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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 21, 2015)
2C THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, AUGUST 21, 2015 HISTORIC PHOTOS OF THE WEEK Photos courtesy of Cannon Beach History Center and Museum The Ecola Toll Road had 111 hairpin curves. The Ecola Toll Road By ELAINE TRUCKE Special to The Daily Astorian T he photo above shows the Eco- la Toll Road with its 111 hairpin curves. The Ecola Toll Road ran from Sea- side to Cannon Beach. The journey from Portland to Cannon Beach in, let’s say 1890, would take seven-and-a-half hours. Travelers would catch a train in Portland to Astoria, then another train from Astoria to Seaside (operating only in the summer); finally catching a stage coach in Seaside to take the toll road and its 111 curves to Cannon Beach. Once visitors arrived at Cannon Beach, they would vacation at the coast for weeks at a time, often staying the whole summer, and thus became a part of the community. There were a variety of reasons for these long-term stays, but one of the most important was that before the time of good cars and good roads, it took time and trouble to reach coastal resorts. It was once seven hours from Portland to the coast, on roads so wind- ing that nausea was a condition of the trip. Eventually the road ceased to be a toll road and the advent of mechanical cars made the trip a little easier. How- ? 9-1-WHAT? THE BEST OF THE WORST CALLS TO ASTORIA 911 DISPATCH ever, it wasn’t until 1950 that a new highway between Seaside and Cannon Beach eliminated the 111 curves, mak- ing the trip from Portland to the coast just an hour-and-a-half. Elaine Trucke is the executive director of the Cannon Beach History Center and Museum. Arrgh! S o now we have pirates and what not. The invasion continues at the Goonies house. And people seem to be losing their patience with noise. We particularly enjoyed the exchange between the emergency dis- patcher and a caller who complained about loud club music about the proper use of 911. But, hey, we hate club music, too. Follow reporter Kyle Spurr on his 9-1-What? Twitter watch, where a few of the sometimes head-scratching calls to area dispatch take center stage. The full feed is at www.twitter.com/9_1_WHAT. 3 W AY S TO GE T Y O U R CO PY TOD AY ! OR DER ON LIN E w w w .DiscoverO urCoast.com /order S TOP BY ON E OF OU R 3 LOCATION S A storia • 949 Exchange St. Seaside • 1555 N . Roosevelt Dr. Long Beach • 205 Bolstad A ve. E. #2 o r CALL HOLLY LAR K IN S at 503-325-3211, x227 Em ail: hlarkins@ dailyastorian.com