a real pio-
neer woman who could do just about any-
thing. She always kept a pan of cookies
in her cupboard, baked bread and pies,
but she was also handier than Judson at
repairs and could out-fish most of the
men. When she did her town shopping,
she traded farm eggs for needed goods.
She was considerably younger than Jud-
son as she had been an 18 year old stu-
dent when he, 36, taught in Vernonia’s
first school. The Van Blaricom clan and
the Parkers were the first two families to
settle in Vernonia in 1874. Judson and
his cousin, Ozias Cherrington, arrived in
1876. When Judson and Emma married,
her parents gave them a cow which they
brought along with them on their several
mile walk to his homestead.
Before he was elected Sheriff,
Mildred’s father, Oscar, had a dairy with
Jersey cows and a dairy route. He sold
milk for twelve cents a quart. A neighbor
had a Holstein cow dairy and sold milk
for ten cents a quart, but Oscar’s milk
had more cream put back in so people
were willing to pay the extra two cents.
When he moved to St. Helens to
assume his sheriff’s duties, he brought
with him his wife, four sons and two
daughters. By the time they returned to
Vernonia, all of the children except Mil-
dred were grown and gone.
Mildred went to college to be-
come a teacher and returned to Vernonia
to teach third grade. When World War
II was in progress, she joined the Navy
and became a gunsight trainer stationed
on Treasure Island in San Francisco Bay.
Her service ended with an Honorable
Discharge in 1946. She then moved to
Pasadena, California, and trained as a
legal secretary and retired from that pro-
fession in 1982. She spent the remain-
der of her long life in California and was
honored for her WWII service on her
100 th birthday.
We are fortunate that her neph-
ew, Bill, recorded her memories of the
early days and vignettes of some of the
area’s earliest residents.
Tuesday, July 14, 1908: Hoed
some in the kale in the
morning. Went up to Clarks in
the afternoon to look after fire.
Today is my first day’s work as
fire patrol. Butchered a sheep
in the evening.
From Virgil Powell’s Diary
Virgil Powell (1887-1963) was
a long-time resident whose family had a
farm in the Upper Nehalem Valley be-
tween Natal and Pittsburg. Each year
from 1906 until 1955, he kept a regu-
lar diary of his activities. The summer
months were full of ball games and farm
chores.
Friday, July 24: Went up to
Clarks in the morning and
got back about 11. Rained a
little in the morning. Started
for the doings at Fishawk at
3:45. Jim went down with
me. Stayed in Mist for supper.
Got to Fishawk about 8:30.
Got back home at 4 A.M. Was
almost froze.
Saturday, July 18: Raked
hay and finished shocking at
noon. Took the hay rake home
in the afternoon. Started for
the dance at Mist at 7. Saw
Ada and had a dandy time.
Got home about 6:30 (a.m.)
and went up to the ball game
at Vernonia. Very hot all day.
Sunday, July 19: Started up to
the ball game between Natal
and Vernonia at 7:15. Played
ball in the afternoon. Score 18
to 14 in favor of Natal. Awful
hot all day. Got home at 6 P.M.
Tuesday, July 21: Hauled
hay all day. Very hot all day.
Went up to Clarks after supper.
Got back home about 9:30.
Received a letter from Alder
Grove Base-Ball Team.
Debit/Credit now accepted
10x20 $99
Saturday, July 25: Went up to
Clarks in the morning. Did
not get up till about 9. Started
for the dance at Natal at 6:45
and got down almost to Mist
and met Ada and she told
us that there would not be a
dance so came back. Got back
home about 9:45.
Monday, July 27: Hauled a
load of bark in the morning.
Went down below in the
afternoon to look after fire
and post some notices. Not very
warm any of the day. Went
up to the Post Office in the
evening. Got my buggy a year
ago today.
The Vernonia Pioneer Museum is located
at 511 E. Bridge Street and is open from
1 to 4 pm on Saturdays and Sundays (ex-
cluding holidays) all year. From June
through mid-September, the museum
is also open on Fridays from 1 – 4 pm.
There is no charge for admission but do-
nations are always welcome. Become
a member of the museum for an annual
$5 fee to receive the periodic newsletter.
We now have a page on the Vernonia
Hands on Art website, www.vernoniah-
andsonart.org. If you are a Facebook
user, check out the Vernonia Pioneer
Museum page. The museum volunteers
are always pleased to enlist additional
volunteers to help hold the museum open
and assist in other ways. Please stop by
and let one of the volunteers know of
your interest in helping out.
Vernonia
Veterinary Clinic
Small and Large Animals
Open
Mon, Wed & Saturday
9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Call for Appointments
(503) 429-1612
Or 24 hr. Emergency Number (503) 397-6470
700 Weed Ave. Vernonia, OR
Summer
is here!
See us for the lowest prices GUARANTEED!
10x10 $69
Thursday, July 16: Finished
cutting hay about 3 P.M. Went
over to Elliotts and brought
the rake over in the evening.
Cloudy most of the day. Went
down to Rays after supper
horseback and got Mart to
come up and help me in the
hay. Got home about 10.
Where do you read the Voice?
Show us where you have traveled.
Submit your photo with a brief description
by email to: scott@vernoniasvoice.com
Need more room?
5x10 $39
Wednesday, July 15: Jim Elliott
came over and cut hay for me.
Did not do much of anything.
Went up to Vernonia after
supper horse-back. Played
ball a little up there. Got back
about 10. Cloudy all day.
7
RV Storage $149
Outside storage available
Totally fenced and gated
Padlocks available
58605 Nehalem Hwy South • P.O. Box 292
Vernonia, Oregon 97064
(503) 429-7867
10-6 Tue-Sat
12-4 Sun
Green Mountain Grills & Pellets in stock!
Water Toys • Lawn Chairs
Camping Supplies • Coolers
Batteries • Sporting Goods
Family owned & operated for over 45 years
834 Bridge St., Vernonia (503) 429-6364