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THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2017
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IN ONE EAR • ELLEDA WILSON
‘KIND OF BAD, BUT PRETTY NEAT’
lobster was caught off New Brunswick, Canada, in late
November, with a Pepsi logo “tattoo” on one of his claws,
The Guardian reports (https://tinyurl.com/lobstertat). It is pic-
tured in a photo by Karissa Lindstrand, who discovered the crit-
ter in a crate, waiting to have its claws banded. She recognized
the logo immediately.
But how did it get there? One theory is the lobster grew up
around a can on the ocean floor. Another is that part of a Pepsi
box somehow stuck to the critter. Lindstrand doesn’t buy either
idea, and thinks it’s from a printed picture. “I’m still trying to
wrap my brain around what exactly it was,” she said.
The crustacean is a sad reminder of how pervasive ocean
debris is. The Center for Biological Diversity says there are an
estimated 15 trillion to 51 trillion pieces of plastic in the world’s
oceans, with particles being ingested regularly by fish, birds
and marine mammals, often with deadly results (https://tinyurl.
com/CBDiverse). The lobster was lucky to get away with just
a tattoo.
Unfortunately, Pepsi Claw wound up being sold. The cap-
tain of the fishing boat contacted the buyer to try to get it back,
to put on display in a local restaurant, but he was unsuccessful.
“I’m really wishing I would have kept it now,” said Lind-
strand. “It’s the first time I’ve seen something like that, and it
was pretty neat. Kind of bad, but pretty neat.”
A
‘SIDELIGHTS AND INCIDENTS’
MAPPING ASTORIA
K
en Mittelbuscher, aka Clatsop Ken, owner of the
Crosby House Bed and Breakfast on Bond Street,
has a new all-consuming project: Painting a painstak-
ingly detailed 4-foot by 4-foot map (pictured) of what
Astoria’s waterfront looked like in 1900. “I forgot how
to shoot pool, it sat on my pool table for so long,” he
noted.
“What really did it for me was realizing there are only
two ways to build in Astoria: cutting into the hillside or
over the tidelands.” In 1900, a good portion of the busi-
ness district was built on pilings over the river; several
areas that are filled in now were once small bays. You
can see the painting in more detail at https://tinyurl.com/
Ast1900
Not only does the map show the old street names in
red next to the new street names in white, various sec-
tions of the town are different colors. The painting even
shows the paths of both the 1883 and 1922 fires. As
detailed as it is, the project is incomplete — he has yet
to put in the trolley lines, and there are 2-foot panels that
will be added on each side.
To make the street numbers as accurate as possible,
and on the right side of the street, he said the book “Asto-
ria: An Oregon History” by Karen L. Leedom was “very
instrumental.” Liisa Penner at the Clatsop County His-
torical Society also lent a hand. If you have any infor-
mation to volunteer, or spot something wrong, you can
contact Ken at mittelbuscher@yahoo.com. “Anyone who
knows anything to contribute,” he said, “I’m definitely
interested.”
Ken is a volunteer Astoria Riverfront Trolley driver,
and he plans to put the painting up in the office at the
Trolley Barn. However, he’d be happy to loan it out if any
local business or nonprofit would like to display it. He’s
also available as a speaker about Astoria’s history.
“I love to demonstrate what Astoria was at one time,”
he said. “It’s better to share it than lose it.”
IN RUINS
oday is the 95th anniversary of the 1922 Astoria fire. As
reported in the Dec. 9 edition of the Nebraska State Journal,
30 blocks of the city were “in ruins,” with a property loss of $15
million (about $218 million now). In collateral damage, hundreds
of citizens were made homeless (https://tinyurl.com/AstFire1922).
Fire Chief E. B. Foster said the blaze got out of control because
it was burning in the pilings under the buildings in the business dis-
trict — the same thing that happened when the city burned in 1883.
Pictured, Astoria as it was in 1905, 14th and Commercial streets,
courtesy of Richard Thompson.
The Morning Astorian and Evening Budget’s new building was
destroyed, but publisher J.S. Dellinger still managed to put out a
mimeographed edition of the paper before moving to the presses of
the Finnish daily, Loveri.
Luckily, there were only two local casualties: Businessman
Notores Staples had a heart attack at the height of the fire; and
C. J. Smith, a transient, was found hanging under the sidewalk,
a suicide.
“We’ve got no town left, but we’ve still got the best harbor on
the Pacific coast,” Mayor James Bremner stated. “We will start
rebuilding at once on the old site. These things have happened
before, to us once … and (to) many other cities. Yet folks have
gone ahead and built bigger and better cities on the ruins. We hope
to do just that.”
T
PARTY WITH PIERCE
‘TOO TERRIBLE TO DESCRIBE’
he Dec. 10, 1922 Sunday Oregonian also featured “Side-
lights and Incidents” of the fire. Here are a few samples:
• Chris Jaeger, proprietor of the Jaeger confectionery,
appeared on the streets this afternoon in a borrowed automobile,
laden with a large cash register and a small basket of “sweets.”
• Several hundred safes, large and small, will not be opened
for at least five days. Should the strong boxes be opened now,
there is danger that the papers inside will burn.
• Smoke was still pouring from the giant chimney of the Asto-
ria National bank (pictured, right) tonight. The walls were badly
crumbled during the fire, but the huge stack remained intact.
• Mayor Bremner attempted to enter his office at the city hall
Saturday night, reports have it, but was denied the privilege when
confronted by a muzzle of a gun in the hands of a Navy guard.
Note: The city was kept under guard after the fire.
• Standing alone, like Noah’s ark on Mount Sinai, is the vault
of the Bank of Commerce.
• Astoria is fighting for its existence as it did almost 100 years
ago, and has discarded personalities, creed and class.
T
LIGHT ’EM UP
p for a Christmas light show with music? Head on over
to the Daniel Knight Warren House, 107 N.E. Skipanon
Drive in Warrenton. Mike and Teale Adelmann have put on
quite the display — there are six songs synchronized to approx-
imately 15,000 lights. To hear the music, tune your car radio to
95.7 FM. The show runs from dusk to 10 p.m. nightly until Jan. 1,
so hustle on over and get a healthy dose of some Christmas spirit.
U
ierce Christie is throwing a complimentary ‘Thank You
Astoria!’ holiday party to give back to his community,
which has so graciously provided him support during his stroke
and recovery this past year,” Pierce’s daughter, Heather Chris-
tie, wrote. “All are welcome to celebrate the season together.”
The party is from 8 to 11 p.m. tonight at the Merry Time Bar &
Grill, 995 Marine Drive.
Pierce, who is pictured, front and center, suffered a severe
stroke in September 2016. Initially, he was 90 percent paralyzed,
but he has worked hard to bounce back. A party is definitely in
order, and live music will be performed by the Jesse Lee Falls
Band, featuring Calen Uhlig on bass and Jeff Carden on drums,
plus surprise special guests. And, there will be complimentary
beverages and snacks.
“A life-long musician and pillar of the Astoria community,
many know Pierce as the founder of The Mallternative, his
eclectic music shop in Astoria,” Heather added. “He has men-
tored countless aspiring musicians over his many years running
the shop. Come on down, and help Pierce celebrate his first hol-
iday back home!”
‘P
here’s nothing like an eye-witness description of the
1922 Astoria fire, and Mrs. C. A. Lundberg, pro-
vided one to The Sunday Oregonian on Dec. 10, 1922:
“I saw that red blaze when it started and it frightened
me. … And then I saw it spring up in several places. They
tell me that the honeycomb foundations of the streets were
the cause of that.
“Alone in the house, I sat there with my eyes glued to
the window. I saw the fire run in four directions — blazes
here, a great blackness there, and then a blaze in another
place. It was not long until I knew that it was out of con-
trol. I could see crowds of men running about in the streets,
and when I opened the window once, I had to close it right
away because of the rain. I could hear shoutings about the
roar of the fire.
“If you have read Dante’s ‘Inferno’ you will have some
conception of what that awful red thing seemed to me. It
was too terrible to describe. At times I think the flames
went 200 feet in the air. The Columbia almost to the other
shore shone red. Why, I could even see the waves, it was
so light. But oh, it was weird! I never want to see anything
like it again.
“… Suddenly I knew it was day, and was glad. But it
was a dirty gray, that dawn, a dirty gray all shot with crim-
son. … Those next hours were dreadful, dreadful, I tell
you, and then somehow it got around that it was all under
control. It made me sick to walk down and see all that ruin
as I did yesterday afternoon.” A section of a Frank Wood-
field photo of the fire wreckage is shown.
“Just think, all those fine things all gone in smoke,” she
concluded. “And Astoria, do you think it will ever be a
town again? … It will be a terrible task. One would almost
pray at a time like this.”
T
IN PERFECT HARMONY
is the season: Britain’s University of Sheffield has invented
treegonometry, the mathematics of creating a harmonious
Christmas tree, a perfect balance of green and glitz. There is a
mathematical formula involving square roots, pi and tinsel, but
never mind, the university’s website offers a calculator (in centi-
meters) at http://tinyurl.com/xtreeformula. However, the formula
only tells you how much to add, not where to harmoniously place
things. For that, you and the tinsel are on your own.
’T
COMMUNITY NOTES
SATURDAY
Lower Columbia R/C Society —
8:30 a.m., back room at Uptown Cafe,
1639 S.E. Ensign Lane, Warrenton.
Local Academy of Model Aeronautics
(AMA) chartered radio control model
aircraft club meets for breakfast and
business. All model aircraft enthusi-
asts are welcome. For information,
call 503-458-5196 or 503-325-0608.
Chinook Indian Nation Council
Meeting — 11 a.m., Chinook Trib-
al Office, 3 E. Park St., Bay Center,
Washington. Meeting open to all tribal
members; attendees are reminded to
bring a potluck item. For question, call
the Tribal Office at 360-875-6670.
Sit & Stitch — 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.,
Homespun Quilts & Yarn, 108 10th St.
Bring knitting, crochet or other nee-
dlework projects to this community
stitching time. All skill levels welcome.
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.
Spinning Circle — 1 to 3 p.m.,
Astoria Fiber Arts Academy, 1296
Duane St. Bring a spinning wheel.
For information, call 503-325-5598
or go to http://astoriafiberarts.com
welcome to bring their own forge
and anvil setup. Metal available to
experiment with; coal is provided.
No charge, but donations to the
Camp 18 Loggers Memorial Muse-
um welcome. For information, con-
tact Mark Standley at 503-434-0148
or Herman Doty at 971-306-1043 or
ringinganvildesign@gmail.com
SUNDAY
Blacksmith
Enthusiasts
Meet — 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Camp
18 Blacksmith Shop, 42362 U.S.
Highway 26, Seaside. Participants
National Alliance on Mental
Illness (NAMI) Support Group
— 2 to 3:30 p.m., Seaside Public
Library, 1131 Broadway. Family to
Family Support Group, for anyone
with friend or loved one suffering
from a serious brain (mental) illness.
For information, contact Myra Kero
at 503-738-6165, or k7erowood@q.
com, or go to www.nami.org
p.m., Pioneer Presbyterian Church,
33324 Patriot Way, Warrenton.
Group discusses issues facing re-
ligious faith in the modern secular
world. All are welcome. For informa-
tion, call 503-861-2421.
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.
Chair Exercises for Seniors
— 9 to 9:45 a.m., Astoria Senior
Center, 1111 Exchange St. For in-
formation, call 503-325-3231.
Seekers Group — 6 to 7:30
See NOTES, Page 2B
MONDAY