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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