Image provided by: Friends of the Sandy Public Library; Sandy, OR
About Sandy post. (Sandy, Oregon) 1938-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 7, 1982)
Thur» . January 7. 1982 (Sac 2) SANDY (Ora ) POST 3 fierce s bear killing became legend by MICHAEL P. JONES P w l Correspondent She came to the moun tains as a refuge from the city sometime prior to the 1900s. and soon became one of Mt. Hood's most in teresting legends. Her name was E A Pierce, but she was better known as Grandma Pierce, or ‘the Bear Woman " She took up residence in Brightwood on what is now known as the Barlow Trail Road She lived in a two story , cedar «split by hand* house Grandma Pierce weigh ed less than a hundred pounds, and was a few in ches short of five-foot She was said to have been as rough as the bark on a tree, and meaner than a bear She had short, curly hair that was wound up on her head like a bun. but always ended up sticking out on the sides Most old timers describe her features as sharp, almost "w itch like ” They say her small, beady hazel- green eyes would sparkle, almost as if they could “see right through you ” Grandma Pierce was a legend It wasn't her self sufficient nature that made her a conversation piece. nor was it her ability to out work any man No. o i E A s claim to fame was a fight with a black bear She was armed only with a short handed hoe The fight occurred on March 6, 1914 Grandma Pierce was 70 years old. Needless to say. the inci dent created quite a stir amongst the community's m o re g o ssip in c lin e d residents And. the facts changed some as the story was passed along One bear later became two. then three and eventually it became a Grizzly A year later Grandma Pierce penned her own ac count of the fight, which was p u b lis h e d , and although a clipping re mains. no one knows what magazine or newspaper it came out of " I was working in my garden hoeing.” wrote Pierce, "when the woman at the next place came over and told me there had been a bear in her yard, and that her husband had gone to the neighbor’s after a gun and a dog ’ * While Pierce and the neighbor were waiting for the man's re tu rn , the chickens began to "make an awful noise." The bear was close at hand Grandma Pierce drop ped her hoe and made a beeline for the chicken house But by the time she got to the coop, that hungry old bear had a change in appetite The bear decided to dine on the m ilk cow in stead of the chickens. Pierce distracted the bear long enough to allow the cow a chance to escape Snarling mad. the bear made for the tiny and w irery grandma The old lady ran back to her garden where she pick ed up her hoe and stood her ground The neighbor yell ed for her to run. but she knew it would be fruitless A bear can outrun even the best ra c e h o rs e at a distance of :J50 yards “ I ’ll do my best," Pierce yelled to her neighbor, "but if you see I'm getting the worst of it. help me ” Pierce had killed hogs for food, but was now about to take on one of the most powerful creatures in the forest The bear, six foot tall when standing on its hind legs, and weighing about 350 pounds, made the situation appear helpless " I have killed many hogs and knew just where to s trik e to k i l l , ” w rote Pierce "So I raised the hoe and braced myself and waited for the bear to come right at me. "When he got almost to me he reared right up; then 1 struck him between the eye and the e a r—just where I aimed for He tumbled on his nose The first hit was no ac cident. but when he raised up again I hit him right in the same spot, that was an accident, as by that time I was getting a little ner vo us "B ut I never moved He fell again, then the third time he tried to raise I hit him again, not an eighth of an inch from the first hit He fell and never came up again " Pierce's third blow was the fatal one. but as she put it. she was taking no chances and "played the drum on his head" until she was positive the bear was dead. With the aid of neighbors, the bear was dragged into her house, where she skinn ed and tanned her trophy Grandma Pierce quickly became a heroine. Her bear killing tale put most hunters, who had their own whoppers to tell, to shame People came from miles around just to visit with the old woman. Lutie Bailey, who now lives in the lower W elches v a lle y , remembers that there was t' well beaten path from the early day resort (which was operated by her father, B illy Welch) to Grandma ESD gets the opportunity to polish closure system With w inter o ffic ia lly h e re , sch o o l s yste m s around the state had Mon day to polish their pro cedures for dealing with emergency closures from ice and snow For organizations like Clackamas Education Ser vice D istrict (ESD) the p ro b le m s c re a te d by emergency closures were many times more difficult. "T h re e fa cto rs com pound hazardous weather problems for our student tra n sp o rta tio n system ,” said ESD Superintendent Bob Burns "F irs t, the children we transport are those in our programs for the tra in a b le m e n ta lly retarded Many of these c h ild re n have o th e r physical handicaps as well, so they can’t take care of themselves in an emergen cy as well as a non handicapped child. "Also, our transportation system stretches over the entire county. Our 12 han dicapped transportation vans and wheelchair buses traveled almost a quarter of a m illion miles last year,’’ he added. "Road and weather conditions can change considerably as you cross the county. "F in a lly, students in our program may cross school district lines to attend a cla ssro o m in a n o th e r district A student may be picked up in one district 2 receive academic honors Two persons from Sandy received academic honors recently from the Oregon Institute of Technokgy in Klamath Falls recently, auto-diesel technology ma- eluded on the fall quarter Inclusion on the list re at least a 3.70 grade point John M Stroup, an elec technology major, was one fall quarter dean's list, quires that a student attain I • ’S where he lives and be bus ed into another district where there is a classroom suited to his particular needs. This can lead to con fusion when one district is open and the other is clos ed," Burns said The ESD, lik e most school districts in the t r i county area, is a member of the school announce ment system which an nounces school closures each morning over area radio stations In addition to the school announcement system, the ESD has five guidelines to help prevent confusion for parents and others who work with the handicapped transportation system ESD buses are based in Oregon City. If Oregon City School D istrict is closed due to bad weather, ESD buses w ill n o t ru n anywhere in the county. If the school district in which the student lives is closed as happened Mon day in Sandy, Welches, Cot tre ll and Bull Run districts, ESD buses w ill not pick up the student If a school district bet ween Oregon City and the student’s home is closed, such as Boring’s, the stu dent w ill not be picked up. This also applies if a school district is closed between the school district where the child lives and the school district where the classroom is located. I f the school d is tric t w h e re th e s tu d e n t’ s classroom is located is closed, then the bus w ill not pick the student up. In cases w here the students lives in the same d is t r ic t in w h ic h the classroom is located, the child is transported by the local school district is clos ed, the child w ill not be picked up either The sam e g e n e ra l guidelines apply if schools open late, and should hazardous weather require schools to end the school day early. According to Burns, the 12 ESD bus routes cross 24 of the 28 school districts in Clackamas County. He said that the ESD’s main concern during bad weather is for the safety of children. If there is any doubt about student’s safety, the ESD sometimes closes its classroom even if other districts stay open. ESD buses are also radio-equipped, and should the weather turn bad, the radio base station stays open as long as any ESD buses are on the road. Burns added that ESD bus d riv e rs c a lls the parents of students who ride their buses if the children w ill not be picked up r Speaker to discuss migrant workers An International Com munity Forum Luncheon, sponsored by Mt. Hood Community College and the G re sh a m A rea Chamber of Commerce, w ill c o n c e rn m ig ra n t workers, on Jan. 11 at noon in the Town and Gown Room at the college. The speaker w ill be Dr. Thomas Gonzales, presi dent of Linn-Benton Com- munity College. The topic is "M igrant Workers: Cur rent issues and future directions.” He w ill address the pre sent and future status of migrant workers, especial ly in relation to future agricultural systems. The cost for the buffet lunch and presentation is 14.75. For reservations, call 667-7313. Pierce's Bailey said that a visit to the area also would always include a stop at "Granny's place." which woud be a highlight of the excursion Bailey said that she can s t ill p ic tu re G randm a Pierce today, sitting on her fro n t p o rch ro c k in g , rehashing the events ot her match with the bear again and again In her hand would be a crude looking pipe, which she fashioned herself out of a cob of corn Next to her would be a |ug of "white lightening ” came from Bailey said that she never spoke of her past, but it was rumored to have been a bit on the shady side Grandma Pierce had two c h ild re n who live d in Portland, a son and a daughter, and they would visit occasionally She lived alone with with She had seemingly the her parrot and cat. and she largest and finest flower spoke to both when she and vegetable garden on wasn't talking to herself the mountain The p a rro t had a She raised her own hay, vocabulary that might be and naturally, cut it herself associated with that of an by hand old salty sailor Nobody knows lor sure Bailey said that Grand But Bailey 's memories ol where G randm a Pierce ma Pierce was also quite a cook Her biscuits were v e ry good. B a ile y remembers, as long as one didn’t break them open to see what the mice might have left behind in previous rendezvous in the flour sack Even when Grandma Pierce was whipping up a b a tch of her fam ous baking powder biscuits, it was difficult for Bailey to watch She had long fingernails that were generally filled with dirt from doing work in the garden " I used to cringe over that but I would just go out and look the other w ay," Photo courtesy of S I, TÍpitíñ Bailey said " I'd think, surely she puts them in that (•räntiin, Pierce Upon successfully com pleting the A ir Force’s six- week basic training course he w ill receive fu rth e r tra n in g in his chosen career field, mechanics. He w ill be e a rn in g c re d its to w a rd and associate degree in applied science through the Com munity College of the A ir Force w h ile a tte n d in g basic and other A ir Force technical training schools. hot oven That ought to disinfect them " Bailey also remembers Grandma’s artistic ability She made tiny little baskets out of straw from the field Bailey said that this task seemed almost impossible to her as Grandma Pierce’s hands "were all knarled up from hard work and ar th ritis " Bailey doesn't remember how old Grandma Pierce was when she died, nor even when she died She thinks the free spirited lady probably just dropped over working out in her garden one day But she'll never know for sure, nor does it really mat ter. for Grandma Pierce s t ill liv e s on in her memories •'She had a lo t of characteristics and traits that I think went into mak ing America." said Bailey "She was tough She could take it and she could make the most of nothing She wasn’t afraid of anything " Bailey said that her ad miration for the old bear woman has not ceased after all these years. 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