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About Applegater. (Jacksonville, OR) 2008-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 1, 2012)
6 Winter 2012 Applegater BACK IN TIME Story of an old tintype BY EVELYN BYRNE WILLIAmS WITH JANEEN SATHRE It doesn’t take much to get sidetracked with my collection of old photos and the lack of more information about them. There is one old tintype of the Eagle Hotel built in Eagle Point by Arthur Poole (or Pool) in the mid 1870s. A dear friend, Vieva Saltmarsh, who lived up Little Applegate years ago, had a tintype and other old photos for me to make copies of. I asked Vieva why it was among her family photos and she said her husband, Glen, was related to the Pooles. At that time I didn’t continue with the research, but much later I found more information in Gaynell Krambeal’s 1979 book about Eagle Point . He stated the hotel was built by Arthur Poole, who was born on January, 8, 1834, in Bedford County, Pennsylvania. Arthur was a blacksmith by trade, but soon after his arrival in southern Oregon he opened the Eagle Hotel, which became a regular stop on the railroad between Portland and San Francisco. A book by Barbara Hegne, Unforgettable Pioneers, tells about Arthur and a neighbor. “At an earlier time in 1875, Arthur Poole and William Sutherland engaged in what the newspaper termed ‘an amazing bloodless encounter.’ These two families resided on Butte Creek and their children had the usual, your kids are beating up my kids, syndrome. The two fathers became involved in a typical over-the-fence argument, carried over from the children. The two fathers began shouting at each other and when that didn’t work they started pitching stones back and forth. Arthur Poole had the best advantage being on the outside of Sutherland’s yard. He used stones Sutherland had earlier thrown out of his yard to keep it clean. After several minutes of dodging rocks Sutherland saw he was definitely at a disadvantage. He rushed to his house, grabbed his pistol and began shooting wildly at Poole. Arthur’s blood ran cold when he saw how serious this was getting. He quickly hightailed it to notify the law. Sutherland was arrested and exanimated before Justice Tinkham. He was bound over in the sum of $200, which he furnished.” Getting back to the Eagle Hotel tintype photo, it may be the only one now in existence showing the unfinished building. There are children standing in the upper story opening and some boys sitting on the top of a lumber stack. Also, I find the slightly visible horse by the fence interesting. I think there must have been a double exposure of the tintype. I find it so engaging how one photograph can lead to another photograph or story about our local history. And so I can bring us back to the Applegate, Little Applegate to be exact, with the Saltmarshes. Arthur Poole had a daughter named Ella. It appears that she married a Cameron (well-known family in the Applegate); the research on why she has a second marriage (on November 24, 1881) to Joseph B. Saltmarsh will have to be saved for another day. Now Joseph already had several children by his first wife, who died in 1878 and is buried in the Sterling Cemetery. One of these, a son named Arthur Bird Saltmarsh, marries Ella’s (the stepmother) sister, Dora May Poole on April 10, 1886. They had four children: Lee, Dean, Ossie, and Glen. Arthur B. takes up a homestead on the Little Applegate River near the mouth of Yale Creek. Glen later farms this land where he and his wife Vieva live for many years. (Information on who married who is from John and Marguerite Black’s book, Ruch and the Upper Applegate Valley.) The photo of the Saltmarsh log house is one of my favorites. The workmanship with those logs is unbelievable. It is so sad that it was lost to fire in 1929. Of interest is Jason Hartman, who built the house in 1891 or 1892 and the barn in 1895, this being the same Jason Hartman who built the McKee Bridge in 1917. By the way, McKee Bridge is now in desperate need of funding to cover necessary repairs or we may lose this important part of our local history, too. Evelyn Byrne Williams with Janeen Sathre • 541-899-1443 Photo above: Eagle Hotel. Photos below, left to right: Eagle Hotel, barn, Saltmarsh log house Moving forward on the Middle Applegate Pilot BY JOHN GERRITSmA Implementation is ongoing at Pilot Joe, the first project of the Middle Applegate Watershed Pilot, while evaluation of restoration needs has begun for the next Pilot project, Pilot Thompson. Thus, there is a seamless expansion into the next phase of the demonstration of Norm Johnson’s and Jerry Franklin’s restoration principles upon which the Pilot was created. A multiparty monitoring group is tracking the implementation effort for consistency with the principles and guidelines for the project, while a collaborative planning effort will help to frame the next project. During the field preparation phase of Pilot Joe, a lot of effort was spent on locating and delineating the skips and gaps that are central to the restoration formula. The logging contractor and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) sale administrator have been working together to take the logging design into the operation phase and have had to overcome some obstacles in how the logging operation was first envisioned. This process is typical and very much akin to contractors working with their clients to make ongoing adjustments during construction. A field trip is being planned in late winter or early spring for interested community members to see the results and operations. The collaborative transportation team is evaluating the road system for Pilot Thompson. BLM’s silviculturist and wildlife biologists will have completed their evaluation of restoration needs for this next phase and the strategic placement of late successional emphasis areas by the end of January. It is expected that shortly thereafter the collaborative team will present this information to the community. At that point, with feedback from the community and input from the transportation team, BLM’s interdisciplinary team will begin the process of formulating a project proposal (likely March-April, 2012). In addition, there are community members on this team to help provide a social perspective on formulating project proposals and alternatives. There will be a public field trip during the spring (date to be determined) to the proposed restoration sites. Any projects that arise from this current round of planning will not be implemented until the 2013 fiscal year (beginning October 1, 2012). As with any new approach or process, there are usually more questions than answers. Not enough time has elapsed to address the many ecological questions that were raised. Nor can much be said about the efficacy of this approach in managing the Oregon and California forests for sustained yield and revenues. Several suggestions have been made, including providing more pertinent and up-to-date information on the website about the Pilot projects, and better integration/ communication with the Applegate Fire Plan effort. Incorporating these suggestions is just part of the adaptive process of the Pilot. The Pilot is very much aligned with the western states governors’ efforts to see that fire resiliency and restoration treatments occur more rapidly and over an effective-sized landscape (generally in the realm of 10 to 20 thousand acres). Oregon’s governor is also very supportive of high levels of collaboration. County officials and the governor are very concerned about generating revenues for county governments and functions. Thus, the Pilot has the ability to address these social concerns. Indeed, we can claim credit for a more robust and transparent process that resulted in widespread community participation, understanding and support for this project. In the current climate of administrative protests, appeals and litigation over timber management on public lands, we have made apparent progress in the social arena. Perhaps we are building a new way to manage public lands, together. Only time will tell. For more information on the Middle Applegate Watershed Pilot, please go to www.blm.gov/or/districts/medford/ forestrypilot/. You will access a plethora of information, including upcoming public events. John Gerritsma Ashland Resource Area Field Manager Medford District Bureau of Land Management 541-618-2438 john_gerritsma@blm.gov
