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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (March 3, 2017)
1B THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, MARCH 3, 2017 CONTACT US ewilson@dailyastorian.com (503) 325-3211 ext. 257 COMMUNITY FOLLOW US facebook.com/ DailyAstorian IN ONE EAR • ELLEDA WILSON ‘A MIGHTY FINE SHIP’ THE FISH FENCE istory buffs and aviation fans take note: Writer and retired fisherman Jim Bernard of Warrenton wrote in about his uncle, “a very famous pioneer of aviation,” Clayton L. Scott (pic- tured, courtesy of Boeing). According to a biography on the Boeing website (http://tinyurl. com/CLScott), Scott’s obsession with airplanes started in 1922, when he and his girlfriend hopped on a biplane in Seaside. “They charged $5 per person,” he recalled. “I counted my money and I figured I had $7. She had to come up with the other $3 — so we went for a ride from that beach.” He flew solo for the first time in 1927, and was the first pilot to land and take off on Boeing Field in Seattle in 1928. Unintention- ally. Bad weather forced him to land on the runway, which was still under construction. Scott is also the first pilot to fly a commercial transport across the Gulf of Alaska in 1929. In 1931, he landed a Keystone Loening amphibian on the Ocean Park Golf Course, which was designed by his father, Albert Scott, and a Portland golf pro. That same year, he met Bill Boeing, and became his personal pilot in 1934. His duties included flying celebrities like Howard Hughes, who was accompanied by Gin- ger Rogers. During World War II, Scott was a test pilot for Boeing planes such as the 240 Douglas DB-7B attack bombers. By 1943, he had more hours of B-17 Flying Fortress production check flying than anyone, flying more than 1,000 different B-17s. After the war, among the new aircraft he tested were jet bombers and passenger jets. By the time retired, he had accumulated about 8,000 hours of flight time. “On Clayton’s 100th birthday, he flew his own plane to a cele- bration at the Museum of Flight on Boeing Field to a crowd of over 350 locals,” Jim recalled. “Later, Renton field was renamed Clay- ton Scott Field and in his honor, a copper statue of Clayton marks the entrance to the field.” “Every new airplane was an improvement over the last,” Scott said of his long career. “Each one was a mighty fine ship to fly.” en Mittelbuscher, owner of the Crosby House Bed and Breakfast, came up with a creative way to solve a neighborhood problem. “In an effort to slow traffic down on Bond Street, where I live, I painted a big sign and mounted it to a pole,” he wrote. “It’s a warning — ‘Kiddie Corner.’ Unfortunately, that sign no longer deters the commuters at 5 p.m., or much any other time … Undeterred, he decided to build an eye-catching fence. “I notice as I worked on the fence, cars slowed and peo- ple even pulled over to gaze at my fence as they talked on cell phones,” Ken noted. “I realized my creative fence was getting attention. Specifically, they asked questions, and wanted to talk, as I was attempting to make adjustments (there were many). “I decided to cut the shapes of whales out of cedar fenc- ing boards. I couldn’t find the size, shape and poses I wanted. Instead, I went with fish. What I now call ‘The Fish Fence’ is completed on Bond Street … (A moon was added because of its) impact on the tides, and the tide’s effects on fish …” “Not only did the project come out OK,” he added, “traf- fic passes at a slower pace.” Mission accomplished. H SO LONG, SEALAND hile browsing through 1890s editions of The Daily Morning Astorian, an ad for the small town of Sealand, Washington seemed to pop off the page. Lots in the “coming county seat and commercial metropolis of Pacific County” were being sold by B. A. Seaborg for $50 (about $1,350 now) and up. But where was Sealand? “The Oregonian’s Handbook of the Pacific Northwest,” pub- lished in 1894, noted that Sealand was on Willapa Bay (then called Shoalwater Bay), and located a little south of Oyster- ville. “There is perhaps no part of the entire Pacific County peninsula which presents greater attractions than does Seal- and,” the handbook says, calling its advantages “considerably overlooked.” Of particular interest was Sealand as a “bathing resort,” away from the cold and turbulent ocean water. The abundance of Seal- and’s razor shell and Eastern clams was extolled, as was an “excellent hotel,” and the stores where tourists could “purchase the commodities of life.” The guidebook touted buying lots there, as the writer expected the lots to double or triple in value. So what happened to Sealand? According to “The Long Beach Peninsula: Where the Columbia Meets the Pacific,” by Donella J. Lucero and Nancy L. Hobbs (http://tinyurl.com/seaborgland), the town was killed by competition. Seaborg built Sealand on the north side of the Ilwaco Rail- way and Navigation Company’s railroad tracks as a tourist attrac- tion — a shady deal, since he was on the IRNC board, and knew where the end of the railroad line would be. A dispute arose with nearby Nahcotta, on the south side of the tracks, over which town should have the terminal. The railroad sided with Nahcotta, and after a lawsuit, two blocks of Sealand were given to the railroad for the terminal and roundhouse. Sealand did get its own post office, but it was moved to Nahcotta, and the game was over. Sealand’s fate was sealed, and it was eventually absorbed by Nahcotta. As for Mr. Seaborg, tired of all the fuss, he moved back to Ilwaco, where he entered a profession more suitable to his pro- clivities: Politics. W K WELCOME TO PACIFIC COUNTY ing Travel, the travel section of Jing Daily — the self-pro- claimed “leading digital publication on luxury consumer trends in China” — recently reported that seven U.S. areas have been ramping up their efforts to attract Chinese tourists who want to check out places that are off the beaten track (http:// tinyurl.com/JingPacCo). No. 3 on the list of those vying for those tourist dollars is none other than Pacific County, Washington. Initially drawn to the Seattle area by hit films like “Sleepless in Seattle,” Jing Travel reports that Chinese travelers are now looking for non-city “slower paced” places to visit. Since Pacific County fits the bill, the county has been producing promotional materials in Mandarin for the nonstop flights between China and Portland and Seattle, and even worked with the China Visit Tour USA to bring tourist delegations into the county last year. “While regional wines and breweries were included in the itinerary,” Jing Travel notes, “the biggest hits with the delegation were more ‘rural’ American experiences. The delegation loved the fresh seafood, cranberry bog and fishing experiences.” Well done, Pacific County. J SLIP SLIDING AWAY LOOK UP tatistician Sam Monfort has collated the sightings of UFOs in the 20th century from records kept by the National UFO Reporting Center on his blog, Visualize This (http://tinyurl.com/vizUFO), and has concluded that sightings are at an “all time high.” NUFORC, which says it’s “dedicated to the collection and dissemination of objective UFO data,” lists 104,947 recorded sightings in the 20th century since 1905, he says, one of the first being of a mysterious airship over Portland, as reported in The Oregonian. Monfort noted that sphere-shaped UFOS were among the first types spotted, but soon saucers were “dominating the scene” until the 1990s, when mysterious lights became the most often reported phenomenon. U.S. sightings are almost 300 times higher than the global median, and the most likely places for a UFO sighting are the West, but par- ticularly the Pacific Northwest. By the way, NUFORC already has 13 sighting reports from Oregon in 2017. Keep your eyes on the skies, folks. S ust because you don’t have enough to worry about: A “slow slip” earthquake is happening under Puget Sound along the Casca- dia Subduction Zone, the Seattle Patch reports (http://tinyurl.com/ pugetslip). You don’t need to panic, though, scientists say. This semi-annual event lasts about two weeks, according to the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network (PNSN) at the Univer- sity of Washington. What’s happening during a slow slip is that after 14 months of moving eastward, the Juan de Fuca tectonic plate stops, then starts moving westward, putting extra stress on the subduction zone. “Seismologists often refer to this as a ‘straw that broke the camel’s back’ scenario,” the Patch noted. “It’s loading up the edge of the lock zone of the Cascadia subduction zone more rapidly than normal tectonic processes would do,” Bill Steele, director of communications at the PNSN, explained. Even so, apparently the likelihood of a slow slip actu- ally causing a major Cascadia rip is slight. If you want to make yourself nervous, check out the shak- ing timeline on the Realtime Tremor Map at http://tinyurl.com/ pugetslip1 (a screen shot is shown). And you might want to stock up on your emergency supplies, anyway, though. Just in case. J JUST DUCKY ll right, Oregon Ducks fans, this one’s for you: The National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, has released the 1939 Ore- gon Ducks Men’s Basketball National Championship bobblehead. The press release says the Webfoots (the original, offi- cial name) won the first NCAA Tournament Champion- ship in 1939. Highlights from the championship win can be seen at http://tinyurl.com/webfootwin. The team was nicknamed the Tall Firs because of their size, and there was not a duck in sight. In case you’re wondering, appar- ently it was the press who came up with the Ducks name for the University of Oregon’s athletic programs. If nostalgia has you in its grip, and you really must have a 1939 Ducks bobblehead, you can order one at http:// tinyurl.com/bobbleduck A I DO, I DO, I DO … rom the Friday, March 8, 1889 edition of The Daily Morn- ing Astorian: Mrs. Nancy Clark Marshall Winkle Smith Frisbee McGre- gor Rawlins, a rich and somewhat masculine woman who owns valuable timber land in Western Oregon, has lately … (taken) unto herself her seventh husband. She went to San Francisco over the plains in 1849, and the uncertainties of border life have enabled her to gratify her taste for marital change without resort to divorce. Every one of her husbands was dead before another took his place. One was lost in a snowstorm, another was killed by Indi- ans, and a bucking horse assisted another out of the world. Hus- band seven is 28 years old. He was raised by the much-widowed woman, and calls her “Momma.” F COMMUNITY NOTES SATURDAY Detachment 1228 Marine Corps League — noon, Uptown Cafe, 1639 S.E. Ensign Lane, War- renton. For information, contact Lou Neubecker at 503-717-0153. Columbia Northwestern Mod- el Railroading Club — 1 p.m., in Hammond. Group runs trains on HO-scale layout. For information, call Don Carter at 503-325-0757. Astoria Fiber Arts Academy, 1296 Duane St. Bring a spinning wheel. For information, call 503-325-5598 or go to http://astoriafiberarts.com SUNDAY Line Dancing — 5:30 to 8 p.m., Seaside American Legion, 1315 Broadway. For information, call 503-738-5111. No cost; suggested $5 tip to the instructor. MONDAY Spinning Circle — 1 to 3 p.m., Chair Exercises for Seniors — 9 to 9:45 a.m., Astoria Senior Center, 1111 Exchange St. For in- formation, call 503-325-3231. Scandinavian Workshop — 10 a.m., First Lutheran Church, 725 33rd St. Needlework, hardanger, knitting, crocheting, embroidery and quilting. All are welcome. For information, call 503-325-1364 or 503-325-7960. Senior Lunch — 11:30 a.m., Bob Chisholm Senior Center, 1225 Avenue A, Seaside. Suggested do- nation $3 for those older than 60; $6.75 for those younger than 60. For information, call Michelle Lew- is at 503-861-4200. gested donation of $5 for seniors and $7 for those younger than 60. For information, or to volunteer, call 503-861-3502 Monday or Thursday. Columbia Senior Diners — 11:30 a.m., 1111 Exchange St. Cost is $6. For information, or to have a meal delivered, call 503-325-9693. Astoria Rotary Club — noon, second floor of the Astoria Elks Lodge, 453 11th St. Guests always welcome. For information, go to www.AstoriaRotary.org Warrenton Senior Lunch Pro- gram — noon, Warrenton Commu- nity Center, 170 S.W. Third St. Sug- Knochlers Pinochle Group — 1 p.m., Bob Chisholm Community Center, 1225 Avenue A, Seaside. Cost is $1 per regular session per person. Players with highest and second highest scores split the prize. Game is designed for play- ers 55 and older, but all ages are welcome. Mahjong for Experienced Players — 1 p.m., Astoria Senior Center, 1111 Exchange St. For in- formation, call 503-325-3231. See NOTES, Page 2B
